Vermont State Championship: Emily Packard
Thunder Road Int’l Speedbowl Race Report
BARRE, Vt. – Emily Packard of East Montpelier, Vt., opened the 2013 Vermont State Championship Late Model Series with a 17th-place finish in the Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic 100 at Thunder Road International Speedbowl in Barre, Vt., on Monday, May 27. Packard qualified through the first round to start 20th in the 30-car field, but a loose-handling race car hindered her forward progress. Track position became key in the late stages of the event on the tight .25-mile oval, but Packard still posted her best finish of the year at Thunder Road in two starts.
WHO: Emily Packard, East Montpelier, Vt.
CREW CHIEF: Neal Woodward, Georgia, Vt.
TEAM: Emily Packard Motorsports No. 9x Northstar Fireworks/Berlin Optical Expressions Chevrolet
SPONSORS: Northstar Fireworks, Fecteau Homes, Berlin Optical Expressions, Yipes! of Barre, VT Shifter Karts, GossCars.com, Be The Match, Rutland Regional Medical Center, R.G. Paving
WHAT: Vermont State Championship Late Model Series Mekkelsen RV Memorial Day Classic 100
WHERE: Thunder Road International Speedbowl, Barre, Vt. (.25-mile oval)
STARTED: 20th
FINISHED: 17th
NEXT RACE: June 7, Vermont State Championship Series 100, Devil’s Bowl Speedway, West Haven, Vt. (.500-mile oval)
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EMILY, HOW WOULD YOU SUM UP YOUR DAY?
It was a pretty good day. I wish we would have gotten a few more spots at the end. I really thought we could have had a few more, got held up a little bit by some of the traffic. It’s pretty typical of Thunder Road.
The guys did a great job all day. We made some adjustments before the race, but in the end, we couldn’t go far enough to get it to where we wanted it. We knew it would loosen up, but the track outsmarted us today.
DID YOU GUYS TRY TO TIGHTEN UP THE CAR AT ALL ON THE PIT STOP?
We did. When the caution came out in the middle of the race, we pitted. We took an adjustment because the car was wicked loose. The team’s proud that I was learning how to drive a loose race car in the second half of the race, but it was kind of a stressful day.
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU LEARNED SOMETHING ABOUT THE TRACK IN THE END?
I’m one that really likes to drive the car deep into the corners. I don’t like to have to slow down much, but I definitely had to back up the corners. I told the guys that I was going to have to ease up a bit getting in, and they came on the radio and said, ‘Wait. WHAT did you just say?’ I think they were shocked.
I think I learned a lot more about the track. For being the track that it is, it was a good day. For just starting off the season, it was pretty good all things considered.