Petty Enterprises migrates south hoping to improve

The exodus is under way for Petty Enterprises.

By Jan. 2, most of it will be complete as the storied NASCAR operation moves its headquarters 74 miles south from Level Cross, N.C., to the recently vacated Robert Yates Racing buildings in Mooresville, N.C., much closer to most of the other top race shops who call North Carolina home.

For Richard Petty, the legendary driver and car owner who remains the nominal head of Petty Enterprises, most of the tears over the move already have been shed. Yes, it is difficult to move from a place the family-based organization has called home for nearly 60 years, next to the home where Richard grew up and still only a short drive from where he lives today. But he said the hardest part of the move, which is taking place in stages, was deciding to move in the first place -- a decision made months ago after seriously considering it for several years.

A new home

In November, Petty Enterprises announced they will move into the vacated Robert Yates Racing shop in Mooresville, N.C., to get closer to the Charlotte area in hopes of becoming more competitive.

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"The hard part was making the decision," Petty said. "It's easy after that."

Well, it's not that easy. The red moving trucks with the Petty Enterprises logos displayed prominently on the side have been rolling out of 311 Branson Mill Rd. (a Randleman, N.C. mailing address but actually located in Level Cross) for weeks now, heading south toward the RYR complex in Mooresville.

On Wednesday, the fabrication shop and machine shop personnel and their equipment were scheduled to complete their move from the old facility to the new. On Dec. 31, the finish fabrication and suspension folks and all their machinery is scheduled to arrive at their new working address. Most of the rest of the Petty operation will move into the new digs by Jan. 2, followed by the assembly and setup teams for the group's two Sprint Cup cars by Jan. 8.

The No. 45 car driven by Kyle Petty, Richard's son, will leave for the first week of testing at Daytona out of Level Cross but will return to the new shop in Mooresville on Jan. 10. The No. 43 car driven by Bobby Labonte will leave for the second week of Daytona testing out of Level Cross around the same time and return to its new base of operations for good on Jan. 17.

Thrones, old and new

Speaking out of his office -- modest yet still somehow formidable -- at Level Cross recently, Richard spoke candidly about his mixed emotions regarding the move.

"The deal is you've been somewhere for 60 years. Born in the house right up here, and never went nowhere," Petty said. "Then to be able to take the whole racing complex, as far as all the equipment and stuff, and move to another location -- even if it was just down the road, it would be just as hard to take.

"So like I've told everybody, 'You're moving our body, but you ain't moving our heart.' You know what I mean? Your heart is always going to be here because this is home."

Richard admits that he was among the last to be convinced the move was necessary for the greater good and the future of Petty Enterprises. Though located only a 90-minute drive from Mooresville and the general race-dominated areas around Charlotte, in recent years it began to seem like the rest of the race world was sometimes light years away -- and ahead.

The other Sprint Cup teams not only had bigger, better shops, but more state-of-the-art equipment either on-site or close enough that they could get to it and rent it for a day on the spur of the moment. There also was the matter of retaining top personnel in a market that grows more competitive daily. Most of the top players in all fields of racing either were located closer to Charlotte or had desires to be living there. (Continued)