NEW CASTLE, Ind.—Sept. 19, 2013— In the past, there used to be a few times each year when the three USAC National Series would all compete on the same bill. Nowadays, there is just one time a year that a blockbuster event like this dots the calendar and that is during the historic 4-Crown Nationals at the legendary Eldora Speedway in Ohio. Tracy Hines has won two of the four crowns during the event in his career, capturing three sprint car wins and a pair of midget wins during the 4-Crown, and looks to add to that list this weekend.
The USAC portion of the 32nd Annual 4-Crown Nationals is set for Saturday, September 21 at the half-mile Eldora Speedway. The event opens the night before with the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series and UMP DIRTcar Modifieds taking to the track.
“Nothing beats getting to race all three cars on the same night, especially at a place like Eldora,” said Hines. “I’ve had pretty good success over the years at Eldora, especially in a sprint car. We’ve running well in all three this year, so we feel like we have a shot in each of the races. Along with being fast, it takes some luck as well.”
Hines was victorious in the Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series portion of the 4-Crown Nationals last season. The 2002 series champion started on the pole for the 30-lap main event and quickly jumped out to the lead at the drop of the green flag. He would encounter a late race challenge from Dave Darland, withstanding a slide job from the fellow veteran on the last lap.
Hines would lead all 30 laps en route to the victory, which was his second of the season and the seventh of his career with the Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series at the track. The native of New Castle, Ind., has made one start at Eldora this year, with that coming with the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in July, an event he finished 13th in.
“That was definitely a great race for the fans last year those last few laps,” shared the driver of the Hansen’s Welding Inc/The Carolina Nut Company DRC. “In the driver’s seat, you always want to win by half a lap, but for the fans at a place like Eldora, trading slide jobs is as good as it gets. We’ve been strong on the bigger tracks this year, so hopefully we can use some of what has worked this weekend.”
In the Traxxas USAC Silver Crown Series portion of the 2012 4-Crown Nationals, Hines finished sixth in the 50-lap main event aboard the No. 16 for Lightfoot Racing. He was fifth-fastest in time trials of the 17 entrants that hit the track, which put him on the inside of the third row for the A-Feature. Hines ran among the top-five for a large portion of the 50-lapper, and was engaged in a spirited duel for third for a number of laps with Bobby East and Robert Ballou. He is one of five drivers battling for the Silver Crown title this weekend in the season-ending event.
“We know what we have to do at Eldora and that’s win the race to get as many points as we can,” Hines said. “We’ve been fast in the Silver Crown car all season and just had some bad luck like last race at DuQuoin (State Fairgrounds in Illinois). I’ve come close in the past to winning a Silver Crown race at Eldora and it would be great to cap the year off with one this time around.”
Hines, who has two career Honda USAC National Midget Series wins at Eldora during the 4-Crown Nationals, was running among the top-three at the start of the 25-lap main event last year, when engine trouble forced him to the pit area on the second lap, ending his night. He opened the midget portion of the 4-Crown Nationals by recording the second-fastest lap in time trials of the 17 drivers in attendance. He followed that up with a win in the second eight-lap heat race in the Parker Machinery/Powered by Toyota Spike.
“Racing a midget at Eldora is something pretty unique,” he noted. “The cars can really stretch their legs and there is plenty of room to race. You carry so much momentum around the top and keep the engine wound up all the way around that it certainly takes a toll on equipment, so you have to try to be as careful as you can in that regard. We were fast last year in the midget and want to make up for the bad luck we had in that one.”
Entering this weekend, Hines is currently third in the Traxxas USAC Silver Crown Series championship standings, just 16 markers out of the lead, having picked up a win and five top-five finishes this season. With the Honda USAC National Midget Series, the veteran driver sits third in points, on the strength of 10 top-10 runs. Hines is sixth in points with the Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series. He won twice with the series in 2013 and has recorded 15 top-10 finishes.
Tracy Hines Racing would like to thank: Hansen’s Welding Inc., Parker Machinery, Turbines, Inc., Afco Racing Products, Daum Crop Insurance, Schoenfeld Headers, Allstar Performance, Kenny’s Components, Race Bumpers and Bell Racing.
For more information on Tracy Hines Racing, visit http://www.tracyhinesracing.com. Follow Tracy on Twitter atwww.Twitter.com/TracyHinesRacin.
