Brian races at the Queen’s Royale (Mark Funderburk Racing Photo)
(Bill W) October 4, 2016 – The St. Francois County Raceway near Farmington, Missouri has not always been a favorite haunt for Brian Brown and the Casey’s General Stores/FVP #21 team. But last Saturday night, they were able to charge from tenth to finish fourth in the 21st running of the Queen’s Royale there. The team is preparing for the rest of the season. Stay tuned to Brian’s Twitter and Facebook accounts to find out the team’s plans.
The track was definitely dry for Friday’s prelim and you drew late for qualifying.
We drew a late number and it was one of those deals. Your entry was so important. You needed to enter the corner at ten miles an hour. If you entered faster, you drove by it. I drove by it on both ends, and that wasn’t good enough. I don’t think quick time was there, but we should have been in the top ten rather than 21st.
You started outside the front row of the heat and won, but then, the track rubbered up early in the feature.
It was good to get that win. That put us in a better spot for the feature. Unfortunately, it was just rubber down. There was nowhere to go and we finished twelfth. The one thing I learned Friday night, was the locals there are some of the best to go against in the country.
What do you mean by that?
The track has a unique configuration. It’s tough to get ahold of, and it’s a unique shape. The locals really have an advantage there. Their engines aren’t built for a big track like Knoxville, they’re built for a bullring. They may have 800 horsepower, and we may have 900 plus. It’s a lot harder for us to get that to the track. They do a good job of making their cars work on that surface, especially the slow and slick we had on Friday. It’s good to go to a place and see where you stack up against the Montgomery’s, the Worley’s and the Hurley’s of the world.
There was definitely more moisture in the track for Saturday’s finale.
They did a phenomenal job of working the track for Saturday. We went out really late (36th of 38) and made a quality lap that ended up seventh quick.
You started fifth in the heat, and that’s where you finished.
We really needed to move forward and get up to third or fourth. That would have locked ourselves in the invert. We finished fifth, which wasn’t good enough to do that.
You started tenth in the feature. The team seemed to make the right moves.
Chad (Morgan), Michael (Williams) and myself were trying something different every time we hit the track. We landed on something at the right time. That was the feature on Saturday. We kept working on it and talking to as many local guys as we could to get some advice. We were able to get it good.
You used primarily the low side to climb to fourth.
I felt we were one caution away from contending even more. I was tickled to death to be honest. It was a good night for us. We’ve been off the last couple of weeks. You look for small moral victories if you can get them, and Saturday was one of those for us. I think we learned some things that are really going to help us on tracks like that going forward.
You mentioned you got help last week as well.
I’d like to thank Willie Kahne from Factory Kahne shocks. We talked to him quite a bit last week. We got some help not only shock-wise, but with everything. It’s awesome to have someone who not only does our shocks, but helps the team as a whole.
Check Out Brian’s Interview at Open Wheel 101!
Head to www.OpenWheel101.com to check out the in depth interview with Brian. Brian talks about his life and career in depth. You can find Open Wheel 101 with Brian Brown in the “Interviews” section.
Follow Brian on the Web, Twitter and Facebook!
Follow Brian at his website located at www.BrianBrownRacing.com!
Also keep up with FVP, Casey’s and Brian on Facebook and Twitter at the following links…
Twitter Links – @BrianBrown21, @FVPRacing, @CaseysGenStores
Facebook Links
Brian Brown Racing – www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Brown-Racing/200630163294222
Casey’s General Stores – www.facebook.com/pages/Caseys-General-Stores/112073528804354
FVP Racing - http://www.facebook.com/FVPRacing?ref=ts&fref=ts
Other Web site info
Casey's: www.caseys.com
FVP: www.fvpparts.com
Brown’s Bits
On October 15, 2005, Brian bested the field at the Outlaw Motor Speedway south of Muskogee, Oklahoma, earning $3000 for the win. Trailing him to the line were Darren Stewart, Nick Smith, Jerrod Hull and Zach Chappell. In 61 feature events, Brian scored 12 wins (20%) in 2005. He also had 36 top fives (59%) and 49 top tens (80%). The wins came in five states (NE, IA, MO, SD, OK) and Tasmania.
