Billy Tanner had his fair share of obstacles in his first ARCA RE/MAX Series short track race, but the driver persevered with a 19th place finish in Sunday’s Hantz Group 200 presented by Federated Auto Care.
Tanner, aboard Stott Classic Racing’s No. 07 CheapCaribbean.com Pontiac Grand Prix headed into the tricky Toledo Speedway looking to gain experience and knowledge of not only his ARCA car, but the characteristics of a short track setup presented to a driver.
In the first and only practice session of the day, Tanner eclipsed the 25th fastest lap time of the day with a time of 17.662 seconds or 101.914 MPH. Tanner considered the practice a success and was looking forward to qualifying set for later in the afternoon.
“Man, what a place this is,” said Tanner. “It’s a little different than I thought it was going to be. I wasn’t really sure what to expect to be honest with you. Corrie (Stott, crew chief) did a great job with the setup and I think we’re going to be fine the rest of the weekend.”
In qualifying, Tanner knew he had to post a lap that was strong enough to lock him into the field, since his rookie team didn’t have enough provisionals to fall back on should the unexpected occur.
No worries.
In ARCA SIM Factory qualifying, Tanner logged the 19th fastest lap with a time of 17.176 seconds amounting to a speed of 104.797 MPH. The team picked up a half a second from practice enabling Tanner to make his third ARCA start of the season.
“Qualifying went just as planned,” Tanner added. “I’m really proud of my guys. We knew we had to make the race. We did it and now we’re focusing on the race.”
Sunny skies and comfortable temperatures greeted the teams for the eighth race of the 2007 season. With 35 cars prepared for the first of two events at Toledo Speedway this season, Tanner was buckled in and ready to go.
The field quickly went to caution on lap one when Robb Brent spun his No. 00 Ford Fusion. Tanner reported in that everything appeared normal on his No. 07 Pontiac Grand Prix and he was set to return to action.
Tanner would hover inside the top-20 for much of the first quarter of the event, but two spins with female driver Gabi DiCarlo tried to set the team behind, but the determination of the crew and rookie driver overcame the hiccups.
While trying to regain the ground he lost, Tanner noticed his motor began to showed signs of losing a cylinder. The team opted to keep the Pennsylvania native out on the track hoping they could finish the race on seven cylinders.
Despite losing four laps to race winner Ken Butler III, Tanner finished his first short track event with a respectable finish giving the team additional momentum heading into their next event scheduled for Iowa.
“Not a bad day overall,” said Tanner. “We had a decent car. We’re learning. This was our first short track race together and I think we did a pretty solid job. The car is in good condition and we can use it again. That’s a good thing.”
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