From Kyle Lutters
Homlesville, OH — (October 15, 2012) — For the second straight time, Mother Nature denied Stevie Smith and his #19 CL Motorsports team the opportunity to take to the high banks of Eldora Speedway near Rossburg, Ohio.
“We had a ton of new things to try and really thought the rain was going to hold off,” said Smith. “Unfortunately, the skies opened up right after we pushed for engine heat and there was no saving the track. It was disappointing but we loaded up and came home. We also got rained out there in late September with the World of Outlaws. You seem to have more problems with wet weather in the early and late parts of the season. We honestly felt as if we had a good chance at victory at Eldora. We’ll just have to take those ideas and wait for next year.”
The only event remaining on Smith’s 2012 schedule is a trip to Charlotte, N.C. for the Peak Motor Oil World of Outlaws World Finals presented by NAPA Auto Parts, November 1-3. The New Oxford, Pa. native will wheel his #19 CL Motorsports/DDNi/CJB Motorsports/Spectro Oils sprinter against the best in the business for one final time.
“The World Finals is becoming on of those events that you circle on the racing calendar,” explained Smith. “It’s down in Charlotte which is a hot bed for racing of all levels and the final night (Saturday, November 3) will be aired live on SPEED. It is a big opportunity for us, not only end the season on a high note but also to showcase our many great partners and get them some exposure. The competition will be fierce as everyone will be winding down their seasons.”
The four-tenths of a mile progressively banked oval known as the Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway will host the annual event, which features the World of Outlaws Late Model Series and Super DIRTcar Big Block Modified division finales as well.
“Having the other major touring divisions there is kind of neat because we normally don’t run with them outside of the season openers down in Florida in Feburary,” said Smith, referring to the UNOH DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park. “My hats off to the organizers and officials at that event because they are dealing with three highest levels of dirt track divisions in one place and on the same nights.”
Before the big event kicks off with a qualifying night on Thursday, November 1, Smith and his #19 team will have ample time to prepare.
“We have a few weeks to pull together our notes for that track,” said Smith. “We haven’t run there this season so we’ll be leaning on notes from a few tracks that we think are similar. Luckily we have some very smart guys in all areas of our program and that will certainly strengthen what we unload with. From there, it’s all about learning the track and making the right calls. We’ve missed some opportunities to pick up some wins. We only have two races left before we head into the off season so there is added pressure to preform.”
For more information about the Peak Motor Oil World Finals presented by NAPA Auto Parts, please visit www.WorldofOutlaws.com or www.CharlotteMotorsSpeedway.
For more information on CL Motorsports and the Black Bandit, please visit www.TheBlackBandit.com