ROCKINGHAM — After nearly three decades at the wheel as owner and operator of the iconic Rockingham Dragway, and almost a half century of experience with racing, Steve Earwood is ready to let someone else take over the pedals.
Earwood, 72, announced on Tuesday that he has met an agreement to sell the dragway, first built in 1968 by L.G. DeWitt, to a pair of partners.
Al Gennarelli, 49, (Gates, N.C.) and Dan VanHorn, 47, (Stafford, Va.) are set to purchase the racing and concert venue together, which is located across the street from Rockingham Speedway, over a “unique” two-year process.
The selling price of Rockingham Dragway is a cool $1.9 million, and comes just two summers after “The Rock” was bought by Rockingham Properties LLC for $2.8 million. Earwood explained that Gennarelli and VanHorn have already paid a non-refundable six-figure down payment.
The final sale, which is projected to occur in Oct. 2022, will see Gennarelli and VanHorn will pay a majority of the selling price.
“I’ve been in this industry for 48 years, and at some point in time, you have to look at getting out,” Earwood chuckled. “I didn’t want to sell to just anybody because I have 28 years invested in the place.
“I wanted to make sure the County was getting great new owners because the County has been very good to me all these years,” he added.
Earwood, who was the national media relations director at the NHRA before owning the dragway, isn’t quite ready to let everything go.
He stated in a press release on the dragway’s website that he will still run the day-to-day operations of the venue for the next two years, while also staying on as a consultant to the new owners following the final sale.
What started off as a simple question from VanHorn about whether he would ever consider selling the dragway, Earwood didn’t pay much mind to it. But persistence prevailed when he realized how serious the two partners were about maintaining the history and integrity of the dragway.
“We were at Dan’s event on April 6, 2019, and he just asked if I was interested in selling the track,” Earwood recalled. “He knew I wanted to spend more time with my daughter and son-in-law.
“We talked on and off for a couple of months and then in February, he came with an investor to sign an agreement,” he continued. “But COVID hit and slowed the process, and that’s when Al became the partner.”
Earwood also promises that “all of our personnel will stay in place,” even after the sale becomes official in roughly 27 months. He added that he hopes to see non-racing events like music festivals added to the schedule.
Built 52 years ago, Rockingham Dragway was one of the first venues of its kind to offer amenities like permanent restrooms, concrete grandstands and corporate suites to watch the races.
It has also hosted major events sanctioned by the National Hot Rod Association, the American Hot Rod Association and the International Hot Rod Association. The three organizations have all played prominent roles in the sport’s development.
Gennarelli and VanHorn are no strangers to the sport or the Rockingham Dragway, and will both compete in the upcoming 29th annual Griffin Motors MOPARS, featuring the Modern Street Hemi Shootout series created by VanHorn in 2009.
A Pennsylvania native, Gennarelli has owned his own concrete and construction business the last 22 years. On the race track, his Dodge Challenger was the first modern MOPAR to break eight seconds, using a Gen3 hemi to post a quarter-mile time of 7.85 seconds and going over 175 miles per hour.
“I’m looking forward to a new chapter in my racing career as a track co-owner with Dan,” Gennarelli said in a press release put out by the Dragway. “And I’m excited to be able to apply my flair for business to my passion of racing.”
A member of a military family, VanHorn served in the United States Air Force as an air traffic controller. Following his time with the USAF, VanHorn spent the last 23 years as a Federal Aviation Administration controller.
Like Gennarelli, VanHorn is a lifelong MOPAR and hemi fan. He has raced a Dodge Challenger in the Modern Street Hemi Shootout series, an event he created 11 years ago.
“Now that my career as an air traffic controller is winding down, I’m excited to be able to pursue drag racing at its highest level as a track owner with my fellow hemi racer Al,” VanHorn said.
When asked what made Gennarelli and VanHorn the perfect duo to sell the dragway to, Earwood said one word — passion. He said it’s the key ingredient to make a track successful, especially since it’s an around-the-clock job.
“We have had a lot of offers to sell the business over the years, but one of my concerns has always been what impact the sale would have on our races, manufacturers, sponsors and our fans,” Earwood explained.
“I never felt confident they would be taken care of until I started talking to Dan,” he added. “With Dan and Al taking over, I believe the track’s future is secure and that it will continue to serve as Richmond County’s principal entertainment venue and visitor destination.”
Earwood will stay on until Oct. 2022 and show Gennarelli and VanHorn the ropes, and will act as a consultant following the official sale.
After the big exchange goes down, Earwood hopes to move to Martin, Mich., and help his daughter Stephanie and son-in-law Jason run their dragway, US131 Motorsports Park. He also has four grandchildren.
Steve Earwood and the Rockingham Dragway contributed to this article.
