Posted on 06/08/2005 2:54:05 PM PDT by don-o
Larry Carrier - BLUFF CITY BLUFF CITY — Larry Carrier, age 82, of 182 Essex Drive, Bluff City, TN, best known for the building of Bristol International Raceway, went to be with the Lord, on Tuesday, June 7, 2005, after a long illness. His personal philosophy of “putting back” made a significant difference in the quality of life in the Tri-Cities Tennessee/Virginia Region.
His keen sense of business and his deep-rooted Christian family values resulted in phenomenal success in a variety of business ventures. Born and raised in Bristol he was the son of the late Hugh and Bessie Offield Carrier. Larry graduated from Tennessee High School and attended King College. As a successful contractor in the 1950s and 1960s he built several subdivisions and commercial properties and was chosen “Builder of the South” by the Southern Pine Bureau, but the best was yet to come.
He, along with partners Carl Moore and R.G. Pope, built Bristol International Speedway in 1960. With the first NASCAR sanctioned race held in 1961 their unparalleled vision became a reality. Upon the approval from NASCAR, with whom Larry had a close relationship, he was able to repurchase the facility from businessman Warner Hodgdon in 1985, while it was mired in bankruptcy.
Larry worked tirelessly to bring the race track back to prominence, and for five years in a row it was named “Track of the Year” by ESPN and was, and still is, consistently voted the fans’ favorite NASCAR race track. Larry sold the race track in 1996 at the age of 74.
Among Larry’s other business ventures was Larry’s Lane Bowling Alley, now Belmont Lanes, and he was the founder of the World Boxing Federation. The World Boxing Federation went on to sanction events in 48 foreign countries with offices in London and Melbourne, Australia.
He was also founder of the International Hot Rod Association, in which his sons, Mark and Andy, now own a team. Larry was also instrumental in putting racing “on the map” by introducing R.J. Reynolds to drag racing, ESPN to drag racing, and ESPN to NASCAR.
He was the innovator of the promotion of night racing, giving ESPN the exclusive rights to televise Bristol’s night race for nearly nothing for several years. He said if fans watched it on TV, they’d come to Bristol to see racing in person and he was right.
Larry was inducted into the Drag Racing Hall of Fame. He was honored and recognized as an outstanding citizen by the state of TN in 1990 for his achievements in stock car racing. Larry was the first inductee into the Citizens Hall of Fame in 1991, and would later become a member of both the East Tennessee Hall of Fame and the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. He had a love for horses which grew from a hobby to become another business venture. He was an honored member of Who’s Who Worldwide and listed in the Who’s Who Registry of Global Business Leaders. He had several World Champion Horses, and was deeply involved with the horse industry for many years.
He owned All American Campground in Bluff City, TN and Tri-Cities Golf Club in Blountville, TN. In addition to his many business ventures, he had a strong commitment to the community and its young people. He organized boys boxing clubs in the region with a program “Winning in Life: Not Just the Ring.”
Larry was one of the original founders of the Bristol Rescue Mission, served his country in the United States Army and was a member of First Baptist Church of Blountville, TN. He also served on the Bristol Tennessee Electric System’s Board.
He is survived by his wife Shirley Ingle Carrier; Daughter, Carolyn Carrier of East Bend, NC; Sons: Larry Carrier, Jr. of Atlanta, GA, Mark I. Carrier and wife Sherry of Johnson City, TN, Andy Carrier of Blountville, TN; Grandchildren: David Freeman, Bret Carrier, and Mackenzie Carrier. Preceded in death by a brother: Carmack Carrier.
Funeral services will be held on Thursday, June 9, 2005, at 8:00 pm in the First Baptist Church of Blountville with Dr. Clay Austin officiating. Committal services will be held at 11:00 AM Friday in Glenwood Cemetery. Pallbearers include: Wayne Stophel, Mike Belcher, Ron Scalf, Buddy Talbert, Gary Mitchell, and Ted Jones. Honorary pallbearers will include former and present employees & Friends of the Family. The family will receive friends on Thursday, June 9, 2005, from 5:00 to 7:45 PM at the First Baptist Church of Blountville prior to the service. Those desiring may make memorials to the Haven of Rest Rescue Mission at 624 Anderson Street, Bristol, TN 37620. Online condolences may be registered at www.Weaverfuneralhome.net. Weaver Funeral Home is assisting with arrangements.
can y'all ping the NASCAR?
_______________________________________________
By Jeff Birchfield
Press Sports Writer
jbirchfield@johnsoncitypress.com
Larry Carrier built what is yearly ranked the NASCAR fans’ favorite race track. He founded one of America’s top racing sanctioning bodies with the IHRA. Yet, some feel the Bristol Motor Speedway founder never got his due among the racing community.
“He was a true visionary,” said Bristol Motor Speedway Jeff Byrd. “He wasn’t appreciated enough. He belongs in the same sentenence as (NASCAR founder) Bill France, Sr., (NHRA founder) Wally Parks and the Hulman family at Indy.
“I don’t know if the industry outside of the local area, ever gave him enough credit.”
Byrd was working as a representative of the R.J. Reynolds when he first met Carrier in a business capacity.
“He was a guy of the highest integrity, very honorable in his dealings with RJR,” said Byrd. “When R.J. Reynolds went to Larry about sponsorship, he said he would be glad to have us.
“He told us if we wanted to see all that drag racing could do for them we also needed to see NHRA. He not only introduced Winston to the IHRA, but to its biggest competitor.”
