9/13/2016
Inside Line Promotions
Van Dam Scores Career-Best World of Outlaws Results at Skagit and Willamette
(Photo by Justin Brester)
Inside Line Promotions – LEBANON, Ore. (Sept. 13, 2016) – Henry Van Dam earned his career-best World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series result at a pair of Northwest tracks during the past week and a half.
The action began on Sept. 2 at Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash., where he qualified 12th quickest and placed fifth in a heat race to start the main event on the inside of the eighth row. Van Dam was competing just outside the top 10 when he was involved in a crash that resulted in a DNF.
“The track was a little rough,” he said. “We started a little deep, but were making our way through. A car spun out and we got collected in the mess and it knocked the front end out.”
The result improved the ensuing night at the high-banked oval, where Van Dam timed in in 14th quickest overall before he finished fifth in a heat race.
“The second night we had an okay pace, but we couldn’t keep up on the long run,” he said. “The main event went 33 laps without a caution. We got in a spot and hung out. I’d gain one lap and lose one lap. With a restart with two laps to go we were able to pick off a couple of cars. The 410 program is always a work in progress. It was a benefit to get the laps.”
Van Dam netted a 14th-place result, which was his best-ever during a World of Outlaws race at Skagit Speedway.
His final World of Outlaws show of the season was last Wednesday at Willamette Speedway, where Van Dam qualified 15th quickest, ended ninth in a heat race and advanced from 13th to 10th in the qualifier.
“We were really tight through qualifying and the heat race so we went back to square one,” he said. “We found some stuff with the car and were able to fix that. We made progress in the qualifier. We made some small changes for the feature and were able to stay fairly consistent throughout the feature.”
Van Dam battled just outside the top 10 for the duration of the main event before he setting for a 13th-place finish, which was his best Outlaws result at the track.
Van Dam also competed in a Summer Thunder Sprint Series race at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., on Sept. 4. He timed in 11th quickest and placed third in a heat race before charging from 11th to fourth in the main event.
“We made some changes to see if we could get better and they didn’t work to start the night off,” he said. “We didn’t have any speed in hot laps or qualifying. I made some big changes for the feature and it seemed to work. We were able to climb from 11th to fourth picking cars off throughout the race. We had a good, clean race and got something out of it.”
Van Dam will be off this weekend before competing Sept. 23-24 at Central Washington State Fair Raceway in Yakima, Wash., with the Summer Thunder Sprint Series.
QUICK RESULTS –
Sept. 2 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. – Qualifying: 12; Heat race: 5 (4); Feature: 21 (15).
Sept. 3 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. – Qualifying: 14; Heat race: 5 (5); Feature: 14 (14).
Sept. 4 – Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash. – Qualifying: 11; Heat race: 3 (2); Feature: 4 (11).
Sept. 7 – Willamette Speedway in Lebanon, Ore. – Qualifying: 15; Heat race: 9 (8); Qualifier: 10 (13); Feature: 13 (14).
SEASON STATS –
23 races, 1 win, 8 top fives, 14 top 10s, 15 top 15s, 16 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Sept. 23-24 at Central Washington State Fair Raceway in Yakima, Wash., with the Summer Thunder Sprint Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.HenryVanDam.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/VanDamRacing
APPAREL –
Van Dam has t-shirts available for sale at his race trailer and at Enumclaw Xpress Lube.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Enumclaw Xpress Lube
Located in Enumclaw, Wash., Enumclaw Xpress Lube offers a full range of vehicle oil and fluid services. It can also service air filter and wiper blades.
“Enumclaw Xpress Lube was my very first sponsor and have been with us ever since,” Van Dam said. “They’ve been there for the good years and the bad years and have provided ample support.”
Van Dam would also like to thank Kovash Logging, Johansen Excavating, Highmark Concrete Contractors, Northwest Welding & Fabrication, Les Schwab Tire of Enumclaw, Clems Enumclaw Powersports, A.R.T. Speed Equipment, Van Dam Dairy, Village Green Resort, Factory Kahne, D&L Equipment Repair, Zender Equipment, Big Bob’s Flooring Outlet, Bob and Joan Shumway, Kellan and Kelsey Hall, Foothills Auto Supply, American Powder Coating, Pete Vos, Char’s Barber Shop, Wesmar Race Engines, SpeedMart, Van Dam Farms and Rich Van Dam Dairy 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.
Article Credit: Inside Line Promotions
Submitted By: Shawn Miller
