CAMARILLO, Calif. – Charles Utts says his car, the Lucas Oil Products/TELCOM Communications Chevrolet, is ready.
It had better be, because one of the toughest tests of the Irwindale Speedway Food 4 Less Super Late Model season, the June 16 Twin 50s is next on the schedule.
As baseball great Ernie Banks might say, “It’s a great day for racing, let’s run two.”
Utts leads the series championship standings with a 286-276 advantage over Nathan Wulff. The last time the division competed under the Twin 50s format, Utts managed to post third- and fourth-place finishes.
“You have to have everything going your way on a Twin 50s night,” Utts said. “You have to have the car ready for two races in one night. You have to think in advance and race smart.”
Under the Twin 50s format, the division races twice in the same night. Both races earn points as separate main events. The field for the first race is determined through qualifying and the finish of the first determines the starting lineup of the second race.
“The racing at Irwindale is as close as any track I’ve seen,” Utts said. “The depth of quality in every field is terrific. So when you have to race them twice in one night, well, the fans get their money’s worth.”
Utts works at the family printing firm, Custom Printing, where he heads the Sales Department. He lives in Camarillo with his wife Kristen, a former True Value Mechanic of the Year winner, and their daughter Ashley.
