{"id":23409,"date":"2018-06-13T08:29:26","date_gmt":"2018-06-13T12:29:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/?p=23409"},"modified":"2018-06-12T20:30:19","modified_gmt":"2018-06-13T00:30:19","slug":"x-car-point-leader-continues-to-improve-loomis-looking-for-third-straight-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/2018\/06\/x-car-point-leader-continues-to-improve-loomis-looking-for-third-straight-win\/","title":{"rendered":"X-Car point leader continues to improve, Loomis looking for third straight win"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"X-Car point leader continues to improve
\nLoomis looking for third straight win<\/strong><\/p>\n

WATERFORD \u2014 Some might call Eddie Loomis an overnight sensation. The
\nPlainfield driver has ripped off back-to-back wins this season in the
\nNew London-Waterford\u2019s X-Car division, doubling his career win total.
\n<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been gradual improvement over a four-year period, however, that has
\nlaunched Loomis into first place in the X-Car point standings after the
\nfirst month of the season. He leads by three points over Corey Caddick.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I just have more experience, and that\u2019s been the big
\ndifference,\u201d Loomis said. \u201cI\u2019m hitting my marks. I\u2019m driving a lot
\nsmoother. And I\u2019m better at picking and choosing my battles. I\u2019m
\nlearning when to try and pass and when to wait.\u201d<\/p>\n

And he\u2019s done in with the same car he\u2019s used for the past few years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve done some minor adjustments.\u201d Loomis said, \u201cbut basically I know
\nI have one of the best cars. I just have to take my time getting through
\nthe field.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what he has done in the last two races. On May 30 he was able to
\nget by Will Rheaume late in the race to get the win. Then on June 6, he
\nsurvived a breath-taking battle with Caddick, prevailing at the finish
\nline by the length of a watermelon seed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI honestly wasn\u2019t sure I had the win \u2014 it was just too close to call,\u201d
\nLoomis said. \u201cIt was an awesome race. I love running with Corey. He
\ncould have drove me up the track and stuffed me in the wall, but he
\ndidn\u2019t. Corey\u2019s just an awesome driver.\u201d<\/p>\n

Loomis is in the same class. He started his career running a
\nquarter-midget at the Thompson Little T along with his older brother
\nLarry,<\/p>\n

\u201cI raced until I was 12, and then I left to focus on baseball,\u201d Loomis
\nsaid. \u201cLarry (Loomis) stayed racing in the X Cars and then he took a
\nbreak. When he got back in it, I started working on his car.\u201d<\/p>\n

His first race at the Speedbowl was in a mechanics race.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe next season I jumped in the car and I\u2019ve been racing ever since,\u201d
\nLoomis said.<\/p>\n

Before he was a driver, however, he was an interested observer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI watched my brother run, and guys like Wayne Shifflet,\u201d Loomis said.
\n\u201cI saw how they take their time going through the field. They ride it
\nout for the first 10 laps or so, and then they move to the front. And
\nthey still have a good car for a top 3 finish.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what I try to do. It\u2019s all about patience. I don\u2019t overdrive in
\nthe beginning, and then I go harder and harder as the race goes on.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a strategy that\u2019s been working.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going a lot better than I expected,\u201d Loomis said. \u201cIt\u2019s better than
\nI\u2019ve ever done before. Now I\u2019m hoping for a possible track
\nchampionship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Loomis is used to winning. He racked up more than 100 victories in a
\nhigh school wrestling career, competing for Killingly High.<\/p>\n

Loomis\u2019 sponsors include Bissell Graphics, Dodge Lane Farms and
\nTewksbury Electric. His dad is a key member of his crew, along with
\nCraig Tavenier, his brother Larry, his mom, Carol Dodge and his wife,
\nKelsey Loomis.<\/p>\n

Loomis is always easy to spot on the track thanks to his neon green car,
\nresulting in his nickname, the Neon Cowboy.<\/p>\n

\u201cGreen always has been my favorite color,\u201d Loomis said. \u201cMy dad told me
\nyou need a colorful car so when you spin out in the corner, people will
\nsee you better.\u201d<\/p>\n

The car also is easier to spot in Loomis\u2019 favorite destination \u2014 victory
\nlane.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

X-Car point leader continues to improve Loomis looking for third straight win WATERFORD \u2014 Some might call Eddie Loomis an overnight sensation. The Plainfield driver has ripped off back-to-back wins this season in the New London-Waterford\u2019s X-Car division, doubling his career win total.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-connecticut","category-waterford-speedbowl"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23409"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23409\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23410,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23409\/revisions\/23410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newenglandracingnews.com\/16\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}