Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Tag: K&N West Series

  • Three Gillilands for the Price of One Ticket

    Three Gillilands for the Price of One Ticket

    Family has always been an integral part of the NASCAR tradition. Its history can be traced through generations of fathers and sons.

    Richard Petty competed against his father, Lee, in NASCAR’s premier series between 1958 and 1964 and out-raced him five times. He holds the distinction of being the first son to win at the Cup level in a race in which his father also ran. The race was Richard’s first win on February 28, 1960 at Southern States Fairgrounds in Charlotte, North Carolina. Richard’s son, Kyle, captured his first win at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway on February 23, 1986; his father finished 20th in the race.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway in April 2000 while his father finished seventh. Bobby and Davey Allison also raced against each other as did Buck and Buddy Baker.

    It is rare, however, to see three generations competing against each other at any level of stock car racing. For NASCAR Sprint Cup driver David Gilliland, an intriguing idea blossomed into a unique opportunity to race against both his father and son.

    The idea began taking shape when Gilliland learned that Irwindale Speedway, a half-mile oval in California, re-opened last year after being closed in 2012.

    “When Irwindale shut down, I was bummed that Todd would never be able to race there,” Gilliland said in a Front Row Motorsports press release. “I think Irwindale Speedway was a key part of my learning to race and, to me, it’s one of the nicest, if not the nicest, racetracks I’ve ever raced on.”

    When the track reopened, he was determined to find a way for his son to race there. The plan began to evolve when Gilliland decided he would take advantage of an off weekend in July on the Cup schedule and make it a father and son event.

    “So, I went to work and tried to drum up some cars for Todd and I to race against each other. “Then,” he continued, “I thought it’d be really cool to have three generations of Gillilands out there racing. So, we got a car for my dad to drive, too, and talked him into coming out and racing.”

    Racing has always been a family business. David grew up watching his father, Butch, race on dirt tracks in the Southern California area and was never far from his side. He worked on his father’s cars and was his crew chief when Butch won the 1997 K&N West Series championship.

    It was only natural that David would follow in his father’s footsteps and it’s not surprising that David’s son, 14-year-old Todd, has continued the family tradition. This year is Todd’s first full-time season of stock car racing and he has already captured his first late-model pole and win at Ace Speedway in Altamahaw, North Carolina in May.

    The three generations will come together to race at Irwindale Speedway on July 19 in a 75-lap Super Late Model Series feature event that has been named Family Night at the Races, in honor of the Gillilands. For tickets and more information, please visit www.IrwindaleSpeedway.com.

    David can’t wait to get on the track and participate in what will certainly be a treasured family moment that will be passed down to future generations.

    “It’s going to be the first time that I’m racing against Todd and obviously the first time that he’ll be racing against his grandpa,” David explained. “We’re really excited about it. It’s an opportunity of a lifetime for us to have three generations racing against each other. It’s something that not a lot of people get to do and I’m pretty proud to be able to do it.”

    But don’t forget, this is a family of racers and the ultimate goal is to win.

    “When we get there, we’re all going to be on the same team,” David stated. “But, my son wants to beat us both pretty bad. Hopefully we can all finish the race and just have a lot of fun doing it. And hopefully one of us will end up in Victory Lane.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • NASCAR K&N West Series: Jason Fensler Ready For Return Trip To Irwindale

    NASCAR K&N West Series: Jason Fensler Ready For Return Trip To Irwindale

    What a difference a year has made, but the results are continuing to prove what an underfunded can do when team chemistry plays a major role starting with the driver, crew chief, and spotter combination. When the green flag waves for this weekend’s Southern California Toyota Dealers 200 at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale, the distant memory of Auggie Vidovich crossing the finish after leading the last 141 laps will be remembered by those who were involved in the team’s first win.

    [media-credit id=50 align=”alignright” width=”200″][/media-credit]A lot has changed since that memorable win back in 2010, with the most notable being the driver who was replaced when the team ran out of money to run the rest of the season. There comes a time in almost every team owner’s life when they have to sit back and evaluate what is more important, to continue to race, or have a roof over their head and food on the table. During the months leading up to January and the 2011 Toyota All-Star Showdown, the team regrouped and team owners Jim and Terri Cass let the team know they were ready to fire up the car to make another run at the 2011 season.

    After spending countless hours searching for a driver who could put the team back into victory lane, Jim and Terri found Wilton, California’s Jason Fensler, who had already tasted the fruits of victory in NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series West division back in 2008. Fensler made his first start for the team driving the No. 50 TCR sponsored Chevrolet, in the season opening All-Star Showdown which is a non-points event. As luck would have it, an accident with 20 laps left ended Fensler’s night pre-maturely and the team would finish the race 28th.

    The night was not a total loss when Fensler said, “The car was strong there for the Showdown. Roger Bracken and the team have done an excellent job all year preparing great cars,” which gave the team a new found hope for the remainder of the season. Fensler would prove to the team they made the right decision by hiring him, when he took them to victory lane in his first points paying race at his home track in Roseville, California.

    Even though Fensler only led the last eight laps, it was enough to give the team their second consecutive victory when the car number was changed from 50 to the 59. Jim and Terri felt the number change was needed, since the No. 50 only had one top-five finish in nine starts, and seemed to be bringing the team bad luck. Fensler’s third start netted him an impressive third place finish at the Bullring in Las Vegas, after getting turned around on lap 124 from contact with 16-year-old Dylan Kwasniewski and David Mayhew.

    Once NASCAR lifted the red flag because of Mayhew’s wadded up race car, Fensler would restart the race 13th on lap 129, and methodically work his way up to his third place finishing position. Saturday night’s start at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale will mark Fensler’s fourth official start for the team, and his second at this progressively banked half-mile.

    Team Cass Racing is hoping to carry the momentum from their third place finish at the Bullring into Saturday nights 200 lap feature race, which will be run along with the King Taco Super Trucks, and the Langers Juice S2 division.

    “Irwindale, being a home track for Jim and Terri Cass as well as the entire Cass family, would be a great place to give them another victory. I truly look forward to seeing all of the supporters and fans of Team Cass Racing at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale,” said Fensler about Saturday night’s return to Irwindale.