Cole Anderson Faces Crossroads Entering Snowflake 100

The Snowflake 100 and it surrounding events are always special to drivers who compete in them at Five Flags Speedway. But for Cole Anderson, this weekend’s festivities will hold a special place for other reasons. Regardless of the outcome, this weekend’s event is likely one of the final asphalt late model races of his career.
 
Anderson has had a season many dream of, winning multiple times at different tracks and earning the moniker of “the man to beat” at certain facilities. A championship in the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing and a Governor’s Cup title a few weeks ago were just two of the highlights. Winning the Snowflake 100 this weekend at Five Flags Speedway would be yet another accolade to add to his already-sparkling resume.
 
“I think it would be a surreal way to cap off our asphalt days,” Anderson said when asked about winning the Snowflake 100 this Saturday night. “With this race being the biggest one all year, and our last race for the forseeable future, that would be super special.”
 
For Anderson to have success, he will need a little bit of luck. At the Governor’s Cup, the race went caution-free which worked to his advantage after a mechanical failure occurred early in the race. This weekend, with the steep competition, he feels like some more luck may be needed.
 
“There are a couple guys who are going to be super tough and to beat them easily would take a mechanical failure on their part or a late-race caution where we can try to catch them sleeping,” he explained. “Some of these guys are so incredibly consistent it’s going to be tough, but I think it’s something we can do, especially if we can get a little bit more luck.”
 
Pensacola’s half-mile has been a source of success for Anderson in the past, but entering what he believes to be his final contest there has him wishing a few things went differently. Those races help to motivate him entering this weekend’s festivities.
 
“We had one skip away in 2016 when we were leading one of the Blizzard Series races and there was a late-race caution with ten to go,” he explained. “We’ve been so close there, it’d be really nice to write my name into the history books.
 
“My outlook is like any other race in that we’re going to stay focused and do the best we can,” he continued. “This weekend is all about being mistake free and I think we’ve trained hard all year long and narrowed in on where we need to improve. I’m excited, after our last race our car was pretty good at the end, so it will be interesting to see where we stack up at the end of the night.”
 
Even though Anderson has plans to substantially reduce his asphalt races, he’s not stepping away from the sport, simply changing the area in which he focuses. In 2017, he purchased a dirt modified to run in the upper midwestern region near his Minnesota home. Since then, it has become a bonding point for him and his girlfriend in addition to their families while still enjoying the sport they love.
 
“We’ll see what happens, but I know for sure next year I’ll be focusing on dirt,” he said. “But if I’m on an off weekend and there’s a race presented to me, I would certainly consider it. It’s been a great ride, for sure, and I honestly can’t thank the ATF & Gunslinger guys enough for making this season a dream come true. It’s sad to see it end, especially with the results we’ve had this year.”
 
Anderon’s pursuit of Snowflake glory begins on Thursday when cars hit the track for their first practice rounds of the weekend. Practice continues on Friday and qualifications hit the speedway at 2pm CT on Saturday. The fastest 30 cars will lock into the 100-lap event with all others forced to run a qualifying race. The Allen Turner Snowflake 100 feature event is slated to roll off at 7pm ET.
 
For more information and the latest updates about Cole Anderson visit his website at ColeAndersonRacing.com. He can also be found on social media such as Facebook (@ColeAndersonRacing), Twitter (@Cole_Anderson97) and Instagram (@Cole_Anderson97).
 
Cole Anderson PR