Circular Insanity Nets a Pair of Tulare Top Tens

Lonnie Wheatley, TULARE, Cal. (March 17, 2016) – Bryan Clauson’s “Circular Insanity Tour” was a little less insane this past weekend.

But, after a Friday night rainout, Clauson made the best of it by bagging a pair of top ten feature finishes at Tulare’s Thunderbowl Raceway on Saturday night as his 2016 race count climbed to 29 in the chase for 200 races.

On a heavy racing surface after an abundance of rain in previous days, Clauson claimed an eighth-place USAC West Coast Sprint Car finish aboard Mike Martin’s Cancer Treatment Centers of America/Jonathan Byrd’s Restaurant and Hospitality Group No. 16b before racing to a sixth-place World of Outlaws finish in Matt Wood’s Elk Grove Ford/Cancer Treatment Centers of America No. 17w Sprint Car.

“It was a good night overall, on the wing side especially,” Clauson commented.  “It was one of the best overall nights we’ve had in the winged car.”

This weekend, Clauson pulls a different type of double-duty.  Clauson puts on the promoter hat for the first time by presenting Saturday’s season-opening USAC Midget “Shamrock Classic” at Du Quoin’s Southern Illinois Center while also competing in the event aboard the Dooling Machine/Cancer Treatment Centers of America/Jonathan Byrd’s Restaurant and Hospitality Group No. 63 Midget.

“We’re doing some different things with prizes and the crowd and stuff,” Clauson explained.  “A lot of cars are entered and ticket sales look good.  I’m excited, it’ll be fun.”

Race 28

After Friday’s rainout, double-duty awaited on Saturday night at Tulare’s Thunderbowl Raceway.  It began with USAC West Coast Sprint Car action in Mike Martin’s Cancer Treatment Centers of America/Jonathan Byrd’s No. 16b.  After winning his heat, Clauson started ninth in the feature before finishing eighth.

“After the heat we drew a nine for the feature and that was pretty much it,” Clauson commented.  “The way the track was, you were really hard pressed to go anywhere.  We just kinda got what we could and called it good.”

Race 29

The World of Outlaws portion of Thunderbowl Saturday started strong with Clauson quickest among his qualifying group aboard the Elk Grove Ford/Cancer Treatment Centers of America No. 17w before ultimately finishing sixth on the night.  It was Clauson’s fourth WoO top-ten finish of the season.

“We started good, that was our first quick time.  We did our job in the heat by winning that.  The invert for the Dash was four so we started fourth, we got a good start to get into third and rode there the rest of the way.  In the feature, it was so important to get the best starts and restarts that you can and we were just always on the wrong side of the double-file restarts and that shuffled us back a couple of spots.  Overall, we were right there in the thick of things.  It was a solid finish and indicative of how we’ve been running the last month or so.

Twenty-nine races down, just 171 to go.

2016 Circular Insanity Tour Quick Stats:  29 races, 7 wins, 14 top-fives, 22 top-tens.

Up Next:

Saturday – USAC Midgets at Du Quoin’s Southern Illinois Center (Dooling Machine/Cancer Treatment Centers of America/Jonathan Byrd’s No. 63 Midget)

Keep Track:  Keep track of Bryan Clauson’s 2016 Circular Insanity Tour at www.bryanclauson.com, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/bryanclausonracing/?fref=ts and on Twitter at @bryanclausoninc.

If you would like Bryan Clauson “Circular Insanity Tour” press releases e-mailed directly to you, send your e-mail address to Lonnie Wheatley at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.

Penning the recurring series of “The Wheatley Chronicles” articles on www.sprintcarmania.com, Lonnie Wheatley provides media, public relations and more for select tracks, drivers and events.  For more information, Wheatley may be contacted at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.

Reutzel Kicks Off ASCS National Title Defense this Weekend!

Lonnie Wheatley, CLUTE, Texas (March 17, 2016) – Kickoffs in Texas.  It’s a definitely a familiar term in the Lone Star state.

This is a different type of kickoff though, as Aaron Reutzel launches his campaign for a second consecutive Lucas Oil ASCS National championship with this weekend’s trio of Texas events.

It all starts with Thursday’s series debut at Waco’s Heart O’ Texas Speedway before moving on to Mesquite for Friday and Saturday’s Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals.

With 16 nights of action already in the books for Reutzel in 2016, he is ready to defend his title aboard the Shark-powered Dissolvalloy Downhole Revolution/BC Fundz No. 87 Triple-X Sprint Car.

“We’re ready for some races that count, we’ve been looking forward to it,” Reutzel commented.

A Waco winner in Regional action in 2011, Reutzel has finished third in his most recent pair of outings at Heart ‘O Texas Speedway.  His last visit there was in 2014.

