Blog
November 30, 2011 • posted by: Dillon
Well, another season has come and gone…unfortunately. It always makes the beginning of the off season a little bit better though if you finish off the year strong. I feel like I did that so that helps ease the transition.
I drove the 9 Racing ClubSport/St.Vincent Sports Performance/Z-Line Designs Beast in Iriwndale, CA for the 71st annual Turkey Night Grand Prix on Thanksgiving night. It was the culmination of a great week.
I arrived in Southern California on Sunday night. We tested on Monday and things went alright. We fought a tight car most of the evening, and that had us scratching our heads a little bit. We made a lot of changes and I even tried a different line but we still had the push.
Tuesday I made a sponsor appearance at the Renaissance ClubSport in Aliso Viejo. It was great to take a show car there and meet many of the guests who were staying at the hotel or working out at the club. Many were very interested in seeing my car and learning more about my career as a racer.
 Dillon and the 9 at ClubSport appearance in Aliso Viejo |
Wednesday officially kicked off Turkey Night. It was an open test for everyone who was entered in the race. Once agian we were pretty tight, but at the end we bolted on some new tires and the car felt much better. Ending the night on a positive note gave me even more confidence headed into raceday.
Unfortunately, Thursday began the same as Monday and Wednesday…tight. We qualified 20th out of 35 cars and I must admit I was disappointed and discouraged.
My teammate Levi Roberts started 23rd and my plan was to just try and work my way up through the field with him. He got some openings at the start and passed about seven cars in the first lap, so needless to say I was on my own.
Irwindale is probably the best pavement track for a midget. It’s progressively banked, and this provides for some great racing and passing opportunities. Last year I started 28th and moved my way up through the field, so I wasn’t as surprised to see some of the moves people were making this time around.
My car was working really good and a caught a break by avoiding a big wreck in turn 3, I was up to 9th with 12 laps to go. Trying to pass for eighth, I got out of the groove and just about knocked down the fence and lost four or five spots. I was kicking myself big time for costing the team, and myself, a ton of spots after I’d worked so hard to pass them. A restart with 8 to go gave me an opportunity for redemption and I too advantage, getting up on the wheel and passing my up to the 8th spot. I dove for 7th on the last corner, but just ran out of race track.
Needless to say, I was pleased with 8th. Former USAC great Dave Steele was my crew chief for the week and he was a great help. Having him offering advice and making decisions regarding the car and tires provided me with a lot of confidence. Thanks to Dave, plus Glenn Martin and Krieg Poland for a very fun second half of the 2011 season. I really enjoyed working with all the 9 guys, and they really made it fun to be at the race track.
Of course, I owe a big thank you to car owner Steve Lewis. Steve really worked with us this year to get me in the car mid-season and made me feel like I’d been with the team for years. Aside from being a great car owner, he’s a great guy. He put my friend Chris Wilner and me up at his house the first few days of our west coast adventure, and gave us the keys to his Suburban, telling us to “go wherever we want, just don’t wreck it”.
Most of all, I can’t say thank you enough to all of our sponsors/supporters this season. Our mid-season struggles could have derailed the rest of our season, but you all stepped up and helped get me back in the seat. I will forever be grateful for that, and your continued support in general. A special thanks to Steve Gilmour from
ClubSport, Ralph Reiff of
St. Vincent Sports Performance, and Jim & Monica Sexton of
Z-Line Designs.
None of it would be possible without the support and cooperation of my mom, dad and sisters. They sacrifice in ways only a “racing family” would understand. Love you all!
While there are parts of this season I term successful, there is so much room to grow. I’m working to get better everyday as a driver and we’re constantly working on improving our racing program. I’m confident big strides will be made in the off-season.
September 23, 2011 • posted by: Dillon
We almost had one of those last Saturday in Columbus.
I was back behind the wheel of the 9 car this past weekend. Not having been on pavement since the end of July, I was excited to get things going. Our day certainly didn’t get off on the right foot though.
First hot lap session, someone was laying oil down on the track. I drove into the corner with an already loose race car and when I hit that oil, around I went. I broadsided the wall, which was probably the best thing that could’ve happened. The only visible damage was to the front axle, which we changed and I was able to get out in time for the second hot lap session.
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August 2, 2011 • posted by: Dillon
It feels so good to be reporting on some news from an actual race. It’s been almost a month since I’ve gotten to do that!
I made my debut in Steve Lewis’s 9 midget on July 28 at Lucas Oil Raceway (IRP). As part of Kroger Speedfest, this race has been around for a long time. I grew up coming to this race a lot and I always dreamed of driving the 9 midget, so this was a neat opportunity for me to debut in my “dream ride” in a race that I really have grown to respect.
