BY: Chris Santos
9/8/22…BLACK EAGLE, MONTANA: ON SATURDAY NIGHT, TYLER DRIEVER AND HIS TEAM WOULD MAKE THE TRIP TO ELECTRIC CITY SPEEDWAY FOR NIGHT 2 OF 3 OF THE 26TH ANNUAL MONTANA ROUNDUP. A GOOD FIELD OF 20 WINGED 360 SPRINT CARS WOULD PACK THE PIT AREA READY TO ROLL ON SATURDAY NIGHT.
WITH NO QUALIFYING ON DECK, PILL DRAW WOULD SET HIM UP FOR HIS HEAT RACE. TYLER WOULD PULL A GOOD PILL AS HE PULLED THE 51. HIS PILL WOULD PUT HIM ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE THIRD ROW IN THE 6TH STARTING SPOT FOR THE HEAT RACE, SETTING HIM UP WITH AN OPPORTUNITY TO GAIN A LOT OF PASSING POINTS. “I THINK I PULLED A 51 WHICH I WAS HAPPY WITH BECAUSE I STARTED OUTSIDE OF ROW 3 & COULD GET SOME DECENT PASSING POINTS.”
THE OUTSIDE OF ROW 3 STARTING SPOT WOULD PAY OFF FOR HIM, AS AFTER STARTING 6TH, TYLER WOULD MAKE SOME GREAT MOVES IN HIS HEAT, DRIVING THROUGH THE FIELD & PASSING 4 CARS. THAT WOULD PUT TYLER INTO THE SECOND POSITION WHERE HE WOULD FINISH THE HEAT RACE. “I TOOK SECOND IN THE HEAT RACE AND THAT PUT US AS THE HIGH POINT CAR FOR THE NIGHT.”
HIS HEAT RACE EFFORTS PUT HIM AS THE HIGH POINT GUY & THE LAST DRIVER UP ON THE POLE SHUFFLE. GOING OUT LAST IN THE POLE SHUFFLE WOULD GUARANTEE A FRONT ROW STARTING SPOT IN THE FEATURE. IN THE POLE SHUFFLE TYLER WOULD GO AGAINST TREVOR KIRKLAND TO DECIDE WHO WOULD START ON THE POLE. TYLER WOULD GET THE BEST OF TREVOR IN THE POLE SHUFFLE PUTTING TYLER IN THE FIRST STARTING SPOT INSIDE OF ROW ONE FOR THE FEATURE.
AS THE FEATURE EVENT ROLLED AROUND, TYLER WAS LOCKED IN & READY TO GO FROM THE INSIDE OF THE FRONT ROW. THE FEATURE WOULD GET GOING & TREVOR KIRKLAND WOULD TAKE THE EARLY LEAD BEATING TYLER DRIEVER ON THE INITIAL START. LAP TRAFFIC WOULD BE A FACTOR IN THE SATURDAY FEATURE AS THEY WOULD QUICKLY CATCH THE TAIL OF THE FIELD.
HOWEVER, THE EFFECT WOULD BE BIGGER THAN EXPECTED AS LEADER TREVOR KIRKLAND WOULD GET INTO A LAPPED CAR & END HIS NIGHT. “WE GOT INTO LAP TRAFFIC REALLY FAST & KIRKLAND AND A LAPPER ENDED UP GETTING INTO EACH OTHER SO THAT PUT ME FIRST FOR THE RESTART.”
ON THE RESTART TYLER WOULD HANG ON TO THE LEAD & HIT HIS MARKS FOR THE REST OF THE FEATURE. KELLY MILLER WOULD SHOW HIS NOSE A FEW TIMES BUT TYLER WAS ABLE TO HOLD HIM OFF.
“THE CAR WAS SET UP PRETTY GOOD FOR THE TRACK CONDITIONS, MAYBE A LITTLE LOOSE BUT IT WAS PRETTY GOOD.” TYLER STATED, “THE REST OF THE RACE WENT PRETTY SMOOTH FOR ME THE 2 CAR SHOWED HIS NOSE A COUPLE TIMES TOWARDS THE END AND MADE ME PRETTY NERVOUS THAT HE WAS GONNA PULL THE TRIGGER ON A SLIDE JOB.”
DESPITE THE CHALLENGES FROM KELLY MILLER, TYLER WOULD HOLD HIM OFF, GRABBING JUST HIS 3RD CAREER WINGED 360 SPRINT CAR WIN! “I MANAGED TO HOLD HIM OFF AND TAKE THE WIN. IT WAS A PRETTY GOOD FEELING ESPECIALLY BECAUSE WE HAVEN’T HAD THE GREATEST LUCK THIS SEASON AND IT WAS MY DAD’S BIRTHDAY, BUT IT WAS PRETTY AWESOME GETTING MY 3RD 360 WIN!”
SATURDAY NIGHT’S WIN WAS MAYBE THE BIGGEST OF TYLER’S CAREER AND THE MOST SPECIAL AS THE SEASON IS STARTING TO COME TO A CLOSE. TYLER SHOWED HE CAN HANG WITH THE BEST OF THE FRONTIER REGION!
TYLER WOULD LIKE TO THANK HIS SPONSORS; MAXIMA RACING OILS, COMMERCIAL TIRE, FOKUS GRAPHICS, ALLEGIANT POWDER COATING, LARSON-MILLER MEDICAL WASTE DISPOSAL, KING RACING PRODUCTS, K1 RACE GEAR, IDAHO FAMOUS POTATOES, SHARK RACING ENGINES, AND HEPFNER RACING PRODUCTS.