Chris Fleming has been known on the race track as “The Showstopper” for some time. Now, he is getting telephone calls from race track all around the United States because of a reality television show.
This coming Friday, Fleming will try his stock car driving skills against the Humboldt Speedway modified division drivers. Fleming, a 46-year-old wholesale car dealer, has earned his racing reputation on the famed Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C.
“I’ve been racing at Bowman Gray all my life. I compete in the NASCAR series there every week,” Fleming told the Register in a telephone interview Friday afternoon.
“I got my nickname because my career is pretty controversial. If a guy runs up on me, I run up on him right then and there. So I stop the show. Actually, we started calling my car the showstopper and the name moved on to me.”
Well, The Showstopper is making a stop at Humboldt Speedway because of a local connection with The History Channel’s “Madhouse.” “Madhouse” was a 13-week reality show featuring the life of drivers calling Bowman Gray their home. The series was on the lightweight modified stock car drives in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.
Humboldt track owner Ron Whitworth’s brother, Jerry Whitworth was a producer of the History Channel show.
“I got to know Ron and Rhenda (Whitworth) through Jerry. Since the show has been on, I get these requests to drive at local tracks. I thought this was a good choice,” Fleming said.
So Fleming will fly in and climb into a locally-owned modified. Fleming will drive Jerald Folk’s modified. Fleming races mainly on asphalt but “I’ve done my share of dirt running too.”
“All I have seen of it is a photo. He (Folk) has even put my No. 13 on it for the night,” Fleming said. “The local drivers will probably out run me but I’m excited about coming to Humboldt.”
Fleming has sent a shipment of his souvenir shirts to be sold at the Hummer that night. All the profits from his shirt sales go to Humboldt Ministerial Alliance Food Pantry.
“I wanted to do something for the community. I asked for them to come up with a charity for the proceeds to benefit,” Fleming said.
An autograph session with Fleming is from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Friday. Racing starts at 8 p.m.
If rain cancels Friday’s races, the program will move to Saturday at 7 p.m.
Madhouse driver Chris Fleming to run at Humboldt Speedway
