By Shawn Brouse
Port Royal – After Tuesday’s decision by the Juniata County Agricultural Society to appoint Port Royal resident Steve O’Neal as race director for the upcoming 2011 racing season, the team of PRS Promotions led by O’Neal has hit the ground running in prepping for the new year.
The PRS Promotions team includes not only O’Neal but also Shawn Brouse of Beavertown and John Krall of York.
A former Port race director in the late 1990s, O’Neal will be the leader of the team and be charged with overseeing and conducting all racing action as well as schedule and event planning. Additionally, he will act as team liaison to Ag Society board president Don Clark. O’Neal has also been involved at other area speedplants including Williams Grove and Selinsgrove Speedways.
Brouse, who will be the primary Port Royal announcer and public relations agent, has worked as program booklet editor as well as part-time and/or substitute announcer at Williams Grove Speedway for the past 10 seasons in addition to being a motorsports correspondent for the Daily Item newspaper in Sunbury during the same time. He has also worked at Selinsgrove and Lincoln Speedways.
Krall has announced at various area ovals, most recently at Bedford Speedway in 2010 while he too has handled marketing and promotions at other area tracks. Krall will assist O’Neal as director and organizer on race nights during the upcoming Port season while also assisting in speedway marketing efforts and as a public address commentator.
“It’s now time to look forward and plan for the future, preservation and growth of Port Royal Speedway,” O’Neal told Ag Society board members Tuesday evening. “It’s time to put the past behind us and move forward to the future,” he said.
“It is the mission of PRS Promotions working with the Ag Society to present professional, timely and enjoyable auto racing programs at Port Royal Speedway in 2011,” O’Neal said earlier today.
“As a promotional team, we cannot promise any miracles but we can promise a lot of hard, dedicated work toward achieving our goals.”
Direct challenges lie ahead of the promotional team as well as the Ag Society but with PRS Promotions taking charge of the racing program itself, board committeemen will be free to focus on facility upkeep and reclamation, as is currently the case.
A joint effort by both PRS Promotions and the Juniata County Agricultural Society promises to make the 2011 racing season highlighted by weekly programs headlined by 410 sprints and late models one of the most exciting in recent memory.