LUCAMA, NC – Four-time Southern National Motorsports Park track champion Jamey Caudill has his sights set on a strong run in Saturday’s Folsom Fence Supply 125 and potentially races throughout the rest of Speed Week.
Caudill made his return to Southern National last fall in the Thanksgiving Classic where he rebounded from a mid-race incident to finish sixth. He also competed at Martinsville Speedway and North Wilkesboro Speedway last fall. After testing on Wednesday, Caudill was happy with his car and optimistic about his chances of being competitive against the zMAX CARS Tour field on Saturday.
“We got a really good car,” Caudill said. “Real happy with it today. We were good for the Thanksgiving race. We really didn’t get to show it, I don’t think, what we did have. We got caught up in the little skirmish up there with Lee and Josh and knocked the toe out. The car’s driving good and I think we got a little speed.”
If things go well, Caudill will be back for the Jerry Moody Memorial on Wednesday night, honoring an old friend.
“It would mean a lot,” Caudill stated. “We missed the first race. We weren’t able to run it. Hopefully wel’ll get through Saturday. We can’t plan beyond that. Our main plan is focus on Saturday and the CARS Tour race and see how that goes and we’ll plan from there.”
Caudill raced for Jerry Moody for three seasons. After Jerry Moody passed away in 2013, Caudill helped his daughter, Haley Moody, compete at Southern National Motorsports Park where she won a Limited Late Model championship in 2014.
“A t the end of 1996, I was out of a ride and didn’t have anything there and I met Jerry and he gave me a chance to drive his car,” Caudill recalled in a longform article written about the Moodys on Race22 in 2015. “We went to the big fall race at Myrtle Beach, the same race and weekend that he passed away on was the same race I ran for him there. We won championships at Southern National all three years we ran there.”
In the Race22 longform, Caudill also reflected on Moody’s personality.
“He definitely was very quiet, didn’t say a lot but he was a very decisive man,” Caudill explained. “He didn’t think long to make decisions, and they were smart decisions most of the time. The biggest thing with Jerry, if he told you something, you could bet your life on it. He didn’t talk just to be talking. He meant what he said when he told you something. He would get worked up during the race, but he didn’t show it. He walked many laps in the pit, but he would never show his emotions. Can’t say I’ve ever seen him really get mad. I knew he was upset at times, but he didn’t ever show it.”
Caudill is one of three drivers who has his name enshrined with a section of grandstands named after him, along with Deac McCaskill and Matt McCall.
“It’s an absolute honor to be able to do what you love and be recognized for some of the accomplishments. My daughter didn’t get to see me race much and for my name to be up there means the world to me. Thanks to, and very much appreciate the Diaz family.”
While Caudill has an extensive background in late model racing, he has predominantly raced in drag racing for the better part of the last decade.
“That’s mainly our living. We work during the day, mainly on drag cars and drag racing,” Caudill said. “Thanks to Bobby Hall Motorsports, we’re getting to run a few races. We’re going to run a few races. We’re gonna run a few races this year and we’re working toward trying to land a lease deal and get somebody in the car eventually. We’re going to run a limited number of races and see if we can get the program where it needs to be.”
Caudill’s efforts are backed by SPC Mechanical, Liberty and Plenty Distillery, Labrador Sport Fishing, and Hy-tech Coatings.
The Folsom Fence Supply 125, which is part of a Saturday doubleheader, will take place Saturday afternoon following the KevinSaysYes.com 100 which goes green at 3:00pm. Late Model Stock Cars will also be in action on Wednesday, March 4 through Saturday, March 7 as part of Speed Week presented by Folsom Fence Supply at Southern National Motorsports Park. Tickets are available for each race.
