Photo by Bob Tarvin of Tarvin Images
A look back at the 2011 King of the West 410 Sprints Royal Court
Driver Number 12- Rio Vista, California’s Danielle Simpson
Rio Vista, CA – January 4, 2012…Maintaining a love for horse-power on two different levels Rio Vista, California’s Danielle Simpson finished off her second season of 410 Sprint Car racing with a 12th place finish in the final Golden State King of the West Series standings.
Simpson is the daughter of KWS Managing Director Dan Simpson and happens to be the manager of Simpson Percherons in Rio Vista. The younger Simpson also showcased her World Championship Percheron 6-up hitch first hand at the season ending Cotton Classic.
“It was pretty fun to have the hitch at Hanford for the Cotton Classic,” said Simspon. “It was a cool experience having the horses in front of so many people that have never seen them. We did a couple of special things as well on the track that I haven’t done before, so it was a nice ceremony.”
Simpson also spent this past season with a new crew chief in the form of veteran tuner Richard Brown, who had spent the last couple years with Evan Suggs.
“Working with someone like Richard Brown was a great experience for me and the whole team,” commented Simpson, who took home roughly seven first place trophies this past year in draft horse competition. “Richard has been around the sport for so many years and helped me out with a lot of pointers so he was a great coach.”
Continuing to gain laps and experience in 2011 Simpson put together her best night of the year on April 23 at the Ocean Speedway.
That event saw Simpson lead a number of laps in her heat race, until Hall of Famer Brent Kaeding was able to sneak by on a double file restart. In the feature she then brought home a 10th place finish after 30 laps of hard fought racing on the tight quarter-mile.
“I definitely felt like I learned a lot more in my second year racing a 410 sprinter,” Simpson explained. “I certainly feel more comfortable in the car and I have a better handle inside of it now. We’re really excited for next year and can’t wait for April 7 in Antioch so we can get back on the track.”
As she gets ready for her third year behind the wheel of a 410 Sprint Car, Simpson also had some people to show her appreciation too. “I really have to thank my dad, our entire crew Jayson, Bryan, Roy, Richard and everyone that supports us. With my dad running the series we do a lot more stuff with the actual events now so that has been a change, but we enjoyed it all.”
Simpson also appeared on an episode of “KWS Tonight” this past May alongside Willie Croft and it can be viewed at http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/14509716
For more on Danielle Simpson and Simpson Percherons please visit http://www.dansimpsonracing.com and http://www.simpsonpercherons.com/contact.htm
The Golden State King of the West 410 Sprints would like to thank the following companies for their support this season: Goodyear Racing Tires, Pit Stop USA.com, Kaeding Performance, Hoseheads.com, Grant’s Fine Art, Auto Meter Products Inc., Contingency Connection, Maxim Chassis, Amerikote, Abel Chevrolet, Bully Dog, Red Horse Performance, JE Pistons, KSE Racing Products, Hunt Magnetos, Weld Racing, Racing Optics, Butler Built Performance, HoservilleCA, Angellos ATV Rental, Rogue Regency Inn, Williams Motorsports, DES Inc. and Simpson Percherons.
Don't forget to “like” the Golden State King of the West Series on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/kwssprintracing for the most timely and up to date information on the series.
Also check out our official website at http://www.kwssprints.com for the latest news, results, history and more on the Golden State King of the West 410 Sprint Cars.
Be sure to catch archived shows of “KWS Tonight,”
along with special highlight clips from the 2011 season at http://vimeo.com/user5784994/videos and http://www.ustream.tv/channel/king-of-the-west-today/videos
- Gary Thomas on Jan 04, 2012
- Article Date: 1/4/2012 by Gary Thomas