Solid Rock Carriers has signed a multiyear agreement to be the title sponsor of the CARS Tour, beginning in 2020.
Solid Rock Carriers, which is owned and operated by Kirk Ipock, will be the primary entitlement sponsor for the CARS Tour for the next two seasons. Ipock has been active in the sport in the past few years, sponsoring various drivers and racetracks – predominantly Carteret County Speedway and Southern National Motorsports Park in Eastern North Carolina. Both tracks, and many of the drivers he sponsors, have been part of the CARS Tour for multiple seasons.
“I followed racing all my life,” Ipock told Race22. “I’m 58 years old, been a NASCAR fan for many years. About four years ago, I was introduced to local short track racing. Carteret County and Southern National are my home tracks. My heart is with them. The CARS Tour to me is just like, they have got it going on. The racers enjoy the series, the fans follow it. I know a lot of the drivers and team owners. Jack [McNelly] and I sat down, and I spoke with different people and got their input.”
The CARS Solid Rock Carriers Tour will become more lucrative to competitors next season. Already, during the offseason, the tour has announced multiple incentive programs on the Super Late Model series to compliment the enticements that already exist in the CARS Late Model Stock Tour.
On top of the previously announced incentives, the series announced on Saturday that the purse in both divisions of the CARS Tour will increase by 12.5 percent and Touring 12 drivers will get a case of beer for each race. Additionally, state champions will also get a $200 bonus for entering a CARS Tour race.
“Solid Rock Carriers and the CARS Tour will be beneficial to drivers for the next two years,” Ipock explained. “Every bit of this is going back to the drivers. I just want to give back to the drivers. Ever since I’ve got in racing, that’s all I’ve ever done is help people, and I feel like I can continue to help them in this way. This is going to help every driver that runs in the CARS Tour, whether they start 28th or finish 28th.”
Ipock has been involved in racing for years and has made many friends inside the sport, including longtime friendships with Super Late Model racers Jody Measamer and Jay Fogleman, as well as Carteret County Speedway workhorse Steve Castellucci. In recent seasons, Ipock has become a more notable presence through sponsorship of drivers such as Mason Diaz, Tate Fogleman, Timothy Peters, Bobby McCarty, and many others in the CARS Tour and in Eastern North Carolina.
“It’s exciting to have a series sponsor coming on board who is very involved in the sport and is really wanting to give back to the competitors,” CARS Tour series director Chris Ragle said. “That’s the main focus of the sponsor, while also working on brand recognition and things we have to offer. It’s a big step for CARS Tour.”
Solid Rock Carriers, which is based out of LaGrange, North Carolina, is a trucking business that transports refrigerated products and has been in business since 1997, according to a Carteret County Speedway event program. The name, which often has people in the sport believing Solid Rock Carriers transports rocks and stones, is derived from the Hymn “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less,” which states, “On Christ, the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.”
The company has over 50 employees and operates a fleet with over 30 trucks.
Solid Rock Carriers was the title sponsor of the series season opener at Southern National Motorsports Park last season and has sponsored the CARS Tour race at Carteret County Speedway the past two seasons. Last year’s Southern National event paid $10,000-to-win in both divisions while the Carteret County race had an enhanced purse paying out around $40,000 in total.
“We feel like we need to go to the next level and we’re really excited about it,” Ragle continued. “It’s coming from a sponsor that knows the series and what we have to offer, has been there and knows our product. It’s really exciting to have Solid Rock Carriers on board. We can’t thank Kirk Ipock and the folks at Solid Rock Carriers enough for jumping on board.”
The 2020 CARS Tour season will get underway at Southern National Motorsports Park on Saturday, March 7th.
