Concord, NC — 2007 is a learning season for 14-year-old Zach Stroupe. In the competitive Super Late Model world in the Southeast, it is hard for any driver or team to make their first-ever season in the high-horsepower racecar series an impressive one.
So far in 2007, however, Zach Stroupe and the BDI Racing team have been doing nothing but impress. Even though the finishes may not show it, the #51 Chevrolet team has been turning heads at tracks from North Carolina to Florida in their rookie season with strong showings in some of the toughest SLM series in the South.
The achievements continued to roll in for Stroupe on Saturday, September 29th, as the 14-year-old led his first-ever Super Late Model laps in the “Over the Mountain 150” PASS South Super Late Model event at Hickory Motor Speedway (NC). Stroupe wheeled the Chili’s of Hickory, NC / Racing Electronics #51 Hamke Racecar to a third-quickest lap in practice of the 41 elite Super Late Models in attendance at Hickory, timed in seventh fastest in qualifying and finished within mere feet of winning the Dash race.
And when the green flag dropped in the 150-lap feature, Stroupe became the youngest driver to ever lead laps in the PASS South tour. He remained up front for three laps and battled among the top-five runners through the early part of the race, before contact from another competitor ended the otherwise stellar night for the #51 team.
“We had a good car and I think everyone saw that,” said Stroupe. “No matter what happened in the race, we had a good car and we ran up front; that’s what is important. We had a good qualifying run, seventh, and got into the Dash. When we finished second, we knew we had something good for the race. We actually probably could’ve won the Dash, but we just didn’t want to push the issue. We knew we had a fast car and we wanted to save that for the race.
“Then in the race, the green flag came out and I was pumped up. I got out front and led for a while. (Ryan) Lawler got by us and I got stuck on the outside and a whole freight train got by us down low. We eventually got going pretty good on the outside and got up to fourth, but Corey (Williams) got into us. I don’t know if he shoved up or what, but he took us out and it put us into the wall.”
Stroupe relinquished the lead when PASS South officials deemed the Chili’s of Hickory / Racing Electronics Chevrolet jumped the start of the race and forced him to give back the position he gained. Racing with the hard-charging competitors among the top-five eventually brought an end to Stroupe’s night by virtue of the bumper of another competitor.
“I don’t agree with the call PASS made on our team,” said BDI Racing team owner Bob Dillner. “We enjoy and appreciate everything PASS has done for Super Late Models in the Southeast, but they have always told competitors to go when the green flag is dropped; that’s what we did. Just because the pole-sitter didn’t go when the green was dropped should not dictate a penalty for our team.
“Then it was a shame that another driver, who was mad at being disqualified during time trials, was driving with too much emotion during the race and drove over us. He later got penalized for rough driving in a second incident, but I would like to talk to that competitor before making any more comments.”
Even though the end of the race may not have been what it could, and probably should have been for the BDI Racing team, the 14-year-old rookie Stroupe knows that he and his team made an impact in just their fifth Super Late Model race of the season.
“We were all disappointed with the way the race ended,” added Stroupe. “We probably either had the fastest or the second-fastest car out there. Seeing it end like that is too bad. We’ll just go to our next race at Greenville and show what we can do again there.
“We learned a lot about the car at Hickory. We’ve been learning throughout the season, but at Hickory we found out exactly what we have to do to get to the front and stay there. We’re still learning the car, but hopefully at Greenville we can apply what we’ve learned already and run even better there and finish up front.”
The positives of Hickory far outweighed the negatives for the BDI Racing team, something that Dillner recognizes as the team heads towards their final two races of the year at Greenville-Pickens Speedway (SC) in late October and the prestigious Snowflake 100 at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, FL, in December.
“We are not happy with some of what went on. It was out of our control, but we feel bad for all of our supporters,” said Dillner. “At the same time, we are very happy because Zach and the team did so well at Hickory. There were 41 top-flight cars for the PASS South race and our Chevrolet was third in final practice, seventh in time trials, second in the Dash; Zach started on the front row and led laps. That’s a great accomplishment in only our fifth race as a team and shows how much talent Zach really has.”
Stroupe and the BDI Racing #51 Chevrolet will be in action in “The Howler” PASS South event at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in South Carolina on Saturday, October 27th.
Marketing opportunities for the BDI Racing team and its driver development program in Super Late Models, Pro Challenge, Legends Cars and Bandoleros are still available for the 2007 and 2008 seasons. For more information on how partnering with BDI Racing can provide a multitude of benefits for companies of all sizes, contact the team at (704) 788-2134 ext: 7.
Watch for Zach Stroupe and the entire BDI Racing team all season long as they chase down victories and championships on the country’s short tracks in 2007. For more information on BDI Racing, please contact Matt Kentfield at (704) 788-2134 ext: 5 and check out more information about Zach Stroupe at www.zachstroupe.net.
Sources: Matt Kentfield/Zach Stroupe PR