Timmy Hill: Doing the Rookie of the Year His Own Way
While all of the attention for this season’s Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Cup Series has focused on the battle between Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse Jr., another rookie, Timmy Hill, has been quietly competing in his own way and on his terms.
“Going into this year, I’ve had two years of Nationwide experience and in those two years, I’ve been able to learn the race track multiple times,” Hill, driver of the No. 32 FAS Lane Racing Ford, said. “Starting the year off running for Rookie of the Year in the Cup Series, I knew it was going to be tough, as a driver and as an underdog race team with a lower budget.”
“I knew going in that my schedule was going to consist of 18 to 20 races, with Kenny Schrader and Terry Labonte and Boris Said at the wheel for some of the other races.” Hill continued. “Our goals were to finish all the races, run as many laps as we can and along the way try to beat Danica (Patrick) and Ricky (Stenhouse Jr.) for Rookie of the Year in the races I ran.”
“Knowing that I wasn’t going to run the full schedule, I was going to make the best of the races that I was going to run,” Hill said. “All season long, it’s been tough at some times but we feel like we’ve done a great job.”
Although Hill has been very proud of his performance to date, he did have a tough run in last weekend’s race at Phoenix International Raceway.
“I was kind of bragging about how we haven’t torn up any equipment and wouldn’t you know we tore one up at Phoenix, which I wasn’t very happy about,” Hill continued. “So, we’ve just had that one issue all year long and I’ve been happy with that and so has the race team.”
“But all in all, as a team and as a driver, I’m very happy,” Hill said. “It’s been a great learning experience and I’d say we have done a good job all year long.”
While Hill has been very pleased with his team’s performance in his rookie season, he has been a bit disappointed in not getting the recognition of the media, fans and the sport as far as running for ROTY honors.
“I do feel forgotten sometimes when the reporters do articles about the Rookie of the Year battle without mentioning me,” Hill said. “We knew it would be a long shot for us to have a shot at it but we ran every bit of the races that would qualify us for the Rookie of the Year.”
“It’s kind of a letdown, to myself, the race team and the sponsors just because a smaller team like us could have used the attention, press and publicity to try to build our program,” Hill continued. “To not be mentioned and forgotten about is kind of a letdown.”
While Hill may have been disappointed as far as the ROTY mention, he has felt completely fortunate and blessed to have learned many lessons in his rookie season, on the track and from his fellow competitors.
“I’ve learned so much,” Hill said. “Running in the lower divisions and then the Nationwide Series, I’ve learned how long these races are and how you really have to be there at the end of the race.”
“Those extra laps really teach you patience.”
“You have to gain the respect of the other drivers on the race track,” Hill continued. “You have to run around them for 400 to 500 laps every weekend and when you are racing that close you really have to trust because any small movement can lead to ultimately changing someone’s race.”
“I was the new kid on the block,” Hill said. “Running with these guys, I’ve learned that they are all really great drivers and there is a lot of talent there.”
“It made it a heck of a lot tougher racing-wise because they are all at the Cup level for a reason,” Hill continued. “You just have to realize that you are among some great drivers and you really have to be on it each weekend.”
“You always have to keep working on your race car because they are very smart and always pick up the pace,” Hill said. “It’s almost like a big chess match and you just have to keep after it.”
Hill has also had to learn how to compete in his own way through effective communication with his crew chief, as well as how to best relate what was happening on the track to his team.
“I have a rare situation where my crew chief is actually the owner of the race team,” Hill said. “Frankie Stoddard has been around the sport for years and has had a lot of success.”
“I’ve had to talk about the car and he’s been able to change the way I’ve been saying thing,” Hill continued. “The first race is always tough with the crew chief/driver relationship in just defining how we talk about the car.”
“As soon as we got on the same page as far as the adjustment levels, it is easy after that,” Hill said. “We learned that pretty quick and we worked well this whole season.”
