Smith wins record third straight track title at Spencer Speedway
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Oxford native Rusty Smith closed out one chapter of his racing career with the equivalent of a walk-off win as he captured a record third straight track title at Upstate New York’s Spencer Speedway this past season.
Smith , became the first driver in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series era at Spencer to win three titles in a row.
“I didn’t know that until they announced it at the [Spencer] banquet,” Smith said. “It’s pretty cool when you stop and think about it.”
Smith’s first two Spencer titles were earned in a car fielded by Greg Frutchey, but Frutchey switched his focus for 2014 to support his son’s budding racing career. Smith and his crew members decided to move forward together and build their own car.
The 37-year-old made a smooth transition to driver/owner as he piloted the No. 34 Blueox Chevrolet to four wins and top fives in all 14 starts at the half-mile asphalt paperclip near Williamson, N.Y.
“We went up there and backed it all up (the first two titles) with our own car, and that was a big thing,” Smith said. “That made it special.”
The high watermark of the season came when Smith took the checkered flag in a special double-point 60 lap feature on Aug. 8, a date that marked 60 years of auto racing at the facility. Many longtime former competitors, including 1982 track champion and NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee Jerry Cook, were in attendance to mark the occasion.
“That was very overwhelming,” Smith said. “I didn’t have any idea it was going to be that big of an evening. There was a guy there that raced the very first race that the track ever had, a guy that had his helmet from the first year. That was the highlight of the year, winning that night.
“We started deep in the field that night and went to the outside and drove around everybody, literally left them all in the dust, and to do that in front of all of those guys was awesome.”
When the dust settled on the season, Smith had his third straight Sunoco Modified division title by the final tally of 935-915 points over 2007 track champ Mike Leaty.
Smith made six additional starts between Spencer’s sister track – Chemung Speedrome – and the dirt oval Utica-Rome Speedway. His line in the final Whelen All-American Series standings was 17 top fives and an additional top 10 in 20 starts.
Smith’s third Spencer championship separated him from a pack of six other drivers that have won two Whelen All-American Series titles there, and he now trails only Patsy Catalano’s eight. The pursuit of a fourth crown at Spencer is not in the cards, however, Smith said.
The upcoming 2015 racing season will be a year of transition for Smith as he will compete closer to home and fully switch to dirt modifieds. Spencer was a five-hour round trip from his Oxford home. This season he will run weekly at I-88 Speedway in Afton, just a 20-minute commute each way.
“This is going to be my 22nd year of racing, and probably 15 of those 22 years have been spent driving distances to race,” Smith said. “I’ve got kids, and many of my crew guys have families now. To leave at 1 p.m. on a Friday and not get home until 3 a.m. – we’ve done that for the last seven years – I think we’re all anxious to stay closer to home.”
Smith , became the first driver in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series era at Spencer to win three titles in a row.
“I didn’t know that until they announced it at the [Spencer] banquet,” Smith said. “It’s pretty cool when you stop and think about it.”
Smith’s first two Spencer titles were earned in a car fielded by Greg Frutchey, but Frutchey switched his focus for 2014 to support his son’s budding racing career. Smith and his crew members decided to move forward together and build their own car.
The 37-year-old made a smooth transition to driver/owner as he piloted the No. 34 Blueox Chevrolet to four wins and top fives in all 14 starts at the half-mile asphalt paperclip near Williamson, N.Y.
“We went up there and backed it all up (the first two titles) with our own car, and that was a big thing,” Smith said. “That made it special.”
The high watermark of the season came when Smith took the checkered flag in a special double-point 60 lap feature on Aug. 8, a date that marked 60 years of auto racing at the facility. Many longtime former competitors, including 1982 track champion and NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee Jerry Cook, were in attendance to mark the occasion.
“That was very overwhelming,” Smith said. “I didn’t have any idea it was going to be that big of an evening. There was a guy there that raced the very first race that the track ever had, a guy that had his helmet from the first year. That was the highlight of the year, winning that night.
“We started deep in the field that night and went to the outside and drove around everybody, literally left them all in the dust, and to do that in front of all of those guys was awesome.”
When the dust settled on the season, Smith had his third straight Sunoco Modified division title by the final tally of 935-915 points over 2007 track champ Mike Leaty.
Smith made six additional starts between Spencer’s sister track – Chemung Speedrome – and the dirt oval Utica-Rome Speedway. His line in the final Whelen All-American Series standings was 17 top fives and an additional top 10 in 20 starts.
Smith’s third Spencer championship separated him from a pack of six other drivers that have won two Whelen All-American Series titles there, and he now trails only Patsy Catalano’s eight. The pursuit of a fourth crown at Spencer is not in the cards, however, Smith said.
The upcoming 2015 racing season will be a year of transition for Smith as he will compete closer to home and fully switch to dirt modifieds. Spencer was a five-hour round trip from his Oxford home. This season he will run weekly at I-88 Speedway in Afton, just a 20-minute commute each way.
“This is going to be my 22nd year of racing, and probably 15 of those 22 years have been spent driving distances to race,” Smith said. “I’ve got kids, and many of my crew guys have families now. To leave at 1 p.m. on a Friday and not get home until 3 a.m. – we’ve done that for the last seven years – I think we’re all anxious to stay closer to home.”
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