The Lady in Black proves too tough to tame...Start - 13th | Competitors - 21| High - 3rd | Low - 21st | Finish - 14th
It's always a challenge to navigate the slick, bumpy and abrasive track that characterizes Darlington South Carolina. Darlington is one of those tracks that you don't master, you just participate and hope for the best. If you get away with a clean race car, then you haven't done your job.
High expectations awaited our AMSOIL team but cautious optimism took a slow downward spiral as the night went on. The team had an average starting place and mustered their way up to a top five position early in the race but a good finish wasn't to be in the cards. Pitting after an early race caution resulted in a insurmountable task to climb from the back of the pack. Right after a restart contact was made with fellow competitor Jim O'Dell. Jim was clearly a half lane above the AMSOIL car entering turn two but contact was made and Jim's car sailed into the first turn wall. Shortly thereafter, Greg Sinclear got loose on the very next restart and the AMSOIL Pontiac blasted the wall trying not to make contact. Damage resulted in a car that just wouldn't go or handle. Kevin lost a lap and pitted for fresh tires and to fix the damage. Even with the repairs and fresh rubber, the car just wasn't up to speed for the rest of the evening.
With nothing to gain, the team decided to park the car and officially retired with wheel damage on lap 77.
