by Andy Sandall – FASCAR Media

(01.02.10 – Samsula, FL) It took just a couple of days into the New Year for the 2010 season to kick off in style at New Smyrna Speedway with the traditional curtain raiser, the Red Eye 100 for Super Late Models. As well as being the start of the new season it also represented the first race of the prestigious FASCAR Triple Crown championship, and gave Florida race fans a chance to grab some early season racing while most of the country was still covered in snow and several months away from heading down to their local track to watch some meaningful racing.

The fans that braved a cold evening in Samsula were treated to an impressive field of Super Late Models, with 23 cars taking the green flag in an action packed race that saw plenty of lead changes and battling for position throughout the field.

An afternoon of testing, tweaking and generally shaking the cars down and getting them race-ready culminated in a qualifying session that saw Palm Bay’s Rich Clouser in the #9 car setting the fast qualifying time, but with the pre-race pill draw putting him back to 5th place on the grid and elevating Chad Akins in the #60 onto the pole position. Alongside him for the start was the #88 of Justin Larson, with pre-race favorites #11 David Rogers and #36 Tim Russell just behind on the second row. Clouser would be just one row back, alongside #61 Mario Gosselin, fresh from his 2009 campaign in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. (more…)