By Bill W
November 4, 2012 – It was another convincing year for Jerrod Hull and the #12 sprint car team. They racked up their second Midwest Open Wheel Association title, and registered seven victories along the way. The Sikeston, Missouri driver captured the season championship at the Tri-City Speedway near Granite City, Illinois, as well as the Tom Knowles Memorial at the Spoon River Speedway south of Canton, Illinois in September.
Despite cutting some race dates from the calendar, the year was a great success for Jerrod. “I couldn’t have asked for a better year,” he says. “We cut the schedule back a little bit, but in the long run, we actually made more money. We didn’t have all the traveling that we had in the past. And average-wise, we won more races than we did last year.”
Consistency was the key in Jerrod defending his MOWA title. “I was pretty happy with our seven wins (five with MOWA),” he says. “We had plenty of seconds and thirds in there too. We were just pretty consistent overall.”
“The highlight was definitely winning the MOWA championship again,” says Jerrod. “Winning the Tom Knowles Memorial again was really cool. Finishing out the year with a win on championship night in Granite City is right up there too.”
Things weren’t easy for the team. A slow start with the series left them behind. “We got the points lead, and then we hurt the motor at Quincy,” says Jerrod. “We didn’t get to run the feature and that killed us. We had to work our way back. AJ (Bruns) and those guys had a little bad luck, and we were able to catch back up. I love racing with AJ and the other guys. They are friends too.”
Jerrod is pleased with the direction of the MOWA series headquartered in central Illinois. “For us, you really couldn’t ask for anything better,” he says. “With our location, there isn’t a whole lot else going on in the area. Ken (Dobson) says they’re working on some stuff to make it better, so we’ll keep on doing it.”
There are plenty of people to thank. “First off, you know, I want to thank my crew chief, Scott Bonar,” Jerrod says of his long-time hired hand. “I also need to thank Colton Frazier, Chris Hawk and Roger Wagner. They help us out all the time.”
Others chip in here and there for the team. “I have some people that help us out with fuel and tires at the track,” says Jerrod. “Chuck from Chuck’s Small Engine Repair, Roger Grant, Don Hamilton and Boles Auto Sales help us out quite a bit. We have friends like Rick Layman, Dan Webb, Charlie Hawk and Ron Shelby who are always there supporting us too.”
Jerrod and the #12 team would like to thank: Champion Brands Racing Oil, Midland Performance, Super Shox, Sebastian Sand Blasting & Powder Coating, Inc., Lighthouse Christian Center, Logo Daddy, Hoosier Tire, Simpson, Weld, Automotive Machine, Maxim and Heartland Trailer Manufacturing.