“It’s like a race. Curtain opens, out you go, and the stage is yours” (Lansbury). As Elite Racing took to the track this weekend in California, the stage was theirs. It was like a three act play as the World of Outlaws raced for the final time this season in Jason Meyers and Elite Racing’s home state. During the first act they spent some time in the spotlight at Silver Dollar Speedway, before the curtain came crashing down during Act II in the Gold Cup Race of Champions. Then the stage changed as they traveled to Antioch Speedway for the third act. After the grand finale, the critics had their opinions, but it did not change the fact that Meyers left his home state with a 75 point lead over his nearest competitor.
Act I – The Première
In the night before the Gold Cup, Meyers made a grand entrance. He started out the night by qualifying 2nd, then finished second in his heat race, and claimed the 4th starting spot in the dash. When the Green Flag flew in the feature event, it was not out long as there was a 5 car pile-up on the start. When the race restarted, Meyers got past both Chad Kemenah and Shane Golobic. As a result, he finished the first lap of the race in the second place and started tracking down leader Paul McMahan.
The race ran fast and furious as Meyers began starting cutting down McMahan’s lead starting on Lap 10. The 2010 World of Outlaws Champion spent the race gradually cutting down on McMahan’s second and a half lead. With just 5 laps to go Meyers was on McMahan’s bumper. At the finish line the California Champion make a final charge to the line, but McMahan beat him to it. As a result, Meyers recorded his 32 top-5 finish of 2011 in his #14 GLR Investments KPC and leads the series in top-5 finishes.
“I think the trophy girl was meant for me,” Meyers quipped. “She is taller than Paul (McMahan). It doesn’t look right does it? It was a good run. It was rough with the wind here tonight. It just got a hold of the race track here tonight. They are going to have a long night before them to get this track back in shape for tomorrow, but I know they will work hard on it. We got all we could tonight. I got a good start and got by a few cars. These guys worked hard all night. Thank you to GLR Investments, MediaTile, Allstar Performance, and DDNi. They are all here tonight. We have a lot of fans out here and to have a good run in front of them is great. I know Charlie (Garrett) stayed up late back at his home to listen tonight. We did not quite get there, but we got close. It was a good night and we will come back tomorrow night to race for the Gold Cup.”
Act II – The Intermission
Elite Racing hoped to continue its grand performance, but the curtain came down on night two of the Gold Cup. Meyers started the night by qualifying 5th in the DDNi KPC, before finishing 3rd in his heat race. As a result, Meyers would miss the dash and start his evening in the 14th position.
On the start, Meyers lost a few potions, but was able to regain them on a Lap 19 restart. Two laps later, Meyers moved up to the 13th position. After the second restart, on Lap 30 is when the 2010 Champion began making his gains. He was able to move into the top-10 and took the 9th position from Sammy Swindell.
With just a few laps left, Meyers tried to track down Lucas Wolfe before the checkered flag, but came up short. While Kyle Larson went on to win his first World of Outlaws race and The Gold Cup, the California Champion got his 31st top-10 finish this season.
Act II – The Closing
The final act Meyers was facing a track that he had not set a tire on since 1999. In debut of the World of Outlaws at Antioch Speedway, Meyers got a slow start but was able to climb through the field. He started the night by qualifying 11th and then finished 2nd in his heat race. A tangle in the dash took Meyers out of the running and gave him a 10th place starting place in the feature.
On a very narrow race track, Meyers was able to pick up the 9th position on the start. Meyers battled with new winner Kyle Larson on Lap 6 and fell back to the 10th position on Lap 6. The first Yellow Flag of the race came out on Lap 11. On the restart, Meyers was lined up in the 8th position behind Jason Sides.
On Lap 17, Meyers made his move in the #14 Allstar Performance KPC and took the 7th position. With 4 laps to go, the Red Flag few and disturbed racing action for the final time. On the restart, Meyers claimed the 6th position while Steve Kinser went on to take the win. This was Meyers’ 32nd top-10 finish of the season.
Up Next
Now that the California swing has ended, the Elite Racing team is traveling east. The first stop on Friday September 16 will be Clay County Fair Speedway in Spencer, Iowa. In his last 3 starts at the Hawkeye State track, the 2010 champion has 1 victory, 1 top-5 finish, and 1 top-10 finish. On the 17th, the team will head north to Deer Creek Speedway. In 2 World of Outlaws races at the track, the 2010 Champion has a 2nd and 3rd place finish. Will this be the weekend he gets the win at the Minnesota based track?
