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Adam West Breaks Down Sprint/Late Model Barriers
By James Baker
RIDGETOWN, ON, CANADA- Over the years in the very diverse worlds of sprint car and late model racing, there has never been much common ground between the two divisions.
Sprint car enthusiasts say that they wouldn't walk across the street to watch the taxi's(late models) run.
And late model aficionadoes are no different.
At many southern locations, when the sprint cars roll onto the track for an occasional show, the fans race to the hot dog stand.
Adam West, however is doing his part to break down those barriers.
West is a 30-year old sprint car veteran form Ridgetown, ON. He has driven the open-wheeled sprint cars for eight years and in 2005 was the "Southern Ontario Sprints" series champion.
Now this season, West has gotten behind the wheel of a late model and has done quite well in his debut performance. In his first effort in the late model in June, West failed to qualify for the main event at a co-sanctioned show with the "World of Outlaws Late Model Series" and the "Ontario Dirt Late Models" at Ohsweken(ON) Speedway.
But his next time out was much different.
In early August, West traveled to Humberstone Speedway in Port Colborne, ON to race in the Ontario Dirt Late Models "Civic Holiday Challenge" and finished sixth among a stellar field of dirt late models. Even making the week-end more incredible was West finishing fourth in a "Southern Ontario Sprints" event at South Buxton Raceway in Merlin, ON the night before the Humberstone race.
But fear not, sprint car fans. West has no plans to give-up the fire-breathing winged warriors and plans to compete in both sprint and late model shows for the rest of the 2008 season.
And so far West seems to have settled into both racing machines pretty well.
"I'm still surprised at how well things went in the late model, but I just drove the track the same way I drive it in the sprint car and everything worked out," said West.
West, a mechanical engineer, is well aware of the differences between the two race cars.
"It's still a big adjustment for me because I'm trying to learn and understand the feel of the late model," he said. "The car has a good basic chassis setup in it, so I need to bring my abilities up to get the most out of the car, especially early in the night when the track has a lot of grip. That has been the time when I struggled the most, trying to get the car to turn when the track is heavy and all the other cars are lifting the left front wheel. When the track goes slick, I just try to keep the car straight and use the power to keep the car driving forward instead of sliding sideways, just like in a sprint car."
He also realizes that the weight difference...1500 pounds for a sprint car compared to 2200 pounds for a late model...and the aerodynamics that the wing brings to a sprint car, have a great impact on how both cars handle on the track.
"The sprint car relies a lot on aerodynamics for speed which is something that you can see or feel when you are setting up the car...you just need to get out on the track and drive it hard and keep the car straight and the downforce will hold the car on the track," said West. "The late model is all about mechanical grip and suspension travel to get its traction so I need to learn how to properly load the suspension at the right time to get the car to turn and get forward bite coming off the corner. As far as driving, the simple difference is a sprint car needs a lot of throttle and very little steering input...the late model needs throttle finesse and lots of steering."
Like many youngsters, West began his racing career in go-karts in 1992 at the age 14. His first year, he won 62 races and captured two track championships. In 1993, he continued to compete in southwestern Ontario and won 46 of 51 races he entered.
A year later, West moved into the slightly lighter, but much faster micro sprints run on the short dirt tracks. He won one race the first season and was voted rookie of the year by his fellow drivers. West continued to improve and raced micro sprints though 1998.
West and his father and crew chief Jerry West decided to move-up to hurricane midgets which were run on larger, and even faster paved ovals in 1999. He had become very proficient in that division before taking the big step into the world of sprint cars in 2001.
A 360 sprint was purchased and West began running on the "Southern Ontario Sprints" tour. His first race was at Brighton(ON) Speedway in early May and by the season's end, he had finished 10th in the series' points race and had finished runner-up for rookie of the year honours.
West returned to the "Southern Ontario Sprints" circuit in 2002 and placed eighth in points, but then his life was about to change.
In 2003, the then 25-year old West was chosen for the prestigious "Knoxville International Driver Development Program" which offered a young driver an opportunity of racing for a complete season at the historic Knoxville(IA) Raceway.