Hill has also learned a great deal from the drivers off track, especially those veterans that he has looked up to his whole racing life. And he also credits his family for teaching him the life lessons that he has found so important as he competed for the Rookie of the Year honors for his sponsors and his team.
“Being young, I didn’t know a lot, but there are veterans I can lean on,” Hill said. “Being at this level, you have to make appearances and conduct yourself well all the time.”
“I like to base my actions off some of the veteran drivers like Carl Edwards and Mark Martin,” Hill continued. “I like the path that they have taken themselves on and use them as a role model.”
“I’d also like to thank my family for raising me the right way.”
Unfortunately, Hill’s last race in his rookie season was at Phoenix as Kenny Schrader will be taking the wheel of the No. 32 for the Homestead Cup finale. Hill will, however, be competing in the Nationwide race for one last time in 2013.
“I got an opportunity to drive the No. 23 car for Rick Ware Racing, who used to be the team owner for me in Nationwide,” Hill said. “He’s given me a lot of chances which I cannot thank him enough for.”
“So, I’m very happy and very blessed to run the final race of the year, even if it is Nationwide and not Cup, on a track I really like.”
So, after completing his rookie season in the Cup Series, what does Hill have planned for 2014?
“As far as my 2014 plans, we’re working up to that,” Hill said. “It is only a few months away but it seems like awhile before the plans will come together.”
“It’s a lengthy process but I have plans to hopefully be able to achieve even more.”
While Hill finalizes his plans for the next season, he also has interesting plans for his off season.
“Last off season I went to flight school,” Hill said.” I got my pilot’s license last year.”
“There are different types of pilot certificates and right now I have what’s called a visual flight certificate, meaning I can fly based off of visual,” Hill continued. “I want to go for IFR, or instrument rating, so I can fly into weather and into clouds.”
“So, I’ll be able to fly more often and not be as limited,” Hill said. “That’s what I want to look into for this off season.”
For more information about Timmy Hill’s rookie season and his future plans, follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @timmyhillracer.
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Phoenix
Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.
1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson started on the pole and finished third in the AdvoCare 500, well ahead of Matt Kenseth, who struggled and finished 23rd. Johnson has a 28-point lead heading into Homestead, and needs only a finish of 23rd or better to clinch the Cup.
“Anything can happen at Homestead,” Johnson said. “But I’d prefer that nothing happen.
“I’m close to my sixth Cup title, which would place me only one behind Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. My goal is to be mentioned in the same sentence with ‘The King’ and ‘The Intimidator,’ and I don’t see anything stopping me, except a cool nickname.”
2. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 23rd on a disastrous day at Phoenix, handicapped by a car that proved unresponsive to adjustments. He started the day seven points behind Jimmie Johnson, and finished in a 28-point hole.
“I won my first Cup championship ten years ago,” Kenseth said. “Likewise, my second Cup championship is history, also.”
3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick won at Phoenix, recording his fourth win of the year in his next-to-last race with Richard Childress Racing. He is third in the points standings, 34 out of first.
“This may be my last victory burnout,” Harvick said. “And speaking of ‘burnout,’ I am so ready to leave RCR. When you combine nepotism with narcissism, you get RCR. There’s no ‘I’ in team, and trust me, there’s no ‘me’ in that team.”
4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt continued his strong finish to the Chase with a fourth in the Advocare 500, his fourth-consecutive top 10 and seventh of the Chase. He is fifth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 63 out of first.
“It’s important to build momentum for next year,” Earnhardt said. “And we have. So, contrary to the fans of Junior Nation, who have a habit of saying ‘Wait ‘til next year,’ I can’t wait ‘til next year.”
5. Jeff Gordon: Gordon bounced back from a difficult Sunday at Texas with a solid 14th at Phoenix. He is sixth in the points standings, 80 behind Jimmie Johnson.
“Jimmie Johnson may be leading the points,” Gordon said, “but I’m looking over my shoulder, as well. Is Clint Bowyer behind me?”
6. Kyle Busch: Busch finished seventh in the AdvoCare 500, posting his 21st top-10 result of the year. He is currently fourth in the points standings, 57 out of first.
“On a more positive note,” Busch said, “I won my 12th Nationwide race of the season on Saturday. My civilian driving record says I’m not a ‘Sunday driver,’ and, apparently, so does my Sprint Cup driving record.”
7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski led 27 laps and finished 12th in the AdvoCare 500.
“Sadly, this just wasn’t the year for the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford,” Keselowski said. “Thus, my championship reign is ending at one year. It seems it was ‘2’ time only one time.”
8. Greg Biffle: Biffle took 13th at Phoenix on a day when Jimmie Johnson all but clinched the Sprint Cup championship. Biffle is now seventh in the points standings, 83 out of first.
“I plan to confront Johnson again,” Biffle said, “and ask him, ‘What’s your problem?’ If he responds, ‘I got 99 problems, but a ‘Biff’ ain’t one,’ then he’s officially the greatest driver of all time.”
9. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished 20th at Phoenix, another disappointing result in the Chase For The Cup. Bowyer has only two top-5 finishes in the Chase.
“The race was called the ‘AdvoCare 500,’” Bowyer said, “but not by everyone. To me, it was the ‘I Don’t Care 500.’”
10. Joey Logano: Logano scored another top-10 finish with a ninth at Phoenix. He is ninth in the points standings, 97 out of first.
“I almost took out Jimmie Johnson on the first lap,” Logano said. “But I didn’t, and that’s too bad, because I really wanted to have an impact on the Chase.”
SPRINT CUP: Early Predictions for Championship Weekend
This is it. The final showdown. Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson have gone toe-to-toe all throughout the Chase, and it all gets settled on Sunday.
Both drivers are separated by a mere 10 points, and … wait a second, I forgot the AdvoCare 500 happened. Back to reality, Johnson has a nearly insurmountable 28 point advantage going into the final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. I did not expect Kenseth to lose many points on Johnson, but thanks to a couple 20 second pit stops and an ill-handling racecar, the driver of the 20 car had to settle for a mediocre 23rd place finish, while Johnson came home third.
With that being said, Kenseth is more than likely going to have to win the race and rely on Johnson slipping out of the top 25. Is it possible? Absolutely. Is it going to happen? Definitely not. Johnson will nonchalantly hang around in a comfortable position inside the top 15 to easily secure his sixth championship.
As much as I hate to admit it, as far as the championship battle is concerned, it might be a real yawn-fest on Sunday, with Johnson nearly guaranteed to become “Mr. 6 Pack.”
However, the same can’t be said about the other drivers who will be looking for a win. Here a few drivers you should keep an eye on, and one of them might end up in Victory Lane.
Carl Edwards
Recent history at Homestead-Miami Speedway has shown that Edwards has been one of the drivers to beat at that track. Over the past five races at HMS, he’s scored two wins (2008 and 2010), three top fives and four top 10s. He’s also led over a third of the laps he’s completed during that time period, and he has an average finish of a stunning 4.6. Edwards also has a couple wins this year, but they both came on tracks 1-mile or smaller. Can Edwards bounce back from the fuel debacle last week and end the season on a high-note? It’s very likely.
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick has been a formidable contender on the 1.5 mile tracks this year, posting victories at Charlotte and Kansas. He also won last week, thanks to Edwards’ misfortunes. As far as his recent history at Homestead-Miami is concerned, Harvick hasn’t won in his last seven starts there, but he’s been very solid, notching four top fives and six top 10s. He’s also scored the second most points of any other driver during that time period, and has an average finish of 6.9. Harvick had a solid eighth place finish at the 2012 event, and I expect him to better that performance on Sunday.
