|
Rain Shortens Eldora Opener, Kinser Finishes Sixth Friday
Saturday, 12 April 2008 - Rossburg, OH
The Advanced Auto Parts World of Outlaws first visit to Eldora Speedway this year was shortened due to unfavorable weather conditions on Saturday. While weather has already eliminated two week-ends of racing so far this season, the Outlaws were fortunate to get in Friday night’s event. After qualifying 21st of the 30 car field, Steve Kinser wouldn’t have minded if the rain started falling then. With a clear forecast ahead the rest of the evening, Kinser and his crew suppressed all frustrations to go on to make the most of the remaining race program. Track conditions were hard on tires. There were five cautions thrown when tires blew. The high number of yellows caused fuel to become an issue in the final laps. Fortunately, Kinser’s team made the right tire choice and had just enough fuel to bring his #11 Q-Powered Maxim to a solid 6th place finish.
Kinser struggled with handling problems last week-end with his new car. As with anything new, Kinser and crew chief, Scott Gerkin, knew that they were going to have to try some different set-ups and adjustments to get the car functioning like they expected. Though the car had trouble turning and Kinser fought to keep it on all four wheels in Pevely, MO, Kinser and Gerkin decided to take another chance with it at Eldora. Handling issues continued in hot lops. They made more changes but they weren’t aggressive enough, which Kinser’s time-trial confirmed.
“We’ve got a new car that is a little bit different from what we have been running,” said Kinser. “We went out and couldn’t turn the car qualifying. We knew we had to do some different things to this car to make it turn. We still don’t have it turning as well as it needs to be. We are just going to have to play with this car for a little bit and see what it likes.”
Kinser knew he had a lot of distance to make up in order to move forward in the 30-lap A-Feature. Cautions helped Kinser. Five cautions, attributed to tire issues, were brought out by cars that were ahead of Kinser. Kinser was also able to take advantage of the restarts when the field was grouped back together under cautions.
Though cautions advanced Kinser, he made a strong run up through the field under green. Kinser passed a total of ten cars and was running in 5th after a caution flag fell with two laps left in the race. Kinser made an attempt to overtake Kerry Madsen for 4th, but couldn’t make the pass. In the process of his attempted pass on Madsen, Tim Shaffer ran a low line and slid by Kinser on the final lap. Kinser acknowledged the loss of the 5th position, but was pleased with 6th under the circumstances. Kinser’s focus was less on the finish of the night than the progress made throughout it.
“We had a little luck with some cars falling out,” said Kinser, “and we were able to pass cars and race forward. We ended up 6th from all the way in the back. It was about progress tonight and we did that. We aren’t there yet. We will be.”
With the cancellation of Saturday’s race, Kinser and his team will have a full week before the next Outlaw event. Kinser would be thrilled a win this upcoming week-end of racing taking place in his home state, at Tri-State Speedway, located in Haubstadt, IN. Kinser has had strong success at the ¼ mile oval. Kinser has seven Outlaws wins at Haubstadt, including last year’s April show. Last season’s win was Kinser’s second of the year and he would enjoy nothing more than to take home his first season win in Hoosier Country.
Remember to visit www.stevekinser.com for the latest news and results from Steve Kinser Racing. View current race results at Quick Results and be sure to check back on Saturday when results will be posted live from trackside at Tri-State Speedway.
|
