7/22/2014
Aaron Reutzel
Reutzel Rallies to another ASCS Podium Finish!
Lonnie Wheatley, CLUTE, Texas (July 22, 2014) – Aaron Reutzel finished off the ASCS journey to Montana and South Dakota by rallying from deep in the field to another podium finish Friday night at Rapid City’s Black Hills Speedway.
Reutzel’s charge from 14th to third aboard the Bob and Christie Miller’s Car Parts Machine/Wren Motorsports No. 87 Triple-X entry marked his 30th overall top ten of a season that has included six wins and now 21 top-fives.
And before getting to Rapid City on Friday, Reutzel very nearly added win number seven to the ledger in the Momentum Racing Suspensions/Danny Sander Construction/ButlerBuilt machine at Wyoming’s Gillette Thunder Speedway on Wednesday night.
“We won the heat and won the dash, then we were checked out in the feature,” Reutzel said of the unsanctioned Gillette Thunder Speedway event. In full command, Reutzel’s run was cut short when a pair of bolts were sheared from the right front combo arm.
While apparent bad luck denied another win, there was a silver lining in this cloud.
“It was lucky it happened there and not at Rapid City,” Reutzel says. “If it would have happened on that big half-mile, it could have been ugly.”
Reutzel’s first visit to Black Hills Speedway on Friday didn’t get off to the best of starts with Reutzel finishing fourth in his heat race after starting third. “We just didn’t have the car right and we really put ourselves behind the eight ball.”
Making the proper adjustments, Reutzel wasted little time racing forward from the 14th starting position in the Lone Star Hydro Maintenance/BC Fundz/Wright Way Logistics mount.
“We basically stayed out of trouble, just rolled the bottom and let the other guys make mistakes,” Reutzel explains. “We were just in the right place at the right time the whole time, we got up there really quick.”
Very quick indeed, working his way up to third within a half-dozen laps on the dusty half-mile.
“I really thought we had something for them (Brad Loyet and Jason Johnson), I don’t know if they got better as the race went on or if something changed under the red flag,” Reutzel says. “I got by Loyet once but then he got back by, I think I may have showed him the line.”
Reutzel kept pace and settled for a strong third-place finish after starting deep in the pack under treacherous conditions. “It was the dustiest I’ve raced in, you couldn’t see ten feet ahead.”
With a second consecutive third-place finish to go along with an eighth-place run to finish off the three-race set of ASCS National Tour action in Montana and South Dakota, Reutzel still holds down a strong fifth position in National points with at least a couple of more positions within easy striking distance.
“Overall, it went pretty well,” Reutzel said of the trip to the north. “We had some good finishes, car was good, really nothing to complain about at all.”
2014 Quick Stats: 40 races, 6 wins, 21 top-fives, 30 top-tens, 9 heat race wins, 4 “B” Main wins.
Up Next: A Knoxville Raceway outing Saturday is a possibility before next week’s Knoxville 360 Nationals on July 31, August 1 and August 2.
Keep Track: Keep track of Aaron Reutzel’s on-track action including schedule and results at http://www.aaronreutzelracing.com/, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Aaron-Reutzel-Racing/117666254913127 or on Twitter at @AaronReutzel. You can also e-mail Aaron at aaronreutzel@yahoo.com.
If you would like Aaron Reutzel Racing press releases e-mailed directly to you, send your e-mail address to Lonnie Wheatley at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Penning the recurring series of “The Wheatley Chronicles” articles on racinboys.com, Lonnie Wheatley provides media, public relations and more for select tracks, drivers and events. For more information, Wheatley may be contacted at lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Article Credit: Lonnie Wheatley
Submitted By: Lonnie Wheatley