NEWTON, Iowa - - Bryan Silas backed up his performance from Salem Speedway last weekend with a noteworthy eighth place finish in Saturday’s Prairie Meadows 250 at Iowa Speedway.
The Stuart, Florida native returned to Iowa Speedway looking for vengeance after 2007 yielded a remarkable performance but a sour finish. This year, Silas brought back the same attitude, a slick looking Ford Fusion and the experience of crew chief Jeff McClure.
For the second consecutive week, Mother Nature had other plans for the ARCA RE/MAX Series as rain dampened activities on Friday, forcing the cancellation of practice and subsequently ARCA SIM Factory pole qualifying. The lineup would be set by 2007 ARCA RE/MAX Series car owner standings putting the No. 11 Ford Fusion on the starting grid.
Saturday brought cloudy skies but hardly any serious precipitation. Track drying conditions took longer than expected triggering a very short practice session before the start of the 250-lap event.
In the session, Silas posted the 15th fastest lap with a time of 24.779 seconds at 127.124 MPH. “I wasn’t pedaling full throttle,” Silas said after practice. “I just wasn’t 100 percent comfortable with the condition of the track. There was no need to go out there and wreck our racecar. A lot of momentum is riding with us into this race and I truly want to make the best of it.”
That momentum clearly showed throughout the Prairie Meadows 250. At the start of the third race of the season, Silas immediately began picking off positions following fellow driver Tom Hessert III through the field. Picking off the cars of Tayler Malsam, Dominick Casola and John Wes Townley within the first five laps of the event would see the No. 11 cleanly into the top-10.
Silas would hardly find himself outside the top-10 for his second trip to Iowa Speedway. When the first caution flag of the day waived, Silas continued to rest comfortably inside the top-10 reporting to crew chief Jeff McClure that his car was tight but drivable.
Silas joined much of the competition on pit road on lap 31 where the teams took advantage of the first yellow to make adjustments to their automobiles before returning to action.
Solid work by the Fast Track Racing bunch would return Silas back into battle aiming for a march ahead towards the top-five.
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