10/21/2009
Sprint Source
Brandon Wimmer – Victory at Skyline!
(Bill W) October 15, 2009 – Victory had eluded Fairmount, Indiana sprint car driver Brandon Wimmer and his car owner Rick Ferkel, but that all ended last Saturday night at the Skyline Speedway near Stewart, Ohio. The win capped off a solid season for the pair, who despite a late start with the All Star Circuit of Champions, ended up seventh in the point standings.
The Skyline bullring was brand new for Brandon. His car owner had claimed a win there in 1979. “I had never been there before,” says Brandon, who set quick time amongst the 37 cars assembled. “It’s obviously a tight little track when you turn a 10.77 for quick time. It’s probably about the same size as Cameron (US36 Raceway) without that much banking. The track was packed pretty hard, but they had had a lot of rain. By the time the late models and modifieds were out there with their skinny tires, it rutted up and made it rough.”
The fast time locked Brandon into a dash that determined his starting spot for the feature. He finished fourth. “The good thing about getting quick time was that they locked the top four into a dash,” he says. “We didn’t have to run the heat or any qualifying races.”
The fast track surface began to open up on one side in the feature. “In one and two it was choppy up high, so I had to stay around the bottom,” he says. “In three and four, I was able to move up into the middle of the track. We were able to get through lapped traffic pretty well, because most drivers stayed around the bottom.”
Starting outside row two, Brandon got by Greg Wilson and engaged in a three-way battle with Danny Smith and Jim Nier before pulling away to a blistering win. “We were able to move forward,” he says. “We had to pass Wilson, Danny Smith and Jim Nier to get there, so we definitely had to work for it. It was definitely a long time coming. We’ve been knocking on the door quite a bit.”
For Brandon, it was his first win since a 305 tally at Knoxville Raceway in 2008. His last 410 wins came at Hanford, California’s King’s Speedway in September of 2007, and the Skagit Speedway Dirt Cup in June of 2007. Ferkel’s last win as a car owner has been at least three years in the making. “I’d like to thank Rick and Cathy Ferkel for the opportunity to drive the #0,” says Brandon. “We definitely picked up steam as the year went on.”
The pairing hoped to repeat on Sunday at Skyline, but the result was the only flip of the year. “Things started at 3 o’clock in the afternoon and the track was totally different then the night before,” says Brandon. “It was pretty one lane. We struggled in qualifying, but we were trying to move up there in the heat race. We were in a transfer and passing someone on the low side when they came down and contacted our right rear. That sent us end over end three or four times. We were lucky in that we didn’t get upside down this year other than Sunday. We had an incident where a wheel hub broke at Huset’s (SD) and we got into someone else’s deal at Oskaloosa (IA). Other than that, we’ve been fortunate.”
Brandon and Rick Ferkel would like to thank the following sponsors for all their help: Shorty’s Truck Repair, Smith’s Farm, Goodyear Tires, Griff’s Engines, Kear’s Speed Shop, Huggins Cams, BRODIX Heads, Barnes Oil Pumps, Prism Lubricants, Zeis Land Development, Butlerbuilt, Simpson, Winning With Wellness and WRT Web Designs.
Team Mannatech
Brandon has realized that a driver not only needs good equipment on the racetrack, but needs to also be in the best physical shape to be a success. That's why Brandon has added a wellness program to his daily routine, which includes adding a line of scientifically validated nutritional products from Mannatech. Mannatech, Incorporation is a leading developer and provider of proprietary nutritional supplements, weight management products and skin care solutions. Athletes around the world rely on Mannatech products because they are formulated from high quality, natural plant sources and are formulated without any substances banned by major worldwide anti-doping agencies.
Brandon has been invited to serve on an elite team of athletes called Team Mannatech because of the results he has had with the products and will be working to share his experience with drivers, crews and fans. With more than 200 athletes representing countries around the globe, Team Mannatech members have been drawn from the exclusive ranks of sports legends, the everyday athlete and young enthusiasts destined to become superstars. They inspire action and attract passionate wellness champions and are all role models for their sport, committed to helping people of all ages lead a healthy, active lifestyle.
Submitted By: Bill Wright