We had tested the week before so I felt confident, but for some reason we struggled a little bit in practice. The car was tight at the beginning of practice, and loose at the end of it so we were scratching our heads.
In qualifying, the crew got the car just right, but the driver didn’t quite do his part. I think I underdrove the car just a tick, and as a result we qualified 12th.
USAC canceled the heat races because there were only 19 midgets, so we had a 6 hour break after qualifying before the feature. I wanted to get out of the heat and so did most everyone else, so a few other drivers and I left the track and went to a restaurant and had an early dinner. It was fun getting to hang out with those guys away from the track and I enjoyed it a lot.
Feature time finally rolled around and I began to work my way forward from 12th. This race was only 30 laps, so there was a very small margin for error regarding driving too hard and not hard enough. I wore it out too soon, and at the end of the race was really just trying to hang on to a very loose car. I came home with a 10th place finish, and a ton of great experience. The racing was intense, but a lot of fun. I had a camera on my car, and we’ll get the video on the website soon. As you’ll be able to see my hands were full.
As for the next night–July 29–at the Speedrome, I held off Daren Hagen to win the Heat race but the Feature was rained out. A make-up date has not yet, but will be announced.
A big thanks goes out to my crew: Glenn Martin, Krieg Poland, Dave Steele, Chuck Gurney Jr., and of course my car owner Steve Lewis. I really enjoy working with these guys. The atmosphere is always very fun and relaxed, but serious when it needs to be. And that’s the way I think it should be.
Thanks for checking in, and happy racing!
-Dillon
June 29, 2011 • posted by: Dillon
My first weekend at Iowa is one that I will remember for a while.
Iowa is the fastest track I’ve ever raced on. It’s a 7/8 mile oval and midgets run over 130 mph there, which means that we’re probably going into the corners at close to 160. You’re barely out of the gas, and that plus the high banking in the corners makes Iowa Speedway a very daunting racetrack.
Despite it being my first time seeing the track, we were fastest in practice. I was really excited obviously, and was optimistic about our chances in qualifying. That’s where things went bad. I was coming to take the white flag on my qualifying run and the rear axle snapped. The frontstretch is obviously wide-open and I was so close to the wall that there was no hope to even try and save it. The car spun around and slammed the wall left side first, picking up the right side and scraping the top of the frame along the top of the wall. Apparently I was very close to actually flipping over.
It totaled the 51 car, sadly. We had brought a back-up car in case something mechanically happened to the 51, so I hopped in the 11d for the feature. Starting at the back of the of 21 cars, I saw some insane racing at the start. Guys were going 4 wide down the frontstretch, it looked like Talladega out there sometimes. I had never drafted before, which is the key at Iowa. Once I got the hang of that, I began to work my way up through the field. After another spirited battle with Bobby East, I crossed the finish line in 14th.
So while the official results don’t describe our experience, I’m okay with that finish. 14th is obviously not where we want to finish every week, but I had never driven the 11 car and we were scrambling to even get it ready to go, so I’ll take it. I learned a ton in the feature, and really enjoyed the experience of racing at Iowa.
We have a double header this weekend before some time off. A bad-fast half mile in Toledo, OH is up first Friday, and then Grundy County Speedway near Joliet, IL is on tap for Saturday.
Thanks for reading!
-Dillon #11d
June 21, 2011 • posted by: Dillon
My first Mile experience is a weekend that I will remember for a long time.
USAC returned to the Milwaukee Mile for the first time since 2006 this past weekend. Milwaukee had a history with USAC dating back to the 50s and is the oldest race track in the world (constructed in 1903). I had watched races from the Mile on tv and always wanted to race there so I was excited to arrive.
We unloaded really fast. I was second quick the first practice session. Considering that it was my first time on a track that size, I was very comfortable. I got up to speed right away, and I think surprised a lot of people. On Friday practice, we wound up 7th, fighting a tight race car. So with two practices under my belt we headed into qualifying. The car felt really good. I about lost it in turn 1 of the first lap, so I felt like I needed to make up for it on the second lap. Evidently that worked, because my first qualifying experience on a mile track ended with the 51 car on the pole. I was thrilled and couldn’t believe I was on the pole at the Milwaukee Mile.
I was back behind the wheel of the 9 car this past weekend. Not having been on pavement since the end of July, I was excited to get things going. Our day certainly didn’t get off on the right foot though.
It feels so good to be reporting on some news from an actual race. It’s been almost a month since I’ve gotten to do that!
USAC returned to the Milwaukee Mile for the first time since 2006 this past weekend. Milwaukee had a history with USAC dating back to the 50s and is the oldest race track in the world (constructed in 1903). I had watched races from the Mile on tv and always wanted to race there so I was excited to arrive.
