Southside Speedway is one of several short tracks in Virginia where famous Late Model and NASCAR drivers like Ray Hendrick and Denny Hamlin started their legendary racing careers. Along with hosting weekly division races since the 1950s, the track has also hosted several NASCAR-sanctioned events throughout its long history, as well as the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown, which ran at Southside from 2008 until 2010.
On the evening of September 15, 2017, twelve Late Models took to the track for the final race in the 2017 Late Model season at Southside Speedway. Among them was 16 year-old Grayson Cullather from Richmond, Virginia, who entered the weekend second in points behind Late Model veteran Eddie Johnson. After posting the fastest time in qualifying, Cullather worked his way to the lead on Lap 7 after starting in third due to an invert, and quickly pulled away from the rest of the field to score his first Late Model victory,
“It was super, super exciting,” Cullather said. “It was a long-time coming for us. We’ve been trying really hard to get a win this year. We spent a lot of time focusing on the setup for this past weekend, and that helped us get the win.”
While most teenage athletes would rather focus on playing football or basketball, Cullather spends his time working on his Late Models, constantly looking for ways to make them better. He adopted that trait from his great-grandfather Bill Croxton, who owned and worked on his own racecars during the 1960s. Cullather found his love for auto racing by watching NASCAR races on TV with Croxton, which eventually convince Cullather to begin his racing career by driving U-Cars at the age of 14.
Cullather transitioned into Late Models in 2016 with the help of former racer Greg Fernandez, and earned Rookie of the Year honors in Southside’s Late Model division at the end of the season. In 2017, Cullather has attempted to expand his racing schedule, earning Top 10’s in both of his CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour starts at Dominion Raceway, and qualifying for the Hampton Heat at Langley Speedway. Cullather has enjoyed running more races this season, but admitted that an expanded schedule puts a lot of stress on the team.
“It’s been challenging at times,” Cullather said. “We’ve been trying to do the best that we can this year. We don’t have the resources that most of the other top teams have, but we want to go out each race and score a Top 5, and maybe lead a couple of laps. At the end of the day, we just want to have a good showing.”
After finishing a disappointing 24th in the Hampton Heat, Cullather is now turning his attention towards the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway. He was one of 93 drivers who arrived at the historic short track for the annual Martinsville test session last Thursday, but unlike many of his fellow competitors, the test session marked the first time that Cullather had been to Martinsville as a driver. Cullather used Thursday as an opportunity to take in all of the history behind Martinsville, while simultaneously working on his car to prepare for his first laps at the track.
“It was super nerve-wracking at first, being on the track where Dale Jr., Denny and Jimmie race at twice a year,” Cullather said. “Once I got on the track, it was the most fun I had ever had in a Late Model. It was a surreal experience.”
After Cullather made several runs in the evening and at night, he was able to make several comparisons between the contrasting conditions, noting that the track felt greasy in the daylight, and that it became more tight and gained more grip as nightfall engulfed the track. However, Cullather knows that he is not guaranteed a starting position in the main event, and hopes to have a strong qualifying run in order to survive the heat races and avoid the last chance qualifier.
Cullather will also have a strong field of drivers to contest with if he wants a shot at a grandfather clock, including 3-time ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner Philip Morris, who had one of the fastest cars in the Martinsville test session. The odds will be against Cullather and his family-owned team when the green flag drops this weekend, but he knows that a strong showing at Martinsville could be crucial in building on the momentum that he established at Southside for the rest of this season, and into next season.
The ValleyStar Credit Union 300 is NASCAR’s biggest, richest and most prestigious Late Model Stock Car race. The day starts with three 25-lap heat races to set the field, followed by a 25-lap “last chance” heat. Tickets for the September 23rd event are on sale now and can be purchased by calling 1-877-RACE-TIX or online at www.martinsvillespeedway.com.
