UPLAND, California — - Donny St. Ours in the #16 Greg Biffle Development Driver, Race Party Decorations, King Taco ASA Speed Truck, captures his first Speed Truck win at the Verve! Havasu 95 Speedway on April 25th
Donny from Upland, California, a freshman at Upland High School races every weekend whether in a Go Kart, Legend Car or Speed Truck, he is always behind the wheel of a race car getting as much seat time as possible to continue moving up the racing ladder to professional status. His second season in the ASA Speed Truck Challenge surely will be the best as his first win comes in only the third race of the twelve race season.
“At the Friday night practice, our early practice sessions felt real good so we elected to put the Speed Truck in the trailer," commented Don St. Ours, Donny’s father and crew chief. “While pushing the Speed Truck into the trailer the transmission pan got hung on the trailer door hinge and broke the bell housing and we did not have a spare transmission. We thought about driving back to Upland from Havasu to get our spare Luke’s Transmission, but called Todd McLauchlan, driver of the #38 Speed Truck and discovered he had an extra transmission we could use. After several hours of removing the old and installing the new transmission we only had reverse due to different clutch arms and shifter linkage. Jeff Catlin driver of the #1 Speed Truck jumped to the plate with a transmission that was set up exactly like the one that broke and we removed Todd’s and replaced with Jeff’s. I guess, 'third time is a charm' as we made qualifying with 5 minutes left to go and secured the fifth spot for the start of the 100 lap feature without any practice on Saturday.” Concluded Don.
“Our Speed Truck was good in the Trophy Dash and I was able to pass a couple of trucks so I felt really good about the 100 lap feature,” stated Donny. “The race was very fast and I was able to drive into 2nd place where I followed Joey Licata in the #71 Speed Truck for about 70 laps. I knew I was faster but Joey just wouldn’t make a mistake and ran the same line I ran, lap after lap and I knew it would be tough to pass him. I gave him a couple of taps letting him know I was there and needed to make the pass as Randel King in the #35 Speed Truck was catching me. I asked my spotter and brother Johnathan what was up and he said “it’s time to get up on the wheel.”
We went yellow and on the restart I got a good run on Joey in the #71 truck coming out of turn two and got under Joey in turn three and was on the white line and could not go below the line or face a black flag. I had nowhere to go and we made light contact. I got on the brakes and let Joey gather it up and had enough momentum to get the pass and hold the lead. I hated that we got together and the very same thing happened to me at I-10 Speedway and Las Vegas and we got passed but the passes were clean, like mine. After I passed him I just wanted to make sure I was smooth and hit my marks and I was fortunate enough to pull away at the end and get my first ASA Speed Truck win. “This is so awesome!”
“There are so many people I want to thank starting with my Dad who worked so hard all day Saturday trying to get the transmission in to the truck and ready to race. Wayne and Shannon at Race Party Decorations, Greg Biffle, Raul and Luis Martinez at King Taco, Brian at Expect A Lot Visual Images, Steve at K&N Filters, Chris at Finish Line Motorsporst, Joe and Loren at DJ Safety, Bruce at VP Racing Fuels, Luke at Luke’s Transmissions, Bonaco Hoses, Allen’s Fasteners and Oakley. I want to thank my brother Johnathan for his first time in the Spotters Tower and guiding me through the race (I think I will keep him there), my sister Sirena, Mom and Dad, Grandma and Grandpa and a special thanks to Jeff Catlin and Todd McLauchlan for their transmissions and all the advice they have given me since I started racing in the ASA Speed Truck Challenge,” concluded Donny.
The Speed Trucks are 2450 pounds, full tube chassis, 108 inch wheelbase, 375 horsepower Van Gordon Racing V-8’s, fired by Mr. Gasket’s - Mallory / ACCEL ignition systems and VP Race Fuel, with 2-speed direct drive transmissions and Speedway Engineering aluminum quick change rear ends on 8-inch Hoosier Racing Tires and Allied Racing Wheels and can reach speeds of 105 MPH at the ½ mile TOYOTA Speedway at Irwindale oval and 150 MPH on the 2.1-mile road course at Firebird International Raceway. The Speed Trucks sport exact replica Norris Racing fiberglass bodies in Chevy S-10, Chevy Colorado, Ford Ranger, Dodge Dakota and Toyota Tacoma.
ASA Speed Truck Challenge is proud to share its national spotlight with some of the finest companies associated with West Coast and national racing. Its advertising partners include: VEMMA / Verve! “insanely healthy energy,” Bushwacker, Delson Products, DJ Safety, E3 Spark Plugs, EZ-UP Shelters, Hoosier Racing Tires, Mechanix Wear, Mr. Gasket / ACCEL / Mallory Ignitions, TOYOTA and Toyota Racing Development, Allied Racing Wheels, Frank’s Radio Service, King Taco, Motorsports Marketing, Stagger Pro 1000, Oval Research, Purigen 98 and the ION Sports Network.
If you would like to find out more about the ASA Speed Truck Challenge and how your company could be part of the growing excitement across the nation about this dynamic series, contact Jay Rutherford, President at 909-949-4780 / jay@speedtruck.com or go to www.speedtruck.com. Attractive marketing partnership packages are available for your involvement regionally or nationally.
To learn more of the Daytona Beach, Florida-based Racing Speed Associates or the American Speed Association Racing Member Track program, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from racetracks and regional tours involved in the American Speed Association, visit www.asaracing.com.
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