Adam Gray Looks to Build Upon Rookie of the Year Season in Late Model Division at Stafford Motor Speedway
Stafford Springs, CT)—Being a rookie can be a humbling experience, whether is racing or stick and ball sports. This was the case for Adam Gray during the 2009 season at Stafford Speedway. Gray came to Stafford as a rookie after winning 6 races and the track championship at Monadnock Speedway. Gray and his #97 Meadows Motor Car team struggled throughout the first half of the season, but the team began to take flight during the second half of the season and Gray is looking to build upon that success for the 2010 season.
“Last year was a tough year all around for us,” said Gray. “We went from winning a championship to running mid-pack. Before last year I had never driven a tube chassis car, and we went from a track with a ton of banking to a track that is pretty flat. We started off the year doing our own thing with the chassis setup and we struggled with being tight for most of the year. With about 3 races to go, I was ready to pack everything up and wait for 2010, but we decided to take the car to Bob Fill. Bob knows these cars and he knows the track and the setup he gave us really helped out and we had some great runs at the end of the year. We learned a lot last season and I think everything we learned will give us a nice head start on the 2010 season.”
The 2009 season started off slow for Gray and his #97 Meadows Motor Car team, but they picked up steam in the second half of the 2009 season as they scored three top-10 finishes in the last five events of the year and were leading comfortably when a blown engine relegated them to a 25th place finish during the Sept. 25th event. Although their finishes don’t reflect how well the team ran, Gray is pumped up for his second season of Late Model competition at Stafford.
“We ran really well the second half of the season, but our finishes don’t show that,” said Gray. “Our finishes were disappointing, but that kind of stuff happens in racing. There were times when we got down, but we stayed in good spirits all year long. When you have a bad night, you just have to try to figure out what went wrong and how you can fix them and come back strong the following week. During the season, we had a lot of the veterans come over and tell us that for rookies, we were actually doing pretty good. We’re all pretty pumped up for this season. We have the car and the motor where they need to be and I’m getting close to where I need to be. I feel like if we can get a couple of wins this year and be consistent on a weekly basis, I think we can be a contender for the championship. I think it’s going to be a good year for us. When my father was racing, he ran red and yellow car, and those were my colors when I first started racing, so we decided to go a little vintage with our paint scheme for this year to hopefully change our luck this season.”
For all their struggles last season, Gray and his team nearly took home a victory in the final Friday night show of the year, but a broken valve spring ended their race prematurely. The team is looking to break down the door to CARQUEST Victory Lane this season, which Gray says would be a huge accomplishment.
“A win would be huge for everyone involved with the car,” said Gray. “With all the effort and hard work we’ve put in, it would be something that I can share with all the guys on the crew and our sponsors. If we could win a race, I think it would show everyone that we arrived and that we belong here.”
The quest for Gray’s first victory begins with the 39th Annual Tech-Net Spring Sizzler Weekend, scheduled for April 23-25. Tickets for the 39th Annual Tech-Net Spring Sizzler Weekend are now on sale at the Stafford Motor Speedway box office. Tickets are priced at $35.00 for adult general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, $38.00 for reserved seats, and free for children ages 5 & under. Tickets are good for admission to the Saturday April 24, and Sunday, April 25 portions of the Tech-Net Spring Sizzler, with the Friday, April 23 practice session open to the public free of charge.
For more information, or to order Tech-Net Spring Sizzler tickets, please contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR