NASCAR Nationwide Series driver, Ryan Reed, is slated to make his first road course start in the No. 40 Drive to Stop Diabetes SMcar in the NASCAR K&N Series West race at Sonoma Raceway Saturday, June 22, 2013.
Reed, who is running select NASCAR Nationwide Series races this year for Roush Fenway Racing, will make his debut in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West at Sonoma. The 19 year-old driver looks to gain experience at the Sonoma, California racetrack, joining the American Diabetes Association to prove that diabetes won’t keep you from reaching your goals. Reed has been honing his skills for the Carneros 200 road course event the past few weeks and attended the Miller Motorsports Park Ford Racing School in Utah.
“I’m really excited to have this opportunity to gain some experience on a road course with Drive to Stop Diabetes SM onboard the K&N car,” Ryan Reed said. “I’ve been doing everything I can to be ahead of the learning curve that I know Sonoma is going to be. The Miller Motorsports program in Utah was great! My instructor, Mark Claussner, was awesome. Being a great driver himself, he knew what the transition from NASCAR oval racing to road course racing would be. In NASCAR, we don’t typically use the Heel-Toe style of driving – but I received the full experience and learned how to do it. The cars were extremely fun to drive and I know it will be beneficial to me in Sonoma.”
Reed hopes to follow in his father’s footsteps as he becomes a second generation competitor in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. His father, Mark Reed, was the 2001 Sunoco Rookie of the Year and finished second in the championship standings that year. The senior Reed has seven previous starts at the 1.99-mile tricky road course.
“One of the highlights to date will be watching Ryan compete at Sonoma,” said Mark Reed. “There are only a handful of tracks that Ryan has competed at that I feel I can truly assist him with direction. Since he’ll be a Rookie on the Road Course this race, it will be a lot of fun for Father-Son. Sonoma is one of the most technically demanding Road Courses in the country. It is one of my favorite stops on the NASCAR circuit.”
“My dad has always been my biggest supporter and to have him know about the track and have experience there will be very beneficial to me,” Ryan Reed said. “I’m really excited to get my first road course race under my belt with the No. 40 Drive to Stop Diabetes SM team. I have to thank everyone that helped us make this happen, especially Todd Souza for letting us use his car and Mike Munoz for setting it all up.”
J.H. Sims Trucking Company will serve as an associate sponsor on the No. 40 Drive to Stop Diabetes SM NASCAR K&N Series West car at Sonoma Raceway.
The Carneros 200 (64 lap, 127.36 miles) NASCAR K&N Series race is slated to begin Saturday, June 22, 2013 at 1 pm PST. The race will be broadcast tape delayed on SPEED at 3 p.m. ET Thursday, July 18, 2013.
Ryan Reed PR
