| Patrick Sheltra Sees Michigan Changes
As Form Of Racing Commitment Despite Economy
“ARCA Point’s Leader Hopes Other Tracks
Will Follow MIS’s Lead”
BROOKLYN, Michigan (June 10, 2010) - - Current ARCA Racing
Series (ARS) point’s leader Patrick Sheltra has always
been a fan of Michigan International Speedway (MIS) but
as the 24-year old is set to make his fifth career ARCA
start in tomorrow’s Racing for Wildlife 200, Sheltra
has been overwhelmed with the recent enhancements with the
two-mile oval.
Two weeks ago, Sheltra visited the track which is nestled
in the lush Irish Hills of Southeastern Michigan for the
open ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards
test in preparation for ARCA’s 29th appearance at
the International Speedway Corporation (ISC) facility.
Sheltra was speechless when he exited his rental car and
approached his Sheltra Motorsports hauler. “All I
said in my head was wow,” explained the Indiantown,
Florida native. “I knew that the track was going through
some major changes but seeing the actual changes in person
makes you really think about what the track is doing for
the future.”
After participating in the morning test session, the ARCA
pro visited the new infield Media Center during his lunch
break, which was heavily populated with guests and media.
At first, Sheltra wasn’t sure he was at the right
place -- referring back to his memories of the old infield
Media Center, but once being confirmed he was in the right
place, Sheltra wasn’t afraid to hold any comments
back.
“What Michigan International Speedway has done is
commendable,” sounded Sheltra. “The track has
a lot of rich history and hosts a variety of different racing
series but seeing the changes they have made from last year
to this year is just impressive.”
The estimated cost of the track’s improvements would
be substantial enough to fund a solid NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series effort for an entire season. Instead, though the
track decided to put their old layout in a memory box and
make a commitment to the racing industry that new memories
would be created.”
“All the series and even the tracks are struggling
in some way, shape or form,” Sheltra mentioned. “However
for Michigan to dig deep into their pockets to give the
track a make-over, especially dealing with the rocky economy
that we are in – it just shows that not only are they
here for the fans but they are here for the teams as well.”
In addition to the vast array of upgrades of facilities,
meeting rooms, suites and tunnel, the track has always taken
on an “eco-friendly” approach by utilizing efficient
devices that will help save energy while allowing everyone
to continue business as normal.
“I’m all about change,” noted Sheltra,
who hopes to return to Michigan International Speedway next
year in either the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series or
NASCAR Nationwide Series. “We started seeing the changes
a couple years ago at Michigan with our title sponsor for
the race (Racing for Wildlife) and the neat scoring pylon,
but I’ve also noticed that the track this weekend
is doing a lot with recycling and I understand that they
are using eco-friendly materials to make this place safer
for the planet. We have Recycling Services on the hood of
our Toyota Camry this weekend, so we’re a firm believer
in aiding with the track’s goal of making this great
racing place more environmental friendly for everyone.”
Sheltra also known as “Mr. Showtime” in the
ARCA Racing Series also is quick to point out that while
some of the tracks he visits in the ARCA Racing Series,
NASCAR Nationwide Series and even in the dirt late model
are unable financially to make the investments that MIS
has made, he feels that the tracks can lean on them to make
improvements that would be cost efficient to their particular
budget.”
“Obviously, Michigan has been around for a long time
and they have some of the resources that other tracks may
not have – but I honestly believe that there are steps
that the other tracks we visit could make on a smaller scale
that would make their race track more environmentally safe
and efficient for everyone for many more years to come,”
he concluded.
Sheltra has 74 ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and
Menards starts to his credit with one career victory at
Salem (Ind.) Speedway (April 2009). During his ARCA tenure,
Sheltra has accumulated 14 top-fives and posted 29 top-10
finishes. A third place qualifying effort at Rockingham
(N.C.) Speedway (April 2009) is Sheltra’s best time
trials efforts to date. He has controlled the ARCA field
six times for 148 laps.
The Racing for Wildlife 200 (100 laps / 200 miles) is the
eighth of 20 events on the 2010 ARCA Racing Series schedule.
The 29th ARCA race at Michigan International Speedway is
a two-day show. Menards Pole by Ansell qualifying is set
for later in the day slated to begin at 3:00 p.m. The event
will take the green flag on Friday, June 11 shortly after
5:00 p.m. The event will air live on SPEED. Additional race
coverage including live timing and scoring throughout the
week will be available through the BAS Racing Network in
conjunction with the ARCA Racing Network (ARN) online at
arcaracing.com. All times are local.
For the latest on Patrick Sheltra, Sheltra Motorsports
and marketing partnership opportunities please visit PatrickSheltra.com.
Join the official Patrick Sheltra fan page on Facebook
by clicking here.
About Sheltra Motorsports:
Sheltra Motorsports (sheltramotorsports.com) is a three-tier
Motorsports operation consisting of dirt and asphalt competition.
Patrick Sheltra, a 24-year old native of Indiantown, Florida
competes in the UMP and WoO (Dirt) Series; while also running
a full schedule in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX
and Menards (No. 60) and a limited schedule in the NASCAR
Nationwide Series. 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 Mooresville, North Carolina.
TEAM COMMUNICATIONS CONTACT:
Chris Knight, Sheltra Motorsports
P: 239.834.9797
E: chris@patricksheltra.com
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