Modified racing has always rewarded drivers willing to travel, take risks, and compete wherever the next challenge awaits. Few embraced that nomadic side of the sport quite like Jimmy Owens, whose early career took him across state lines in pursuit of more than just race wins. The four-time UMP Modified champion recently revisited those years with Kenny Wallace, recalling a period that still stands out among the most enjoyable chapters of his racing career.
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“Yes, that was really, really fun. I wouldn’t change that for the world! But man, it was probably the funnest time that I ever had,” Jimmy Owens told Kenny Wallace.
Owens has enjoyed considerable success in dirt racing, but his four UMP Modified national championships hold a special place in his career. The Tennessee native opened up about a period when he rarely stayed in one place for long.
His approach was simple: race as often as possible, travel wherever the next opportunity appeared, and make life difficult for anyone sitting ahead of him in the standings. What made those years particularly memorable was how much freedom he had to pursue that competitive instinct.
Owens admitted that he did not immediately take to Modifieds when he first started racing them. His interest was less about the cars themselves and more about the opportunities the division offered. Unlike some racing categories that required different equipment for different venues, he could take the same Modified to tracks across the country. That flexibility allowed him to compete regularly without being tied to a single location or a rigid touring schedule.
His work arrangement made that lifestyle even easier. Owens explained that he worked four 12-hour shifts from Monday through Thursday, leaving Friday, Saturday and Sunday free.
He could therefore spend most weekends racing without having to sacrifice his regular job. His vacations also lined up with opportunities to compete, giving him even more time to travel. What began as a convenient way to race more often gradually became an ambitious campaign across several states.
The trips took him through North Carolina and South Carolina before expanding farther west, including visits to Kentucky Lake. Owens was not simply travelling for a handful of major events. He wanted to race wherever he could, often following the competition and the points battles rather than limiting himself to familiar tracks.
That commitment was evident during the 2001 season. A contemporary racing report noted that Owens had competed in 13 different states, an extraordinary travel schedule that actually kept him outside the top five in his home state’s UMP points standings. He had also collected 25 feature victories by that point in the season while battling Denny Schwartz and Chad Kinder for the national championship. The numbers reflected a racer who was willing to put in the miles to keep accumulating points and wins.
Owens’ travelling approach delivered national success, too. He captured the UMP Modified national championship in 1998 before winning three consecutive titles from 2000 through 2002. His official career record also lists 49 feature victories in just 65 starts during the 1999 season, showing that he was dominant even in the year he did not win the national title.
But the championships were only part of what made that period so enjoyable. Owens recalled being just cocky enough to show up at another driver’s track if that competitor was ahead of him in the points.
It was a playful admission, but it also captured his mindset. He was not content to wait for rivals to come to him. If someone had an advantage in the standings, Owens was willing to travel to their territory and try to take it away.
Wallace’s reminder that Owens was a four-time UMP Modified champion brought the conversation back to just how successful that approach had been. Yet the freedom to race frequently, visit different tracks and compete against unfamiliar challengers gave him an experience he still considers the most enjoyable stretch of his racing life.
His career eventually moved in a different direction. Owens transitioned to full-time dirt Late Model competition in 2003, beginning another highly successful chapter. He went on to win four Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championships in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2020, along with major events such as the World 100 and the Dirt Late Model Dream.
Those achievements helped establish Owens as one of dirt racing’s most accomplished drivers. Still, his conversation with Wallace made clear that career success and personal memories do not always line up in the same way. The Late Model years brought major recognition, but the Modified days gave him the freedom to race on his own terms. And for Owens, the chance to chase points leaders across the country remains an experience he would not trade for anything.