| Sheltra Motorsports Confident Following Rockingham
Test
“Patrick Sheltra & Company Vow To Return Stronger
In May”
WHITESVILLE, Kentucky (Monday, March 24, 2008) - - For
the first time in nearly 35 years, Rockingham Speedway opened
it’s doors for the ARCA RE/MAX Series this past weekend
for a two-day open test in preparation for the Carolina
500K, the May 4, 2008 event marking the return of the ARCA
RE/MAX Series to “The Rock.”
Sheltra Motorsports joined over 25 teams and 38 drivers
for the two-day test but the Whitesville; Kentucky operation
packed it up early Saturday morning after feeling the team
accomplished all of their testing goals.
During his trip down to Rockingham Speedway on Thursday,
Sheltra connected with NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Kenny
Wallace, who has several years of experience at the one-mile
oval. Wallace communicated with both Sheltra and crew chief
John Hayden want to expect, what to watch out for and the
best way to master the facility.
Sheltra, the 21-year old sophomore ARCA driver tackled
the track for the extensive seven hour session on Friday
whipping up his fastest lap in the afternoon session after
mounting a time of 26.210 seconds or 137.352 MPH. In the
morning session, he ran nearly an identical lap after pulling
together a time of 26.271 seconds at 137.033 MPH.
“We were pretty neutral for most of the day on Friday,”
said Sheltra, who will be featured in the Rockingham Speedway
program in May. “John (Hayden, crew chief) made some
great adjustments to our No. 60 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
throughout the day and I feel very confident in the car’s
abilities.”
Leaving the track on Friday night, the Sheltra Motorsports
team knew they had not showed their complete strength. They
were saving their best for last.
Under slightly cooler conditions on Saturday morning, Sheltra
once again climbed into his Grace Sheltra-owned machine
looking to better his runs from the day before. A day after
tackling “The Rock” for the very first time,
Sheltra himself was feeling a little more comfortable about
the track.
It showed.
Sheltra, who will spend the 2008 racing season running
a full ARCA RE/MAX Series schedule in addition to starts
in the UMP and WOo Dirt Late Model Series and the NASCAR
Craftsman Truck Series bolted a lap of 25.574 seconds transferring
to a speed of 140.768 MPH. The lap was almost seventh tenths
(.697) better than his fastest run a day earlier. The effort
put Sheltra ninth fastest on the board Saturday morning.
Returning to the garage, high-fives were given around the
Sheltra Motorsports team with crew chief John Hayden making
the call to load it up and head home. Pleased with Sheltra’s
efforts on Saturday, the team felt they had a competitive
package they could come back to the track in May and try
to net a victory in ARCA’s return to Rockingham Speedway.
“The car was really good,” Sheltra noted. “We
really didn’t make a whole lot of changes to the car,
but we said on Friday, we were taking it a little easy and
today, we really didn’t hold anything back. I was
still a little conservative because I didn’t want
to wad up a racecar, but overall I think we’re in
great shape.”
Sheltra continued, “We didn’t show everything
we had. We still left some on the table. We just wanted
to grab a baseline setup for what we think we can come back
with. This was just a test motor and we know that when we
come back we’ll be carrying about eight to 10 more
horsepower. I tell you that will be huge in itself. I was
pretty happy with the tire compound. If you understand The
Rock, you know that tires go away here within a blink of
an eye. This weekend was no different. However, I know that
we learned a lot from the two-day test and we’re excited
about coming back.”
Overall, Sheltra Motorsports landed the 16th position cumulatively
thanks to his Saturday morning trial run.
Sheltra Motorsports, which is in its second full season
of ARCA competition, unveiled a new car at Rockingham Speedway
this past weekend. The No. 60 Chevrolet Monte Carlo was
an in-house automobile built by members of the Sheltra Motorsports
clan. Clements Automotive provided the steam underneath
the hood for the first official ARCA open test of the season.
“As always; I just want to thank everyone on the
Sheltra Motorsports team for the job they did. They worked
hard and it showed. I also have to thank Kenny Wallace who
I know I can always count on if I have any questions. It
was good clean; solid weekend,” Sheltra concluded.
Next up for Sheltra Motorsports is an impending testing
trip to Salem Speedway in Salem, Indiana in preparation
for the second event on the 2008 schedule, the Kentuckiana
Ford Dealers 200 by Federated Auto Parts set for Sunday,
April 13. weather at the tricky half-mile oval has plagued
the team for the last month. The team will also throw in
an additional test at Kansas Speedway on Thursday, April
3 to reveal the team’s Dodge program. The fourth race
on the schedule marks the first event that the team will
carry the Dodge emblem this season.
Stay tuned for a revamped website, but in the meantime
for more on Patrick Sheltra, please visit PatrickSheltra.com.
Sheltra
Motorsports Quick Facts:
Team Name: Sheltra Motorsports,
No. 60 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
Driver: Patrick Sheltra, Indiantown, Florida
Car Owner: Grace Sheltra, Indiantown, Florida
Marketing Partners: Ferguson Pipe Enterprises,
Inc, FloraGanics, American Concrete Industries, Inc, Hardie
Pipe, Indiantown Marina, Discovery Drug Testing (DDT), All
About Flowers, Speed Media, The Casite Company, Sheltra
& Son Construction, Sheltra Cattle Company, J&S
Bulk Transportation, Inc., Martin County Petroleum, Klotz
Lubricants and Purcell Tire & Rubber.
Crew Chief: John Hayden
Team Manager: Keith Strunk
MEDIA CONTACT:
NAME: Chris Knight, Sheltra Motorsports
PHONE: 239.834.9797 or 830.261.1215
EMAIL: knight849@aol.com
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