Tinkle to do double-duty in both the Grundy County late model and Central States Region Super Cups (minicup) races on the same night
Tinkle Family Racing is pleased to announce that, after training in a late model with Lorz Motorsports, Zachary Tinkle will get behind the wheel for his first ever late model race at Grundy County Speedway on Friday, August 25th. It’s an event that family, friends, and fans have been anticipating while following his driver development on social media outlets like YouTube and FaceBook. Tinkle was approved in June to race at Grundy County Speedway, but the timing had to be just right.
Zachary Tinkle exclaimed, “I’m ready! I’m excited! We’ve been working hard as a team. I’ve been learning a lot. Sometimes I wondered if this day would ever get here. It’s finally happening! I’d like to say thanks to Lorz Motorsports, especially Mike, Phil, and Greg. They have helped me so much. And, thanks to my mom and dad. Without their support, this wouldn’t be happening.”
Tinkle has been dedicated to learning as much as he can about the late model from a mechanical, set up, and driving stand point. Not only has he logged over a thousand laps on the Grundy County Speedway track, he has spent time in the shop to learn about the car so he can communicate with his team. One challenge was learning to shift. The minicup cars don’t even have a transmission and jumping from that to a late model is a leap in and of itself. He overcame the hurdle by practicing in the winter in the shop, using a shifter on iRacing, and taking on-the-road driving lessons with a local driving company.
When asked about Zachary’s driver development throughout the 2017 season, Mike Lorz, owner of Lorz Motorsports, commented, “Lorz Motorsports is looking forward to racing with Zachary in his first late model race at Grundy. It’s time! He’s come a long way. All the hard work that Zachary’s been putting in— from working on the car in the shop to learning and understanding each component and how it works— is part of the development he’s been going thru to become a good race car driver. And, it’s paying off. You can see the improvements every time we go out. I know it’s tough just riding around by yourself, but it’s also taught him a lot. I’m very proud of him for what he’s accomplished and I can see it’s time to put him in a race. We both know we have a lot of hard work ahead us to become better as driver and a team.”
Supporters can come out and root for Zachary Tinkle on Friday, August 25th at Grundy County Speedway in Morris, IL. Stands generally open at 5PM CST when practices start with qualifying starting around 6:45PM and racing at 8PM. Ticket prices range from $5 for kids to $12 for adults.
About Zachary Tinkle
Zachary Tinkle (http://zacharytinkle.com/) is a 15-year-old driving sensation based in Park Ridge, IL who currently races the #53 ½ size stock car minicup car (also known as super cups) and #53 late model with Lorz Motorsports. He is the 2016 Rockford Speedway Wild Wednesday Super Cup Champion. Tinkle is the 2015 Illinois Super Cup State Champion for the Short Track Auto Racing Series (STARS) and 2015 Rockford Speedway National Short Track Champion for Super Cups. Rockford Speedway awarded him the “Lead, Follow, or Get Out Of My Way” award for his 2015 season. He’s been named 2015 Most Improved Driver and 2014 Rookie of the Year for Central States Region (CSR) Super Cups. Website: www.ZacharyTinkle.com.