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Late-Race Spin Drops Gifford to 17th
26/04/2009
Shell-Pennzoil Racing driver Ryan Gifford saw a potential top-10 finish disappear after being spun out by another driver in the closing laps of Saturday’s NASCAR Camping World Series East event at Tri-County Motor Speedway in Hudson, N.C.
I’m really excited and looking forward to getting another chance to get back out there.
After qualifying 14th out of the 26 drivers who competed, Gifford methodically worked his way through the pack in the early going before contact from another car sent him spinning around lap 50.
Restarting the race from the rear of the field, an undeterred Gifford made his way back up through the field, moving all the up to seventh position.
The final laps of the event featured no fewer than three attempts at a green-white-checkered flag finish. These are essentially two lap "shootouts," in which the field restarts under the green flag and completes a lap before being shown the white flag, indicating there’s one lap remaining in the race.
If the field can complete a second lap, the checkered flag is shown and the race is over. If there is an accident, the caution flag comes out, and the field is reset for another attempt.
While Gifford held his own during the first two tries, on the third attempt, a tap from another competitor caused Gifford’s Shell-Pennzoil machine to spin out, dropping him to a 17th-place result.
Still, the 20-year old talent achieved his primary goals in the event, which were to complete every lap and gain experience.
"I definitely feel like we had a pretty good night going," Gifford said. "The finish we got wasn’t really a reflection of our efforts. We ran much, much better than a 17th-place car, but that’s short-track racing for you. It really gave me the confidence to know that I can get out there and be competitive. I’m really excited and looking forward to getting another chance to get back out there."
Gifford and his TDR crew plan to continue their season by competing in another Late Model race on asphalt this weekend. The team is undecided as to whether they’ll head to Tri-County Motor Speedway, or to another well-known short track, Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, N.C.