Jeff Gordon
Although Homestead-Miami Speedway has been mostly dominated by Roush Fenway Racing throughout the years, Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports went to victory lane last year, and he could repeat his performance. Over his past 10 starts, Gordon has posted one victory (2012), six top fives, eight top 10s, and an average finish of 9.8. He’s finished in the top five in his last two trips to HMS, so look for Big Daddy to replicate that kind of performance.
Expectations for Matt Kenseth
The way I see it, Kenseth has two choices going into Sunday. First choice, he can put an aggressive set-up on the car that will maximize his opportunity to win the race, but could cause mechanical failure, which could drop him to third in the final standings behind Kevin Harvick. Second choice, he can shoot for a solid top five run and ultimately put up the white flag of surrender to Johnson and settle for second place.
It doesn’t take a genius to realize that Kenseth will all but certainly choose the first choice. Kenseth still has a infinitesimally minuscule slimmer of hope left to win this championship, and the only way to stop Johnson from becoming six-time is to lead the most laps and win the race, and hope that Johnson somehow stays out of the top 25.
When everything is said and done, I fully expect Johnson to be hoisting the championship trophy, with the final points margin being somewhere around 10-15.
Ken Schrader Concluding NASCAR Career At Homestead
Fenton, Missouri gentleman can end up being a star, just like Ken Schrader.
The 58-year-old Schrader will end his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career driving the No. 32 this weekend at Homestead Miami Speedway. Schrader began his career racing at Nashville Speedway in 1984 where he qualified 28th and concluded the race in 19th. Schrader most likely expected racing to stay a hobby after that event, I doubt he thought it become an entire life for him until 2013.
Saying Schrader only had four wins wouldn’t even depict his career in the slightest. His 29 years in the NSCS saw him snatch 184 top 10 finishes including five poles.
Rick Hendrick signed Schrader to a full-time NSCS ride in 1988 driving the No. 25 Folgers Chevrolet. Just his first event with the team, The Daytona 500, Schrader posted his second career pole at the famed Daytona International Speedway. After failing to qualify for the next event, Schrader purchased a car from Buddy Arrington and he took it to victory lane at Talladega Superspeedway for his first career big-time victory.
Hendrick provided for Schrader until 1996 where they parted ways sending Schrader to Andy Petree Racing. That wasn’t the wisest of decisions in Schrader’s career as he posted his best finish in the driver standings of fourth with Hendrick and that ended up being his finish in the standings.
Nevertheless, Schrader continued on throughout his NSCS career posting three more wins including one at Charlotte Motor Speedway and his final two were both at Dover International Speedway.
Arguably a noticeable point in Schrader’s career was at Daytona during the 2001 season when Dale Earnhardt was sent into the wall and eventually died. Schrader was the first person to reach Earnhardt’s car and then frantically signaled for medical attention.
Fast forwarding to 2013, Schrader set a record in August when he scored a pole in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Eldora Speedway becoming the oldest pole sitter in NASCAR’s top three series history. He also became the oldest ARCA Racing Series winner in 2013 as well.
Throughout 2013 Schrader’s driven the No. 32 FAS Lane Racing entry part-time, posting a season best finish of 27th at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Leaving the sport of NASCAR obviously will be a downfall for NASCAR fans. Although, Schrader won’t be forgotten by many drivers and fans, for the comfort he welcomed off the track and the integrity he possessed on the track.
“Circle, circle, circle. I guess you could say I’ve been dizzy ever since.” –Ken Schrader
A Life of Racing: Ken Miles
“You know, I’d rather die in a racing car than get eaten up by cancer”- Ken Miles
Many of you reading this have no idea who Ken Miles is, or his life of racing. Indeed, in the history of racing, Ken Miles and his life may be but few pages, compared to the chapters upon chapters of men such as Enzo Ferrari or Carroll Shelby. However, his story marks an incredible turning point in the story of these men, Ford Motor Company, at the time undisputedly the most prestigious race in the entire world (Le Mans), and millions of others.
