CONSISTENT CHARLES UTTS READY FOR IRWINDALE RACE

Source: Lee Elder
Date: 04/23/2001

CAMARILLO, Calif. – Charles Utts knows that consistency is the best policy for a racecar driver and so far in the 2001 NASCAR Weekly Racing Series season at Irwindale Speedway he has been very consistent.

As he heads towards this weekend’s Food 4 Less Super Late Model race at Irwindale Speedway, Utts sits second in points with four top-five finishes in as many starts. He hopes to pilot his Lucas Oil Products Chevrolet to another one this weekend.

“A win would be nice,” Utts deadpanned.

Utts won two NASCAR Weekly Racing Series championships at Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield, Calif. and won a dirt-track title at Ventura Raceway in Ventura, Calif. All told, he has 41 career main event victories, including the nationally televised NASCAR Winter Heat race he won at Tucson Raceway Park back in 1998.

“We don’t have the biggest crew in our division,” Utts said with a laugh. “Basically, it’s just my wife and myself. But we worked very hard over the winter to get this car where we wanted it and things have worked out well so far.”

Two weeks ago, when the division had a pair of 50-lap main events, Utts finished fourth in the first race and fifth in the second. Both finishes were hard earned. Utts used Irwindale’s famed low groove to make most of his passes.

“I have to say these tires Goodyear gave us this season have been very good,” Utts said. “We’ve been able to tune the chassis to the tires because the tires have been very consistent. We know what they’ll do at certain times in the race and we set the car for it.”

Utts works at the family-owned Custom Printing in Oxnard, where he directs the sales department. He is married to Kristen Utts, a former True Value Mechanic of the Year Award winner, and they have a daughter, Ashley.

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