BY: CHRIS SANTOS
9/14/22…CHICO CALIFORNIA: FRIDAY NIGHT, NICK PARKER AND HIS TEAM WOULD MAKE THE TRIP OUT TO SILVER DOLLAR SPEEDWAY TO MAKE THEIR FIRST EVER GOLD CUP APPEARANCE. A STRONG FIELD OF 29 WINGED 410 SPRINT CARS WOULD MAKE THE TRIP IN HOPES TO LOCK INTO THE SATURDAY NIGHT FINALE.
NICK WOULD START HIS NIGHT ON A ROUGH NOTE AS IN HOT LAPS THEY WOULD BLOW THEIR MOTOR. UNFORTUNATELY THAT WAS THEIR ONLY 410 MOTOR SO THEY WOULD SWITCH TO THE 360 FOR THE WEEKEND, BUT UNFORTUNATELY MISS HOT LAPS. “PRELIMINARY NIGHT LOST A MOTOR IN HOT LAPS. WE SWAPPED TO OUR 360 BUT MISSED QUALIFYING.”
THE HEAT RACE WOULD SEE THE BAD LUCK CONTINUE. HE WOULD START ON THE OUTSIDE OF ROW 4 IN THE 8TH POSITION. HE WOULD GET MOVING IN A 360 AND QUICKLY FOUND HIS WAY TO 6TH. WHILE CHASING DOWN THE FINAL TRANSFER, NICK WOULD GET INTO THE CUSHION AND SEND HIM FLIPPING. THAT WOULD END HIS NIGHT AS HE WOULD NOT MAKE IT OUT FOR THE B-MAIN. “STARTED 8TH, WAS RUNNING 6TH AND FLIPPED GOING INTO 3.”
SATURDAY NIGHT, NICK WOULD MAKE THE REPAIRS AND RETURN TO SILVER DOLLAR SPEEDWAY WITH A 360 UNDER THE HOOD, LOOKING TO MAKE A SOLID RUN. A STRONG FIELD OF 51 WINGED 410 SPRINT CARS WOULD RETURN READY TO GO ON THE FINAL NIGHT OF THE 2022 GOLD CUP RACE OF CHAMPIONS.
HE WOULD START 13TH IN HIS HEAT RACE AS HE WOULD BE THE VERY LAST GUY IN POINTS ENTERING SATURDAY. IN THE HEAT RACE HE WOULD SHOW SOME GOOD SPEED AS HE WOULD MOVE UP 3 SPOTS AND FINISH 10TH WHEN THE CHECKERED FLAG FELL LOCKING HIM INTO THE C-MAIN EVENT ON THE NIGHT. “STARTED 13TH IN THE HEAT AND MADE UP 3 SPOTS. THAT PUT US INTO THE C-MAIN STARTING 10TH.”
THE C-MAIN WOULD SEE NICK START ON THE OUTSIDE OF ROW 5 IN THE 10TH POSITION. HE WOULD QUICKLY GET UP TO 7TH ON A VERY JUICED UP TRACK. HOWEVER HE WOULD STRUGGLE TO CATCH ANYONE ELSE WITH THE 360 UNDER THE HOOD AND WOULD BRING HOME A 7TH PLACE FINISH IN THE C-MAIN JUST 3 SPOTS OUT OF A TRANSFER TO THE B-MAIN EVENT.
“MADE SOME QUICK MOVES TO 7TH EARLY KNOWING THE TRACK WAS JUICED UP. JUST COULDN'T CATCH ANYONE AFTER THAT WITH THE 360. FINISHED 7TH IN THE C MAIN.”
IT WAS A ROUGH WEEKEND FOR NICK AS IT SEEMED AS THOUGH NOTHING WOULD GO THEIR WAY. HE WOULD HAVE NOTHING BUT UNFORTUNATE EVENTS ON FRIDAY. THEN ON SATURDAY HE SHOWED SPEED BUT COULD ONLY DO SO MUCH WITH A 360 INSTEAD OF A 410 UNDER THE HOOD AND HIS NIGHT ENDED EARLY.
NICK WOULD LIKE TO THANK HIS SPONSORS; PARKER AUTOMOTIVE, ROCK KNOCKER, METAL TEC, BG OIL & LUBE , SBS SHOCKS, MAXIM CHASSIS, AND ASI MOTORS.
NEXT RACE: 9/29, SILVER DOLLAR SPEEDWAY, FALL NATIONALS
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