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MATT GALKO
GEARED UP FOR DOUBLE DUTY AT STAFFORD |
When
the green flag falls on the Valenti Modified Racing
Series this Friday night, September 1st, Meriden
native and SK Modified® regular Matt Galko will be
racing double duty as he will drive the #76 Norm
Perry owned machine in the VMRS 80 as well as his
familiar #3 SK Modified®. Galko has made one
previous start at Stafford with the Perry team back
in August 2014 where he finished 14th.
“Norm Perry does the engines for the SK car that I
drive at Waterford so I got to know the family,”
said Galko. “Talking with them over the past couple
of years, they’re a family oriented team so they
usually have either Dennis or Shelly driving the
car. This was a good opportunity for me to get some
experience behind the wheel of a tour type modified
car. I drove for them back in 2014 at Stafford,
which was my first time in a tour type car and we
ran the Tri-Track race at Star last weekend. We
finished 10th, which was pretty respectable with the
competition at Star and not having a lot of
experience. I think a top-10 would be a good goal
for us. I’d like to finish all the laps and get as
much experience as I can racing with the extra
horsepower.”
Having raced weekly at Stafford since the 2010
season in both the SK Light and now SK Modified®
divisions, Galko feels like his weekly experience at
Stafford will help to overcome the lack of
experience he has as a driver/team combination with
the Perry team. Galko will be looking to build upon
the 10th place finish he enjoyed last week driving
the #76 car in the Tri-Track race at Star Speedway.
“I feel like I have a leg up on some of the guys who
only have a few starts at Stafford,” said Galko. “I
think running full time at Stafford for the past 8
years, I know the track like the back of my hand,
just not as much as some of the really experienced
guys who have been racing at Stafford since before I
was born. Having worked with these guys a couple of
times before, we know how to communicate with each
other and we get along really well. It can be tough
to dial in a car with not really being familiar with
each other, but at least we’ve had some experience
together, which should help us get the car where it
needs to be.”
If there is one area where Galko’s lack of
experience might show up, it would be the balance
between trying to save his tires in order to be able
to race hard at the end of the race. VMRS rules
require one set of tires for the qualifying heats
and the race, meaning Galko will have to figure out
how to best make his tires last for the 10-lap heat
race and the 80-lap feature.
“I don’t have a lot of experience saving tires,”
said Galko. “I’ve run a few tour type races this
season so I know how to save tires and what you need
to do and how the car needs to be at the beginning
of the race in order to be where you want to be at
the end of the race. A lot depends on where you
start in the heat race. If we have a good starting
spot and we can get out front and set our own pace,
we’ll save the tires for the feature. If we’re in
the back and struggling then it would be the same
thing, we’ll cut our losses and try to save the
tires for the feature. I ran the SBM 125 at Star
earlier this year and we didn’t pit and ended up in
the lead and we were running first and then second
about 85 laps in the race and we stayed there until
we had a mechanical problem. That showed me what I
had to do to save tires but I can’t be too cocky
about that with only having about a half dozen
starts in a tour type car. It’s not a 40-lap SK®
race, we have to be there at the end of 80 laps.
It’s a little bit different style of racing than
what I’m used to, but I don’t think it’s something
that I can’t adapt to.”
The Valenti Modified Racing Series will joined in
feature action by Stafford’s five NASCAR Whelen
All-American Series divisions and there will be a
fireworks presentation at the conclusion of feature
racing events. As part of the night’s action, fans
will also be able to walk the track for a $10
donation to the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, which
will be collected by NAPA reps. The track walk will
take place following the conclusion of the VMRS
qualifying heats and before the feature events get
started. Tickets for Friday, September 1st VMRS 80
event are on sale now and priced at $30.00 for adult
general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages
6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted
free of charge when accompanied by an adult.
Reserved seat tickets are $32.00 for all ages. All
ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax. Stafford
Motor Speedway offers plenty of free parking along
with overnight parking available for self contained
Recreational Vehicles.
For more information, contact the Stafford Motor
Speedway track office at 860-684-2783
or visit us on the web at
www.staffordspeedway.com.
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Source:
Scott Running /
Stafford Speedway
Posted:
August 30, 2017 |
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