The top-five in the Joe Gibbs Driven Racing Oil ASA Member Track National Championship each have their own stories, each is unique and worth sharing. Their stories give a great inside glimpse to the competitors who compete at short tracks across the United States and Canada.
BARRY BEGGARLY – ACE SPEEDWAY (4.9416)
Barry Beggarly, the 2011 Joe Gibbs Driven Racing Oil ASA Member Track National Champion, spends most of his time building racecars. Last year, while retired from racing, he was encouraged to get behind the wheel and before you know it, he was racing again.
For him, the 2011 season was meant to just have fun. He showed everyone at Ace Speedway, an ASA Member Track in Altamahaw, NC, that he hasn’t lost his touch. Each week, more fans were wearing his #82 t-shirts, and he would thank them by either giving them one of his five wins or one of his 11 top-five finishes.
Just like on the track, he doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.
ZACK FRANKS – NEWPORT MOTOR SPEEDWAY (4.7075)
How would you like to be 16-year-old, racing your first season in a Late Model Sportsman, win your track championship and finish second overall in a national championship? Zack Franks can give you some insight on how that feels because that is exactly what he did this season at Newport Motor Speedway in Newport, TN.
Zack had a great mentor in his first full season of racing with his father, Junior Franks, by his side. He didn’t come through the ranks of racing in go-karts, bandoleros or Legends, but spent a short time in a street stock before coming into the 2011 season in a Late Model Sportsman. He found himself in a great point battle with Wayne Webb and David Flynn this season. In the final standings, only six points separated the top-three. Oh yeah, did we mention that Franks missed the first two race events this season?
CHRISSY WALLACE – LEBANON I-44 SPEEDWAY (4.5541)
Your father is a popular racecar driver. Your two uncles are as well, in fact, one of them is a former NASCAR champion and they are both highly visible on television today. Each week, you would fly from North Carolina to compete weekly at the track where your father and uncles careers started. Welcome to the world of Chrissy Wallace.
Those weekly trips paid off for her, as she became the first female champion at Lebanon I-44 Speedway, an ASA Member Track in Lebanon, MO where she competed in the Late Model division and also won the ASA West Region championship.
For Chrissy, she needed this to renew her goal of following her father’s footsteps. Her goals coming into this season were to win a feature and finish in the top-five in points. She far surpassed her goals with six wins and winning the championship. She is looking forward to seeing what is ahead for her in her racing career.
SHELBY STROEBEL – MERIDIAN SPEEDWAY (4.2425)
It was an emotional year for Shelby Stroebel as he won the ASA Modified championship at Meridian Speedway, an ASA Member Track in Meridian, ID. Stroebel started racing as a way to lift his father’s spirit as he battled leukemia. It worked for Allen Stroebel as his leukemia would go into remission for a few years.
Sadly, it returned during the 2011 racing season, but he was able to see Shelby win the championship along with seeing his granddaughter Caitlin compete in the Legends division. Shortly after, he lost his battle. A few days later, Shelby would be the first winner of the Allen Stroebel Memorial race along with finishing fourth in the National Standings.
MIKE REICHENBERGER – NORWAY SPEEDWAY (4.2121)
Way up north in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan lays Norway Speedway, an ASA Member Track in Norway, MI. A track where the Reichenberger family has a weekly competition to see who is the best late model driver.
This season, it was the father Mike Reichenberger getting the bragging rights at the family dinner table as he won Late Model track championship at the 1/3-mile oval. He also finished fifth overall in the National Standings. Brandon wasn’t too far behind as he finished eighth in the track standings.
The Reichenberger family is just one of many racing families competing at short tracks around the United States. They are another great example of how short track racing transcends from one generation to another.
“This is why I enjoy being involved in short track racing,” Dennis Huth, ASA President said. “You get to meet a variety of people who each have their own reason why they are involved in this sport. For some, it is a chance to grow a business and help other competitors or it is a great family bonding experience, just to name a few. The overall theme is that short track racing is fun and you are involved in the sport with a friendly group of people who share the same passion that you have for auto racing. This passion is not just shared in the pits, but in the stands as well.”
Fans can look at their favorite driver statistics by visiting SpeedNetDirect.com’s Championship Insider at www.championshipinsider.com. It is a free membership site, sign up today!
Drivers from participating ASA Member Tracks across the United States have chosen one of their divisions as their premiere divisions. Those drivers in the premiere division, who are ASA members in good standing, will compete at their ASA Member Track to first win their track championship. Once they accomplish that goal, they will then be matched up against the other premiere division champions to determine the National Champion.
ASA has once again teamed up with speednetdirect.com to create a proprietary point system that is much like a batting average in baseball. Some of the factors used to create an average are wins, number of cars passed, finishes, car count, and number of events. No one knows what has more of a factor over another.
Race fans and competitors can follow the standings on www.speednetdirect.com. The opening page shows the current track point leaders that would be eligible for the National Championship if it ended today. The East and West Region standings give a complete listing of all of the drivers participating this season.
Past National Champions are Cary Stapp, Thunderhill Raceway (2008), Tommy Cloce, Adirondack Speedway (2009), and Bryan Wordelman, Rocky Mountain Raceways (2010).
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