|
With the dog days of summer in full swing, the boys from the Nascar
AutoZone Elite Southwest Division will return to action this weekend
for the “Altamont Motorsports Park 150”. With temperatures expected to
be in the 90’s, the racing action, along with this year’s series
points race, it’s expected to get even hotter
Currently tied for second in the season points, 30 markers out of
first, Rip Michels and his Stock Building Supply/Ladco Racing/Victory
Circle Chassis Chevrolet Monte Carlo racing team will be making the
inaugural trip to Altamont Motorsports Park.
It has been four years since the Elite Southwest series has visited
the Altamont Motorsport Park facilities. The last time the series
raced here, current point leader Eric Holmes was victorious.
The Team:
“The team has been hard at work in the shop in preparation for this
event,” said Zane Ratliff, mechanic “Since we as a team have never
competed here, we are going with a conservative set up. Hopefully we
will have the car close enough for us to just make fine tuning
adjustments.”
The Drivers Corner:
“Altamont Motorsport Park is a ˝ mile track with 8 to 12 degrees of
progressive banking in the turns, somewhat similar to our home track
of Irwindale Speedway,” commented Rip Michels. “The track is a lot
more narrow on the straightaway, so you have to be careful coming out
of the corners. I was told there is a bump coming out of turn four and
if your car is too high, it could launch you into the wall. So we need
to be careful but I am looking forward to competing on this
challenging racetrack. We want to continue to have consistent runs
like we have had in the first three races. Since six of the drivers
that are currently in the top ten have competed here, we really want
to try and bring home a top ten finish.”
The Car: Destiny
Chassis Destiny makes its third start of 2006 season. This has
resulted in two top tens, and one DNF (did not finish). In its last
nine races it has a total of seven top ten finishes, including a
string of six top ten finishes in a row.
The Road That Leads To The Showdown:
The Invitational Only Toyota All-Star Showdown is a race that
brings together the Top Ten in points at season’s end from each of the
four Elite divisions of NASCAR from across the country. The top 40
teams will compete against each other in a nationally televised race
from Irwindale Speedway. In the chase for the exclusive invitational
only race that will be held tentatively in October 21, 2006, Rip
Michels currently sits tied for 2nd in the points, 30 points out of
first.
The Race:
The “Altamont Motorsports Park 150” race at the Altamont
Motorsports Park 1/2-mile oval is located in Altamont, California.
Practice starts at 12:15PM with qualifying at 3:45PM. The race is
scheduled to start at 7:10PM. For more information about tickets or
the track, contact Jim Johnson, (925) 371-7223.
For more information on Rip Michels and his sponsors, please visit
www.ripmichels.com
Source by: LRM Sports Marketing, Inc. |
