(Bill W) October 7, 2013 – Brian Brown and the Casey’s General Stores/FVP #21 team knew going to the Williams Grove Open in Central Pennsylvania would be tough. Despite 60+ quality sprint cars on hand, the Grain Valley, Missouri driver qualified both nights for the feature events. The team is mulling their options for this weekend and preparing for a big month of October.
I know you were looking forward to getting back to Williams Grove Speedway.
I’ve always wanted to get back to PA. I don’t think I’ve been out there since ’03. Obviously, the National Open is one of the crown jewels in sprint car racing. As a team, we really didn’t know what to expect. We knew with some luck, we could make the show, and with some bad luck, there was an opportunity not to make one of the shows at all. We really didn’t have any expectations.
In Friday’s prelim, you seemed to time in one of the best places possible.
Drawing the 69 pill was definitely not the luck we were looking for. The track was slowing down in a hurry. Fred Rahmer went out eighteen cars ahead of us and stuck the bottom pretty good. Everyone up to that point had been running the cushion, so we decided we would run the bottom. We ended up 18th quick out of 65 cars, so that was a pretty huge accomplishment.
That put you in front in the heat and in a position to lock down a spot in the Dash.
When you don’t have any notes for a place, it’s tough. We didn’t change a whole lot between qualifying and the heat. We were able
to get a good start, and as the race went on, we kept getting freer. We weren’t where we needed to be late in the heat and Brian Leppo drove by us. We were able to hang on to second.
You would end up finishing ninth in the Dash.
We felt as good as we did all weekend long in the Dash. We passed a couple of guys and a couple of guys passed us back. On the last lap, Greg Hodnett slowed down and my right rear got into his left front a little bit. I didn’t think much of it.
What resulted was an issue though, wasn’t it?
Just as we got ready to push off for the feature, we realized our Jacob’s ladder was broken. We didn’t have enough time to change that. We ran the feature Friday night with a broken Jacob’s ladder. It was too bad, because I felt we had a car that could have not only finished in the top ten, but maybe the top five.
It’s amazing that you were able to hold onto sixteenth in that race.
It was pretty exciting really. To be able to time that well, make the show and finish the race.
You came out in Saturday’s finale and registered the ninth best time of the night.
That makes it tough. To be honest, being ninth quick is way better than 39th quick. But you’d like to be 11th at that point to get on the front row of the heat, and you’re cheering for the guys behind you to out-qualify you.
You started inside the second row in the heat.
We got a good start. We were able to get by (Craig) Dollansky into third. We had a good run on (Steve) Buckwalter, and I kind of jumped the cushion a little bit. I dropped back to fourth at that point. To be honest, at that point, we were happy to have made the show on both nights. I think they made the comment that five cars in the A main Saturday night were in the D or the C main on Friday. Parody is as big as it could be out there.
It looked like it may have been a struggle in the feature.
We just had an issue with the car that really was beyond our control. We struggled the whole A main. There’s really no way to sugarcoat it. It was unfortunate that we couldn’t have had a better result on either night (22nd Saturday), but it was what it was. We knew going out that it would be a learning experience. We took some good notes and there are some things we can build on next year.
How does the Williams Grove Open compare to the Knoxville Nationals?
The atmosphere is right up there. There were between 15 and 18,000 people. They are very die-hard. Fred Rahmer winning that race was probably one of the coolest moments that I’ve ever seen. Seeing those fans that boo him every single week, cheering him was awesome. Seeing him get out on the backstretch where Beer Hill is…seeing those fans salute him was really cool. I’m a big fan of the sport myself, obviously, and that’s probably one of the coolest things I’ve seen.
The whole weekend will be featured on national television too.
Hopefully, with the package with CBS Sports Network (Williams Grove will air Sunday, November 10 and 17 from 8-10 p.m. CST), they can bring how special a moment that was to the fans that weren’t able to be there. Congratulations to Fred…he deserved to win the big one there, and good luck to him in his retirement.
Follow Brian on the Web, Twitter and Facebook!
Follow Brian at his website located at www.BrianBrownRacing.com!
Also keep up with FVP, Casey’s and Brian on Facebook and Twitter at the following links…
Twitter Links – @BrianBrown21, @FVPRacing, @CaseysGenStores
Facebook Links
Brian Brown Racing – www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Brown-Racing/200630163294222
Casey’s General Stores – www.facebook.com/pages/Caseys-General-Stores/112073528804354
FVP Racing - http://www.facebook.com/FVPRacing?ref=ts&fref=ts
Other Web site info
Casey's: www.caseys.com
FVP: www.fvpparts.com
Brown’s Bits
Brian competed in 55 feature events in 2007. He has registered 14 (25%) wins, 29 (53%) top fives and 35 (64%) top tens.
