NEW CASTLE, Ind. — Nov. 3, 2013— Tracy Hines always wants to race against the best competition, no matter what type of vehicle he is competing in. He was able to do that this past weekend as one of the largest fields of the year assembled for the 2013 season-ending Budweiser Oval Nationals presented by All Coast Construction for the Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series at Perris Auto Speedway in California, with over 50 cars present at the half-mile for the two-day event. The veteran driver came away with a pair ninth-place finishes aboard the Hansen’s Welding Inc./The Carolina Nut Company DRC.
Hines was quickest in qualifying on Saturday, Nov. 2, with a total of 45 drivers taking to the clock. The top-six finishers from the preliminary feature the night before were already locked into Saturday’s main event, and thus did not take part in time trials.
The native of New Castle, Ind., lined up 15th for the 40-lap main event and used a strong second half of the race to work his way into the top-10, ultimately finishing ninth for the second straight race. A total of four caution periods slowed the event at the high-banked half-mile.
Hines finished third in the first heat race earlier in the evening, but with just the top-two transferring to the main event, he found himself in the first B-main. He would win that 12-lap contest to secure a spot in the A-Feature.
In the opener of the Oval Nationals on Friday, Nov. 1, Hines came home ninth in the 30-lap preliminary feature. He lined up 15th in the feature that saw a red flag on the fifth circuit, followed by a 10-lap stretch of racing and another caution flag period on lap-15. The remaining 15 circuits went non-stop. Hines worked his way into the top-10 in the opening four laps.
The 2002 Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series champion was 16th-fastest in time trials on the first night of the Oval Nationals. He lined up third in the first heat race and came home fourth in that 10-lap contest to earn a spot in the 30-lap preliminary feature.
Hines wrapped up the Amsoil USAC National Sprint Car Series season sixth in points. He was victorious twice, with both of those wins coming in the season-opening three-night event at Bubba Raceway Park in Florida. In his first season driving his self-owned machine, Hines picked up 19 top-10 finishes, with eight of those being top-five performances.
“For the first year of running our own deal, it was a respectable season,” said Hines. “We a couple of wins early and would have liked to have won a few more. We had a few chances and things just didn’t fall into place. With the level of competition we face every night, it’s no easy task and we know some of the things we have to work on in the winter and when we get home in a few weeks, we’ll get on it and start getting ready for next season.”
After taking next weekend off, Hines will return to action the following week at Canyon Speedway Park in Arizona, in the running of the famed Western World Championships, which will feature the Honda USAC National Midget Series and the USAC Southwest and West Coast Sprint Car Series.
Tracy Hines Racing would like to thank: Hansen’s Welding Inc., The Carolina Nut Company, 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.
