The 53rd Apple Cup will be at the Tri-City Raceway on April 2-3 at the Red Mountain Event Center. The event was previously held at the Yakima Speedway.
It will be just the second race held at the TCR since the track closed in 2004. While many drivers will be experiencing the fastest half-mile track this side of the Mississippi for the first or second time, local driver Jim Franklin got his roots at the Tri-City Raceway.
“I cut my teeth at the Tri-City Raceway,” reminisced Franklin. “There’s lots and lots of memories.”
Franklin was born into a racing family with both his dad and mom behind the wheel at one point or another.
“It’s in my blood,” said Franklin of getting into the sport.
His father raced from 1968-78 while he started racing in 1983. Originally from Richland, Franklin now resides in Kennewick as a driver and local business owner. Franklin primarily races in Pro Late primarily, but also occasionally races in the Super Late class.
With the re-opening of the Tri-City raceway last year, the memories flooded back for many, including Franklin. Franklin placed second at the Fall Classic.
“It was quite a long time from ’04 until now,” said Franklin. “Last year, I kind of had my old rookie butterflies in the stomach.”
Sadly, the loss of the track meant the end of the road for many racing teams in the Tri-Cities. Sponsors are hard to come by, and even harder when the eyes on the car are out of the area — By closing the track, that was the reality for teams and sponsors in the Tri-Cities.
“A lot of teams folded up right after Tri-Cities closed down,” said Franklin. “A lot of race teams really struggling to get help to run the different venues.”
What makes Franklin unique is that he isn’t just a driver. He, in fact, wears many hats.
“The car’s built by myself,” said Franklin. “I call it building rather than buying.”
Franklin and a team of four mechanics that donate their time keep his team afloat. Being self reliant is something that helped him survive all these years.
“I don’t know too many drivers that paint their own cars and build motors and wiring,” said Franklin.
He said the toughest part has been keeping up with the technology that seems to constantly be changing. While Franklin is still taking his turn on the track, he says he hopes the revival of the TCR will not only help local drivers with sponsors, but develop the local talent pool.
“We have a lot of young talent that is coming up,” said Franklin. “I’m glad that Tri-City opened back up because a lot of this young talent now has experienced what I’ve experienced and when I was 16 years old.”
HERE is a link to more information including tickets for the 53rd annual Apple Cup at the Tri-City Raceway at RMEC.