“We have nobody to take his place. Nobody. He was our baseline, our guiding point. He was the backbone of our program. There will never be another Ken Miles”- Carroll Shelby
Ken Miles life of racing is a tale of triumph and tragedy. He developed the car that broke the greatest dynasty in the greatest race in the world, and yet not only was he robbed of his greatest achievement, but perished attempting to do it all again. And all of this was when he was 47 years young.
“That’s up to you sir, isn’t it?”- Ken Miles when asked by a rich and naïve person if they could become a race car driver
Miles grew up in England, and was a tank driver in World War II. He never said very much about the war, but could often be seen at racetracks wearing an old jacket, much like a knight would his suit of armor after victory in a joust. After the war, Miles fell in love with racing and moved to Hollywood, where he became a fixture on the sports car scene for the next two decades. Often in cars that he himself had made, he dominated and even ran a tuning shop for a time. However, because he was a racer in the 50’s, he had one small problem: no money. Eventually in early 1963 the shop was foreclosed, and Miles had no choice but to join up with a Le Mans winning, fast talking, tough Texan by the name of Carroll Shelby.
“How would you like to work in a snake pit for a real snake?”- Carroll Shelby conducting a job interview for a new secretary.
In 1962, after Ford Motor Company decided to get back in the racing business generally in order to stop Ferrari’s dynasty in Le Mans (More on that later), Shelby, who retired in 1960 from active competition due to a bad heart, showed up on Ford’s doorstep with a unique proposition.
“With $25,000, I can build two cars that’ll blow off the Corvettes”- Carroll Shelby
Ford approved, and Shelby decided to get a crew of “hot rodders” together to build what would become the first Cobra- Miles would become the competition director, driver, and test driver for Shelby America. The program quickly became a remarkable success- by the summer of 1963 the Cobra was the hot item for all the celebrity’s, and even had a top 40 radio hit named after it (“Hey Little Cobra”).
“… we at Ford have a great respect for you.”- Ford Executive
“Yes, I know. Like America respects Russia”- Enzo Ferrari in response
In 1964, Ford brought a decidedly American car (The GT40, heavy but powerful) to Le Mans with one goal: to stop Ferrari’s dynasty at Le Mans (Including 1964, Ferrari had won at Le Mans 6 times out of the 7 previous years, 1959 being won by Carroll Shelby in an Aston Martin), and, well…… they lost. Badly. None of the cars made it through the night. Ford made the choice to hand the GT40 project from “Mr. Aston Martin” John Wyer to Shelby America, after the Cobra won the GT class in Le Mans that year. Ken Miles was named the official test driver for the prototype.
“I am a mechanic. That has been the direction of my entire vocational life. Driving is a hobby, a realization for me, like golfing is to others”- Ken Miles
Miles was never supposed to race the car in competition; Ford had built a Hall of Fame driving roster featuring such names as AJ Foyt, Bruce McLaren, Phill Hill, Dan Grurny, a young Itallian-American by the name of Mario Andretti. But Miles couldn’t stand watching somebody else drive the car he had helped to develop, and so he found himself in a Shelby GT40 come the 1965 Daytona Continental 2,000 KM race.
12 hours later, Miles and co-driver Llyodd Ruby found themselves in victory lane, as the Shelby bunch finished in the top 5 positions overall. It was the first win in 40 years for an American manufacturer in international competition, and there was no better time or place for either Miles or Ruby. Le Mans, however, proved a different task.
“I feel our chances at Le Mans are very good indeed. These cars were built for Le Mans”- Ken Miles
In the 1965 Le Mans 24 hour, it was Ford’s race to lose. Phil Hill broke the track record in qualifications in a Shelby GT40, and during the first pit stops the drivers were laughing at how much faster the Fords were to the Ferraris. However, by the 7 hour mark, doom had hit Ford- a defective gearbox ruined Miles and his co-pilot Bruce McLaren, while Hill’s clutch went out after setting a new race lap record. Ford once again decided to change directions following the race, this time dividing the Le Mans project into two separate teams- Shelby America and the face of Ford in NASCAR, Holman-Moody. Miles still served as the test driver for all cars, however, and was still in a Shelby GT40 come Daytona in Feburary.
