Tyler Millwood could not have asked for a better car to run with at Florence Motor Speedway in the 200 lap Allison Legacy race on Saturday night. Unfortunately, time ran out for the young driver after having to restart twice from the rear of the field, eventually making his way up to eighth when the night was done.
“To tell you the truth, we could have won that race, ” commented the 16 year-old driver. “We really tried our best to win. ”
Tyler started the race in the eighth position and held steady for the first 50 laps until a poor restart relegated him to the back of the pack after officials thought he jumped the start.
“I jumped to the outside on the restart because they all backed up in front of me, ” explained the Georgia teen. “I gained a couple of spots and they black flagged me. I had to go to the rear of a 30 car field. ”
Tyler had to restart in the back but that would not stop the young driver from making a hard charge toward the front. By the mid-race break, he had made his way back up to 12th in less than ten laps, a good starting spot for the second half of the race.
After refueling, Tyler was ready to get back out on the track and show the rest of the field what he had. On the restart, Tyler was passing for the 10th place spot when he lost control of his No. 31 Millwood Plumbing car and spun.
“I spun passing Brandon McReynolds for 10th. I got back going and only lost about four spots. ”
Getting back on track, Tyler focused on getting himself back into contention making his way up to fourth with 30 laps to go. As he was passing for the third spot, contact was made between him and the No. 99 of Dylan Sawyer.
“With about 30 laps to go, I was passing for third and the [No. 99] came down on me and spun me out, so I had to go all the way to the back again. ”
Tyler once again was forced to the back after the spin but was able to wheel his way up to the eighth spot with less than 20 laps to go. “I was disappointed, ” stated the high school teen. “We were in contention for the win if we didn’t get spun out. ”
Tyler’s next race will be at Atlanta Motor Speedway on November 9, 2007 in his No. 31 Millwood Plumbing Legends car. Then it is off to Concord, NC on November 17, 2007 for the Allison Legacy series.
Tyler is being helped in his career by training from Future Stars in Racing Training and Development Academy. The Academy helps prepare young drivers for success outside the car in public speaking, sponsor presentations, working with the media and behavior on and off the track. Future Stars in Racing is the exclusive driver development partner with the ASA Late Model Series. Marketing partners include Safety-Kleen, Awesome Racewear and Sunbelt Web Solutions. The Academy features a staff with decades of experience in all aspects of motorsports.
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