Screven Motor Speedway
Notes: Hubbard's team debuts at familiar track
By Joshua Joiner
DirtonDirt.com staff writer
Austin Hubbard enters his first race with car owner Tim Logan at Screven. (DirtonDirt.com)
SYLVANIA, Ga. (Feb. 9) — Screven Motor Speedway is a special place for Austin Hubbard. After all, the 3/8-mile oval was the sight of the 19-year-old Seaford, Del., driver’s first World of Outlaws Late Model Series victory in 2010.
That breakthrough triumph, along with his knack for performing well at the track, has made Screven one of Hubbard’s favorite racetracks to compete at. He’ll look to repeat his memorable 2010 victory with an even bigger win at Screven this weekend when the red-clay oval kicks off Georgia-Florida Speedweeks by hosting the World of Outlaws for the $20,000-to-win Winter Freeze. | Slideshow
“This is one of my favorite tracks. I feel like every time we unload here we’ve got a pretty chance at winning,” Hubbard said following Thursday night’s Winter Freeze practice session. “I guess this place just suits me. I’ve definitely been looking forward to this race.”
Hubbard has also looked forward to the Winter Freeze because it’s the first event he’s entered with new car owner Tim Logan. The pair teamed up after Hubbard’s former car owner Dale Beitler retired at the end of Hubbard’s sophomore campaign on the Outlaws tour last season.
Hubbard, the 2010 World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year, has announced plans to follow the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series this season, but he stopped by Screven on the way to East Bay Raceway Park in Gibsonton, Fla., for next week’s Lucas Oil-sanctioned Dart Winternationals. Hubbard, who was one of 50 drivers to make laps Thursday night, was happy with the overall performance of his Rocket Chassis Thursday, but he felt the car still needs a few adjustments.
“We’re pretty fast, but I think we need to do some changing and try to get the car a little bit more consistent. We’re quick, but we’re not consistently quick,” said Hubbard, who has veteran crew chief Randall Edwards turning wrenches on his race car this weekend. “It’s pretty good right now. It’s got a lot of drive, which is good. It gets off the turn real well, but we gotta figure out how to get it a little smoother (entering the corners).”
Hubbard, who has driven Rockets for the majority of his career, also has a new Barry Wright Race Car in his pit area this weekend. He planned to test the car Thursday night, but the team instead focused on the Rocket. He’ll likely wait to debut the new car until Sunday, when he’ll head to Golden Isles Speedway in New Brunswick, Ga., for the unsanctioned Super Bowl of Racing VIII.
The team plans to interchange the Rocket and Barry Wright while competing in a pair of weeklong miniseries the following two weeks at East Bay and Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., before deciding which chassis brand will serve as their primary car.
“I guess we’re just gonna kinda run them both,” Hubbard said. “The plan now is to unload (the Barry Wright) at Brunswick. We’re gonna run them both for now and see which one we like better and see which direction we wanna go after Florida.
“We wanted to make some laps in (the Barry Wright car) tonight, but we kinda ran out of time and we’re pretty happy with our Rocket right now,” he added. “I think if we make just a few small changes on it we’ll pretty close to where we need to be to qualifying up front and hopefully stay there.”
Fuller looks to jump start program at Screven
Hubbard isn’t the only driver looking to recreate a previous victory this weekend at Screven. Tim Fuller of Watertown, N.Y., who won the 2009 World of Outlaws event at Screven, is hoping a return to the south Georgia oval will help get his racing program headed in the right direction after a mid-season split with car owner John Wight hampered much of his 2011 campaign.
Still feeling the effects of the split, Fuller, a regular on the Outlaws since 2007, isn’t sure he’ll be able to follow the national tour’s entire schedule this season with his own race team.
“It all depends on how Florida goes,” Fuller said, referring to the five Outlaws events between two Florida ovals that follow this weekend’s event at Screven. “You gotta come out pretty much in the top 10 of the points to have some hope in your program. ... I just want to show some promise down here. Hopefully we’re good enough to continue on.”
Fuller, who only has a backup car because Hubbard’s former car Beitler sponsored him with a second Rocket Chassis, said he doesn’t have the funding he used to when he was consistently a threat to win on the Outlaws tour.
“I don’t have the equipment I had a couple years ago. My motors are way better now, but technology, just the way everything’s moving – motors are getting better and cars are getting better – it takes a lot of money to run this deal,” Fuller said. “We’re just falling behind program-wise. Thankfully I’ve had a few people step up, especially product sponsors like VP and Hoosier and everybody. They’re still sticking with me and it’s that stuff there that keeps you going.”
Sullivan’s rookie hopes take a hit
Jack Sullivan’s bid to win the World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year Award didn’t get off to a great start Thursday night. The GRT Race Cars house car driver blew the engine in his primary car early in the night, forcing his team to unload a backup car.
“It’s a brand new car, but we really didn’t plan on getting it out so soon,” Sullivan said of his unproven backup. “She’s trying to go. We’re gonna tune on her a little bit so I think it’ll come around here for tomorrow night.”
Sullivan still plans to stick with the Outlaws tour for now, but admits any more major setbacks could knock him out of the running for the tour’s $10,000 Rookie of the Year Award.
“At the end of the day, this is a business and it’s gotta make financial sense to keep doing what we’re doing,” Sullivan said. “Keep breaking stuff like that it’ll be a pretty short rookie campaign.”
Franklin eyes another track record
With the lap times that were turned during Thursday night’s practice, Dennis Franklin of Gaffney, S.C., wouldn’t be surprised to see his nearly 3-year-old track record fall during Friday’s time trials. He just hopes he’s the one who sets the new mark.