“Holman Moody this, Holman Moody that. You know, someday you’re going to get beat, and it better be by Ferrari”- Carroll Shelby to Carroll Smith.
Much has been said about “Big” Bill France, but one thing is for certain: he loved to prove, even in his own mind, that everything he did either was the best or was equal to the best. In 1966 France extended the Daytona Continental into a 24 hour race, the only 24 hour race in the entire world with the exception of Le Mans. Shelby knew this, the 12 hours of Sebring, and Le Mans would decide the fate of Ford’s foray into international racing, that if both were a failure there wouldn’t be a 1967 Ford GT40. He made sure Miles was on his team. Everybody was wondering; Could even the Ferraris hold up for 24 hours at Daytona? Most thought the Fords wouldn’t survive, and if they did Holman-Moody would finish the strongest because of their experience on the high banks of Daytona.
Miles and Ruby proved the doubters wrong and won the fastest endurance race in Daytona up to that point (Really impressive considering the race was extended by 12 some hours), beating out both Ferrari and Holman-Moody. The next stop was Sebring, and of course Miles won that too, impressively winning in a duel with Dan Gurney that ended with Gurney pushing his car to the finish line after suffering blown engine in the last few hundred yards.
“I am proud for my country”- Luigi Chinetti, Ferrari legend and US citizen
Around this time, Ken Miles, at the unlikely age of 47 and after two decades of racing, became a superstar. Miles never attempted the Indy 500, never raced in Formula 1, and yet he was beating the very best in the entire world on some of the biggest stages in the world.
“I should like to drive a Formula 1 machine- not for the grand prize, but just to see what it is like. I should think it would be jolly good fun!”- Ken Miles
Ken Miles should of won the 1966 24 hours of Le Mans, or at the very least be named the co-winner. But alas, that wasn’t the case. With a few hours left in the race, Ford came to Carroll Shelby with an idea- Miles was a couple of laps ahead of Bruce McLaren, and Ford wanted to attempt to stage a tie. Miles, though, wasn’t happy.
“He just couldn’t get over it”- Denny Hulme
Eventually, Miles slowed down and allowed McLaren to come back. Both came out of the final turn and crossed the line together. However, Le Mans officials cited an ancient rule that took into account a car’s starting position. Because McLaren started behind Miles, he was ruled to of traveled some 20 more yards then Miles over 24 hours, and was rewarded the victory.
“I think I’ve been f***ed”- Ken Miles in the chaotic aftermath immediately following Le Mans
A couple of months later, Miles was testing a new Ford prototype at Riverside Speedway. Trying to do it all again and come away with a Le Mans trophy this time, Miles spent all day developing this new car until the final run of the day.
“Please be careful in how you report what I have said. I work for these people. They have been awfully good to me”- Ken Miles after giving an interview in the month following Le Mans.
Ken Miles was denied being the first and only Triple Crown endro Champion in the entire world, and was never given another chance at it. Shelby was heartbroken, even 40 years later.
It broke my heart when we lost Ken”- Carroll Shelby
Maybe the most shocking and bizarre attribute Miles had on the racing community after death happened in June of the next year. Mario Andretti had a horrible wreck in a version of the prototype Miles tested at Le Mans, but because of a steel bar Ford implemented after Miles’ fatal wreck, Mario lived. The story of Ken Miles is one of the great What If stories in racing, and yet nobody ever speaks about it. At least now you know the story.
Source:
The only source used for this article is A.J. Baime’s excellent book “Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and their battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans”. Click here for the Amazon page and be sure to check out the movie which will be coming out sometime in the next few years (Tom Cruise has been casted as Carroll Shelby, so that’s something).
