Dalton Baldwin likes his chances at the upcoming KOMA Unwind Relaxation Drink 150 race this Saturday.
This is the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour’s fourth visit to the .4 mile oval track located in Kenley, N.C. It features 17 degrees of banking in the corners and seven degree banking in the straightaways. Only eight drivers out of the 24 entered have Southern Modified experience at this track.
Dalton’s goal is to drive the No. 18 Woman 2 Woman Breast Cancer Chevrolet to a top ten finish and collect some bonus points in his quest to win the Rookie of the Year award.
“I personally picked Southern National,” he told me, “as a track that we would run really well at, possibly win at. Looking at it and watching videos, it’s just our kind of track. Its high banked with sweeping turns, there’s a good outside groove, etc. It looks a lot like Desoto Super Speedway, where we’ve won 4 championships and numerous races across 7 years. So I am really looking forward to this track.”
He also plans on giving himself every advantage by relying on the advice and help of some of the track veterans.
“The fortunate thing for us is that the tour hasn’t gone to this track since 2008. From what I know, only a few drivers that are entered in the race have experience at the track. One of those, Tim Brown, and his brother, Ben, have had serious success at the track, with a win and two second places in three tour races there. They’re gonna help us in a direction for a setup. So, hopefully that leads somewhere and gives us a leg up.”
Dalton missed the first points race of the season due to engine problems. With his primary focus on competing for the Rookie of the Year award, it makes it even more important to strive for top ten finishes the remainder of the season.
“We’re still in it,” he says. “We just can’t have a bad race now.”
Dalton Baldwin Racing would like to thank their partners, Woman 2 Woman Breast Cancer Foundation, SpeedwayMedia.com, Advance Auto Parts of Dunedin, Fla., BG Products, SpeedRacer Photos, and Eibach Performance for their continued support.
For more information about Dalton Baldwin Racing including driver bio, race schedule, pictures and videos, please visit www.daltonbaldwin.com. You can also find his Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/DaltonBaldwinRacing and Twitter at http://www.facebook.com/DaltonBaldwinRacing.