(Photo by Vince Vellella Photos)
Inside Line Promotions – WILLIS, Texas (May 8, 2017) – Ray Allen Kulhanek notched a pair of top-five finishes in ASCS Gulf South Region competition last weekend to remain atop the championship standings.
On Friday night, Kulhanek charged from eighth to fourth place in a heat race before maneuvering from the 10th starting spot to finish third during the 2nd annual Gene Adamchik Memorial at Heart O’ Texas Speedway in Waco, Texas.
“Marvin and I figured that the bottom would be the place to run and that was the way it worked out,” Kulhanek said. “I really thought we were going to win. We were right behind the first and second-place cars when there was a red with about eight or nine laps remaining. When the race restarted, it just took too long for our car to get going again and we ran out of time.”
If not for a solid start in his heat race, Kulhanek would have started much deeper in the main event.
“We started eighth in our heat on a saturated track,” he said. “I was able to get a good start and move up to fourth on the first lap. It was really tough to pass after the start and that’s where we finished.”
Kulhanek drew much better the following night at the 5th annual Nolan Wren Memorial at Gator Motorplex, where he won the opening heat race after starting on the pole.
“We were fast and had good balance in the car and were really looking forward to the feature,” he said.
Unfortunately, a 3 p.m. start led to a less-than-desirable racing surface for the main event that saw Kulhanek start third and finish fourth.
“We were just a victim of circumstances,” he said. “The track was rubbered down before the race started. It was pretty much impossible to pass. It was disappointing because we weren’t able to showcase our speed. But that happens sometimes. We’ll just move on to the next race.”
Kulhanek will be idle the next two weekends with his next racing action scheduled for an ASCS Gulf South Region tripleheader May 26 at RPM Speedway in Crandall, Texas; May 27 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas; and May 28 at Lone Star Speedway in Kilgore, Texas, for the 15th annual Memorial Day Classic.
“I’m looking forward to that weekend,” he said. “We had good speed at Devil’s Bowl last year and also ran well at Lone Star until we had a motor failure. We haven’t been to RPM since about ’09, but we ran well then.”
QUICK RESULTS –
May 5 – Heart O’ Texas Speedway in Waco, Texas – Heat race: 4 (8); Feature: 3 (10).
May 6 – Gator Motorplex in Willis, Texas – Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 4 (3).
SEASON STATS –
9 races, 1 win, 5 top fives, 7 top 10s, 8 top 15s, 9 top 20s
UP NEXT –
May 26 at RPM Speedway in Crandall, Texas; May 27 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas; and May 28 at Lone Star Speedway in Kilgore, Texas, for the 15th annual Memorial Day Classic with the ASCS Gulf South Region
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.RayAllenKulhanek.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kulhanek_Ray
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RayAllenKulhanek/?fref=ts
APPAREL –
Kulhanek will have apparel available for sale at his race trailer throughout the season. For a list of his scheduled events, visit http://www.RayAllenKulhanek.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Big Bass Tour
Founded in 2010, the Big Bass Tour is the nation’s premier big bass tournament series. The 2016 season featured more than $1 million in guaranteed prizes and payouts with events in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. For more information, visit http://www.BigBassTour.com.
“I want to thank Keith Odom and Mark Jones, a.k.a. Jonesy, who are partners in Big Bass Tour,” Kulhanek said. “I look forward to working with them for several years to come. I’m excited to build a new relationship focused on mutual success in both of our ventures.”
Kulhanek would also like to thank Texas Rotating Equipment, Alcon Construction, GoPro, J&J Auto Racing, Miller’s RV Park, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Smiley’s Racing Products, Engler Machine & Tool, Outlaw Wings, Hoosier Racing Tire Southwest, Penske Racing Shocks, C4 Graphics, Simpson Race Products and Marvin and Peggy Pearson for their 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 May 08, 2017
- Article Date: 5/8/2017 by Inside Line Promotions