Plot Twist: Alex bought 6 acres out on 150 west of Mooresville. He Made a deal with a local banker, to build industrial buildings for racing businesses. The first race team in Mooresville was Buddy Baker, the second was DK Ulrich in 50ft x 100ft built by Alex Beam. Alex’s business model was simple, 5-year lease for the cost of building +10%, prorated monthly. The cost of a building in 1986 was $50000 or $10 per sq ft. The rent was $1000 per month for a 5000 sq ft building. The second building built was 2500 sq ft Hot Rod Shop, the rent for Johnny’s Rod Shop was $500 per month. I was renting a building in Landis that leaked like a sieve, Alex brought a number of parts by for the Elliot car and the shop was a mess. He pitched building another 5000 sq ft building for me, as a collective we continued to put our tools on the table to keep them dry. Within a week Alex called and said that DK wanted out of his lease, Alex normally wouldn’t have even entertained breaking a lease, but he wanted me in Mooresville, and as 1988 was coming it changed my whole world. He gave me a 5-year lease for $800 per month, DK had been in the building one year, the shop had an engine assembly area, paint booth, and office, perfect for our adventure. This relationship lasted from November 1987 until March of 1997. Alex’s next project included building more space with the goal that targeted the motorsports industry, we formed a partnership that included but was not limited to me finding small teams and motorsports associated businesses that needed space. The new building design was 50ft x 200ft, with 2- 2500 sq ft areas, 4- 1250 sq ft areas. Two months after the building was finished, we had a Busch team Bobby Dotter, Powersports Team, Neil Bonnet/ Jeff Stutts Hot Rod, and a start-up Winston Cup Team Ben Hess.
Hess expanded the build for semi, paint booth, and apartment. 80ft x 60ft. Over the years we shifted spaces as the needs changed until I held all the leases on the 6 acres but 2, Johnnys Rod Shop and Ricks Mufflers, with every space held by racers. In the fall of 1996, I sold Metal Crafters to a millionaire textile dude that jumped into the motorsports game, Dan Stump. By December I had secured a position with CVCC, all the dealer networks, Townsend, Speedway, AFCO, Winters, Basset, were passed on from Metal Crafters to Tom Pistone to start his Performance Warehouse, the leases were passed on to current tenants and for the 1st time in 10 years I held no leases with Alex Beam. In that 10-year period from 1987 to 1997 Mooresville went from 2 racing businesses to 130, population from 10000 to 78000. Alex had a vision, he profited from it till his death, and his family still profits from his investment in Mooresville.
