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Brian Brown – .01!
(Bill W) May 21, 2008 – A hundredth of a second was the difference between sprint car driver Brian Brown starting on the pole of Saturday night's feature at Knoxville, or starting in row four. Unfortunately, it was the latter, and Brian maintained, officially finishing sixth. The Doogs SuperClean #21 team will get plenty of racing in, during the upcoming Holiday Weekend!
The "Sprint Car Capital of the World" succumbed to Mother Nature on Saturday, though it wasn't in the usual way. Instead of rain, a hot sun and strong winds during the day worked against any moisture laid out on the famous ½ mile. Fortunately, Brian drew an early pill in time trials and registered the 7th quick time of the night. "We were halfway decent there," he says. "A lot of that had to do with being the 13th car out to time. A hundredth of a second quicker and we would have out-qualified (eventual pole-sitter) Justin (Henderson), and we could have been on the pole for the feature ourselves. That would have made it a whole different ballgame at the end of the night."
As he prepared for a heat race that saw him post inside of row three, Brian and team formulated some strategy related to their tires. "I watched the guys on the first couple heats, and they had been running their tires pretty hard," says the Grain Valley, Missouri native of his fourth place heat finish. "Obviously, we had to get in position to qualify. We could have gone a lot harder, but I thought we could use ours (tires) at the end of the night. I was hoping everyone else's tires would be a little bit spent."
With rubber-down, one-lane, follow-the-leader conditions evident well before the feature rolled, Brian hoped saving his tires a bit would pay off in the end. A number of yellow flags gave ample opportunity to cool tires in the 20-lapper. "The cautions let things cool down three or four times," says Brian. "I passed Dusty Zomer for sixth there early, and then he drove back by us on the outside of turns three and four. I didn't think his tires would make it, and they ended up making it (Zomer was impressive before eventually being DQed for weight)."
Believe it or not, Brian anticipated a bit more of an abrasive track. "I honestly thought it would be a yellow flag fest with everyone blowing tires, but I think there was only one," he says. "At least we didn't put the fans through the misery of having to sit through something like that."
Knoxville's one right rear tire a night rule was obviously a huge factor, but a new rule played into things as well. "You have to be extra careful, with Knoxville's new rule," says Brian. "After half the race is over, they don't give you time to change a tire in the work area this year. That puts a whole new thinking on your strategy. You really don't want to push the issue."
In the end, Brian would settle for a sixth place finish, and the defending track champion heads into this Saturday night seventh in the points battle. This weekend, in addition to Knoxville, the team is planning on racing at the Junction Motor Speedway near McCool Junction, Nebraska on Friday night with the ASCS-Midwest. Their Sunday/Monday plans are still undecided, as there are a few options.
Brian is Adopted…
…by a radio station. Brian will be joining Lou, the Round Guy and Heather on KGGO "Classic Rock that Rocks" at 94.9 on the FM dial. He will be calling in on Monday mornings during the race season to keep them apprised of their adopted driver (him). Be sure to listen in!
Website
For up to date information on Brian Brown, visit the revamped www.BrianBrownRacing.com!
T-shirts
New t-shirts are available and can be ordered at Brian's website (www.BrianBrownRacing.com), www.Racingthreads.com, or catch us at the races!
Brian's Q&A
KnoxvilleFan21 asks: When you deal with a track like last Saturday night, I assume you are tightening the car as the night goes on with the dry conditions. When the rubber returns do you have to loosen it back up, and how much?
Brian answers: That's kind of a guessing game, and something we were actually talking about before the A. When rubber gets down, it is almost like racing on a heavy track again. Usually, there's not rubber down the straightaways, so you have to at least free it up so you can roll in the corner, and you're not spinning the wheels. If you're in front, you'll probably keep it as tight as you can handle it, but if you're behind cars in dirty air, you probably want to loosen it so you can get down the straightaway. We didn't change much on Saturday, just put a little more air in the right rear.
