Austin races with Scotty Thiel at 34 Raceway (Mark Funderburk Racing Photo)
(Bill W) April 11, 2017 – The TKS Motorsports #2KS team and new driver, Austin McCarl, had a successful maiden voyage last Saturday night. The Altoona, Iowa driver set quick time amongst an IRA field at 34 Raceway near West Burlington, Iowa. The team brought home an eighth-place feature finish in a night that they wanted to shake things down for the season. This weekend marks the opener for the Knoxville Raceway.
TKS Owner and Crew Chief Troy Renfro was pleased with the team’s first outing.
“I was happy with things,” he says. “We wanted to get some laps in together. It’s been a while since Austin has raced, and we have a different car than he’s raced in the past. Overall, we were very happy with how things went.”
After being sent out a lap early by officials, Austin set quick time, but his laps weren’t allowed. He had to return later, but still set quick time, a tenth of a second slower than his first round. “In thirty years of racing, I don’t think I’ve ever had to set quick time twice, but that was the case Saturday,” says Troy. “I was really impressed with the way Austin handled it when they told us we’d have to qualify again. He just got in the car and went out and did it again.”
Austin added, “I hadn’t been quick time in a while, so that was really good. I thought it was a good confidence booster for us. I hadn’t raced in about six months, so that was a rewarding start.”
Troy and Austin worked together well during the night. After starting fourth in the first heat, Austin moved up to finish second. “We needed to communicate well, and we did that,” says Troy. “He really impressed me with his communication after being on the track. His lingo does actually remind me a little of working with Terry (Austin’s father) back in the early 1990’s.”
The redraw saw Austin starting fifth in the feature. “I thought we had a really good car for the feature,” says Austin. “But we sat there for a couple of hours and it cooled down quite a bit. It seemed a little bit of moisture came up and we were a bit tight. We came home eighth and rolled in the trailer, which was goal number one. Troy and I got to learn more about each other. It’s different cars, different wings, different engines and different mechanics. I thought everything went well for the first night out.”
“The moisture came back,” echoed Troy. “That caught us a little off guard and we hadn’t changed a ton of stuff after the heat. We had a few things that we tried with the car. Every driver is different. It’s fun to try and find a common ground. The modifieds churned things up and it got heavy and rough. We were definitely tight in the feature. Tim Kaeding was probably the smartest guy. He pulled into the work area on lap three and they freed the car up. He came from the tail and ran third. I think the track caught everyone off guard a little bit and we were no different.”
Troy was happy with the night and is looking forward to getting to Knoxville this weekend. “All in all, we rolled it back in the box in one piece,” he says. “We had a night working together and talking. I’m impressed with Austin’s attention to detail. It’s a different deal than what he’s run in the past. We needed to get a night under our belt and it was a success.”
Sponsor the Front Wing with TKS Motorsports!
TKS Motorsports is always open to new perspective partners! Whether you’d like to partner with the team for the full season, or put your company’s name on the nose wing for a night of your choice, contact Troy at tsrenfro8725@gmail.com!
TKS Motorsports would like to thank Casey's General Stores, Des Moines Industrial Products (DMIP), 1 Way Technologies, AL Driveline, AO Designs, All Star Performance, ATL Racing Fuel Cells, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Fibreworks Composites, Hoosier, Indy Race Parts, KSE Racing Products, Mag Tech Ignition, Maxim Racing Chassis, Schoenfeld Headers, Tony Moro Collision Center, Tony Moro Powdercoating & Sandblasting, Butlerbuilt, Aurora Rod Ends, HRP, Volcano Joe’s Coffee, Snyder Landscaping & Lawn Care, Justice Brothers, Webb Family Farms, Wilwood, Winters Performance Products and Gail Dielman.
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Photo: Austin races with Scotty Thiel at 34 Raceway (Mark Funderburk Racing Photo)
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