BRINKLEYVILLE — A Spring Hope man who suffered what appears to have been a massive heart attack while doing the thing he loved most will be fondly remembered in the local racing community.
Buddy Isles Sr., promoter and general manager for Clary’s Speedway in BrinkLeyville, said veteran racer Allen Moss, of Spring Hope, was on the second lap of the Pure Stock 4 feature race Saturday at the track when Isles and other track observers noticed there was a problem.
“He was feeling bad before he got into the race car but he got in it because he loved it, and that’s the kind of guy he was,” Isles said. “I thought his gas pedal hung, and he spun out, went about 50 yards and came to a stop.”
Isles said Moss did not hit any other cars or the wall, and when track officials got to him, he was unconscious.
“He was slumped over in his seat,” Isles said. “His seat belt was holding him up.”
Attempts to communicate with Moss were unsuccessful, and Isles said emergency medical personnel quickly got Moss on the road to Halifax Regional, but Moss never regained consciousness.
Isles said the event is a sad episode for the racing community, a close-knit group that congregates at his track every Saturday for races starting at 6:30 p.m.
A tribute to Moss will be held this Saturday, when his car will take a couple of laps around the speedway for the final time, and later, Isles said, the track will hold a race dedicated to Moss’ memory.
“We’re not going to forget our racers that have been here and passed away,” Isles said. “Mr. Moss is going to be missed. He was out here every Saturday night. He was a great man, a great racer and everybody who knew him loved him, and he loved our sport.”
