Rocket Chassis builds late model, dirt track race cars. They take pride in providing their customers with everything they need to be successful, including access to an expansive network of over 30 dealers across the United States and Australia, a large inventory of parts and components, vast in-house technical knowledge and superb service.
Steve Baker, co-owner of Rocket Chassis, went on his first racing trip with his family when he was just two weeks old to Morgantown Speedway in 1957. He has been involved in racing ever since.
What is your 30-second pitch for Rocket Chassis?
“We build dirt track racing cars that people play with on sunny weekends in the summertime. We build about two hundred race cars a year for those people as well as for professional type racers across the country and Australia,” said Steve.
What separates a Rocket Chassis race car from the competition?
“My people – we have the best workers in the country, from the guys who build the Chassis, to the guys that assemble the parts, to the guys that build the bodies, to the guys that sell the parts and provide technical information. We started in 1986 with one employee, and right now we have 19 people employed here. It has grown over the years, and it is still a lot of fun for us, and we still enjoy what we are doing,” stated Steve.
How fast do the cars run?
“It depends on the race track, but we have some really short racetracks that are just under a quarter of a mile, and most of those are around seventy to eighty miles an hour. On the five eighth-mile tracks, the cars go about one hundred thirty to one hundred forty miles per hour,” said Steve.
What is your one take away from the shut down of your business during COVID-19?
“The bottom line is people make the business. We can all make things or do things, but without these good people working for you, you are nothing,” stated Steve Baker.
Baker was a guest on the Positively West Virginia Podcast. Listen to the full podcast here.
PWV QUICK BITS | STEVE BAKER
- RECOMMENDED BOOK: Racing History Books
- PIECE OF ADVICE: “You better be passionate about what you are doing,” advised Steve.