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Wood Advances to 16th-Place Finish in Return to Action at Knoxville

(Photo by Joe Orth Photos)

Inside Line Promotions – BRANDON, S.D. (May 20, 2014) – Cole Wood made his return to sprint car racing following some time off to heal from his violent crash in early May.

Wood tackled Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – site of the flip that sent him to the hospital on May 3 – last Saturday.

“We qualified absolutely terrible because I missed the bottom both laps,” he said after timing in 30th quickest.

That was the low point of the night as Wood then picked up a position in a stacked heat race on the half-mile oval to nearly lock himself into the main event. After being relegated to the B Main, Wood charged from ninth to record the win and earn a transfer to the feature.

“I was driving around people on the top,” he said. “I passed four or five cars on the start and then kept picking them off.”

Wood started on the inside of the 12th row for the main event.

“In the feature I knew I was starting on the outside anyway so I ended up staying up there,” he said. “I felt really good. I got up to 12th or 13th. They had a red or a yellow and after that we started falling back.”

Wood ended with a 16th-place result.

“With the new car and new motor, I was pleased with our B Main and our feature,” he said.

The team headed to Huset’s Speedway on Sunday for their season debut at the high-banked track.

“Things were going great at Huset’s,” said Wood, who qualified fifth quickest and advanced from fourth to third place in his heat race to lock into the feature. “We were really fast.”

That started him on the inside of the second row for the main event.

“On the opening lap I started on the inside and going down the straightaway it dusted up really bad,” he said. “I couldn’t see where people were. I kinda checked up. When I checked up the right rear hit the wall. The corner going into turn one felt really weird so I slowed down and came to a stop.”

Wood’s team looked over the car in the work area before he returned to the track to restart at the tail of the field.

“I started in the back and passed probably four or five cars on the initial couple of laps,” he said. “The car felt really weird and I kept tightening it up. One time I got over the cushion and the wheels came up and hit the fence. I ended up on the outside of the fence.”

Wood flipped on the backstretch approximately a half-dozen laps into the race. He was credited with a 14th-place finish.

The team is set to compete this Friday at Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb., with the ASCS Midwest Region. On Saturday, Wood will race at Knoxville Raceway before ending the weekend on Sunday at Huset’s Speedway.

QUICK RESULTS –

May 17 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 30; Heat race: 6 (8); B Main: 1 (9); Feature: 16 (21).

May 18 – Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D. – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 3 (4); Feature: 14 (3).

SEASON STATS –

20 races, 0 wins, 1 top five, 4 top 10s, 9 top 15s, 12 top 20s

UP NEXT –

Friday at Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb., with the ASCS Midwest Region; Saturday at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa; and Sunday at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D.

MEDIA LINKS –

Website: http://www.ColeWoodRacing.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/wood17w

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cole-Wood-Racing/246046125428603?fref=ts

APPAREL –

Wood has t-shirts and hats available at his trailer at every race. For a schedule of events, visit http://www.ColeWoodRacing.com.

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – SpeedMart

Based in Burlington, Wash., SpeedMart is a leading sprint car, midget and micro sprint parts distributor. For more information, visit http://www.SpeedMartInc.com.

“Everybody at CWR is happy to have Barry Martinez and SpeedMart on board for the 2014 season,” Wood said. “They have great parts and we are very excited to have them as a partner.”

Wood would also like to thank Elk Grove Ford, Moss Racing Engines, Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Elk Grove Ford, Wion’s Body Shop, CSI Shocks, Prime Time Customs, Weld Wheels, Sparco, NorCal Boxer Rescue and ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems for their continued support.

INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –

Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.

To meet the media relations needs of your program and to join Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or InsideLinePromotions@gmail.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.

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