4/25/2012
Scotty Thiel
First Full Weekend of Racing for STM
The Scott Thiel Motorsports #64 Professional Plating team pulled out of the shop at 10:30am on Friday morning in direction to Elko, MN for the season opener for the Upper Midwest Sprint Car Series. The crew pulled into the track at 4pm and began to prepare for their first full night of racing for 2012. Scotty drew a 54 pill which set him to start 8th in the heat race event.
The race track held pretty good moisture throughout the heat race and Thiel managed to pull off a 4th place finish, along with a 7th place starting spot for the 25 lap A-Main event.
At the drop of the green flag, Scotty ran the low line and that was the way to go as a number of cars began to wreck going into turn one. The red flag flew and the track crew began to clean up the mess. At the second attempt to start the race, Scotty ran the same line going into turns one and two and it paid off again as he slipped into the 4th place position. Thiel was charging forward as a caution came out for a car spinning in turn one and moved Scotty up one more spot. On the restart, Thiel battled with Brooke Tatnell for the second spot but fell back into third. Scotty started to work over the high side of the track and moved into the second position, right behind the leader of Tatnell. A caution flew with only six laps to go and Thiel knew this was his chance to take over the lead. At the return of the green, Scotty flew to the top side in attempt to make a pass on Tatnell, but fell short and settled back in second. With only a few laps to go, lap traffic came back into play but Thiel was unable to gain ground on Tatnell and managed a second place finish. Both Scotty and the crew were really happy with their first night performance. "We had a really good car tonight, Jeff hooked it up very nicely. Just fell short on that restart and Brooke got the jump." Scotty stated after the race.
The STM crew stayed the night in Elko in hopes of racing the second night of the Elko Spring Nationals but after watching the internet, noticed weather was going to be an issue. As the crew began to get ready for the day, they went to lunch to discuss what they wanted to do. Either stay in Elko to see if they would get the show in or hurry up and shoot over to 141 Speedway in Francis Creek, WI to run with the IRA Outlaw Sprints. At 11:30am, the STM crew decided it was time to hit the road and hussle to 141 Speedway. Mapquest said it was to be a 5 hour and 25 minute drive and the team knew they would be pushing the issue on making it in time. 4.5 hours later, the truck and trailer pulled into the speedway and Scotty and the crew began to get the car prepared. Scotty had a good friend back in Sheboygan who went over to their race shop and put Goodyear tires on some wheels and bring them to the track so the team did not have to worry about changing tires over.
Scotty drew a 29 pill for qualifying and set out a time that was 11th quick. That put him to start third in the second heat race event. With the current pole sitter electing to go to the rear, that moved Thiel up to the pole position. Scotty then set the pace on the field to take the green flag. A few cautions came early for cars spinning but after getting back to green, Scotty held the lead for 7 laps before getting passed. Thiel managed to finish second in the heat race and put him to start 10th in the nights 30 lap Bumper to Bumper A-Main event.
It took several attempt to complete a green flag lap but once the field set to green flag action, Thiel quickly moved up to the fourth place position. Scotty was on the move and picked off the third place position. He was charging hard for the second place position until a lap car spun going into turns three and four, bunching the field up and Scotty spun in the process trying to aviod the wreck. That would set him to tag the rear of the field due to getting a second push off. After the field returned to green flag action, the track took rubber and passing became very difficult. Scotty managed to pull off a 15th place finish. "Man, we were running really good out there tonight. The car was awesome and really hooked up. Jeff did an awesome job setting it up and I was able to move forward with it. We forsure had a top 3 car if not better. It's just unfortunate that we got in that mess trying to avoid that wreck. Really wanted to see what we could do with the IRA." Scotty mentioned after the A-Main event.
It was an overall very good weekend for the Professional Plating Inc #64 Triple X, Gaerte Powered sprint car. Having a top 3 finish the first night out and in contention of another top 3 with the IRA 410 group was incredible. The team learned a lot over the course of the weekend and will be preparing for next weekend's racing action taking place at the Beaver Dam Raceway on Saturday night. It will be the season opener for the MSA 360 Series.
Scotty and all of STM would like to thank all of their great marketing partners in the 2012 race season:
Professional Plating Inc:
Professional Plating Inc., specializes in mulitple types of metal coating and plating projects. They also offer custom powdercoating, ceramic coating and internal engine coating. Have a metal coating or plating project you need done? Check out Professional Plating Inc at www.proplating.com!
Complete Water Inc:
Complete Water Inc specializes in Rentals, Iron Filters, Well Inspections, Salt Delivery, Sales, Drinking Systems, Complete Well Systems, Bottled Water, Reverse Osmosis, Irrigation & Sprinkler Systems, Well Systems, Well Pumps & Pressure Tanks, Rheem, MacClean, American Standard. Contact Complete Water for any of your water needs!
Scott Thiel Builders:
Scott Thiel Builders located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin is a custom home building and remodeling company. Looking for a luxury get away? Contact Scott Thiel Builders for your next lake house vacation home. Muliple properties are available along the beautiful shores of Lake Michigan! Contact STB at 920-458-5763
Kaemmer Food Service:
Kaemmer Food Service is a locally own food service business based out of Sheboygan, WI. For any food service or dairy product service need, call Kaemmer’s today at 920-457-7650
Ti22 Performance:
Ti22 Performance is the leading manufacturer of high-performance titanium race parts. Focused on the Sprint car and Motorsports industry, Ti22 offers drivers a superior line of products that outlast and out perform the competition. Check them out at www.ti22performance.com!
Triple X Race Co:
At Triple X Race Components, we don’t just build race parts – we race too. We know how expensive it is to race. That’s why we offer the most common Sprint Car, Midget, and 600 Mini Sprint parts. We keep our costs down by building thousands of each part. We build the parts that get damaged the most. With our discounted pricing, you can afford to race hard and race to win.
Rhey Graphics:
Rhey Graphics will take your next project over-the-top. We can supply you with the creative edge that's become a necessity in today's competitive marketplace. So whether it's a logo design, vehicle graphics, brochure, or full-color banner, we can handle your project from start to an outstanding finished project.
Tri-Flow Lubricants:
Tri-Flow® Gets It Movin'™ As our name suggest, we're on a three-part mission, to clean, protect and lubricate equipment for enthusiasts. Our cleaners, degreasers, and lubricants combine advanced ingredients with ideal application methods to keep any gear in top shape.
Velocity Wings:
Velocity Wings and Race Products is a locally owned Sprint Car wing manufacture based out of Elkhart Lake, WI. For all of your sprint car wings and accessories, please contact Velocity Wings at 920-876-2953
Super Shox:
Since 1997 Super Shox has been dedicated to building high performance shock absorbers with extreame durability at a reasonable price. Each year more racers make the switch to Super Shox and it shows with wins and championships. Super Shox have high quality products that will give you an advantage. Besides building a quality product customer service is at the top of our list to keep you satisfied and winning races. Please give us a call or e-mail to discuss how we can serve your needs. 847. 548.SHOX
Photo Credit to Brett Moist Photography!
Submitted By: Scotty Thiel