YAKIMA, Washington -- NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series late model points leader, Scott Walker, has plenty of incentive to chase win number three in this weekend’s racing action at Yakima Speedway. Should he earn the triple win feat, Brian Harris Used Cars of Selah will pay him a $1,000 bonus.
The bonus and winner’s share of the purse would be nice, Walker said, but most important to him is maintaining the points lead over Ken Olson. After that, the Prosser, Wash. native is just looking to keep momentum going forward in the Speedway’s toughest division.
“If we get three wins in a row, I think it will give us motivation (for the rest of the season),” Walker said. “Either way, no money or $1,000, I put the pressure on myself each week to try and win.”
Walker has brought the No. 34 Hall’s Chevrolet/Shy’s Pizza Monte Carlo team to the pinnacle of success in short track racing. In just their first full season of racing at the very competitive .500-mile Yakima Speedway, Walker has two wins over talented late model drivers ranging from local hot shoes Travis Bennett, Olson and Mike Longton to Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series veterans Garrett Evans and Mel Shenyer.
Achieving a competitive racing program that keeps the team shooting for the goal of running the Northwest Series within the next few years is the drive behind the Columbia Basin College student, he said.
“I have taken all the steps I think you need to get to this level in my career,” Walker explained. “From go-karts at age 13 to racing in the Northwest Super Fours before coming to late models, all of that has helped with this program.”
Walker knows he is a long way away from a late model championship and that Olson, Bennett, Bryan Weiner, Ron Bemis and the rest of the late model teams are going to make him work for every lap. The challenges the team faces this season are preparation for moving on to the next level, he said.
“I’d like to keep moving up through the professional ranks. I know it takes more than being a great driver; it takes being a good businessman. I’d really like to get in a tour car in 2004 and run five races. Then in 2005 we could run for rookie-of-the-year on the Northwest Series. We’re working awfully hard to be successful this year and we know the challenge is tough. The drivers in this division are some of the best in the Northwest.”
The best late model drivers in the Northwest invade Yakima Speedway Saturday, May 24 for the running of the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series late model 75-lap main event. Also on hand will be the Boomers Roadside Bar & Grill Street Stocks and the Yakima Speedway Hobby Stocks.
Saturday’s racing program is sponsored by KXDD radio. Listen to 104.1 FM for ticket giveaways. Scott Walker will be a guest on KXDD this Friday, stay tuned for more details.
For ticket information and a schedule of events at the historic .500-mile paved oval, log onto www.yakimaspeedway.com or call the Speedway offices at (509) 248-0647.
