The site you are looking at today is new as of this month (July). It is our fourth major web site redo and by far the most comprehensive. To make it faster and easier to find what you are looking for we have set up Specialty Stores. Z3 customers can immediately find everything for their Z3 in one place - the same for our NASCAR/Circle Track customers.
Don't forget to check out the "Closeout" section in each store. When it is time to clear out old inventory - here is the place to find the best deals! You never know what you might find so check it often. Sorry, NO REFUNDS on closeout items!
Credit for the design, development, text, and graphics, goes to Jay Flower - our webmaster, resident BMW E30 expert, and nationally recognized electronic music composer and musician! If you like the site or have suggestions, please do not hesitate to let Jay (jay [at] hmsmotorsport [dot] com) know. You might also catch Jay on the phone if you call in.
Thanks also to Justin Cumming, our resident photographer has really helped to update many of our product shots and is also responsible for many of the images of cars on the track. The rest of the HMS staff - Matt, Jeff, and of course myself have helped Jay with meta-tags, section headings, and in review and testing.
HMS motorsport started in 1995 as I was tiring of 25 years in the hospitality business. Ready for a life change I decided to follow my passion - BMWs. With two other associates we decided to give it a go… hence HMS motorsport® was born. The letters HMS stood for what initially were the three principals: The 'H' quickly found that a start-up business was not for him; I am the 'M'; and the 'S' just never showed up. Since the logo looked great, and the name was easy to remember, I decided to stick with it.
January 2005 marked the 10th Anniversary of HMS Motorsport. Our business has certainly evolved since its inception. Initially we offered performance, handling, styling, and car care accessories primarily for BMWs. A couple of years later we added the Schroth Street Legal Harnessbelt line and started to carry other products for BMW customers doing Drivers Schools and Autocross.
In 1996 the first BMW Z3 was produced. I fell in love with the car (as did 110,000 other Americans) and HMS became the major supplier of Z3 aftermarket accessories. I put over 6,000 track miles on our Z3 so everything we sold was very well tested! We have sold over 300 of our HMS rollbars for the Z3 to date. We still maintain one of the largest inventories of Z3 performance, suspension, chrome trim, car care, and other accessories.
In 2000 Schroth Safety Products decided to close their US Motorsport operation and HMS became the exclusive North American Schroth Distributor. In the last 5 years we have grown the Schroth business more than fourfold and greatly expanded the presence of their competition harnessbelts line.
In 2001 we took over the exclusive NA Distribution rights for RIMO European style indoor/outdoor rental racing karts. These are the karts used in Michael and Ralf Schumacher in their indoor karting centers in Germany. Our latest fleet sales were to Andretti Indoor Karting in Atlanta and to Dale Earnhardt Jr. for his backyard "Mini Bristol" oval track (you might have seen it on MTV's Cribs).
In 2002 we began to reach out to owners of other cars such as MINI, Porsche, VW, Audi, and Subaru. Initially we focused on Brake Pads, Frozen Rotors, and Schroth Harnessbelts. We now offer Supersprint Exhausts, a full line of Brey-Krause products, Brembo Big Brake Kits, StopTech Brake lines and various suspension components.
2003 was the year the HMS really started to grow the safety side of our business. We became one of the first retailers of the HANS® Head and Neck Device. We became the Northeast Recaro Distributor. Our NASCAR harnessbelt business got started. I was able to participate in a number of dynamic sled tests at Delphi Automotive testing labs in Ohio in conjunction with Schroth and NASCAR. This is also the year that I started on my mission to educate as many people as possible on the proper installation and use of harnessbelts, race seats, helmets, and HANS.
In the last two years we have expanded our showroom to provide the largest display of racing seats, helmets, driving suits, shoes, gloves, and HANS in the Northeast. There is no other place you can go in the Northeast to sit-in or try-on safety products. Stop by our shop Monday - Friday from 9AM until 7PM or on Saturday from 10AM to 2PM - our staff will be happy to check out your track or race car safety equipment.
If you are a racer with SCCA, SCCA Pro, IRL, NASCAR, BMW Club, Porsche Club, NASA, SVRA, HSR, or a number of other organizations, we have just about every type of safety equipment that you might need.
