From Ferns Racing PR
Shelby Township, MI — (January 7, 2013) — Taylor Ferns got her first taste of the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals from behind the wheel in 2012, after attending the race three straight years as a spectator, as she waited to be of-age to compete in the famed indoor event. After getting her feet wet in last year’s Chili Bowl, the 17-year-old will return to Tulsa, Okla., again this year to race against over 250 competitors in what has become the biggest midget event of the year, drawing drivers from coast-to-coast and across the world, from a wide array of racing disciples.
Ferns, the 2011 USAC D1 Midget Series champion, will pilot her family-owned No. 55 Dea Eyewear Spike with a Stanton Mopar engine under the hood. She will take to the track for the first of four qualifying nights on Tuesday, Jan. 8. The top-three finishes in each of the preliminary features from the four qualifying nights will transfer directly into the main event on Saturday, Jan. 12. A practice session that Ferns will take part in is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 7.
“The Chili Bowl is one of my favorite events of the year,” said Ferns. “The whole week is centered around racing and is always a great time. I’m really looking forward to getting out to Tulsa and back in the midget and starting the 2013 season.”
Last year in the Chili Bowl, Ferns competed on the first qualifying night. She found herself in the second heat race. The winningest female driver in USAC history lined up seventh in that eight-lap contest and quickly charged to the front, and was running third and about to make a two-car pass for the lead when the first and second-place running drivers got together, leaving her nowhere to go.
Ferns next hit the track during the first of four 10-lap A-Qualifiers, where she finished eighth, which put her in the first of two 15-lap B-mains, where she started eighth. She would get as high as fourth, before finishing fifth, coming up just one spot short of transferring to the preliminary feature on the opening night of the Chili Bowl. On the final day of the 2012 Chili Bowl, Ferns finished fourth in the first E-main to transfer to the first D-main.
“It always helps having experience at a track and in an event, especially one like the Chili Bowl, which is so unique,” she shared. “The Chili Bowl is an experience-based type of race, so knowing how the race format works and how things go will be a big help this year. Hopefully we can have a good second showing at the Chili Bowl.”
The 2012 season saw Ferns race three different types of race cars, as she spent the majority of the season on the dirt in a midget, while also competing with the USAC Traxxas Silver Crown Series in three pavement events, as well as making four starts in an asphalt late model with the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour. She finished among the top-10 in her debut in both the Silver Crown car and the late model. Ferns recorded her best-career finish with the USAC National Midget Series last July at Plymouth Speedway in Indiana, coming home tenth, after qualifying third-fastest, which also marked a career-best with the series.
“At the Chili Bowl you have to have a good car, but you also have to have luck on your side,” explained Ferns. “Last year I had a good car and could run where I wanted to on the track. There are always a lot of cars there, but as a driver you try not to really look at that. The main thing is to focus on your race and what you have to do.”
Prior to the holiday season, Ferns tested a stock car with the ARCA Series at the famed Daytona International Speedway in Florida. Driving a Toyota for Venturini Motorsports, she was fastest in two of the sessions over the course of the three-day test, and was near the top of the speed charts in the other four as well. The test at Daytona marked the largest track that Ferns had ever driven on, and also were her first laps on a superspeedway.
“Knowing that the last time I was in a race car I was fast and doing well definitely boosts the confidence going into the Chili Bowl,” said Ferns. “Knock on wood, I’ve had pretty good luck at the Chili Bowl, so hopefully that continues this year. I know that Tracy (Hines) will give me a good car and we’ll be prepared.”
Taylor Ferns and Ferns Racing would like to thank their valued partners: Dea Eyewear, FK Rod Ends, Lucas Oil, K&N Filters, Lansing Sanitary Supply (LSS), Simpson Race Products, Indy Race Parts, ButlerBuilt, Allstar Performance, Stanton Racing Engines, Lyn St. James Women in the Winner’s Circle Foundation, Race4Girls and Racing2Cure.