Orrington native and Hampden resident Nick Huff said he plans to lease Unity Raceway from track owner Ralph Nason for the 2015 auto racing season.
Huff leased and managed the track for four races this past season, including the popular annual Long John race weekend in October. He and Nason have reached a verbal agreement.
Nason said he hasn’t drawn up the lease yet but feels it will get done within a month.
Huff said he plans to have 11 weekends of racing at Unity and six points races per class next season.
Races will be held on Sunday afternoons beginning at 2:30.
Huff explained that he wants to limit the number of points races “because when you have 15-20 events, it runs people dry. The drivers can’t make it every week and you wind up with fewer cars each week. So I’m taking a different approach.
“We’re going to take baby steps and slowly try to bring Unity back to its glory days,” said Huff, son of stock car driver Kris Huff and a former racer.
There will be six classes and Huff will divide them into brackets with three classes in each. Each bracket will race once a month and there will be one additional random race for them.
In addition, Unity will also have a special class like the NELCAR Legends or Vintage Racing Association cars on each race date so fans will be assured of four racing classes.
Huff plans to have three Pro Stock races in a Triple Crown Series with the final being held on the Long John weekend.
Most tracks have 12 to 20 points races per season. Speedway 95 in Hermon had 15 this year.
Unity will begin its season in May and will race Sundays to avoid a conflict with Hermon’s Speedway 95, which races on Saturday nights in addition to its Wacky Wednesday race cards.
Huff said he was able to “put some money away” after each of his four events this past season and was pleased to have 32 Late Model cars for the Long John 114.
Chris Thorne of Sidney won the event. It paid him $2,500 and some lap money.
Unity will have Late Models, Street Stocks and Stock Enduros and Huff will decide on three other racing classes after conferring with drivers and other stock car officials at the North East Motorsports Expo slated Jan. 9-11 at the Augusta Civic Center.
Nason is impressed with Huff.
“He’s a good organizer, he has a lot of energy and he doesn’t let things bother him,” said Nason. “He’s a good guy and I like his family.”
Nason also said Huff has a lot of social-media savvy.