Puyallup, Wash. July 8, 2012 — The last few weeks seemed like an eternity for Trey Starks. Following a family vacation and a rainout last weekend, the 16-year-old was back behind the wheel of his familiar No. 55 for the first time in three weeks at Skagit Speedway in his home state of Washington. He took to the track in the 410-sprint car division on Saturday, and recorded a third-place finish, and also was in action in the No. 11 in the 360-class, finishing seventh in that contest.
Both races on Saturday, July 7, were part of the Mid-Season championship at the high-banked three-tenths-mile bullring, where Starks has now raced seven times this season. Prior to this weekend, his last two starts at Skagit came during the Dirt Cup on June 14-15, with the finale of that event being postponed by rain until August 30.
“It definitely felt good to be back in the car, and to know that you remember how to drive,” said Starks. “It was a little different format since it was mid-season championships, so we basically had hot laps and a feature. The 360 (sprint car) pulled in the pits at the last minute. We weren’t sure if we were going to run it or not, but we ended up running it. All in all it was a good night.”
Starks earned the Hard Charger Award in the 410-race, as he came from the 10th starting spot to finish third. He opened the night as the third-fastest qualifier. He lined up on the outside of the fifth row for the 25-lap main event. At the drop of the green, the third-generation driver gained a couple of spots and was up to eighth. He got around veteran Toni Lutar on the second circuit to move into seventh. Starks found himself in sixth by the fifth circuit. He would work his way into third by the 15th go-around, and would run in that spot for the remaining 10 laps, to earn his second podium finish of the season in a 410-sprint car at Skagit.
“The car was hooked up pretty good, and we made some smart racing decisions,” noted the young driver. “We didn’t make any mistakes and were able to pick cars off one-by-one. It was kind of a one lane track, so when you got up to speed, it was hard to pass. We got up to where we got, and we’ll take it.”
Starks started on the inside of the fifth row for the 25-lap main event in the 360-class aboard the Ed Broers-owned No. 11. He would get around Brian Kirkpatrick for eighth on the third lap, and then battled Bud Ashe and veteran Jason Solwold for the seventh spot for several laps. Starks would get around Ashe on the 20th lap for seventh, and would go on to finish in that same position. He has finished seventh or better in each of his three starts this season in the No. 11 at Skagit.
“Everyone was kind of the same speed, so it was tough again to pass,” explained Starks. “I made a few mistakes in that race, but we had a descent finish. We came home with both cars in one piece and that’s always a plus.”
Starks will head to the Midwest this week to compete in the Kings Royal with the World of Outlaws at the famed Eldora Speedway in Ohio on Friday, July 13, and Saturday, July 14. He made his debut at the high-banked half-mile back in May, winning a heat race and earning a spot in the dash, during the finale of that two-night event.
“It was good to get some laps in before the Kings Royal,” shared Starks. “You don’t want to get back in the car after a few weeks off at a track like Eldora. We are going to work on a few comfort things with the car early this week before heading out and we’ll put our other car back together as well, so that we have a couple of spares. We have some big races coming in the next month, so we want to make sure we are ready.”
Trey Starks and Starks Racing would like to thank their valued partners: BR Motorsports, FX Signs, King Racing Products, Masco Petroleum, Northwest Powerdercoating & Sandblasting, Starks Timber Processing and T &C Concepts.
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For the latest news and information on Trey Starks and Starks Racing, visit www.TreystarksRacing.com . Also keep up with Trey on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TreyStarksRacing, and follow Trey on Twitter at: twitter.com/TreyStarks55.
- Admin Account on Jul 08, 2012
- Article Date: 7/8/2012 by Starks Racing PR