About Casey’s General Stores
Casey’s General Stores is a Fortune-500 company (NASDAQ CASY) operating nearly 1700 convenience stores in 11 states through the Midwest. Known for its “Homemade-To-Go” pizza, sandwiches, donuts and bakery items, Casey’s strives to consistently deliver quality gas, fresh kitchen-prepared food, clean environments and friendly service at every retail location. Casey’s is currently the 12th largest c-store chain and sixth largest pizza chain in the United States.
About FVP
We are very excited to introduce our new line of automotive chemicals, oils and fluids to our product offering. These new products will be available at many retailers across the country. We continue to offer a full line of high quality oil, air, cabin air and fuel filters, plus a complete line of high quality batteries for multiple applications including cars, trucks, SUV’s, commercial and other specialty vehicles. All products are made to OE manufacturer fitment specifications. FVP products are engineered to provide our customers with quality products that are equal or superior in performance to the major national brands at a competitive price. To learn more about our FVP products or to find out where you can have FVP products installed in your vehicle, visit us at www.FVPparts.com! FVP…The Confident Solution
SPLASH
In addition to our line of seasonal safety products, we are very excited to introduce a full line of SPLASH Wiper Blades. Our SafeView Performance Blades fit 95% of the vehicles on the road with quick and easy installation for everyone. The AccuVision Beam Blade offers memory curve steel, which provides uniform pressure for a clear wipe, without the streaks. Look for these great new SPLASH products! Whether it’s keeping your windshield clean or free of ice, protecting your RV, boat or pool from freezing in the winter, or your sidewalk safe to walk on, SPLASH Products are what you need! Check out our new SPLASH website at www.SPLASHWash.com! SPLASH…SEE SAFELY!
Marketing Partner of the Week – Ditzfeld Transfer
Brian says – “Ditzfeld Transfer is a family deal. Ronnie and his sons were our very first sponsor. They haul our motors, and if I would need anything hauled across the country, I would call them first.”
Ditzfeld Transfer has been with Brian since the start of his racing career, and was his first sponsor. The Sedalia based family owned trucking business has been in operation for over 45 years, and has a commitment to maintaining the highest level of service. Currently, Ditzfeld Transfer utilizes more than 50 power units and 160 trailers. To learn more about Ditzfeld Transfer, visit www.DitzfeldTransfer.com!
Associate Marketing Partner of the Week – Wolfe Eye Clinic
If you're one of the 140 million Americans who are afflicted with a refractive disorder such as being nearsighted, farsighted or having astigmatism, LASIK surgery may offer the vision you want without the constraints of glasses or contacts. There are a variety of important factors to consider when deciding on a refractive surgeon. Experience and training should be two of the most important considerations. For years, the physicians at Wolfe Eye Clinic have been leaders in LASIK laser vision correction. In fact, our physicians have been leaders in the development of laser vision correction and were the first to bring this technology to Iowa. They have been performing refractive surgery since 1984. With more than 29 years of experience and over 37,000 refractive surgeries performed, no one in Iowa is more qualified to provide LASIK surgery than the physicians at Wolfe Eye Clinic.
Brian Brown Racing would like to thank Casey’s General Stores, FVP, Searsboro Telephone Company, Impact Signs Awnings Wraps / impact4800.com, Champion Brands, SPLASH, Ditzfeld Transfer, Maxim Racing, Smiley’s Racing Products, Weld Wheels, Housby Trucks, www.RateWin.com, Arctic Cat, K&N Filters, Hostiowa.net, FSR Race Products, TI64, Fuel-Safe Tanks, Wolfe Eye Clinic, Bell Helmets, CP Pistons, Carrillo Rods, Vortex Wings, Penray, All Pro Cylinder Heads, Butler Built Seats, AkzoNobel Sikkens, AllDayParts.com, Tru Square, Jack Links, Deli Express, Snap-On Tools, Rod End Supply, KSE Racing Products, Winters Performance Products, Santomauro Racing Products, Cometic Gaskets, Kaeding Performance, Donovan, Magtech, ISC Racers Tape, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Racing Optics, Mothers Wax, Don's Truck Wash, Gardner Farms, Hoosier Tires, GoPro, XYZ Machining, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, Peterson Fluid System, Red Devil Brakes, Schoenfeld Headers, ADD, 6B Apparel, Zips Energy Seeds, Bosch, NGK, Garrett Racing Engines, MSD and WSIB Insurance for all their support!
Attached: Brian races to the outside of Fred Rahmer, who made some memories Saturday night (Paul Arch Photo)
- Admin Account on Oct 08, 2013
- Article Date: 10/8/2013 by Bill Wright