Speedweeks Showing Helps Jimmy Lang Build For 2008 Season

The 2008 World Series of Asphalt Racing is the first major week-long event in the short-track racing season.  Jimmy Lang and the #86 Crate Late Model team headed to New Smyrna Speedway (FL) to participate in the events, looking for success early on.  While the results were not exactly what the team was looking for, Lang and the crew learned a lot about their car and their program for the 2008 season.

“We had a good car the whole week, just some bad luck,” said Lang.  “We qualified second for the first race on Friday (March 8th). They inverted eight, so I started seventh. At the drop of the green there was a big wreck that I got through and another big wreck on the restart.  Both times I was able to get through, but later in the race I was passing for fourth and the car I was passing got loose and got into me, messing up the right front suspension and bending the rear end.

“Saturday morning two of our guys had to go back to our race shop in Hardeeville (SC) to get another rear end.  So Saturday night we had to race with the rear end we had and we finished 11th.  Sunday we replaced the rear end and decided to race with the Limited Late Models to get some practice. We were fast as we drove from last to sixth.”

Throughout the rest of the week the crew made great decisions before the race which helped Lang obtain two sixth-place finishes and two third-place finishes during the week. 

On Saturday, in the last race of Speedweeks, Lang and the team decided to park the car after damage on the track took him out of contention.

“We all had a good time,” said Lang.  “We all learned a lot.  We had Steve and Rusty from Performance Concepts with us.  I would have liked to know what might have happened if the first night didn't take us out of the mix.”

With their performance during Speedweeks, Lang is optimistic for the rest of the 2008 racing season.

“I think we are going to have a good year; that is if we can keep the monkey off our backs.”

The next race for Jimmy Lang will be March 14th-15th at Tri-County Motor Speedway (NC) as part of the ASA Late Model Challenge Series.

Despite some bad luck throughout the week, Jimmy Lang was still one of the players throughout Speedweeks at New Smyrna.