If someone told me four years ago that we would be spending time with NASCAR Nextel Cup Drivers and their race shops, selling belts, and fine tuning harnessbelt installations, I would have told them they were crazy.
During the 2002 Performance Racing Industry trade show, Ryan Newman (NASCAR Penske Dodge #12) and his crew chief Matt Borland stopped by our booth and listened to our sales talk on the new Schroth Hybrid competition belt. The next week, Carl Schroth and I found ourselves in Charlotte, NC meeting with Ryan, Matt, and the rest of their technical crew. In July 2003 Ryan was the first NASCAR driver to us a Schroth Harnessbelt in a NEXTEL Cup (Winston Cup at that time) at New Hampshire International Speedway. That race turned out to be Ryan's first win - and a great kickoff for Schroth in NASCAR.
This season, nearly half the regular NEXTEL Cup drivers are using Schroth harnessbelts, including; Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, Jimmy Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Jeremy Mayfield, Mark Martin, Kurt Busch, Michael Waltrip, Jeff Green, John Andretti, Jason Lefler, Elliott Sadler, Dale Jarrett, Bill Elliott, Jeff Burton, and Kenny Wallace. We directly service all of these teams from our operation in Peabody (and I spend about one out of every 6 or 7 weeks in Charlotte). We also work with a number of Busch, Craftsman Truck, and Busch North teams.
We have been working very closely with the owners of Stafford Springs Speedway in Connecticut and Lee Speedways in New Hampshire to help bring the latest safety information to their weekly series drivers. It is one of our major goals to help make the Northeast the most safety conscious regions in the US!
This is our first season with our new Trackside Services Truck. As the Northeast Retailer for the HANS Head and Neck Device, the opportunity for trackside sales has increased dramatically. We can provide trackside sales and installation services for HANS devices and Schroth Harnessbelts.
Our truck is fully stocked to support everything from Club Racing and Driver's Schools to NASCAR and local circle tracks to SCCA Regional and National races across the Northeast.
The truck is also stocked full of other safety and track gear including; helmets, race suits, shoes, gloves, Nomex® underwear, rollbar padding, fire systems, Longacre tools, racing brake pads, and Frozen Rotors. When we attend BMW events we even take along some basic "hard parts" for popular BMW models.
Our entire staff is made up of BMW owner-enthusiasts and "track junkies" who share my passion for cars… especially BMWs… but all kinds of performance cars. Click through on each person for their own write up about themselves and some great pictures of their vehicles - past and present, and in some cases "future". Everybody is involved in selling and customer service but of course we all have our specific responsibilities.
Joe Marko - owner and resident MINI enthusiast. I focus on the marketing efforts of the company, NASCAR, Schroth major projects, safety seminars & training, RIMO kart sales, and of course those typical "other things" that all business owners must deal with. I am quite the Peachtree Accounting expert - my consulting fee for Peachtree support however is NOT cheap! If you want some advice on harnesses or safety equipment, I will be happy to speak with you but if I am not available, please don't think you will get any less quality information from any member of my staff. When it comes time to ordering stuff - PLEASE speak with them as I do a very good job of messing up or forgetting things when I have to process regular orders!
Jeff Paulk - started with HMS while still in college nearly 5 years ago. Jeff now handles all purchasing, inventory control, product payables, sponsorship, promotional product placement, Schroth for IRL & CART, and RIMO Kart - Parts - Service - Sales. Jeff tends to be a bit quiet, but don't let this fool you. His knowledge and experience is great on Schroth, RIMO, and all of our products. If you have a new product we might be interested in talk to Jeff. If you see him at the kart track, be prepared to see his back!
Jay Flower - is first and foremost our webmaster. He almost single-handedly handles everything web related and computer related in the company. If you place an order on the web or sign up for MyHMS, Jay knows who you are. I don't know of anyone who could challenge Jay when it comes to cranking out stuff for our terrific web site. A large percentage of our garage is filled with Jay's E30 project car to say nothing of the several containers of used fluid which he has amassed. You can catch the details and track the progress on his E30 by clicking through to his link. When Jay is not at work he is probably off skateboarding, surfing, trying to fix one of his old E30's, or composing electronic music.
