Lonnie Wheatley, CLUTE, Texas (June 24, 2014) – While the results weren’t all that bad, they still weren’t what Aaron Reutzel was hoping for as he and the Bob and Christie Miller’s Car Parts Machine/Wren Motorsports No. 87 Triple-X team rode out a trying ASCS Speedweek.
It could best be characterized as a workmanlike effort, overcoming a variety of setbacks including a cut tire, brake loss and power steering failure along the way.
When all was said and done though, the familiar Lone Star Hydro Maintenance/BC Fundz/Wright Way Logistics machine was among the top ten in four of five Speedweek events and no lower than 11th, good enough to rank fifth in ASCS Speedweek points and hold down the fifth position in the season’s ASCS National championship points race.
To cap off the week, Reutzel dropped in on Double X Speedway on California, MO, on Sunday night where he claimed a third-place finish in the Momentum Racing Suspensions/Danny Sander Construction/ButlerBuilt machine.
“We had a great car every night, it seemed like little things happened though and we just didn’t capitalize and get the finishes we should have,” Reutzel surmised. “That part of it sucks, we should have won at Outlaw and should have been top five the other three Speedweek races.”
After opening Speedweek with a fourth-place run at Devil’s Bowl Speedway the previous Saturday, a four-night stretch of action kicked off last Wednesday at Lawton Speedway where Reutzel claimed seventh after battling among the top five early on.
“We should have been third at Lawton or maybe even second, then I fell off the racetrack,” Reutzel explained of his first Lawton Speedway feature outing.
On to a heavy Creek County Speedway near Tulsa on Thursday where Reutzel clawed his way to another seventh-place finish after starting 11th. “We were points racing, I really never got up on the wheel and manhandled it like I maybe could have.”
With an eighth consecutive ASCS National top ten finish in the books, it was on to Outlaw Motorsports Park near Muskogee, OK, on Friday night, a track where the Clute, TX, driver claimed his second National win in May.
Running a strong second early on, Reutzel’s luck soured when a cut left rear tire shredded down the backstretch. To complicate matters, a loss of brakes once action resumed hindered Reutzel’s charge back through the field though he still salvaged a ninth-place finish.
What was a potential win at the outset before the cut left rear tire, Reutzel still felt that, “We could have got to the top five if we hadn’t lost the brakes, the car was that good. After that though, we just got what we could get.”
Set for the Speedweek finale at Lucas Oil Speedway, Reutzel was behind the eight ball early. “I missed a chance to win the heat race, just made a mistake in the first corner and ended up in a “B” Main.”
Reutzel dominated his “B” Main and was on the move from the 18th starting position until he felt fluid and brought the machine to a stop in turn four. “I thought it was oil from the engine so I shut it off, I looked down and saw the fluid and realized it was power steering.”
Minus power steering over the final 22 circuits of the 30-lapper, Reutzel still managed to work his way to an 11th-place finish. “Before we lost power steering, we were easily a top ten car and probably a top five.”
Hungry for a win, Reutzel and crew member Ryan Beechler opted to take in Sunday night’s card at Double X Speedway to tune up for some ASCS Warrior action over Fourth of July weekend.
Fast out of the box once again, a “W” on this night wasn’t meant to be either.
After starting fifth, Reutzel worked his way past fourth and then third before setting his sights on the lead duo. Reeling in the second place car in short order, Reutzel went to work.
“I slid him and stuffed it in the fence, I thought for sure I was flipping,” Reutzel recalls. “I don’t know how I kept going, but I did. It knocked the Jacob’s ladder off though, after that I couldn’t touch the cushion so we rode around and finished third.”
With a busy stretch of action in the books, Reutzel will take to the storied Knoxville Raceway ½-mile clay oval at Iowa’s Marion County Fairgrounds on Saturday night with twin features on the docket to gain some valuable laps for the upcoming Knoxville 360 Nationals before taking in four nights of ASCS Warrior Region competition over Fourth of July weekend.
2014 Quick Stats: 33 races, 5 wins, 18 top-fives, 26 top-tens, 6 heat race wins, 4 “B” Main wins.
Up Next: Twin 360 features at Knoxville Raceway this Saturday, June 28.
Keep Track: Keep track of Aaron Reutzel’s on-track action including schedule and results at http://www.aaronreutzelracing.com/, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Aaron-Reutzel-Racing/117666254913127 or on Twitter at @AaronReutzel. You can also e-mail Aaron at aaronreutzel@yahoo.com.
If you would like Aaron Reutzel Racing press releases e-mailed directly to you, send your e-mail address to Lonnie Wheatley at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Penning the recurring series of “The Wheatley Chronicles” articles on racinboys.com, Lonnie Wheatley provides media, public relations and more for select tracks, drivers and events. For more information, Wheatley may be contacted at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
- Lonnie Wheatley on Jun 24, 2014
- Article Date: 6/24/2014 by Lonnie Wheatley