9/9/2014
Austin McCarl
Austin McCarl – $10,000 Finish is a Sweet One!
Austin McCarl – $10,000 Finish is a Sweet One!
(Bill W) September 8, 2014 – Austin McCarl spent much of Sunday night at the Huset’s Speedway just trying to figure out what was wrong with his car. In the end, he had it dialed in to the tune of $10,000 on Dollar Loan Center Season Championship Night. The Altoona, Iowa driver would like his season to continue, but without a ride at the moment, it may have been a good ending for him.
The 3/8-mile oval near Brandon, South Dakota has been good to Austin. In just six races run this year, he has finished sixth, fifth, and fourth three times before Sunday’s win. The way Sunday started, however, you would have thought the luck was ending. “We changed some things this week,” says Austin. “We put one of my Dad’s engines in. We changed the car a lot. I didn’t feel good in hot laps. I didn’t know if I didn’t get a clean lap or what. I was just going to blame it on the racetrack.”
Timing in just tenth quick, Austin struggled to a third place heat finish. “We just weren’t that good,” he says about qualifying. “It translated to the heat race too. I threw the kitchen sink at the car after qualifying, and I thought maybe we fixed it. That obviously didn’t work either. I just got a terrible start and (Mark) Dobmeier got me. I was just tight and not hitting the bottom like I needed to.”
A fortunate draw, and another try at setup were in the offing for the $10,000 main event. “I threw a whole different kitchen sink at it for the feature, and went the complete opposite way that I’d been running all year,” says Austin. “It ended up working pretty well. I have to thank Dusty Ballenger, who drew the ten for the invert in the feature. When they told me it was a ten, I was thanking my lucky stars.”
Austin shot off to a lead on the cushion that he would never surrender in the non-stop 25-lapper. “The racetrack was heavy and pretty tough to pass,” he says. “There are a lot of times in the feature, where we’re not far off from what we’re doing in qualifying. We were turning pretty good laps out there.”
Dobmeier would shoot to second, but he had nothing for Austin. “Going 25 laps non-stop probably helped me too,” says Austin. “Being able to get out in clean air, and get through the traffic as well as we did…it was good. When you have guys like Mark Dobmeier and Terry McCarl behind you, you can’t mess around. I was concentrating on running my race and hitting my marks. It was unbelievable.”
Austin would love to continue racing this season, but it looks like he’ll have to wait again. “Unless I can find a ride, that’s it,” he says. “It’s a good way to end, but I don’t want that to be our last race. Obviously, I’d like to find a ride and drive for someone, but without that, we’re done for 2014 at least.”
Austin would like to thank: Bargain Barn Tire Center, New Gulf Resources, Excel Therapy, Simplot Grower Solutions, Sweeter Construction, DeBerg Concrete, Rossie Feed & Grain, Berryhill Racing, CM Rock, Vortex Wings, Hoosier Tire, Phil & Vivian, Maxim Chassis, 212 Bar & Grill, VDB Designs, Justice Brothers, Schoenfeld Headers, Engler Injection, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bell Helmets, Aurora Rod Ends, Butlerbuilt and Crow Safety for all their help.
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