A Georgia racing legend has been selected to serve as grand marshal for this year's 48th annual Mountain Moonshine Festival in October.

Ken Ragan was in town last week from his home in Unidilla to finalize the agreement.

"We're looking forward to being here again. I've been coming to the Moonshine Festival for a long time," he said. "We'd come up here on Saturday, and then leave and drive all the way to Martinsville to race on Sunday."

With 50 starts in NASCAR's premier series in the late 80s and early 90s, Ragan is perhaps more widely known as the man that established the Legends racing series in the late 90s.

The series helped launch the career of drivers like his son David Ragan, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch and Joey Logano, who continue to dominate Sprint Cup racing today.

Fans can expect to see a resurgence in the series in the coming months after Ragan was named director of the Atlanta Motor Speedway Legends program last week.

"I am thrilled to return to Atlanta Motor Speedway," he said. "I've always enjoyed Legends and Bandolero racing and am looking forward to helping competitors be as successful as possible on the track."

Ragan served as director from the program's inception in 1997 through 2001. He replaces Dwight Pilgrim, who retired after four years at the post.

A second generation driver that followed in his father Hugh Ragan's tire tracks, Ken Ragan was inducted into the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame in October 2011, the same month son David got his first Sprint Cup win.

The 48th annual Mountain Moonshine Festival will be held Oct. 23-25 in downtown Dawsonville.