[Tabitha Draughon]

CCRA-Carolina Class Racers Association Crew Chief Spotlight

Let's take a little road trip to Greenville, NC this week to focus on Mr. Monnie Morris. He is 75 years young & is new to his role of crew chief for the 2023 racing season. In the past CCRA-Carolina Class Racers Association seasons, the roles have been reversed & Kelly was crew chief for his dad Monnie but this year, Kelly took over the driving duties of the family Ford Maverick. Mr. Monnie got his start in racing at KDS Motorsports at about 16 years old so he has definitely put in his years behind the wheel. Kelly is new to the driver's seat so there hasn't been a most memorable win yet & if I had to guess, they will celebrate round wins right now instead of race wins. Mr. Monnie says that KDS Motorsports is his favorite track. Some of his new duties include checking tire pressure, putting fuel in the car, & keeping the batteries charged. He stated that his least favorite job of crew chief is trying to figure out the dial-in. Dad says that Kelly's biggest complaint is hot weather & of course I think we are at that time of the year now. One of the funny stories out of The Morris Racing Team comes from Rockingham Dragway a few years ago & I'd be willing to bet it was a NHRA Southeast Division 2 race (most will understand). They had a "loud" generator & after about an hour of it running nonstop, the guy next to them said if they would cut their generator off, they could run whatever they needed to off his.

Monnie & Kelly can typically be found at all CCRA-Carolina Class Racers Association races & some local NHRA Southeast Division 2 races. The Morris' is a rather quiet bunch & stays to themselves at the track & doesn't like to ask others for any help when needed but one year at Coastal Plains Raceway Park Dragway, Leigh Anne & myself didn't give them much choice except to allow fellow racers to assist them & get the car back going from a starter issue. Kelly has a great teacher in Mr. Monnie & I feel like in no time, you'll see Kelly racking up rounds wins with a race win soon as well. We will look forward to seeing Kelly in competition at our next CCRA-Carolina Class Racers Association race in June at KDS Motorsports.