Inside Line Promotions – LAS VEGAS (March 9, 2015) – Henry Van Dam had a strong car at the end of the night during a pair of World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series events at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas last week.
“We got better every time we hit the track, but the start of the night is so critical when you compete with the World of Outlaws,” he said. “We needed to qualify better to put ourselves in a better position for the end of the night.”
Van Dam opened the FVP Outlaw Showdown last Wednesday by timing in 30th quickest. He then advanced from eighth to seventh place in a heat race, which missed a lock-in position to the main event by two spots.
That relegated him to the Last Chance Showdown, where he maneuvered from 11th to a fifth-place result – only one position shy of a transfer.
“The goal was to make the main event, but I was pleased that we showed a lot of improvement throughout the night,” he said.
Van Dam returned to the half-mile oval on Thursday, when he improved his qualifying effort by a handful of positions to time in 25th quickest. He placed seventh in a heat race to once again narrowly miss a lock-in position.
Van Dam battled for a transfer position throughout most of the consolation race before he capitalized on a late-race caution. Van Dam and two other drivers went wheel to wheel for the fourth-and-final transfer position during the final two laps with Van Dam securing the position on the last lap.
“That caution with a couple of laps to go bunched everybody together and gave us a final opportunity to make a move,” he said. “I was in the right place at the right time and made a couple of good moves to earn the transfer.”
Van Dam then rallied from last – 24th – to an 18th-place finish during the main event. It marked his best finish at the track with the World of Outlaws since 2012.
“Any time you can make the main event and then put together consistent laps with the World of Outlaws it’s a boost for your program,” he said. “It was great to end the event with some momentum.”
Van Dam is slated to return to competition on April 4 at Central Washington State Fair Raceway in Yakima, Wash., with the Summer Thunder Sprint Series.
QUICK RESULTS –
March 4 – The Dirt Track at Las Vegas in Las Vegas – Qualifying: 30; Heat race: 7 (8); B Main: 5 (11).
March 5 – The Dirt Track at Las Vegas in Las Vegas – Qualifying: 25; Heat race: 7 (7); B Main: 4 (5); Feature: 18 (24).
SEASON STATS –
7 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 4 top 10s, 4 top 15s, 5 top 20s
UP NEXT –
April 4 at Central Washington State Fair Raceway in Yakima, Wash., with the Summer Thunder Sprint Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.HenryVanDam.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/VanDamRacing
APPAREL –
Van Dam has sweatshirts and hats available for sale at his race trailer.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Les Schwab Tire of Enumclaw
Les Schwab Tire of Enumclaw is a leading tire store that also services brakes, shocks and struts, batteries, wheels and more. For more information, visit http://www.LesSchwab.com.
“Les Schwab Tire of Enumclaw came on board the last couple of years,” Van Dam said. “They take care of me from my car to the hauler and trailer to make sure we get down the road.”
Van Dam would also like to thank Kovash Logging, Johansen Excavating, Enumclaw Xpress Lube, Clems Enumclaw Powersports, Factory Kahne, A.R.T. Speed Equipment, Van Dam Dairy, Village Green Resort, D&L Equipment Repair, Zender Equipment, Big Bob’s Flooring Outlet, Bob and Joan Shumway, Kellan and Kelsey Hall, Foothills Auto Supply, American Powder Coating, Pete Vos, Char’s Barber Shop, Wesmar Race Engines, SpeedMart, Van Dam Farms and Rich Van Dam Dairy for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Mar 09, 2015
- Article Date: 3/9/2015 by Inside Line Promotions