Matt Long - helps to keep us all entertained! His sense of humor - not always subtle - helps us all to lighten up when necessary. Don't let his kidding nature fool you however. If you owe us money, he WILL collect it. Selling is another one of Matt's great skills. If you have a complicated purchase, are looking for a deal on a big package purchase, or are interested in being one of our dealers - call Matt. He is our resident Recaro expert, and very knowledgeable in all of our products. He also has a sic looking and incredible handling E36 that you are likely to see running around Watkins Glen, NHIS, or Tremblant.
Justin Cumming - is our intern turned asset - resident photographer, graphic designer, shipper, installer, and elected person to get Joe's car ready for track days! We have not even begun to tap the skills of this Eagle Scout. I still have not found anything that Justin can't do if he puts his mind to it… except to keep his desk clean! After only one season on the track with his E30-M3, Justin is showing some real promise as a driver. A few years from now HMS is going to have to get a transporter to carry the race cars of Justin, Jeff, and Matt! Since Justin is in college now we only have the honor of his presence in the summer and during holidays. We miss him when he is gone!
Experience. We all own (or have recently owned) BMWs and drive them on both the track and the street. Most of our cars are well tweaked with the products we sell - so when we are speaking about our products we are generally speaking from first hand experience. If we don't know something - we won't give you a line - we will tell you we don't know and make every effort to find the answer to your question or direct you to a better source of information. Our entire staff is very well trained, so whomever you speak with, will be able to assist you with questions about any of our products.
No printed catalogs. We do not waste trees with paper catalogs - this web site is our complete and only catalog. All of the effort that most companies put into their printed catalog is focused on this site. If you have ideas on how we can further enhance this site, please feel free to contact Jay.
Commissions. No one works on commission. It is our goal to provide you with the best product for the best value. No one has any incentive to sell you something that you do not need. You might find us suggesting a less expensive product than you called us about if we feel it is of equal performance or greater value.
Sponsorship. We believe in giving back to our customers. Here is a the short list of organizations and individuals that we are helping this year:
Trackside Sales. You can often find our HMS mobile store trailer trackside at sponsored events. We carry a good selection of consumable parts such has brake pads, rotors, fluids, and safety equipment. We are one of the first retailers to bring HANS head and neck restraints to track events with immediate fitment and installation.
Customer Service. We pride ourselves on the best customer service in the industry. Our philosophy is simple:
Privacy. WE DO NOT SHARE YOUR INFORMATION WITH ANY OTHER COMPANY. We will only call you if we have a question with an order that you have placed or to make sure that your order was received properly and that you are satisfied. Your email address will be used to send you shipping confirmations or to reach you in case there is a problem with your order. In addition we might send you a maximum of one or two emails per month detailing special products or events that may be of interest to you based on the specific car you own or interests that you indicated on our web site. Of course if you tell us you do not want to receive these types of emails - we will respect your request.
HMS sells via internet/mail-order, retail and wholesale. Our 8,000 sq.ft. facility is centrally located in Peabody, MA just 12 miles north of Boston at the intersection of routes 1, 95, and 128. Over 2,000 sq.ft. of our facility are dedicated to our "try it before you buy it" showroom - stocked with Schroth harnessbelts, HANS Head & Neck devices, helmets, racing seats, drivers suits, shoes, and gloves. We also have those other necessities such as Red Line and Motul fluids, Performance Friction & EBC Brake Pads, Cryo Treated Frozen Rotors, Zymöl wax, PIAA & Hella bulbs, and great styling accessories.
Our mail-order and retail hours are Monday to Friday from 9AM until 7PM, EST and on Saturday from 10AM until 2PM. There is really no other location in Eastern New England with the variety of products on display. Our experienced sales staff can certainly answer most of your questions and advise you on the best products to fit your budget, skill, and driving/racing needs. We do provide installation services on HANS, harnessbelts, and HMS rollbars. We will even install cold air intakes, white lights, strut braces, and software upgrades.
If you are retailer or specialty shop, and are interested in any of the products that we sell, please give us a call. We have dealer programs on Schroth, Recaro, MOMO, Chrom Design, Auco, Supersprint, and many of the other products that we sell.
