From Tony Veneziano, image courtesy of Rick Rarer
Concord, NC — 2009 was a special year for Jac Haudenschild as he was honored for all of his accomplishments in sprint car racing over the last 30-plus years by being inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame, joining an elite group of individuals.
Among those already inducted that he now joins are longtime friends Brad Doty and Kenny Jacobs, who Haudenschild grew up with and cut his racing teeth against on the Ohio bullrings. He also had the chance to race against some fellow Hall of Famers that are still active this past season, including 20-time World of Outlaws champion Steve Kinser, three-time series titlist Sammy Swindell and West Coast legend Brent Kaeding.
“It means a lot to get in the Hall of Fame,” said a proud Haudenschild. “I’m glad to be in there. I’m sorry we couldn’t get out there for the induction. It’s a great honor, that’s for sure. It is pretty special to still be racing and be inducted at the same time. We’re glad to still be out here racing. We have a good ride here in the R19 car and hopefully we’ll be out here racing for a while.”
On the track, Haudenschild finished the season ninth in World of Outlaws point standings on the strength of 31 Top-10 finishes with 14 of those being Top-Fives, with the Carnahan Motorsports team for whom drove finishing eighth in car owner points. It was the third time in the last four years that he has finished in the Top-10 in the World of Outlaws championship standings. After winning five times in 2008, Haudenschild came close a couple of times to reaching Victory Lane this past season, starting on the pole three times and earning seven podium finishes in 2009. He finished second in the finale of the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twin 30’s at Lernerville Speedway to pick up his best finish of the year.
“It wasn’t what we planned on,” stated Haudenschild of the 2009 season. “We were hoping to win some races this year and run a lot better. The crew did their job and we just didn’t get to victory lane. The main thing is to win races and I’m in the car again next year and that’s what we plan on doing. I still really enjoy racing.”
Haudenschild had another unique opportunity this season, as he had the chance to race on the same night in the same event, as his son Sheldon competed for the first time in a 410-winged sprint car at the famed Eldora Speedway in their home state of Ohio at the end of September. The father and son pitted next to each other, with Jac offering Sheldon plenty of advice throughout the course of the night to the now third generation driver, who was making his debut at the legendary half-mile, where his father has won over 20-times in his career. They wound up running in different heat race and different feature events.
“It was a little bit different,” shared the native of Wooster, Ohio when asked about racing against his son. “You really don’t think about it that much. You know he is out, but until he gets beside you, you don’t really think about it.”
Haudenschild is one of just four drivers that has competed in at least one event in each of the 32 World of Outlaws season’s dating back to inaugural 1978 campaign. With his ninth-place finish in points, he has now finished among the Top-10 in the series championship standings 15 times in his career. While he did not reach Victory Lane this season, he remains 10th on the all-time win list with 51 A-Feature triumphs.
“The competition has been tough every year I have ever raced with the Outlaws,” he explained. “You always about four or five guys that you have to beat. There are at least 10 guys that can win the race and it really does take a perfect night to win. You know that there will be at least four of them right on the money, so you just have to beat them.”
Following the third annual World Finals at The Dirt Track @ Lowe’s Motor Speedway, Haudenschild headed back home to Ohio where he is helping his son gear up for the 2010 season. He will also return for his third season in the No. R19 Owens-Corning Fiberglass Maxim for the Carnahan Motorsports team, with veteran crew chief Leonard Lee turning the wrenches on the World of Outlaws circuit.
“I enjoy my two months off in the wintertime, but I am usually building cars so it goes by fast,” Haudenschild said. “I’m looking forward to being back in the R19 again next year.”
The 2010 World of Outlaws season kicks off on February 5-7 with the 39th annual Florida DIRTcar Nationals by UHON at Volusia Speedway Park, where Haudenschild has five career Top-10 finishes including a third-place performance on the second night of the three-day event last season.
By the Numbers Jac Haudenschild 2009:
1-Fast time honor for Haudenschild in time trials this past season
2- SuperClean Start Awards in 2009 for Haudenschild
3- Wins in the Crane Cams Dash to earn pole positions
5- KSE Hard Charger Awards, given to the driver that passes the most cars in the feature event each night
6- Penske Power Awards, which goes to the third-place finisher in the feature each night
7- Races in his home state of Ohio that Haudenschild competed in this past season
9th- Finish in the World of Outlaws standings for Haudenschild in 2009
11.3- Average finishing position for the Ohio native this past season
14- Top-Five finishes for the Hall of Famer
15- Times in his career including this season that he has finished in the Top-10 of the World of Outlaws standings
29- Times that Haudenschild raced his way into the Crane Cams Dash this past season
31- Top-10 finishes for the veteran driver in 2009
32- Consecutive seasons that Haudenschild has competed in at least one World of Outlaws event
7889- Points earned by Haudenschild in 2009 to finish ninth in the standings
110,225- Dollars earned by Haudenschild this past season