June 15, 2005
Two graduates from Junior Racing find their wheels on the big track
Delaware Speedway is a much quieter place on Wednesday nights than during race events on Fridays. Wednesday is the night that the Junior Late Models take to the race track. Half of the size of regular late models, the Juniors are piloted by kids ages 8 to 17 divided by age into divisions and race on a shortened version of the Delaware half mile track. Now in its 9th year, the Junior Late Model program aims to teach young drivers not only the protocol and skills of driving a race car, but also the proficiencies and attributes necessary to being a successful in the business of racing. Following each race event, there is classroom learning for half and hour with a test the following week. The test results, along with points given for race finishes and for the weekly appearance and upkeep of the cars all count towards the overall points total of the driver.
Andrew Perkins and Darrell Lake were both ten years old when they joined the Junior Late Model division. The two friends ran Juniors for seven years before making the move to the Delaware Street Stock division in 2004.
“I fell in love with racing in the junior program” Andrew explains “so when it came time to graduate, we basically looked around to see what the best next step would be.” And the decision to move to the street stock division was easy. “They had just introduced the crate motor program” says Andrew “and that made it feasible to get into the street stocks at an affordable price”.
The move from a Junior Late Model, with a 9 horsepower Honda engine and no suspension to a full sized race car with 350 horsepower, was not a simple one, but both Andrew and Darrell attribute their experience in the Junior program with making the transition easier. “I knew what to expect; how the race runs and the flags and all that” Andrew tells me. “So I could just concentrate on learning to drive the car”.
The opportunity to race each week with the veteran drivers who populate the street stock division has provided a learning environment for both drivers and was, according to Darrell, another reason for choosing the street stock division as their next place to race. Those same competitors have helped out off the track as well. Dave Lawrence, for example, built Darrell’s car and Darrell had the opportunity to help in the process and ask a lot of questions. There has been much to learn about suspension, springs, tires and set-up. Darrell, who currently works as a delivery driver and is headed off to study business at MacMaster University this fall, says that the rear view mirror, which is standard on a street stock but not found on a junior, has added a new dimension to racing competition.
Andrew never imagined that he would get a checkered flag in his first year of Street Stock. But that is exactly what happened. Besides being a personal victory for the then eighteen year old rookie, that first heat race win was a victory for the Delaware Junior late Model program as Andrew was the first graduate of the Junior program to get a checkered flag in a regular Friday night division. It was not the only win for them that first season, however, as both Andrew and Darrell chalked up several heat race wins and Andrew added a feature win as well. It was an extraordinary rookie season and they both finished top ten in the points.
The current season has brought some new challenges for Andrew. A broken part during the May 21 race resulted in a crash which bent the frame of his new car and he is currently driving his car from last year until the repairs are complete on the new one.
In the fall, Andrew is headed for the engineering program at the University of Western Ontario this fall. Originally he thought that automotive engineering would be the thing for him, but a placement as a research assistant this past year with the London regional Cancer Center at Victoria Campus opened his eyes to other possibilities for engineering specialties, and now the 19 year old is excited about taking a more general engineering program in his first year so he can better decide what direction to specialize.
Andrew and Darrell have, in one season, become solid competitors in the street stock division and most certainly make the case for the value of the Junior Late Model division. And for these two, the best is no doubt yet to come.
|
Jennifer Ward is a london-based freelance writer and performance coach. She can be reached at jendyn@hotmail.com or through www.driversandteams.com. |
PERKINS RACING TEAM HOME |
DRIVERS AND TEAMS, JENESIS DYNAMICS | THE LONDONER ONLINE |