Got a question for Brian? Send it to us at [email protected], and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for Brian" in your subject line.
Brown's Bits
Traveling to the Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Nebraska on Friday is an easy call for Brian and the Doogs SuperClean #21 team. In seven feature events there, they have racked up four wins. They finished second in the other three races, giving them the incredible record of never finishing out of the top two! Brian's biggest win at the facility was probably July 1, 2005 when he topped an ESTS field consisting of Mike Chadd, Rodney Droud, Jake Peters and Jason Danley.
SuperClean
SuperClean is the "super product" for your home, auto, outdoor and marine cleaning jobs. Whether it is grease, oil, wax, tar or dirt that you need to clean from concrete, wheels or just about anything else, SuperClean is the product for you! To learn more about SuperClean, visit www.SuperClean.com!
SuperClean Products include:
Tough Task Cleaner-Degreaser
If you have tough, caked-on grease, then SuperClean Tough Task Cleaner-Degreaser is the multipurpose cleaner you need. This concentrated, industrial strength formula quickly removes grease, oil, wax, tar, and dirt on contact leaving your surface as clean as new.
All Wheel Cleaner
If you love your car more than you love your…well you know, then SuperClean All Wheel Cleaner is for you. This custom-blend formula instantly releases road grime and brake dust, leaving wheels clean to the original finish.
Concrete Cleaner
Great house…dirty driveway? Then you need SuperClean Concrete Cleaner. This concentrated, professional strength formula cuts away grease, grime, dirt, and organic stains leaving your concrete surface as clean as the original finish.
See Heather at a grandstand entrance near you or visit the team's trailer to get your free sample! Superclean is available at Wal-Mart, Autozone, O'Reilly Auto Parts, or to find a retailer near you visit www.superclean.com.
Marketing Partner of the Week – Maxim Chassis
This is Brian's third year partnering with Maxim. After years of success as a car owner, Chuck Merrill started his chassis business in a rented three-bay garage in November of 1988. The first car was driven by Johnny Herrera at the Florida All Stars Sprint Week in February of 1989. By June of that year, Maxim moved into a 7,000 square foot facility. By 2001, Maxim had grown substantially producing 304 chassis that year. In 2002, Maxim moved to its present 12,500 square foot location in Springfield, Illinois. Maxim continues to offer their customers unmatched service and support, and currently has 17 quality employees, and builds over 400 chassis on an annual basis. Their world-famous "K-car" was designed for Steve Kinser, and has won ten Knoxville Nationals titles and fourteen World of Outlaws championships! For more information on Maxim, visit www.racemaxims.com!
Brian's Updates
Brian's Releases are an up close look at the past, present and future of 2007 Knoxville Raceway track champion, Brian Brown. To receive Brian's weekly updates, send an e-mail to [email protected] with "Brian" in the subject line.
Brian would like to thank SuperClean, Big Ox, Ditzfeld Transfer, Boss Hogg Food Products, Maxim Racing, American Compressed Steel, Michael Ross Memorial Foundation, Champion Brands, Legend Suzuki, Housby Trucks, K&N Filters, Hostiowa.net, Yeager's Harley Davidson, Saldana Radiators, Fuel-Safe Tanks, Blue Springs Extreme Powersports, Awesome Racewear, Wolfe Eye Clinic, Shock Doctor, Weld Wheels, Fire-Down Graphics, Bell Helmets, CP Pistons, Paul's Auto Body Supply, Butler Built Seats, Rod End Supply, Winters Performance Products, ISC Racers Tape, Simpson, Racing Optics, Pro Shocks, Dake Law Office, Wes. Mo. Auto, Don's Truck Wash, Sunshack Tan, McCroskey Chevrolet, Gardner Farms and Hoosier Tires for all their help!
Brian last Saturday at Knoxville (Bob Jones Photo)
Bill W MediaMonroe, IAUSA[email protected]
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