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WOODY PITKAT
PRIMED
FOR SIZZLER GLORY WITH NEW TEAM |
As
Stafford Motor Speedway gets set to host the NASCAR
Whelen Modified Tour for the 46th Annual NAPA Auto
Parts Spring Sizzler® on April 29-30, hometown
driver Woody Pitkat is preparing to make his 9th
start in “The Greatest Race in the History of
Spring” for what will be his 6th different car
owner. Pitkat has made starts driving for owners Don
King, John Lukosavage, David Hill, Buzz Chew, Kevin
Stuart, and now for the 2017 season he will be
driving the #46 Riverhead Building Supply Chevrolet
owned by Russell Goodale.
“We went down to Myrtle Beach in February to try to
get acclimated with the team and they could see what
I was looking for with the car and what they were
looking for from me,” said Pitkat. “The Goodale team
has been hard at work during the winter getting the
cars ready and hopefully we can be competitive and
run well right out of the gate so we can have a
strong season. I’d like to be able to compete for a
couple of wins and hopefully we can get in the top-5
or the top-3 to contend for the championship. I won
the Sizzler a couple years ago and it would be nice
if we could be contenders again for the Sizzler.”
Despite the hodgepodge of owners Pitkat has driven
for, he enjoyed success in the Sizzler with a win, 2
top-5 and 7 top-10 finishes in his 8 starts. Pitkat
travelled with the #46 team to Myrtle Beach back in
February and finished 9th to help kick start his
acclimation to the new team. In the first NWMT of
the season in March, also held at Myrtle Beach, he
scored an 8th place finish after a subpar qualifying
effort that saw them start 25th.
“Unfortunately at Myrtle Beach we went with a
different setup from the February race and we
probably changed too much with the car and never
could get it back to where it was to my liking,”
said Pitkat. “That showed during time trials and we
ended up starting 25th but we were in fifth with
three laps to go and I thought we were going to get
a top-5 out of it. I screwed up a little bit on the
restart and locked the brakes going into the corner
and we lost a couple of spots. I was mad at myself
because we could have gotten a top-5 finish but a
top-10 was pretty good for our first time together.
We’re all excited to build on the 8th place finish
and get back to tracks that we’re familiar with.
Obviously I’m excited for Stafford where I have
plenty of racing experience. The Goodale’s have
great equipment and a great crew, now we just have
to put everything together.”
Pitkat is a three-time track champion at Stafford
with two Late Model championships and an SK
Modified® championship to his credit. He won the
NAPA Spring Sizzler® in 2015 with Buzz Chew’s #88
team and he is no stranger to reaching NAPA Victory
Lane at Stafford. Pitkat is currently second on
Stafford’s All-Time Feature Winners List with 77
career wins. Pitkat has 30 SK Modified® feature
wins, 40 Late Model wins, 3 DARE Stock wins, 2
Whelen Modified Tour wins, and 2 Modified Racing
Series wins. Pitkat knows what it takes to win at
Stafford and he will take an interesting tactic to
help prepare for the 200-lap NAPA Spring Sizzler®.
“With the spec motor, I don’t think anyone can make
all 200 laps with fuel unless you do some serious
saving,” said Pitkat. “I was thinking about strategy
for the Sizzler and I’ll probably rewatch the video
of the Sizzler from 2 years ago when I won to relive
what we did for strategy. A lot of it depends on
when the cautions fall and what your track position
is when the cautions do come out. If there’s an
early caution, before lap-50, I’d say most guys will
come in and top off the tank and then try to ride it
out until around halfway and put new tires on.
Hopefully at that point we can be in the top-10 and
in position to go for the win.”
The 2017 season will see another milestone of sorts
for Pitkat. Pitkat has been racing at Stafford on a
weekly basis for over 20 years but with with the
addition of his son Weston to his family along with
other family obligations, Pitkat will take a step
back from weekly competition this season, although
he says that he would be open to driving if an
opportunity were to present itself.
“I’m willing to look into running some events,” said
Pitkat. “I’m possibly working on something for the
SK 5k race. That’s my birthday so I’d like to run
that race and try to win it. I have a lot on my
plate right now, but I wouldn’t turn down the right
opportunity to race.”
The “Greatest Race in the History of Spring,” the
46th Annual NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler®, takes
the green flag on April 29-30. Tickets are available
and on sale now at the Speedway Box Office. Tickets
are priced at $40.00 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 seating is priced
at $42.00 for all ages. As always, Stafford Motor
Speedway offers free parking with overnight parking
available. Tickets are good for both Saturday and
Sunday admission. All ticket prices include 10% CT
Admission Tax. Discount Tickets are now available at
all 71 participating NAPA Auto Parts stores. For a
full list of the 71 locations throughout
Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island,
and Vermont, please call the speedway office or visit us on the
web at
www.staffordmotorspeedway.com/participating-napa-auto-parts-stores.
For more information or to order tickets for the
46th Annual NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler®, contact
the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at
860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at
www.staffordspeedway.com. |
Source:
Scott Running /
Stafford Motor Speedway
Posted:
April 8, 2017 |
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