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World of Outlaws http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
World of Outlaws http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
05/22/2008 - 11:57 AM
Concord, North Carolina
While Kinser is used to late nights at the race track, he is now getting accustomed to having late nights and early mornings at home with a baby. (Photo: World of Outlaws) ยป More Photos
For Kraig Kinser, Bloomington, Indiana will always be home, but for the past couple of years, he has been living in the Charlotte area, and thus the Rite Aid Outlaws Showdown for the Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event at The Dirt Track @ Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Friday, May 23 will be an adopted home race for the third generation driver.
Kinser has competed four times in his career at the state-of-the-art four-tenths mile facility, including in last year’s inaugural Outlaws World Finals, as a teammate to his father, Steve, the 20-time series champion. Driving for Tony Stewart Racing this season, Kraig will have a lot of new fans at the event who easily recognize the No. 20 machine, the same number that his car owner uses in NASCAR, and will also have fans from coast-to-coast cheering him on, as they watch the event LIVE on SPEED from 8-11 p.m. Eastern.
“I’m excited to get there,” said Kinser of returning to The Dirt Track @ Lowe’s Motor Speedway. “I haven’t raced there all that much lately. We ran there at the end of last season and the track was very good. Hopefully they have the track like that again.”
With the always demanding schedule that the World of Outlaws keep, Kinser will not have many chances to spend time in North Carolina this season. He is excited to get to sleep in his own bed for a couple of nights and more importantly to spend time with his wife Danielle and their son Kash who was born prior to the 2008 season.
“Being home will be nice,” he noted. “It will be good to be around my new born son. I like being on the road too. I hate being away from the kid. I enjoy being out there when we race night in and night out, but I don’t care for the rainouts. We need to get a couple more nights under our belt and have the car figured out a little better.”
While Kinser is used to late nights at the race track, he is now getting accustomed to having late nights and early mornings at home with a baby.
“It’s definitely changed my life,” explained the driver of the Bass Pro Shops Maxim with a smile. “I wish I could be home with him more. My wife has a little bit more to do, but she came from a racing family and she knew how it was. She halfway knew what to expect.”
While the rash of rainouts that have plagued the World of Outlaws this season have been a major obstacle for all the teams and drivers, it has been especially tough on Kinser, who is still getting a feel for sprint car again, after competing in the NASCAR Truck Series for a couple of seasons. Each time he climbs back into a sprint car, he feels more comfortable as he works to get into a rhythm.
“It’s frustrating for everybody,” he shared. “For me coming back into the sport, we need to get as many nights in as we can for me to get where I need to be. It’s taken a little longer and we’re waiting for the rain to clear up.”
One of the biggest challenges for him this season has been adapting to a few of the rule and procedural changes that the World of Outlaws implemented while he was away from the series, particularly the right rear tire rule, which offers drivers three different compounds to chose from.
“It definitely was different,” said the 2004 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year of returning to sprint car racing. “I hadn’t run with the (right rear) tire rule. When I got out, that was before the tire rule and I am getting used to that now. I am also getting used to a new team, and not running the exact same stuff I ran with my dad. Trying to feel what our car is doing and getting a baseline is the biggest thing in my mind right now.”
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