“Since they put the banking in, it’s a racy place,” Reutzel comments.  “It usually slicks off some, so it should make for a good show.”

The driver of the Wren Motorsports/Momentum Racing Suspensions machine has also been strong in recent Devil’s Bowl runs.  While inclement weather plagued many of last year’s scheduled Devil’s Bowl events, Reutzel claimed finishes of eighth and sixth at last October’s Winter Nationals.

“Devil’s Bowl can be tough, it usually either goes really good or really bad,” Reutzel said.

This weekend’s set of events marks the first of two weekends for Reutzel and the Danny Sander Construction/ButlerBuilt team to race in his home state with events at Paige and Cleveland next weekend.

Reutzel opened last year’s championship campaign with a victory on opening night and hopes to make it two years in a row tonight at Waco.

“We’re looking to get off to a strong start and set the tone early,” Reutzel said of beginning his title defense.

While Reutzel posted a series-best seven feature wins en route to capturing the 2015 championship aboard the Wright Way Logistics/Walker Performance Filtration entry by 49 points, he points out a key factor in repeating.

“While we had seven wins, we also had several DNF’s along the way,” Reutzel explains.  “We have to eliminate those, minimize the parts failures and little mistakes.  If we can do that, we’ll have a real good shot at another title.”

It all begins tonight at the Heart O’ Texas.

Up Next: Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour opener at Waco’s Heart O’ Texas Speedway on Thursday, March 17, before moving on to Devil’s Bowl Speedway near Dallas for the Devil’s Bowl Spring Nationals on Friday and Saturday, March 18-19.

Keep Track:  Keep track of Aaron Reutzel’s on-track action including schedule and results at http://www.aaronreutzelracing.com/, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Aaron-Reutzel-Racing/117666254913127 or on Twitter at @AaronReutzel.  You can also e-mail Aaron at aaronreutzel@yahoo.com.

If you would like Aaron Reutzel Racing press releases e-mailed directly to you, send your e-mail address to Lonnie Wheatley at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.

Penning the recurring series of “The Wheatley Chronicles” articles on www.sprintcarmania.com, Lonnie Wheatley provides media, public relations and more for select tracks, drivers and events.  For more information, Wheatley may be contacted at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.

Bellm Opens Season with Texas Triple!

Lonnie Wheatley, NIXA, Mo. (March 17, 2016) – Kyle Bellm is ready to get back on the road after a long off-season.

After last weekend’s scheduled season opener was washed out, the Nixa, Missouri racer gets to unveil the new Resource Asset Management Solutions (RAMS) colors on the Bellm Motorsports No. 14k Sprint Car at tonight’s Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour season opener at Waco’s Heart O’ Texas Speedway.

“We’ve got everything ready to go, we’re ready to go and race,” Bellm said earlier this week.

After tonight’s opener at Waco, the series moves on to Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, TX, for the track’s annual Spring Nationals on Friday and Saturday.

While Bellm lays eyes on the Heart O’ Texas Speedway for the first time today, the famed Devil’s Bowl is the site where the driver of the PPG Automotive Finishes/Colorvision Sprint Car captured his first ASCS National triumph in 2013.

“We have been fast there, but our luck hasn’t been that great at Devil’s Bowl since the win,” Bellm.  “Hopefully that’s something that turns around this weekend.”

This weekend marks the beginning of a second full season on the ASCS National Tour for the Schure Built Suspensions/Christian County Collision Repair entry.  Bellm finished out the season seventh in points last year while earning Rookie of the Year honors.

“We’re excited about this season,” Bellm said.  “We’re looking forward to building upon what we learned last season and seeing how much we can improve upon 2015.”

The 2016 season features a busy slate of action for the Bybee Lawn Care/Dynotech Racing Engines with a number of Regional events to supplement the full ASCS National schedule.

This weekend marks the first of two consecutive Texas weekends for Bellm and the Schaeffer Oil/Pro Designs/Racinboys team with ASCS action continuing next weekend at Cotton Bowl Speedway in Paige on Friday and then Cleveland’s Bronco Raceway Park on Saturday.

Up Next: Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour season opener on Thursday, March 17, at Waco’s Heart O’ Texas Speedway and the Devil’s Bowl Speedway Spring Nationals in Mesquite, TX, on Friday and Saturday.

Keep Track:  Keep track of Kyle Bellm’s on-track action including schedule and results at http://www.kylebellm.com/, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/KyleBellmRacing?fref=ts or on Twitter at @kylebellmracing.

If you would like Kyle Bellm Racing press releases e-mailed directly to you, send your e-mail address to Lonnie Wheatley at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.

Penning the recurring series of “The Wheatley Chronicles” articles on www.sprintcarmania.com, Lonnie Wheatley provides media, public relations and more for select tracks, drivers and events.  For more information, Wheatley may be contacted at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.