Slatington, PA- Kory Rabenold and the Rabenold Racing ARCA/REMAX series team are heading South this Wednesday, and making the trip to Rockingham, NC to tackle Rockingham Speedway, otherwise known as "The Rock" to many race fans.
Rabenold is ready to tackle the famous mile oval, which has a rich history in automobile racing. He is one of 56 hopefuls attempting to qualify for Sunday’s Carolina 500.
Unlike their most recent outing to Salem, IN, the entire team is hoping for better luck this weekend.
Rabenold's race at Salem Speedway had all the drama that makes racing both exciting and disappointing. After a solid qualifying run, Rabenold lined up his ride in the 19th position. During the race, he worked his way up into the top ten, but a lap 48 caution changed the outcome of what he thought was going to be a great effort for his team and sponsors.
Due to the amount of damaged cars blocking the track, the caution turned to a red flag condition, which was something that Rabenold didn't need.
The racers that were not involved in the incident had to sit and wait on the track until it was cleared. During that time, Rabenold noticed the temperature gauge beginning to rise.
The event returned to a yellow flag condition and Rabenold brought the car into the pits, where the crew began to pull tape off of the front nose with hopes of cooling the engine. The young racer returned to the speedway but by lap 74 the engine had expired.
After running in the top 10 early on, Rabenold was scored in 28th position at the conclusion of the race.
Even though Rabenold has a DNF due to the overheating problem, he brought the car back in one piece and is focused on this weekend, where he hopes his luck will change.
Rabenold will hit the track for qualifying on Saturday, May 3rd. ARCA will be using the old cup-qualifying format for this race and the field will be made up of 50 cars that have qualified from two different segments.
The first round of qualifiers will make up positions 1 through 25, with the second round making up positions 26 through 41. There will be 9 provisionals that will fill the rest of the starting grid.
"I feel good about making the race at 'The Rock', due to the fact that I have a spectacular car for it", said Rabenold. "This car is the one we ran at both Pocono shows last year. We changed the body style from a 2005 to a 2007 for better aerodynamics. I feel really good about our motor program for this race".
Even with all of the adversity that Rabenold has seen this season, he noted that his crew has not given up. "I would really like to thank my entire crew for all their hard work and the countless hours they have spent in the garage the last couple of weeks. I would especially like to thank their families for being so understanding for all the late hours spent in the garage and hope to bring home a strong finish for my team, their families, and my fans."
Kory and the entire Rabenold Racing staff would also like to thank the additional sponsors that will support Rabenold Racing in 2008. These sponsors are Interstate Batteries of Allentown, Liquid Lightning Energy Drink, RPM Racing Engines, Sign Design, Brooksy’s Beers & Barrels, Computer Pals, Torco Supply Co., Walnutport NAPA, Fitness Club of Walnutport, Moore Cleaners, and Buzzy's Autobody. The team is currently seeking additional sponsorship for the remainder of the 2008 ARCA/REMAX season.
The Carolina 500 from Rockingham Speedway will air live on SPEED this Sunday at noon.
PR Contacts
Ken "Buzzy" Rabenold
Buzzy's Autobody
610-767-2721 - 610-349-8387 C.
Jared Welter
Rabenold Racing
484-553-2048 C.
spotter63@verizon.net
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