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Hall of fame induction ceremony is Friday
Induction Ceremony pic
Gordon Pirkle will be giving museum tours of the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame all weekend during the Mountain Moonshine Festival. The hall of fame will induct its 2012 class of honorees Friday night. - photo by Michele Hester Dawson Community News

Volunteers are counting on a packed house for Friday night's Georgia Racing Hall of Fame Induction ceremony.

Announced earlier this year, the 2012 class of inductees are Pete Hamilton, Bill Ingram, Warren Johnson, Doug Kenimer and Herman Wise. The men were nominated for their contributions to Georgia's motorsport's heritage.

"We have a great group of inductees that we're honoring this year," said Gordon Pirkle, hall of fame president.

The 2012 induction ceremony will be held at 6 p.m. at the Dawsonville Municipal Complex, which houses the hall of fame.

The museum in Dawsonville is recognized by the state legislature as the official home of the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame, which honors prominent members of the state's racing heritage.

In anticipation of the induction ceremony and the visitors in town this weekend for the Mountain Moonshine Festival, Pirkle said several new cars are on display at the museum.

"I have one of Curtis Turner's first cars, a '37 Ford that was a liquor car before. He hauled moonshine before he became a racer, so it's his whiskey car and his first racecar," Pirkle said. "He was one of the pioneers of NASCAR. The Dale Earnhardt of his day."

Reservations are required to attend the banquet. For more information, visit www.georgiaracinghof.com.