Denny Darnell, now a representative for NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne, served as Vice President and General Manager of Bristol Raceway from 1985-’88 working directly with Carrier. “He gave you the opportunity to do the job, be creative with the promotions,” said Darnell. “He was one of the first track owners to offer group tickets when he gave the Boy Scouts tickets for the Friday night Busch Series races.”
He laid the foundation to change Bristol Raceway from simply an auto racing facility to the largest sports stadium in the state of Tennessee.
“His greatest contribution may have been brokering a deal with ESPN to show the Busch races along with the Cup races,” said Darnell. “He not only built Bristol, but got people all over the country to see racing at Bristol live.
“In those days half of the business came from walk-up ticket sales the day of the race. He got calls from five or six track operators questioning why he would televise the races live.
“We now know it paid dividends not only for Larry’s era, but once Bruton (Smith) took the track over.”
Both Darnell and Byrd agree that the IHRA facilities under Carrier were ahead of those in the rival NHRA.
“When Larry started IHRA it was comparable to NHRA in every facet,” said Darnell. “They had better tracks, paid better money and was a viable competitor. He solidified drag racing when he brought Winston into IHRA and NHRA.”
NHRA President Tom Compton also passed his condolences to the family, praising Carrier’s innovation.
Darnell also spoke of Carrier’s death in the context with the loss of other veteran NASCAR track founders.
“Motorsports has lost part of its foundation,” said Darnell. “Paul Sawyer at Richmond, Clay Earles at Martinsville, Enoch Staley at Wilkesboro and L.G. Dewitt at Rockingham, they are the guys this sport was built on. Larry Carrier stands at the top of the list.”
He built Bristol? We could use a few more tracks like that one. R.I.P. Mr. Carrier.
___________________________
BMS builder Larry Carrier dead at 82
06/08/2005
By JEFF BOBO
Kingsport Times-News
BRISTOL, Tenn. - Larry Carrier, who had the vision and foresight 45 years ago to turn a Bristol dairy farm into what would become the nation's most popular NASCAR stock car racing venue, died Tuesday morning at the age of 82.
In 1960, Carrier, an accomplished building contractor at the time, built the half-mile oval Bristol International Speedway along with partners Carl Moore and R.G. Pope. He got the idea after attending a race in Charlotte, N.C., but instead of mirroring the 1.5-mile D-shaped Charlotte track, he and his partners opted for the more intimate setting allowed by a half-mile oval.
The first NASCAR-sanctioned race at what is now Bristol Motor Speedway occurred on July 29, 1961, with Jack Smith taking home the victory in front of a capacity crowd of 18,000 fans.
A few years after opening the speedway, Carrier and Moore built Bristol International Dragway and started their own sanctioning body, the International Hot Rod Association in 1965. Carrier sold the dragway along with the speedway to current owner Bruton Smith in 1996.
"Larry Carrier brought motorsports to Bristol," BMS President Jeff Byrd said Tuesday. "He had the foresight to know that NASCAR was going to be something big, and he went out and built one of the greatest facilities of that time in 1961. Then a few years later he started his own sanctioning body with the International Hot Rod Association and built a world-class dragway.
"Larry was certainly a leader in the racing industry. His contributions to Bristol and the world of motorsports were monumental, and he will certainly be missed by all that were fortunate enough to know him or work with him. Our thoughts and prayers are with Shirley and the entire Carrier family."
Carrier and his partners originally planned to build the track in Piney Flats, but that plan was scrapped due to opposition from local residents. So they moved five miles up the road to a dairy farm on Highway 11-E.
Purchase of the land and construction of the track cost approximately $600,000.
Richard "Chip" Williams, who was NASCAR's head of public relations from 1981 to 1994, said Carrier was the original "fan-friendly" race promoter.
"The thing that made Larry Carrier successful as a track operator was the fact he was a race fan," Williams said. "Here was a guy who truly loved the sport and wanted it to succeed. Everything he did at Bristol Motor Speedway was done with that in mind - making the sport better for everyone, but especially for the race fans."
Carrier sold the track in 1976 but retook possession in 1985 after the owner at the time filed for bankruptcy. He sold it again in 1996, this time for $26 million to Smith.
Today BMS seats more than 160,000 fans, while the dragway has grown to one of the most impressive in the nation.
"Larry Carrier will be missed by everyone in the motorsports community," Smith said Tuesday. "We, along with all race fans, are indebted to Larry for what he started in Bristol. I will always be grateful that when it came time to sell Bristol, he was kind enough to call me.
"He was honorable in all of those negotiations. I know he would be proud of what we've accomplished in the past nine years. I was truly honored by his belief that we could take Bristol to the next level."
Carrier was born and raised in Bristol, graduated from Tennessee High School and attended King College. He and his wife, Shirley Ingle Carrier, lived in Bluff City at the time of his death.
He leaves behind his wife, a daughter, three sons and three grandchildren.
________________________________________ Published: June 08, 2005r> Contact this Times-News contributor- JEFF BOBO
I love Bristol!
men with the courage of vision would be sued into myopia today.
and i am sure god is a nascar fan.
I'm prolly stealing that line, Glenn.
So true. The cost of doing business today must include the inevitable lawsuits that are going to come. There was one recently at BMS, when a woman working for a vendor at the track got hurt, and sued...something about a gate mashing her arm.
Case (for mega millions) lost.
Larry did his work before all this nonsense. I look at projects like the multi Billion stadium in NYC; and think about what the insurance premium on that must be?
>>and think about what the insurance premium on that must be
enormous, i'd i magine.
pity that it's been reduced to risk, which used to be called adventure.
Ping outbound
I don't get it. So what?
Then just move along. Those who "get it" will be along shortly.
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