Spring weather can wreak havoc when trying to plan out a racing schedule, especially in the Midwest. After weighing several options for this weekend, Taylor Ferns is tentatively scheduled for a two-race weekend in two states at two very different tracks. As long as Mother Nature cooperates, she will compete for the first time with the Midwest Open Wheel Association (MOWA) on Friday at the semi-banked Tri-City Speedway in Illinois, before heading to Ohio on Saturday for an Ohio Valley Sprint Car Association (OVSCA) event at the high-banked Atomic Speedway. If weather becomes a factor, those plans could change at the last minute.
A complete night of racing for MOWA is set for Friday, April 17 at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Illinois. The OVSCA event at Atomic Speedway in Chillicothe, Ohio this weekend, will take the green flag on Saturday, April 18.
“The more seat time I can get, the better,” said Ferns, who drives the Eco-Mend/Jimmy’s Towing Maxim. “Only racing once a week had been tough, because the last time I was in a race car for more than one night was in Florida way back in February and before that I hadn’t raced since October. With school winding down for the year and racing picking up, I think we’ll continue to get better and our finishes will show that.”
The race at Tri-City Speedway will mark the first time that Ferns has raced a sprint car at the track in the St. Louis area. She competed three straight seasons (2011-2013) with the Honda USAC National Midget Series at the track, in the annual Gold Crown Midget Nationals. She finished 16th in the opener of that event in 2011, which was her first start with the Honda USAC National Midget Series, at the then-age of 15. Ferns returned the next two seasons as well to compete in the multi-day midget event.
“It will definitely be a big change going to Granite City (Tri-City Speedway) in a winged car,” she explained. “They have a lot more horsepower than a midget and obviously having the wing changes how you drive it. Having been there will help, though, because I will have an idea of how the track will be and what it does throughout the night.”
Ferns made eight appearances at Atomic Speedway last season, including two with the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions. She was fastest in time trials with the series on July 3 during the annual “Night the Stars Come Out” event. Also, during Ohio Sprint Speedweek, Ferns was sixth-fastest in time trials with a 62-car field in attendance. She raced her way into the dash that night. Ferns also raced in the season-ending Open Wheel Championships at Atomic last season, finishing fifth in the Charlie McCann Memorial, which was contested by the 20-fastest drivers from time trials that did not transfer to the Open Wheel Championships main event.
“We had some solid runs at Atomic (Speedway) last year, especially when we ran with the All Stars,” said Ferns. “We time trialed well there last year as well, which always is a plus. I always feel like I have confidence going to Atomic, and I kind of need a confidence-booster right now.”
Last weekend, Ferns competed in the opening race of the year for Fremont Speedway in Ohio. She opened the night 21st in time trials of the 29 drivers in attendance. She crossed the line sixth in the third heat race, coming up one spot short of transferring to the A-Feature. In the B-Main, the 19-year-old finished eighth, with just the top-five moving on to the feature.
Thus far in 2015, Ferns has raced five times, with four of those coming in events sanctioned by the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions. She opened the season with an eighth-place run with the series at Bubba Raceway Park in Florida in February, and followed that up with a pair of 11th-place showings on the final two nights of the three-night lid lifter. She also raced with the series earlier this month at Attica Raceway Park in Ohio.
“Everyone at the shop is working very hard, so I really want to have a good weekend for them,” Ferns said. “We’ve had a bit of a rough patch early this season and really want to pick it up as we get to racing more. A couple of solid runs are what we are after right now to get back on track.”
Ferns will compete in a number of winged sprint car races this year, with the majority of in the Ohio/Michigan/Indiana/Illinois area.
Taylor Ferns and Ferns Racing would like to thank their valued partners: Eco-Mend, Jimmy’s Towing Recovery & Transport, Indy Race Parts, Motor City Auto Transport Inc., National Auto Placement, Project Podium, Women’s Sports Foundation, Lyn St. James Women in the Winner's Circle Foundation, FK Rod Ends, Lucas Oil, K&N Filters, Lansing Sanitary Supply (LSS), Simpson Race Products, ButlerBuilt, Allstar Performance, Stanton Racing Engines, Hoosier Tire Midwest, Race4Girls and Racing2Cure.
Keep up to date
For the latest news, results and information on Taylor Ferns and Ferns Racing and to view a full 2015 schedule, visit TaylorFerns.com. Follow Taylor on Twitter at @TaylorFerns and like her on Facebook.
- administrator on Apr 17, 2015
- Article Date: 4/17/2015