GRIMM RACING - NASCAR K&N Pro Series East

South
Boston
150

South Boston Speedway
South Boston, VA - .400 mile

EDDIE MUSCLES 9th PLACE FINISH at SOUTH BOSTON

Eddie’s ninth place run at South Boston (Va.) Speedway in the Camping World Series East race resembled a return in time to the historic track. When the power steering pump quit early in the event, Eddie was forced to provide his own power to get the car to turn on the 4/10ths of a mile oval, as did the legendary drivers in the early years of the speedway.

The #71 Grimm Construction Chevy established the sixth fastest time in the first practice until the 23rd lap when Eddie felt something break in the rear end. The team quickly removed the rear end from the back-up car to install it in the primary in time for some laps at the end of the second practice. The veteran driver qualified the car in the fourteenth position for the South Boston 150. During pre-race introductions Eddie was awarded the Move of the Race Award for his performance in the CWSE race at Iowa Speedway.

In the first 30-laps, Eddie powered the car to the 11th position in the tight, hard to pass bullring. The car ran the low line early but was unable to make the pass due to the trouble with the power steering with Eddie saying, “I can pull up on these guys but I can’t get to the wall if I run under someone. I can’t cut down because the car just won’t turn. It just snaps back because I have to turn it so much.”

A trip to the pits on a lap 80-caution revealed the fluid was just boiling in the reservoir. Restarting in the 14th spot, Eddie was able to advance to 10th by lap 107 and was on the tail of the #39 of Dustin Delaney but could not make the inside pass for position. For 35 laps Eddie and the #39 ran nose to tail until he powered past on the outside to finally take the spot. With only eight laps remaining, the veteran racer held on to the position to take the checkered flag.

Eddie said after the race, “This is so frustrating because we know we had a fast enough car to be in the top five. I don’t think we had anything for the leader but we certainly expected better. We have to finish the rest of our races in the top five, at least, if we are going to have any shot at the points championship. We lost one spot to go to third today so we have to be a lot more consistent in the remaining races if we are to reach our goal. Everyone is working hard but we just have to get a little better.”

Quick Resuls: 1. Moffitt, 2. Gifford, 3. Truex, 4. Lavender, 5. Gresham, 6. Tardiff, 7. Caisse, 8. Dillon,
9. MacDonald, 10. Delaney, 11. Kobyluck, 12. Duff, 13. Park, 14. Smith, 15. Bumbera, 16. Hernandez, 17. Armstrong, 18. Kurzejewski, 19. Patison, 20. Kennedy, 21. Salemi, 22. Mattioli, 23. Peck

Points Standings: 1. Lavender - 625 2. Moffitt - 599 3. MacDonald - 577
4. Tardiff - 558 5. Kobyluck - 557

Pre-Race News & Notes The NASCAR Camping World Series East is slated to make its third annual visit to historic South Boston (Va.) Speedway this Saturday, May 30.

South Boston, which has produced up-and-coming stock car racing talent for more than five decades, will welcome NASCAR’s top developmental series to its .400-mile banked oval for the series’ fourth race of the year.

While a number of young drivers will garner attention at South Boston, there is a group of veterans that should not be overlooked. Matt Kobyluck, the defending NASCAR Camping World Series East champion, won the series’ inaugural race at South Boston in 2007 and is third in the standings through three races. Eddie MacDonald, who is currently second in points, finished fourth last year at South Boston and is a consistent frontrunner at short tracks. Points leader Jody Lavender should also be a factor with top-five finishes in both short track races this year.

The Race … The South Boston 150 is the fourth event in an 11-race schedule this year for the NASCAR Camping World Series East, and the only trip to Virginia. This is the third year in a row that South Boston has played host to the NASCAR Camping World Series East.

The Procedure … The starting field is 30 cars, including provisionals. The first 26 cars will qualify through two-lap time trials. The remaining four spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 150 laps (60 miles).

The Track … South Boston Speedway is a .400-mile banked asphalt oval. This year marks the 52nd season that South Boston has held auto racing. The track opened in 1957 as a quarter-mile dirt oval and became a NASCAR-sanctioned venue in 1960. The track was expanded to .375 miles and paved in 1962, and was reconfigured further in 1994 to .400 miles, its current layout.

Race Winners … The inaugural visit for the NASCAR Camping World Series East to South Boston saw Matt Kobyluck reach Victory Lane in 2007. Brian Ickler won the second installment a year ago.

Pole Winners … Hometown favorite Peyton Sellers laid down the fastest qualifying lap in the first two years of the NASCAR Camping World Series event at South Boston when he turned the circuit in 15.582 seconds (92.424 mph) in 2007. Ricky Carmichael captured the Coors Light Pole Award last year.