NASCAR driver, Kentucky native visits Owensboro

December 4, 2018 | 2:06 am

Updated December 4, 2018 | 7:33 am

NASCAR driver Ben Rhodes visits the Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame as part of his tour of Owensboro with Blake Smith, host of Hot Laps with Blake Smith. | Photo courtesy of Blake Smith

It was a packed house at Skillz VR Arcade with NASCAR driver Ben Rhodes in Owensboro for the first time Monday night.

Rhodes, a Louisville native, took a full tour of Owensboro throughout the day as a guest of Blake Smith, who hosts Hot Laps with Blake Smith, a live online radio show for Bluegrass Motorsports Media.

Rhodes drives the No. 41 Ford F-150 for ThorSport Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The 21-year-old visited several places in the city before joining Smith on the radio show Monday night.

Rhodes’ schedule for the day included a visit to the Apollo High School FFA program, the Owensboro Community and Technical College automotive education department, Windy Hollow Speedway/Dragway, Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame & Museum, Kentucky Motor Speedway and the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum. He went to dinner at Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn and finished with the Hot Laps show at Towne Square Mall.

Smith, who has known Rhodes for a couple years, said he was excited to bring the young driver to the area.

“With the Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame being in Owensboro and it’s rich racing history, I wanted to invite Ben to come into town to experience Owensboro and that racing heritage, especially with the Owensboro-Daviess County Motorsports Festival coming in 2019,” Smith said.

Smith said Rhodes is a class act not only behind the wheel, but with everyone he encountered.

“It is important to show the love for racing in this area and state is still strong,” Smith said. “With the big names such as the Greens, Waltrips and Mayfield all stepping out from behind the wheel, there is a new generation of Kentucky racing in Ben Rhodes. He is well on his way to being in the Kentucky Motorsports Hall of Fame.”

Rhodes said his visit to Owensboro was great and he’s excited to come back.

“Blake is an awesome host,” he said. “Saying he did the nickel tour wouldn’t be right, he gave me the full dollar tour. I really enjoyed it. I met a lot of awesome people and learned a lot of new things.”

Rhodes said the hospitality he received was amazing and he was glad he had the chance to visit the area and learn more about the history of the racing and how it relates to Kentucky.

While Rhodes is one of the first big Kentucky names on the show, Smith said he has some plans to bring national icons onto the radio program in the coming months.

“With the offseason in racing, it allows more flexibility in their schedules to be able to come pay a visit to Owensboro,” he said. “I have a couple of big names joining us in January on the program. I am excited about this opportunity and have big plans for throughout the season.”

Hot Laps with Blake Smith is recorded live on the first Monday of the month at Skillz VR Arcade and hosts a variety of people in the local racing scene.

December 4, 2018 | 2:06 am

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