Prepared by Joe Secka-JMS ProPhoto – www.jmsprophoto.com
BRISTOLVILLE, OH – April 30, 2010 – The team headed out on their first racing trip since the winter racing in Florida with a return to the South. There were four races on this first leg of the WoO LMS schedule with stops in Florida and Georgia followed by two races in the great state of Texas.
After returning home for a brief rest, they soon returned to the tour with a pair of one-hundred lap features in Illinois and Virginia.
OCALA, FL – March 19 – Twenty-six cars pulled into the pits for the first visit ever WoO racer at this facility. Ocala Speedway became only the second Florida facility, joining Volusia, to host the WoO Late Model racers.
Russ qualified seventeenth with a time of 16.556 on the egg-shaped oval. After contact with David Clegg’s #07 car, Russ picked up a flat tire sending him to the pits in his heat race. They used a provisional for the feature after tangling with Shane Williams in the B-Main. Russ brought home a seventeenth place finish in the A-Main.
On a brighter note, one of Sis’ grade school classmates, Evelyn Kanchock, drove to the race from Lehigh, FL to see the action. She also brought them fresh strawberries and tomatoes. Sounds like a terrific gift!
SYLVANIA, GA – March 20 – Screven Speedway opened the gates to thirty-three late models. Russ qualified twenty-third and finished seventh in his heat race.
The #56 team took a provisional for the feature after a disappointing B-Main. The Bristolville racer managed a sixteenth place finish in the feature.
While at Screven, one of Chub Frank’s crew came across a puppy that had fallen into a six to eight foot hole. The local Sheriff’s department rescued the little guy. The owner could not be located and he had no tags. Unfortunately he was badly dehydrated and malnourished from trying to climb out of the hole.
He found a temporary home at the King’s hauler and dined on eggs and bacon, baked ham and hot dogs to replenish his proteins. By evening’s end, “Cat Daddy” Clint Smith had adopted the little guy. He is now doing well in his new Senoia, Georgia home. They have named him Lucky and indeed he is!
HIGHLANDS, TX – March 26 – Thirty-three late models were on hand for the “Lone Star 50.” Russ qualified twelfth and picked up an automatic transfer via his fourth place heat run.
After starting sixteenth in the feature, King picked up two spots before the waving of the checkered flag.
KILGORE, TX – March 26 – Lone Star Speedway hosted its first WoO LMS race since 2004. The half mile oval gave Russ some problems in qualifying as he timed in twenty-third with a time of 18.363. A seventh in the heat race and a tangle in the B-Main dictated another provisional for the feature.
Russ picked up nine positions to finish fifteenth in the fifty lap main event. They left Texas twelfth in WoO Championship points just eighteen points behind Shane Clanton.
It had been a frustrating southern trip. The team decided to drive straight through for the eighteen hour ride home. Russ was piloting the rig in Kentucky when a drive tire on the tractor blew out. It sounded like a bomb going off as most of the team was asleep. They suffered some damage to the generator’s cage on the trailer and were delayed for two and a half hours to repair the tire. When things are not going your way, it just seems to pile up.
FARMER CITY, IL – April 9-10 – Farmer City Speedway saw the WoO LMS without a definite favorite for the season title as there had not been a repeat A-Main winner in the first six events of the 2010 campaign. An open practice was scheduled for Thursday April 8 on the tight quarter mile oval in preparation for the Illini 100.
Fifty cars including took time trials with some of the Midwest’s strongest teams on hand. Russ’ time of 13.893 was only thirty-fifth quick. He struggled with a ninth in the heat race which completed Friday’s on-track action.
The competition was the best the WoO LMS teams had experience since winter racing with only four Outlaw teams qualifying through their heats. After a twelfth place finish in the B-Main on Saturday, Russ decided against using an emergency provisional. The team packed up the hauler, fueled up and began the eight hour plus trip home to Ohio.
JAMAICA, VA – April 16-17 – Bill Sawyer’s state-of-the-art facility, Virginia Motor Speedway was clean and shiny when the WoO haulers pulled in. An 8,000-seat aluminum grandstand, beautiful sponsor suites, Mucso lighting, a pit area treated with a tar-and-gravel mixture and over 20 acres of parking are re-defining what a dirt facility should look like.
With cannon explosions, pistol shots and Civil War Reenactments as a part of the entertainment, this is quickly becoming one of the premier events in dirt late model racing. A reproduction 1841 smooth-bore cannon was part of the display and provided the opening salvo of Saturday night’s main event on the Virginia half-mile.
A large field of fifty-six cars made the trek to Jamaica for the $25,000 to win Commonwealth 100. As has usually been the case in the early season races, Russ battled the track with the fifty-second quick time. More misfortune would wait in the heat race as Vic Coffey got sideways off of Turn 2 three cars including the RKR #56. An eighth place finish in his heat wrapped up the first night’s activity. But, to make matters worse, the primary car was damaged beyond repair and Russ would be forced to use the back-up car on for the rest of the weekend.
Saturday morning saw the team making changes to the car in search of that up-to-now elusive answer. The B-Main did not see much improvement as Russ finished twelfth. A provisional start in the A-Main would put him starting twenty-seventh in a larger than normal feature field. A twentieth place finish did not reflect some of the things the team felt they had learned.
Russ and crew chief, Craig McCrimmon, jointly commented, “It’s not where we want to be running and we know we are capable of better. We are not throwing in the towel yet.” They closed out the weekend still standing twelfth in the points race.
Early Season Review:
It was no secret after the winter racing at Volusia and East Bay that Russ King Racing was struggling. After a short winter of rebuilding, and looking for the latest greatest thing most drivers will tell you to put Florida on the back burner. In a series you generally race with ten to fifteen really strong cars. Volusia pulled nearly seventy cars into the pits each night. Fifty of those were the best of the best from all over the country.
When you pull out, you’re on a high and just can’t wait to see your fellow racers and are excited to see what your hard work over the winter will produce. On the way home you just want to slap “For Sale” signs on everything you own. During the 2008 and 2009 seasons, Russ and the late model team followed the path of others by touring with the MACS and World of Outlaws series. However, after struggling through the first six events, Russ and the team began to wonder if it is was time to make their own path?
A strong finish to his Rookie of the Year season with the WoO did not translate into continued strong performances in the early races this year. As Russ appropriately stated, “When we were racing modifieds and we had problems, we knew how to fix it. Right now, we are not able to apply that success to the late model.” “Don’t get me wrong, we are not giving up. But it’s an uphill struggle right now,” he added.
The team had stopped at Ron Stuckey’s Chassis in Shreveport, LA on their way to Texas. They spent a few days going over the cars and checked a couple of items on the hauler too. They were wonder if they were “over engineering” the car and looked to a pro for some advice. They filled several pages of their race notebook with ideas.
Up Next:
The team will be heading to North Carolina’s Fayetteville Motor Speedway on April 30 and Georgia’s Swainsboro Raceway on May 1. The following weekend they are scheduled for Lincoln Speedway in Illinois and Bluegrass Speedway in Bardstown, Kentucky.
Note:
Be sure to visit Russ King Racing’s website for updates throughout the season. http://www.russkingracing.com/
We need to send a special thanks out to Rhett Butler for re-designing the website.
Thank You:
King Bros Racing #56 team would like to thank their 2010 marketing partners A-1 Racing Products, Port City racing Mike Schimmley Kontracting, King Bros Ready-Mix, and Keizer Aluminum Wheels.
For additional information or to inquire about motorsport’s marketing opportunities with King Motor Sports, please contact Sis King (330)727-0565. http://www.kingbrosracing.com/
