Sophomore-bound ARCA RE/MAX Series driver Patrick Sheltra was one of over 30 drivers to participate in Friday’s open-test session at the legendary Daytona International Speedway in preparation for the 2008 ARCA season-opener on February 9, 2008. Sheltra led by crew chief John Hayden and team manger Keith Strunk brought two Chevrolet Monte Carlos to help prepare him for the “Super Bowl” of ARCA.
Sheltra, the 21-year old Indiantown, Florida native clocked off the 14th fastest effort today with a time of 50.568 seconds at 177.978 MPH.
Here are some quotes and notes from today’s session:
PATRICK SHELTRA, NO. 60 FERGUSON PIPE ENTERPRISES, INC. -AMERICAN CONCRETE INDUSTRIES, INC. CHEVORLET MONTE CARLO SS:
SHELTRA: (ON THE FIRST DAY OF PRE-SEASON TESTING) “I really consider the first day of pre-season a success. My guys on the Sheltra Motorsports team have worked their butts off and I believe it showed on the speed charts today. It’s important for us to get a good jump on the 2008 season and I feel we made steps in the right direction today. ”
SHELTRA: (ON TESTING CAR NO. 60B, PURCHASED FROM RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING) “It’s a good piece. Anything that comes from that organization is stout and it’s adapted real well over here in the ARCA RE/MAX Series. We are telling everyone that we are stepping up our game for the 2008 ARCA RE/MAX Series season and I think we showed that Friday. ”
SHELTRA: (ON TESTING THE TEAM’S CAR NO. 60, THE AUTOMOBILE HE MADE HIS RESTRICTOR PLATE DEBUT AT TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY IN OCTOBER) “We had a lot of fun at Talladega, but we know there is always room for improvement. The Sheltra Motorsports team since the race has stripped the car and made improvements to enhance its performance. We did not get to test it today because of the massive amount of other teams testing, but we will test it on Saturday and we’re looking forward to seeing what it has. ”
SHELTRA: (ON THE IMPRORTANCE OF RACING AT DAYTONA) “Daytona is huge. There is no hiding from it. There can be a plus and minus side to it though. We start the season off there so if you have a bad run you are able to recover from even though it puts you behind the eight ball. However, if you have a good run, it only gives that extra motivation to go to the next race and keep the streak alive. I unfortunately missed Daytona in 2007, but its comforting to know that I’ll be guaranteed a spot in the show in February. ”
SHELTRA: (ON THE 2008 ARCA RE/MAX SERIES SEASON) “We are looking forward to it. This test even though it falls in 2007 unofficially kicks off the new season for Sheltra Motorsports. We are raising the bar for our second year of competition and we are going to give it our all for our first ARCA championship. The Sheltra Motorsports team are all winners and we’ll prove that in an even bigger way in 2008. ”
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