| Patrick Sheltra Heads To Iowa On A Mission
“Sixth In Points Has Sheltra Itching
For More”
NEWTON, Iowa (April 16, 2008) - - After two positive top-15
finishes at Daytona International Speedway and Salem Speedway
sophomore ARCA RE/MAX Series (ARS) driver Patrick Sheltra
is thirsty for his first top-10 finish of the season as
the series strolls to Iowa Speedway this weekend for the
running of the Prairie Meadows 250 Saturday afternoon.
The first two races of the season haven’t yielded
the finishes the Sheltra Motorsports deserve, however the
performance of the team hasn’t lacked. Up front and
in contention at Daytona and Salem have kept the team alive
and ready to keep the momentum rolling heading into the
third race of the season.
“I’m really looking forward to heading to Iowa
Speedway this weekend,” said Sheltra, who is enjoying
his second full season of competition in the ARCA RE/MAX
Series. “We didn’t have the finish that we should
have last year, but the experience was priceless. The team
has done a fabulous job this year and I’m hoping we
can continue that trend this weekend.”
Planting it in his mind that Iowa Speedway is still a short
track, Sheltra takes the same mentality that he used last
Sunday at Salem Speedway to the newly constructed Newton,
Iowa speed plant this weekend. “Of course there is
a huge difference between Iowa Speedway and Salem Speedway,
but it’s hard to believe with the speeds of the track;
that’s it’s still a short track. It’s
good hard racing. Iowa isn’t as tough as Salem is,
but it’s a place where you can’t let up on the
wheel either. I know the competition there was tight last
year and I expect the same this weekend.”
Opting not to participate in the open-test at .875-mile
oval earlier this month doesn’t faze the Whitesville,
Kentucky operation or the dirt track ace heading into to
third race on the calendar.
“We feel that our Iowa program is going to be stout,”
added Sheltra, who will run three different racing divisions
in 2008. “I have great faith in my crew chief John
(Hayden) that we’ll unload with a strong setup and
the changes that we make will make us even stronger throughout
the weekend.”
Speaking of Hayden, he has elected to bring the Chevrolet
Monte Carlo SS that the team utilized in the season finale
last year at Toledo Speedway. The 23rd event on the schedule
awarded the team with a powerful effort after Sheltra bolted
into a top-five and recovered from being spun out to net
a eighth place finish in the former Richard Childress Racing
machine.
The Sheltra Motorsports team is banking on similar success
at Iowa, a racetrack designed by Rusty Wallace.
“We’re bringing a real good piece to Iowa this
weekend,” Sheltra sounded. “This is our first
real short track car and we were ecstatic with the results
from last year. Hopefully we’ll make it two top-10
finishes in a row for this car Saturday afternoon.”
After his duties at the track on Friday afternoon, Sheltra
will spend his evening at the Prairie Meadows Racetrack
and Casino (Altoona, Iowa) participating in an autograph
session from 6:00pm to 7:00pm local time.
Heading into Iowa, Sheltra has 27 ARCA RE/MAX Series starts
to his credit with a career best finish of third on the
dirt at Illinois State Fairgrounds (August 2007) with an
additional top-five finish (fourth) at Berlin Raceway (July
2007) while holding additional top-10s at Kentucky Speedway
(June 2007), DuQuoin State Fairgrounds (September 2007)
and Toledo Speedway (October 2007). Three ninth-place qualifying
efforts at Kansas Speedway (April 2007), Pocono Raceway
(June 2007) and Illinois State Fairgrounds (August 2007)
is Sheltra’s best time trials efforts to date.
The Prairie Meadows 250 (250 laps/219 miles) is the third
of 21 events on the 2008 ARCA RE/MAX Series schedule. The
third ARCA race held at Iowa is a two-day show. Practice
begins Friday, April 18 with an hour and a half practice
session planned from 12:30-2:00 p.m. A second round of practice
has been etched in from 3:00-4:30 p.m. ARCA SIM Factory
pole qualifying is set for Saturday morning April 19 slated
to begin at 9:00 a.m. with the field taking the green flag
shortly after 12:35 p.m. The race will be televised live
on SPEED (12:30 p.m. local) with additional race coverage
online at arcaracing.com. All times are local.
For more on Patrick Sheltra, please visit the newly re-launched
PatrickSheltra.com.
About Sheltra Motorsports:
Sheltra Motorsports (sheltramotorsports.com)
is a three-tier Motorsports operation consisting of dirt
and asphalt competition. Patrick Sheltra, a 21-year old
native of Indiantown, Florida competes in the UMP and WoO
(Dirt) Series; while also running a full schedule in the
ARCA RE/MAX Series (No. 60) and a limited schedule in the
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (No. 35). Sheltra Motorsports
ownership is combined of Richard, Grace and Patrick Sheltra.
The team is headquartered in Indiantown, Florida with additional
operations in Richmond, Indiana and Whitesville, Kentucky.
Patrick Sheltra, Sheltra
Motorsports, Salem Speedway Notes of Interest:
· Sheltra Motorsports will run a mixture of Chevrolet
Monte Carlos and Dodge Chargers during the 2008 ARCA RE/MAX
Series season. For Salem, Sheltra Motorsports will run a
Chevrolet Monte Carlo purchased from Richard Childress Racing
(RCR). Sheltra Motorsports debuted the automobile last October
at Toledo Speedway awarding the team with an eighth place
finish. Clements Automotive will provide the horsepower
for the sophomore ARCA team.
· Sheltra currently holds the highest points position
(sixth) that he has ever held in his ARCA RE/MAX Series
career. Last year, the 21-year old superstar finished seventh
in the championship standings competing in 22 of the scheduled
23 events.
· Sheltra will make 1,000 left hand turns on Saturday
afternoon.
In addition to running a full 2008 ARCA RE/MAX Series schedule,
Sheltra will also run a limited schedule in the NASCAR Craftsman
Truck Series (No. 35) and compete in selected dirt late
model events (UMP and WoO Series) throughout the United
States.
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
Crew Chief: John Hayden
Team Manager: Keith Strunk
Marketing Partners:
Ferguson Pipe Enterprises, Inc, FloraGanics, American Concrete
Industries, Inc, Hardie Pipe, The Casite Company, J&S
Bulk Transportation, Inc., US Construction Supply Corp.,
Martin County Petroleum, Sheltra & Son Construction,
Sheltra Cattle Company, Recycling Services, Indiantown Marina,
All About Flowers, Speed Media, Klotz Lubricants, DMC Graphics
and Purcell Tire & Rubber.
MEDIA CONTACT:
NAME: Chris Knight, Sheltra Motorsports
PHONE: 239.834.9797 or 830.261.1215
EMAIL: knight849@aol.com
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