Eddie Carrier Jr.
Hometown: Salt Rock, WV
Birthday: Feb. 27, 1971
Marital Status: Married (Jamie)
Children: None
Car: No. 28 Grover Motorsports/Engines of Ohio Rocket
Car Owner: Carl Grover
Web site: www.eddiecarrierjr.com 2006 WoO Season Review: When the 2006 World of Outlaws Late Model Series season began, Carrier had no plans to chase the tour’s Rookie of the Year award. In fact, he didn’t even enter the series opener, on Feb. 5 at Georgia’s Golden Isles Speedway.
But after competing with the Outlaws in February at Florida’s Volusia Speedway Park, Carrier, his father and car owner Carl Grover decided to hit the road with the nation’s premier dirt Late Model series. They were sure glad they did.
While Carrier entered the season as an accomplished 35-year-old dirt Late Model racer at tracks near his West Virginia home, he was eligible for the WoO LMS rookie honors because he had never won a race paying more than $10,000 for first place. Despite spotting his rookie rivals Eric Jacobsen and Garrett Durrett a one-race advantage, he rallied to win the rich $25,000 RoY award.
Traveling with the Outlaws was a true learning experience for Carrier. He bested his fellow rookie contenders in the qualification department, failing to make the feature field just once in 29 appearances. The learning curve was difficult, but Carrier showed some flashes of his potential, scoring season-high fifth-place finishes at Western Kentucky Speedway in June and PA’s Tri-City Speedway on Sept. 4.
Carrier outdistanced Jacobsen for top-rookie honors by 158 points, and he finished 11th in the overall point standings.
2006 WoO LMS Stats: Events: 29
Starts: 28
Wins: 0
Top 5: 2
Top 10: 4
Fast Times: 0
Heat Wins: 1
Dash Wins: 0
B-Main Wins: 2
Earnings: $78,010
WoO LMS History: First-ever WoO LMS feature event start came on Feb. 16, 2006, at Volusia Speedway Park. He finished 18th in the 50-lap A-Main… Failed to qualify for the ensuing Volusia race on Feb. 18, but then made the feature cut for the remaining ’06 shows…
Other Racing History: Following in the footsteps of his father Eddie Carrier Sr., who was a successful dirt Late Model racer in the West Virginia/Kentucky region… Began racing career in 1990 in the UMP-type Modified division. Became dominant in the class, winning numerous features and capturing the track title at Perry County (Ky.) Speedway from 1993-1996… Entered dirt Late Model division in 1996… Enjoyed first standout season behind the wheel of a dirt Late Model in 2002, winning the Battle of the Bluegrass series championship as well as the points crown at ThunderRidge Raceway in Prestonburg, Ky… Followed the UDTRA/Xtreme DirtCar Series in 2004, finishing 11th in the point standings… Won the K-C 100 at Ohio’s K-C Raceway in 2004… Captured two features at Portsmouth (Ohio) Raceway Park in 2006 during time off from his WoO LMS travels… Owns more than 175 career wins overall…
Interesting Facts: Originally from Harrodsburg, Ky… Nickname is the ‘Salt Rock Express.’.. One of the most physically imposing drivers on the WoO LMS, standing 6-4 and weighing 240 pounds… Enjoys playing basketball and video games while away from the track… His animal menagerie at home includes one dog and three cats… His primary crewman is his father Eddie Sr., who was voted the 2006 WoO LMS Snap-on Tools Crew Chief of the Year