Inside Line Promotions
– ALGER, Wash. (May 26, 2014) – Austen Wheatley breathed a huge sigh of relief last Saturday at his home track.
Wheatley overcame early issues to pick up his first career sprint car victory in the United States and his first ever at Skagit Speedway during the John Carroll Classic.
“It’s more relieving than anything,” he said.
With a new sprint car and engine package, Wheatley ran into some problems in the 410ci class early in the night.
“The brakes were real, real bad and the throttle was different,” he said. “It was a brand new car and a brand new motor, so there were definitely some kinks to work out early in the night.”
Wheatley qualified eighth quickest and placed sixth in his heat race. However, the team continued to mold the new car as Wheatley also competed in the 360ci class.
After qualifying 10th quickest and winning his heat race in 360 action, Wheatley started the main event on the outside of the fifth row.
“The 360 didn’t feel that great,” he said. “It didn’t feel like there was much of a top on the track. The longer it went it was more around the bottom. Going into the 410 main I figured we were in trouble.”
Wheatley rallied from 10th to post a fourth-place result in the 360 feature before he climbed into his 410 sprint car for the main event.
After maintaining his fifth starting position on the bottom groove for the first few laps, Wheatley tried another line.
“I just got frustrated following people on the bottom so I went to the top and checked out,” he said. “On a restart I went to the top and got to third. The second-place guy took me four or five laps to get around.”
Wheatley was running second when a caution came out.
“(The leader’s) crew told him to go to the top,” he said. “So I started rolling the bottom and I ended up passing him on the bottom.”
Wheatley took the lead around the midpoint of the feature and despite a late caution, he cruised to the victory.
“It’s good that we did race these local shows,” he said. “When we come back when the World of Outlaws are here (in late August), setup-wise I think we’re good. I think we’ll give them a good run for the money.”
Wheatley will return to Skagit Speedway this Saturday in the 360 class before the team plans to head to the Midwest for competition beginning in June.
QUICK RESULTS –
May 24 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. (410) – Qualifying: 8; Heat race: 6 (7); Feature: 1 (5).
May 24 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. (360) – Qualifying: 10; Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 4 (10).
SEASON STATS –
13 races, 1 win, 3 top fives, 4 top 10s, 4 top 15s, 5 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Saturday at Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.AustenWheatley.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
APPAREL –
Wheatley will have t-shirts and hoodies for sale at every race he competes at this season. For his schedule of races, visit http://www.AustenWheatley.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Downforce Designs
Downforce Designs is an apparel company established and operated by Austen Wheatley. For information on apparel options, prices, clientele and more, visit http://www.DownforceDesigns.
“It’s good to have a fresh take on apparel in the sport,” Wheatley said. “My goal is to provide something unique and diverse, and I think I know what a driver wants to see on his or her apparel. It’s a racer helping racers.”
Wheatley would also like to thank Redlined Welding & Construction, Astro Titanium, The Oil Medics, Fire-Down Graphics, SpeedMart, Bell and King Racing Products for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program and to join Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or InsideLinePromotions@gmail.com