Inside Line Promotions – GIBSONTON, Fla. (Feb. 19, 2018) – Travis Rilat kicked off his 2018 campaign with BDS Motorsports by posting a trio of top-10 finishes last weekend during the Ronald Laney Memorial King of the 360s.
The results gives the duo seven top-10 finishes in eight sprint car races together.
“We’ve been in the top 10 almost every night together,” Rilat said. “We just need to push it a little harder. We’re fairly consistent now. We have to file away the edges and keep pushing.”
The action at East Bay Raceway Park began on Thursday with Rilat winning a heat race after starting on the outside of the front row. That locked him into the third starting position for the 25-lap main event.
Rilat battled between third and fifth for the first several laps before he spun in turn two trying to avoid a crash. While Rilat kept his car going, the caution came out so he was forced to restart the race last. He rallied from the back of the pack to record a ninth-place finish.
The following night opened with Rilat finishing where he started – second – in a heat race. That was good enough to lock into the 11th starting position in the main event. Rilat picked up a trio of positions to end eighth.
Once preliminary points were tabulated Rilat ranked eighth overall, which was two positions – and only a couple of points – shy of locking into Saturday’s 40-lap A Main. It forced Rilat to run a heat race, which he won to line up on the outside of the fourth row for the main event.
Rilat competed inside the top 10 throughout the race before he settled for a seventh-place result, which marked his third straight night of improving his feature finish.
“All weekend we needed to find the right balance for me and the car,” he said. “The more we work together the closer we’ll get. I think we learned a lot from the weekend. We had some decent finishes, but it wasn’t what we wanted. That gives us something to work on for the next race.”
Rilat and BDS Motorsports will be off for the next few weeks before the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com season-opening event on March 16-17 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, for the 45th annual Spring Nationals.
QUICK RESULTS –
Feb. 15 – East Bay Raceway Park in Gibsonton, Fla. – Heat race: 1 (2); Feature: 9 (3).
Feb. 16 – East Bay Raceway Park in Gibsonton, Fla. – Heat race: 2 (2); Feature: 8 (11).
Feb. 17 – East Bay Raceway Park in Gibsonton, Fla. – Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 7 (8).
SEASON STATS –
3 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 3 top 10s, 3 top 15s, 3 top 20s
UP NEXT –
March 16-17 at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, for the 45th annual Spring Nationals with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.TravisRilat.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/TravisRilat29
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“Shop the BOSS was created by Richard Bell, who has been a really good friend,” Rilat said. “He’s got a pretty unique deal going on. As his business has grown and expanded, he’s been able to do a lot more with the team.”
Rilat would also like to thank BDS Motorsports, Frio Chevrolet, MDS Boring & Drilling, Shark Racing Engines, Weld Wheels, KSE Racing Products, Schoenfeld Headers, Simpson Race Products, Hoosier Racing Tires, HRP Wings, Goodrich, Penske Racing Shocks, All Star Auto Reconditioning, All Pro Cylinder Heads, Astro Titanium, AutoMeter, Batts Farms, Birch Corp Financial, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Carlan Services, Car Star Collision and Service (from Leduc, Alberta, Canada) Champion Brands Racing Oil, Clark Construction, Diversified Machine Inc., Dyer Rods, Eagle Motorsports, FK Rod Ends, Fuel Safe, Gee and Gee Racing, Gillund Enterprises, Global Power Services, Hepfner Racing Products, Hoosier Tire Midwest, Impact Coatings, Joe’s Kleen Products, The Joie of Seating, Justice Brothers, Kinsler Fuel Injection, KSE Racing Products, Kustom Sprintcar Supplies, Lanktree Holdings, Millstone, Moroso Products, NGK Spark Plugs, Outerwears, Over The Top Marketing and Promotions, Pat Beck Motorsports, Pit Stop Liquors, Quick Racing Products, Randy’s Lawncare/Maintenance – Newton, Iowa, Sander Engineering, SCE Gaskets, Schoenfeld Headers, Sebastian Sandblasting and Powdercoating, Shane Liebig, Shaver Specialty Race Engines, Speedway Motors, Strong Crane Service, Super Shox, Total Seal Piston Rings, Ultra-Lite Brakes and Zephyr Pro40 for their continued support.
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- Shawn Miller on Feb 19, 2018
- Article Date: 2/19/2018 by Inside Line Promotions