About Casey’s General Stores
Casey’s General Stores is a Fortune-500 company (NASDAQ CASY) operating over 1,850 convenience stores in 14 states through the Midwest. Known for its “Homemade To-Go” pizza, sandwiches, donuts and bakery items, Casey’s strives to consistently deliver quality gas, fresh kitchen-prepared food, clean environments and friendly service at every retail location. Casey’s is currently the 5th largest c-store chain and fifth largest pizza chain in the United States.
About FVP
Built on a commitment to quality and delivered with unmatched service, FVP is the confident solution for all of your OEM needs. FVP products are engineered to provide customers with OE quality products that are equal or superior in performance to the major national brands at a competitive price. FVP is proud to carry a full line of high quality oil, air, cabin air and fuel filters, powerful batteries for multiple applications including cars, trucks, SUV’s, commercial, boats and other specialty vehicles as well as automotive chemicals and oil, antifreeze, DEF, hub assemblies, radiators and condensers. To learn more about FVP or to find out where you can have FVP products installed in your vehicle, visit FVPparts.com! FVP…The Confident Solution.
Marketing Partner of the Week – MC Power
With clients around the Midwest, MC Power has the experience and expertise to deliver cost-saving construction (general contracting, tenant finish/improvement, remodeling, metal building repair, roof leak repairs, concrete, carpentry, painting, drywall, plumbing, etc.), electrical (electrical design-build, electrical assessment, new construction and retrofit, ground testing, power analysis, energy back-up, power generation systems, sign repair, pole light repair, data wiring, panels, outlets, switches, etc.), solar energy (facility assessment, energy assessment, system evaluation, system engineering, financial/proforma development, solar-thermal systems, system installation, roof evaluations, ground or roof mounts, monitoring, maintenance, products & services warranty management, rebate management, etc.) and LED lighting systems (facility assessment, energy assessment, system evaluation, product evaluation, new construction or retrofit, maintenance, products & services warranty management, rebate management, etc.) for virtually any commercial or industrial application. Visit them on the web at www.MCPower.com!
Associate Marketing Partner of the Week – Six-B Apparel
Six B Apparel is THE premiere source when it comes to custom dye sublimated crew apparel. They proudly offer a “no minimum” on all orders and house an award-winning art department for all your design needs, assuring that small teams will look just as good as the big ones. Visit them online at www.6BApparel.com!
Brian Brown Racing would like to thank Casey’s General Stores, FVP, Wormall Civil, Searsboro Telephone Company, MC Power, Impact Signs Awnings Wraps / impact4800.com, Champion Brands, Ditzfeld Transfer, Maxim Racing, Smiley’s Racing Products, Weld Wheels, Housby Trucks, Next LED Sports, Schure Built Suspension, Arctic Cat, Lincoln Electric, K&N, www.hostiowa.net, FSR Race Products, TI64, Fuel-Safe Tanks, Wolfe Eye Clinic, Bell Helmets, Hinchman Uniforms, CP Pistons, Carrillo Rods, Vortex Wings, Penray, All Pro Cylinder Heads, Butler Built Seats, AkzoNobel, Kenny's Components, Tru Square, Snap-On Tools, Rod End Supply, KSE Racing Products, Winters Performance, Cometic Gaskets, Shell Shock, Donovan, ISC Racers Tape, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Racing Optics, Hoosier Tires, Klein RV, Duke’s Meats, BIGS Sunflower Seeds, NGK Spark Plugs, XYZ Machining, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, Red Devil Brakes, Schoenfeld Headers, 6B Apparel, Garrett Racing Engines, MSD and Fortress Wealth Management for all their support!
Photo: Brian races at the Queen’s Royale (Mark Funderburk Racing Photo)
Bill W Media
Monroe, IA USA
Twitter: @BillWMedia
e-mail: sprntcar@hotmail.com
Website: www.OpenWheel101.com