“We got the track record, but I don’t know if it’ll stand after this weekend,” said Franklin, who set the current record of 13.906 seconds on April 3, 2009. “The track’s got a little more banking in it than it did back then. We’re down there pretty close to it tonight, so maybe we can be the ones to re-brake it.”
Franklin knows his way around Screven. He has at least four victories of $5,000 or more at the track, including a $10,000 payday that came in a 2007. But he also knows that the competition at the track this weekend is tougher than what he faced during his previous Screven victories.
“This is a different breed here. This is the best of the best,” said Franklin, whose AES Racing entry is owned by Steve Cooke. “But we’ve run good here before and Steve’s gave me a good car to come here with. I feel like we’ve got what we need to be competitive against these guys.”
Odds and ends
Martinsville, Ind., driver Don O’Neal blew an engine during his second practice run Thursday night and is done for the weekend. O’Neal’s MasterSbilt Race Cars house car team left for their shop in Indiana Thursday night to make repairs for next week's trip back south to East Bay. ... After reuniting with car owner Arnie Ranta, Wisconsin driver Terry Casey was scheduled to compete this weekend at Screven, but has decided to sit out the event after experiencing multiple mechanical issues while testing at Screven Tuesday and Wednesday. He won’t compete again until next week’s Dart Winternationals at East Bay. ... WoO rookie contender Jared Hawkins of Fairmont, W.Va., tagged the wall in his final practice run of the evening. The incident caused heavy damage to the right-rear corner of his Rocket Chassis, but he said it was all cosmetic. "I guess you'd call it a rookie mistake," Hawkins said. ... Dillan White of Crofton, Ky., had to go to a backup car after breaking a rear end in his primary car in the first practice round. ... Jimmy Mars of Menomonie, Wis., is at Screven assisting Warren, Pa., driver Ron Davies. Mars made laps in Davies' car tonight to test the setup, but Davies will be behind the wheel for the remainder of the weekend. Mars won't race during Speedweeks until the UNOH DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., Feb. 20-25. ... An electrical problem knocked out some of the track’s lighting and delayed the start of the four-hour practice session until almost 8:30. ... Gregg Satterlee of Rochester Mills, Pa., broke a timing belt on a new Roush-Yates Engine while practicing Monday at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. After a trip to the Roush-Yates shop in Charlotte, N.C., the engine is back in Satterlee’s Rocket and ready for action tonight. ... Scott James of Lawrenceburg, Ind., is looking to stay perfect at Screven. James won a pair of Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series events at Screven in 2008 and 2009 in his only previous visits to the south Georiga racetrack. ... The Winter Freeze will also feature complete shows for the All-Star Circuit of Champions sprint cars each night, a $2,500-to-win Limited Late Model event Friday night and a $2,500-to-win Crate Late Model event Saturday night.
Unofficial practice roster
No. - Driver, hometown
09 - Johnny Pursley, Clover, S.C.
1 - Brent Dixon, Elberton, Ga.
1 - Josh Richards, Shinnston, W.Va.
1*- Chub Frank, Bear Lake, Pa.
1n - Jordy Nippler, Gray, Ga.
1s - Jack Sullivan, Greenbrier, Ark.
3 - Mike Collins, Council Bluffs, Iowa
3 - Chesley Dixon, Swainsboro, Ga.
4ds - Chad Hollenbeck, Kingsley, Pa.
J4 - John Garvin Jr., Sarver, Pa.
B5 - Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, Ill.
5 - Mike Marlar, Winfield, Tenn.
6 - Steve Shaver, Vienna, W.Va.
7r - Kent Robinson, Bloomington, Ind.
10 - Scott Shirey, Gadsden, S.C.
11 - Pat Doar, New Richmond, Wis.
12 - Hunter Peacock, Macon, Ga.
18 - Shannon Babb, Moweaqua, Ill.
19 - Tim Fuller, Edwards, N.Y.
21 - Billy Moyer, Batesville, Ark.
21 - Royce Bray, Hull, Ga.
21 - Todd Frank, Green Bay, Wis.
21D - Dan Stone, Thompson, Pa.
21jr - Billy Moyer Jr., Batesville, Ark.
22 - Gregg Satterlee, Rochester Mills, Pa.
22 - Jill George, Cedar Falls, Iowa
24 - Rick Eckert, York, Pa.
25 - Shane Clanton, Fayetteville, Ga.
27 - Dennis Franklin, Gaffney, S.C.
27 - Jeff Fortner, Vidalia, Ga.
28 - John Lobb, Frewsburg, N.Y.
29 - Darrell Lanigan, Union, Ky.
32c - Vic Coffey, Caledonia, N.Y.
33 - Brian Reese, Sharpsburg, Ga.,
37 - Jared Hawkins, Fairmont, W.Va.
39 - Tim McCreadie, Watertown, N.Y.
41 - Josh McGuire, Grayson, Ky.
44 - Clint Smith, Senoia, Ga.
49 - Greg Johnson, Bedford, Ind.
50 - Scott Phillips, Marlette, Mich.
53 - Ray Cook, Brasstown, N.Y.
54 - Dillan White, Crofton, Ky.
71 - Don O'Neal, Martinsville, Ind.
71D - Ron Davies, Warren, Pa.
76 - Brandon Overton, Aplin, Ga.
77 - Jason McBride, Carbondale, Ill.
81 - Scott James, Lawrenceburg, Ind.
98 - Casey Barrow, Winder, Ga.
101 - Casey Roberts, Toccoa, Ga.
121 - Benji Cole, Canon, Ga.
