(Photo by Paul Arch)
Inside Line Promotions – BARBERVILLE, Fla. (Feb. 12, 2018) – Trey Starks is optimistic following his first-ever trip to the DIRTcar Nationals.
The Gobrecht Motorsports driver ventured to Volusia Speedway Park to tackle five straight nights of competition at the fast oval last week. Starks advanced into the A Main during one of the two Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions shows and during two of the three World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series races.
“It’s a good place to try some new things and work on some stuff,” he said. “At the same time you have such good competition if you’re off by just a little bit you’re going to know it. It was a tough week for us. It wasn’t the results we wanted. However, we did play around and found some stuff out. We had speed at times.”
Starks qualified sixth quickest in his group during the All Star shows on Wednesday and Thursday. He then finished where he started – sixth – in a heat race each night to miss locking into the main event by only one position. A fifth-place result in the B Main on Wednesday left him out of the main event, but Starks rebounded on Thursday by placing fourth in the B Main to transfer into the back of the A Main.
“You always want to get as many laps as you can, especially at a new track,” he said. “Making the feature was definitely beneficial because of the extra laps.”
Starks advanced from 24th to 21st in the main event.
Friday showcased the opening night of three straight World of Outlaws shows. Starks timed in 31st overall in qualifying, which is an area of emphasis for Gobrecht Motorsports.
“Qualifying was really tough for us,” he said. “We have been pretty good qualifying, especially at big tracks. That made us scratch our heads a little bit. We were looking for something. We got closer toward the end of the week, but we didn’t find the speed we’ve seen in the past.”
Starks placed eighth in a heat race and 10th in the Last Chance Showdown to cap Friday’s program. He returned to the oval on Saturday and qualified 21st quickest to show a lot of improvement. Starks then advanced from sixth to fifth place in a heat race to lock into the 17th starting position in the main event.
Following a 21st-place finish in the feature, the event concluded on Sunday. Once again, Starks made a big move forward in qualifying by timing in 13th quickest. He ended 10th in a heat race before winning the Last Chance Showdown to garner a spot in the main event.
“You’re always learning,” he said. “You can tell it’s the first race of the year because everyone is chomping at the bit. The racing is tighter than normal. We found speed in the main events. We had times we were really fast.”
Starks made some headway in the main event before finishing 24th.
“A week like that can beat you up,” he said. “Our main goal is to stay focused and keep looking ahead. We have a lot of races with good competition this year. The main thing is to learn what we did this weekend and apply it to wherever we can this season.”
Starks and Gobrecht Motorsports will return to competition March 10 at Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa., before competing the next afternoon at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa.
QUICK RESULTS –
Feb. 7 – Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. – Qualifying: 6; Heat race: 6 (6); B Main: 5 (5).
Feb. 8 – Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. – Qualifying: 6; Heat race: 6 (6); B Main: 4 (3); Feature: 21 (24).
Feb. 9 – Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. – Qualifying: 31; Heat race: 8 (8); B Main: 10 (11).
Feb. 10 – Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. – Qualifying: 21; Heat race: 5 (6); Feature: 21 (17).
Feb. 11 – Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. – Qualifying: 13; Heat race: 10 (5); B Main: 1 (1); Feature: 24 (19).
SEASON STATS –
8 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 0 top 10s, 1 top 15, 2 top 20s
UP NEXT –
March 10 at Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa., and March 11 at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.TreyStarksRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Starks55Trey
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TreyStarksRacing?fref=ts
APPAREL –
Starks has t-shirts and hoodies for sale at http://www.TreyStarksRacing.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Golf Cart Services
Golf Cart Services is one of the largest E-Z-GO distributors in the country. The family owned business, which is located in New Oxford, Pa., and has been in business approximately 50 years, sells new and used golf carts. It also offers rentals and does repairs. For more information, visit http://www.GolfCartServices.com.
“I want to thank Golf Cart Services for its support of our team,” Starks said. “They are a huge part of our program and I can’t wait to get their logo in Victory Lane.”
Gobrecht Motorsports would also like to thank Textron Off Road, Champion Brands, Starks Timber Processing, FK Rod Ends, J&J Auto Racing, Fibreworks Composites, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Beer Hill Gang, Gettysburg Rental Center, Gardy’s Enterprises, Moose Blocks, Baker Door Company, Moose Lodge 720, Pancho’s Racing Products, Pro Shocks, Auto Meter, KSE Racing Products, Fel-Pro, Taylor Ignition Wires, Miller Welders, K&N Filters, Mettec, Bell Helmets, AL Driveline, DMI, Champion Spark Plugs, ISC Racers Tape, Schroth Racing, HMS Motorsports, King Racing Products, Kinsler Fuel Injection, All Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads, Ultra Lite Brakes & Components and Security Race Products 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 Feb 12, 2018
- Article Date: 2/12/2018 by Inside Line Promotions