Ponderosa Speedway
Notebook: Linville seeks respect along with wins
By Mike Sullivan
DirtonDirt.com correspondent
Dustin Linville has five 2008 victories (dt52photos.com)
JUNCTION CITY, Ky. (July 11) — After his third-place finish in O'Reilly Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series action at Ponderosa Speedway, Dustin Linville was all smiles. The solid performance in the Pete Abell Memorial came on the heels of a third-place finish in a $7,500-to-win event at Wartburg (Tenn.) Speedway over the Fourth of July weekend. The 17-year-old Bryantsville, Ky., racer has five Dirt Late Model victories so far in 2008 and appears to be on the path to success after a stint in modifieds. But as many youngsters before him have learned, that path has a few speedbumps. Still, the lanky teenager known as the Rooster smiles and moves on.
“Every year I’ve raced, my dad’s asked me what I wanted to do that year," Linville said. “I told him this year I just wanted to win a feature race. Anything more than that would be extra.”
And while he’s reached his goal on five separate occasions at four different tracks, he’s also gained a bit of notoriety early on for bending up his share of sheetmetal and shoving back — some critics say too hard — when racing gets tight. At one point during the spring, one crew tabbed the Rooster as the Lethal Weapon.
“There’s no doubt he’s a good racer and he’s got all kinds of talent and a good car. He’s just gotten to a point to where he’s going to have to settle himself down," said Bob Wolter Sr., whose son Bobby Wolter Jr. has been involved with cautions with Linville. “When he starts using his head and settles down he’s going to be really tough.”
Linville readily admits he’s still learning and making mistakes. “I’m the first to admit that I mess up and get into bad spots sometimes," he said. "These cars are so different from the modifieds and I’m having to get used to driving in the corners 20 feet further, and sometimes I go in that much too far. You know, that and trying to be smooth with the competition that’s around every night is tough.”
Along with adapting to Late Models comes the time it takes to earn respect from the other racers. Linville is trying but says it can be frustrating.
“I’ve had some races where different drivers will drive in and try to I guess bully me and root on me," he said. "When they do that then I’ll race a little more aggressive and push back. I don’t go out there trying to tear up my car or anybody else’s but this is racing and sometimes things just happen.”
With the help of veteran racer James Barber, who’s worked with Victor Lee during his early success, Linville is trying to learn as much as he can in a short time. The irony of his quick rise is that no driver has come forward to take Linville under their wing. “James and my dad and Wayne Bowen, they talk to me and tell me when I mess up and different things," Linville said.
Following the Abell Memorial, Linville finds himself in the thick of the Ponderosa weekly points chase and may revamp his goals. “Right now I’m concentrating on being smooth and learning as much as I can," he said. "We’ve already shown that we can win now we just have to prove we can stay there.”
Two cars, two drivers
Michael England sat at the back of his trailer watching as Ricky Arms explained his predicament of driving England’s second car at Ponderosa. “The clutch and brake are backwards in these cars," England said, "and he says it’s got him messed up."
Still healing from a broken arm suffered in early April, England has decided to put the Moss, Tenn., racer behind the wheel of his backup car in an effort to help defer costs a bit.
“It costs just as much to haul two cars to the track and with my hand still healing, this way if we run both cars we can make a little more money," the Glasgow, Ky., driver said. "Ricky just lives about an hour away from us and he’s always done a good job.”
Arms, a former UMP modified champion, hasn't had a regular ride in 2008 after being a solid regional competitor in recent years. His biggest victory came in Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series competition on Oct. 26, 2006.
Old car, new results
The top-five finish by Isom, Ky., driver Chris Combs at Ponderosa was a highlight of his 2008 campaign. After struggling with a newer Swartz Race Car, Combs came across a 2004 frame he’s since revamped. “The frame was sitting in a garage and we took it and went over it," Combs said. "“It had never been run so we put it together with all new stuff. This is the first time I feel like we’ve had a race car all year. We just haven’t been able to get a handle on the other one and this one is a lot better for us.”
Goodbye, Big Daddy
The Battle of the Bluegrass action at Ponderosa was the first series race since the July 7 death of Paul Feistritzer of Danville, a long-time central Kentucky Dirt Late Model racer. The driver nicknamed "Big Daddy" was 60 and died after a short battle with lung cancer.
Feistritzer's victories beginning in the early 1980s came at Ponderosa, Barren County Speedway in Glasgow, Taylor County Speedway in Campbellsville, Lake Cumberland Speedway in Burnside, Rockcastle Raceway near Mount Vernon and Richmond Raceway. Feistritzer had retired in the late 1990s but returned to race recently along with his son P.J., who has become one of Kentucky's most successful Crate Late Model racers. Besides P.J., Feistrizter is survived by his wife Linda and a daughter, Paula.
