Harraka – Wauters Motorsports Take Off Michigan & Bristol to Develop Young Driver |
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Topics: Paulie Harraka
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Sandra Vorse
Wauters Motorsports
August 16, 2012
Mooresville, NC (August 16, 2012)- Thus far 2012 has been a tremendous learning year for Paulie Harraka and Wauters Motorsports, both in their first year as a NASCAR Camping World Truck series driver and team owner, respectively. In his debut season, Harraka has experienced several of the most prominent tracks in the country, such as Daytona International Speedway, Pocono Raceway, Charlotte Motor Speedway and others, for the first time in his career. During the first half of the season, Ted Musgrave joined the team to maximize Harraka’s learning on the track. Musgrave’s tutelage of Harraka has proven to be extremely valuable to his development.
As the team of Harraka, Musgrave, and Richie Wauters analyze the team's current position, they have opted to skip the upcoming NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races at Michigan International Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway. They are carefully evaluating which of the remaining races to participate in to optimize his continued development as a young driver.
“Paulie is a true rookie in this series, having raced very minimally in 2011 while he finished his degree at Duke. This year was all about getting him to these tracks and getting him experience. He has shown that he has the speed, and has shown that he is able to learn. Now, we need to take these lessons, and continue to move forward in our plan for him,” Ted Musgrave said.
Richie Wauters, Harraka’s truck owner and crew chief, is also dedicated to Harraka’s development. “Paulie has grown a tremendous amount as a racecar driver this season, without question. He has continually shown the work ethic and dedication to keep learning, and the halfway point in the season marks the perfect time to take a step back and analyze everything we’ve done together up to this point.”
Harraka, having competed in 11 truck races thus far, looks forward to continuing to move forward. “This is the first time in my life that I’ve been able to be a full time racecar driver, having graduated from Duke this past May. Being able to put all of my time into being a true student of the sport has allowed me more time to watch race tapes, talk to other drivers, and analyze my development than ever before. It’s also the first time that I’ve had a mentor and coach like Ted to teach me things I may have otherwise missed. I’m excited about the opportunity to keep learning and growing this season, and I’m fortunate to have the sound backing of our PHLLC partners as I do that.”