The Discovery Channel is coming to Owensboro this weekend to film their primetime show, “Street Outlaws: Memphis.” Renowned Memphis street racer, JJdaBoss is bringing in some of the best local and national talent in the business for some prime time racing at Windy Hollow Dragway.
The campground and Speedway are set to host their largest event ever this weekend with JJ’s Arm Drop and Car Show. The dragway partnered with well-known drag racing groups, the Memphis Street Outlaws and the Eyeballerz to organize an event like no other.
Partial owner at Windy Hollow, Trevor Hutchings spoke volumes about what this meant for the community and their facility.
“It means a lot to us – It’s bringing a lot of new people to Owensboro,” Hutchings said. “The track has been shut down for nearly 10 years, to be able to have the Discovery Channel here is a big deal.”
JJ’s Arm Drop features a small tire event on Friday and a big tire event on Saturday with pay-outs of up to $10,000. Racing is set to begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, and 1 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets for the event are $20 for Friday and $30 for Saturday and can be purchased at tickets.thefoat.com/JJDaBoss. Children under the age of 12 can attend the event for free.
JJdaBoss and his Memphis crew actually sought out Windy Hollow because they felt that their drag way best simulated a real street course. JJ’s manager, Pam Kendrick spoke highly of Windy Hollow’s facilities, referring to them as the perfect fit for their event.
“It’s a good ole’ street race,” Kendrick said. “It allows us to bring street racing to a safe environment.”
Windy Hollow’s drag strip still features the same concrete as when it was constructed. The track has no intention of doing any prep work prior to the races in an effort to maintain the street feel. The only real difference between the strip and a street is guard rails that will provide added safety.
“We are looking forward to providing a safe opportunity for locals to experience a live street race,” Hutchings said. “We are hoping for 7,000-10,000 people – it would be the biggest event we’ve ever held here.”
The increase in expected attendance is directly attributed to JJ and his Memphis crew. Their Discovery Channel show, Street Outlaws: Memphis has generated quite the following over the past few years. The track expects folks from all across the country to visit Owensboro this weekend.
“We are looking forward to the event – the town has been awesome,” Kendrick said. “The folks at the track have been great to work with as well – it’s a great fit for us.”
“It’s a cool deal that JJ wanted to be a part of Windy Hollow,” Hutchings said.
In addition to the high stake races, there will be a car, truck, and bike show on June 22 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. that features some of the finest classic cars, trucks, and bikes in the area. Windy Hollow will essentially provide a sense of ‘heaven on earth’ for car lovers from all over this weekend.
Lee Humphrey, a member of the Eyeballerz organization, began organizing car shows in 2015 to commemorate the death of his brother-in-law, Johnathan Gray. Gray was tragically killed by an impaired driver and the group hopes to also bring awareness to the effects of impaired driving.
“One of the reasons we wanted to help organize this show was to get the Eyeballerz name out there,” Humphrey said. “We want to be the car show name in the community.”
The event is limited to 300 cars and 100 motorcycles with JJdaBoss set to be the judge and presenter. Winners will receive custom trophies crafted out of engine parts by the Eyeballerz and opportunity to have their picture taken with JJ.
The Eyeballerz will host their own annual car show on September 21 at Meyer Creek Park in Calhoun, KY.
“This is a great opportunity for us, especially with the television coverage,” Humphrey said. “JJ wanted a car show for the event and we were more than happy to help with filling that void.”
