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10/1/2013
Cole Wood
Wood Shows Speed at Jesse Hockett/Daniel McMillin Memorial
Inside Line Promotions – WHEATLAND, Mo. (Oct. 1, 2013) – Cole Wood’s feature finishes weren’t indicative of his team’s performance last weekend during the Jesse Hockett/Daniel McMillin Memorial at Lucas Oil Speedway.
Wood ended 13th and 17th in the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour main events, respectively, to push him to 50 top-20 finishes this season.
“I feel like our weekend had a ton of potential,” he said. “We were really good in the heat races, B Main and the first half of the features. We’ll be good once we get it figured out.”
Wood led from the green flag to the checkered flag during his heat race on Friday to open the weekend. It marked his 12th heat victory of the season. But with more than 50 cars on hand and passing points at a premium, it left him one spot out of the feature redraw.
After starting ninth in the 25-lap feature, Wood maneuvered toward the top five in the first half of the race.
“Early in the race I was really good,” he said. “I got up to fifth at one point. There was a red flag or yellow flag and my car got super tight. It got progressively worse. I think it was one of the bars. We came in and changed the right rear bar the next day and it was a ton better.”
He ended 13th on Friday, but was set up well for Saturday’s finale before it was washed out because of rain.
“We hot lapped and I was fastest out of all 53 cars and I was scheduled to start on the pole of my heat race again,” he said. “Then it rained out. I was kinda bummed about that.”
When the teams returned to Lucas Oil Speedway on Sunday they had to redraw to line up the heat races and Wood pulled a high number, which started him last in his heat.
He powered from ninth to sixth place, but it wasn’t enough points to advance to the main event. The car continued to improve and Wood won his third B Main of the season after starting fifth to pick up a transfer.
“They reworked the track and the car was really good on top,” he said. “I could go up there and hold the throttle down. It was really pretty easy.”
Wood started the 30-lap feature on the inside of the ninth row and again started advancing toward the top 10 before a late-race incident caused a caution. Wood was swept up in a crash, which bent the front axle back and damaged the drag link. He pulled into the pits with two laps remaining with a 17th-place result.
“They reworked the bottom before we went out,” he said. “The first couple of laps the bottom lane was so dominant. You had to wait until it evened out. I moved up after (Johnny) Herrera got by me and I was pretty good up top.”
Wood remains ninth in the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour championship standings and he continues to lead the Rookie of the Year chase.
He recently flew home to California, where he will spend the next couple of weeks before returning to the track for the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour 40th annual Winter Nationals at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, Oct. 18-19.
QUICK RESULTS –
Sept. 27 – Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. – Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 13 (9).
Sept. 29 – Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. – Heat race: 6 (9); B Main: 1 (5); Feature: 17 (17).
SEASON STATS –
61 races, 0 wins, 8 top fives, 16 top 10s, 33 top 15s, 50 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday and Saturday, Oct. 18-19, at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, for the 40th annual Winter Nationals with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.ColeWoodRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wood17w
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cole-Wood-Racing/246046125428603?fref=ts
APPAREL –
Wood has t-shirts and hats available at his race car trailer at every race. For a schedule of events, visit http://www.ColeWoodRacing.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – NorCal Boxer Rescue
NorCal Boxer Rescue provides a temporary shelter for boxers in need of rescue and adoption throughout Texas and California. For more information, visit http://www.NCBR.org.
“Everyone at CWR wants to give a shoutout to the people who work at NorCal Boxer Rescue,” Wood said. “They are doing a great thing for boxers in Norcal and Texas from saving them from shelters and abusive homes.”
Wood would also like to thank Elk Grove Ford, A.R.T. Speed Equipment, Roush Yates Racing Engines, Wion’s Body Shop, Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Elk Grove Ford, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Awesome Racewear, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, CSI Shocks and The Joie of Seating for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations, media management and merchandising services for sprint car teams. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and your sponsors’ return on investment.
To meet the media relations needs of your team, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or sprintcarreporter@yahoo.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.insidelinepromotions.com.
Article Credit: Inside Line Promotions
Submitted By: Shawn Miller