West was selected from a large group of international candidates from Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
But the one-year deal to race at Knoxville got even better.
He would be driving a powerful 410 sprint car for legendary National Sprint Car Hall Of Fame car owner and mechanic Bob Trostle, learning to race against the best drivers in the world.
While in Knoxville, West also learned the history of his sport by volunteering at the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame.
"My on track success that year wasn't the best, but the experience I had, the things that I learned racing against the best in the business, week after week, will always stick with me," said West.
The summer at Knoxville also gave West the opportunity to compete in two "World of Outlaws" events at Granite City, IL and Sedalia, MO.
West returned to Canada after the "KIDD" program in Knoxville was over and prepared to race again with the "Southern Ontario Sprints." The experience gained from the Knoxville experience was soon very evident as West won a feature event at both Brighton and Ohsweken speedways in 2005.
When the 2005 season ended, West was crowned as the series champion.
Success has continued for West on the "Southern Ontario Sprints" tour with another victory at Ohsweken in 2006 and a win at South Buxton Raceway in 2007.
West also made history in 2004 when he competed with the All-Star Circuit of Champion Sprints at South Buxton. It was the All-Stars first-ever appearance at a track outside of the United States.
"I started 16th in the All-Stars feature with my 360 motor and moved up to seventh before I lost my brakes and faded to 16th at the end of the race...otherwise the 360 was pretty competitive when the track slicked off," West said.
Despite his new-found aspirations in late model racing, West has no plans to abandon sprint cars. He plans to run the rest of the "Southern Ontario Sprints" schedule this year and is looking forward to racing at the $8000 to win, "Canadian Sprint Car Nationals" at Ohsweken Speedway on September 13.
"Right now, I don't see myself leaving sprint cars completely in the near future future because there are still a lot of things that I would like to accomplish before moving on," West said. "I want to have a top ten finish in the Canadian Sprint Car Nationals some time because that is a really important race to us, and I also want to get back to Knoxville to run the 360 Nationals again some time to see where we stack up against the best in the business."
West would like to go 410 sprint car racing but understands the extreme costs of such an endeavor. Presently his race team is very family oriented and his crew is made up of his father Jerry, fiancee Andrea Brush, mother Kathy and friend Neil McKay.
"I would love to run a 410 full-time, but the cost of running a competitive 410 team is pretty much out of reach without having major sponsorship backing," he said. "Besides the extra engine and tire costs, there would be more traveling required which also raises the cost."
Late model racing is new territory for West but the versatile racer is up to the challenge. West plans to run both remaining events on the "Ontario Dirt Late Models" 2008 schedule, the August 29 show at Ohsweken and the September 20 finale at Brighton.
The late model race team is also a family deal.
Fiancee Andrea's parents, Charles and Debbie Brush own and maintain the car with George McFadden and McKay also helping out.
West also knows that there is a learning process involved in mastering the late model.
"I'm enjoying it because I always like a new challenge, and I love any kind of racing," he said. "But I definitely still feel like a rookie because I'm trying to understand what the car is doing, how I need to react to it, and communicate that to the crew to make the car suit my driving style."
West is also intrigued about his future in late model racing.
"I would really like to run more races in the future as long as Debbie and Charles(Brush) will have me," he said. "I've already had much more success in sprint cars than I ever thought I could have, and if I can continue to run competitively in both the sprint car and late model then I will be content. But as a racer, I always want to grow my team and run more races at higher levels, but realistically that isn't possible without some major sponsorship help, so that will always be an area of disappointment."
His late model goals remain simple.
"It's still pretty early to set my goals in the late model, so my main concern right now is to finish all the races and get as many laps as I can," said West. "And eventually I want to win a feature, especially for Debbie and Charles(Brush) because they have put so much effort into racing, and I want them to be able to experience winning a feature in the race series(Ontario Dirt Late Models) that they have created."
Throughout racing history, not many drivers have driven both sprints cars and late models on the dirt bullrings. NASCAR stars Tony Stewart and Kenny Schrader have been known to race both cars. Edmonton, AB racer Dave Smith had some success in the sprinters and now races late models.
And now there is Adam West.
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