UNITED STATESNews and Media Releases
Gifford, Shell-Pennzoil Race Team Play in the Dirt
09/08/2009
Ryan Gifford and his No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil team “played in the dirt” this past weekend, competing in dirt track events in both Tennessee and Virginia.
It was fun to get back and race on dirt tracks again.
The young talent and his Team Dillon Racing crew posted a ninth-place finish on Friday night at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn., and a fourth-place result on Saturday night in Wytheville, Va.
After qualifying ninth in what was just his second Super Late Model event, Gifford found that he had to reacquaint himself with the characteristics of a dirt racing surface in the opening laps of the 40-lap event. The Winchester, Tenn. native has spent the past few months learning to race on an asphalt surface, so it took a few laps for the driver to get back “in the groove.”
Speaking of grooves, Gifford quickly discovered he was racing on a single-groove track, which lends itself to single-file racing. This prevented him from racing side-by-side and improving his position, and he crossed the finish line in ninth.
The next night found the TDR crew in Virginia, competing at Wythe Raceway in the Carolina Clash Late Model Series event. The stiff competition in this series didn’t intimidate Gifford, who qualified third for the 40-lap feature.
About halfway through the event, Gifford made contact with the dirt "cushion" ringing the outside of the racing surface, which caused some damage to the nose of his Shell-Pennzoil machine. This damage resulted in a tight handling condition, which prevented him from mounting a charge on the leaders. Gifford still held onto a top-five finish, crossing the finish line fourth.
This weekend, Gifford and his TDR crew will again compete on dirt tracks, although they’re undecided as to which facilities they’ll visit. On August 28th, the team will return to Tri-County Speedway in North Carolina to again compete on asphalt.
Looking ahead, Gifford’s next start in the Camping World Series will come in a Camping World Series West event at Iowa Speedway on September 4th.
Ryan Gifford Quote: "It was fun to get back and race on dirt tracks again. That first night, it was just really hard to pass with the track surface the way it was. It took me a few laps to get back up to speed on racing on dirt, too. Saturday night, I really think we had a car capable of finishing at least a spot or two better than we did, but getting up into the cushion didn’t do us any favors. Still, I’m gaining experience, learning and having fun. As always, I couldn’t do it without the support of Shell-Pennzoil and the help of everyone at Team Dillon Racing."