Casey Roberts Repeats as Race for the Kids ULTIMATE Winner at County Line Raceway

Elm City, North Carolina (November 15, 2014) – Casey Roberts knew exactly what he had to do to win his second consecutive Race for the Kids at County Line Raceway and the Toccoa, Georgia driver executed that to near perfection for the 6th Annual event which benefits Victory Junction Camps. “I knew that we had to get the lead early and stay out of trouble with lapped cars to be able to win here. We were able to do that and get a great win for our team.” Roberts said. Roberts’ plans however were nearly derailed on more than one occasion. On the initial start Roberts didn’t get a good start and slipped back to 5th exiting turn 2. However a yellow flag appeared before the completion of a lap which allowed Roberts another opportunity.

Roberts made good on his reprieve and outdueled pole sitter Chris Ferguson off of turn 2 to take the lead on the subsequent start. When Roberts took command it was evident he had the car to beat as he immediately began to put distance between himself and the pack that was battling for the 2nd spot. “Once I got to the lead my car felt really good. I could move around and do what I needed to do. I got very comfortable right off the start.” Roberts added. But Roberts comfort level quickly diminished as he reached back marker traffic. “The track was as good as I ever remember it being as far as being able to pass but you still have to pick where you are going to pass those guys carefully. Especially when you catch them and they are racing for position.”

Roberts had been able to weave his way through the lappers relatively easy until a lap 24 scare nearly ended his night. Derrick Francis ended up spun in turn 4 just as Roberts entered. Roberts was able to keep his machine righted but sustained some body damage as he squeezed by. 2nd place runner Russell Erwin along with the lapped machine of Willie Milliken were forced to spin to avoid the incident and suffered no damage. With field reset Roberts again roared away at the green flag. Erwin was forced to contend with Ferguson’s outside advance which allowed Roberts to squirt away again.

Roberts wasn’t out of the woods yet as it only took a few laps for him to catch up to the tail of the field where there were multiple side by side battles going on. But Roberts had been in this position many times before and was undaunted. “I knew I just had to be patient and take what they gave me. Most of those guys were respectful and raced us clean. I knew that whoever was behind me was going to have to make their way through too so I just tried to stay patient and keep the car under me and I felt like I would be alright.” Roberts said.

Indeed he was alright as the driver known as the Georgia Bandit motored away over the final laps and grabbed his 2nd ULTIMATE victory of the season and the 12th of his career. Roberts also extended his all-time career wins lead with the series. The win was worth $10,000 and his 2nd La-Z-Boy Recliner as the event winner. “I hate that my car owners Jimmy and Ann Cushman aren’t here. I gotta thank them so much. They are such a blessing to me and my family. Just hate they couldn’t be here. I want to thank them for sure. This Longhorn Chassis was just real good tonight. Thanks to Matt, my wife, Glenn, my son and everyone that’s here with us this weekend. I also want to thank M&S Concrete, Cushman Paint and Body, Hoosier Racing Tire, VP Race Fuels, Schaeffer Racing Oil and this Custom Race Engine ran great tonight. Just a good night for us. It’s just a great way to end the year for us.” Roberts said in Victory Lane.

Official Finish

1 – 101 Casey Roberts
2 – 32 Russell Erwin
3 – 51 Dustin Mitchell
4 – 2 Dennis Franklin
5 – 22 Chris Ferguson
6 – 21D Dan Stone
7 – 00 Jeff Smith
8 – D8 Christian Thomas
9 – 99 Boom Briggs
10 – 42 Chris Garnes
11 – 0 Ray Tucker
12 – 281 Kyle Pierce
13 – 89 Willie Milliken
14 – 06 Shaun Sewell
15 – 07 Brian Ledbetter
16 – 03 Doug Eck
17 – 98 Casey Barrow
18 – c9 Christian Joyner
19 – 91 Derek Francis
20 – 21 Michael Batten
21 – J2 Jeremy Mayfield
22 – 4 Brian Liggon
23 – 72 Jason Covert
24 – Doug Sanders

DNS: Anthony Sanders, Kevin Godwin, Roger Lucas, William Carrol, Brandon Ifft, Kevin Wilson, Bryant Dickinson and Lee Jamerson.

Heat Race Winners: Ferguson, Roberts, Franklin and Erwin.

B-Main Winners: Tucker and Ligon

Hard Charger ($200 David Barnes Racing Engines): Dan Stone (12th to 6th)

VP Fuels Fast Qualifier ($200 LocalRaceChat.com & Batten Seamless Gutters): Ferguson 14.143 seconds

Champions Chair (La-Z-Boy Recliner Elm City Furniture) Casey Roberts