| STEVE ARPIN MAKES MARK IN ARCA HISTORY BOOK 03.02.10 Not only was the Venturini team prepared for the possibility of rain, but also Arpin and his teammates spoke in unison of the confidence in their team if it did begin to rain. The drivers were thrilled at the excitement and experience of racing in the rain. The preparation of Venturini Motorsports and Steve Arpin was displayed in the results from the Tire Kingdom 150 presented by ModSpace. Arpin, driver of the no. 55 Taylor Chassis Chevy, started in the 7th position and finished the rain-shortened 70-lap race in the fifth position. “It was really my first road course race and I was very happy with the results. We weren’t getting the best fuel mileage today and we had to make an extra stop over the other cars,” said Arpin. “Billy and Rambo called it perfect and made the best strategy calls all race long to put us in the hunt at the end.” Steve Arpin impressed his peers at the ARCA open test session earlier this month when the young dirt modified standout posted the fastest time during the afternoon session. During this Friday’s practice session Arpin was back on the top of the board before having engine problems that cut his practice time short. Despite engine problems and only getting a few laps in at the end of practice, the young Canadian was able to get his No.55 Taylor Motorsports Chevy in a 7th place starting position. “We had a real good car out of the box in practice, but lost a motor early in practice. The guys at Venturini worked really hard to change the motor and get me back out on the track for one last run before practice finished up,” said Arpin. “My guys were awesome; they salvaged the weekend for us by being able to get the new motor in so quick.” Venturini Motorsports dedicated the entire weekend at the 2.034-mile, 11-turn PBIR road course to prepare it’s team and drivers for a good solid run in the Tire Kingdom 150 presented by ModSpace. The green flag waved for the start of the first ARCA road course race of the season and Venturini Motorsports driver Steve Arpin was off to a great start, coming out of the first turn already in the 2nd position. With the potential for raindrops during the race, the Venturini Motorsports team had the weather radar on top of the no. 55 pit box with competition director, Billy Venturini, in order to forecast their race strategy. On lap 22, Billy Venturini and no. 55 crew chief, Tony Liberati, made a bold and confident decision to pit Steve Arpin under green and switch to Hoosier rain tires and fill up on fuel. Venturini Motorsports and Steve Arpin marked history on the record books by being the first team to bolt on Hoosier rain tires in an ARCA race. Steve Arpin became the first driver to ever race the grooved Hoosier rain tires in an ARCA event. Steve Arpin took over the lead on lap 26 and continued to lead through lap 34 until the team had to come in and make a late race fuel stop. Arpin came back out in the 9th position and battle his way back up to 5th. Series officials were forced to throw the checkered flag on the event five laps short of its original distance, completing 70 of the 75 laps due to heavy rain. “It was awesome racing in the rain, Hoosier brought a perfect tire for us. All the drivers on the track used their heads and I feel we put on a great show for all the fans that toughed it out through the pouring rain,” said Steve Arpin, who was happy with the results of Tire Kingdom 150 presented by ModSpace. Steve Arpin is now tied for second in ARCA Racing Series points. Steve Arpin will be traveling to Texas Motor Speedway on March 9th with Venturini Motorsports in preparation for the Rattlesnake 150 on April 16th. The next scheduled ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/Max and Menards event is the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA 200 on April 11th at Salem Speedway in Indiana. Vote: Steve Arpin for ARCA Series Most Popular Driver at www.arcanation.com For More Information on Steve Arpin www.stevearpin.net Follow Steve on Twitter www.twitter.com/stevearpin Jeff Taylor Motorsports Emily Teeter Venturini Motorsports Shop: 704.784.2500 |
