Luke Whitteker had a couple test sessions in the Race 101 car before rain postponed his pavement racing debut.  (Whitteker Motorsports Photo Collection)

Luke Whitteker’s Pavement Racing Debut With Race 101 Gets Postponed Due to Rain; Returns to Cornwall on Sunday With Top Ten Finish

Craig Revelle – Finish Line Web Design                               

July 26, 2012

The excitement and anticipation was high for Luke Whitteker and the Whitteker Motorsports team last weekend as they traveled to Kenly, North Carolina for Luke’s pavement racing debut at Southern National Motorsports Park. 

Luke arrived in North Carolina on Wednesday, and spent the night settling in, and preparing for a busy weekend.  On Thursday, he went to the Race 101 shop, to scale the car, and load it in the hauler, getting ready for a day of practice on Friday, leading up to Saturday night’s race.  Luke had three sessions on the track on Friday, and was gaining more speed and getting more comfortable in the car each time.

“We made a few practice runs here so far, and the car feels good so far”, says Whitteker.  “Hopefully the rain will stay away, and we can have a good day here tomorrow for our debut in the Race 101 car”.

On Saturday, Whitteker was back at Southern National Motorsports Park for some more practice, and then the race later in the day.  Like the previous day, the more laps he ran, the more comfortable he was inside the Race 101 car.  While he was focused on the task at hand, Whitteker also kept an eye on the weather that was threatening to play a factor in his debut.

“We were really starting to get some speed, and get comfortable in the car after the second practice session”, said Whitteker.  “We just need to make a few tweaks to the setup to get the car a little better.  Unfortunately, it looks like rain soon, so we will see what happens here in the next little bit”.

As forecasted, the skies opened up just before final practice, and the race would have to be postponed.  Whitteker will return to Southern National Motorsports Park on August 11th for another attempt.  He will also race on September 29th.

With the events in North Carolina postponed, Whitteker’s attention soon shifted to his weekly racing and his own 358 Modified.  With an early Sunday departure from Charlotte, Whitteker landed in Syracuse, New York, and made the three hour drive to Cornwall Motor Speedway to race his Storm Realty experimental Bicknell car.  He had a strong run in his qualifying heat, making a three wide pass for the lead at one point.  He ended the race with a second place finish.  In the 30 lap main event, he started from inside of the second row in third place, but struggled early, falling to tenth.  He maintained that position for most of the race, and ended with a 10th place result.

This coming weekend, Whitteker will be back at Mohawk International Raceway on Friday night, Brockville Speedway on Saturday night, and Cornwall Speedway on Sunday.

Luke Whitteker and the Whitteker Motorsports team would like to thank all of their sponsors for their continued support.  These sponsors include Rust Check, Toy Storage, Jim’s Performance Plus, ET Performance, C Double J Harvesting, Parcoll Products/Napa Auto Parts, Wells and Son Construction, Cohen and Lord Insurance, ERD Engine Research and Development, Storm Realty and Finish Line Web Design for their support during the 2012 racing season.

To stay up to date on Luke Whitteker and the Whitteker Motorsports team, please visit our website, www.lukewhitteker.com or follow us through Facebook at www.facebook.com/whittekermotorsports or through Twitter at www.twitter.com/lukewhitteker.