Levi Youster Hopes To Shine Under The Friday Night Lights

Levi Youster Hopes To Shine Under The Friday Night Lights

Topics: Levi Youster, Herr’s Live Life With Flavor 200

Levi Youster Hopes To Shine Under The Friday Night Lights

Chris Knight
Knight Motorsports Management
Hixson Motorsports
August 24, 2011

OREGON, Wisconsin (August 24, 2011) - - Finishing races. That has been the primary goal for Hixson Motorsports pilot Levi Youster in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards this season. Although, finishing races is a good objective, Youster wouldn’t mind some limelight along the way. As the ARCA Racing Series make their long-awaited return to Madison International Speedway Friday night, he is hoping to do more than just finish the race.

“We’re not going to Madison thinking that were going to have a chance at winning, but we would like to leave there with a finish that feels like a win,” said the former Sprint Car driver. “Heck, I’m just thankful for the opportunity to fulfill my dream of racing.”

Quietly, Youster is spreading his wings on and off the track which is helping him build a fan-base and develop friendships that aren’t solely based on racing. “Everyone says that ARCA is one big family. They aren’t kidding. But outside the circle (meaning off the track), we still keep that family intact. I’ve been fortunate enough to meet a lot of great fans and build not only a relationship but a trust with many of the other drivers in the garage. That’s important to me.”

The Oak Harbor, Ohio native invades Madison after seventh top-20 finish of the year after overheating problems sidelined the No. 23 Fox Reality / Hixson Construction Chevrolet Impala for portions of the race. Despite the setbacks, Youster was able to take the checkered flag in the 17th spot, his best finish since Berlin (Mich.) Raceway last month where he also finished 17th.

“I learned a lot on the dirt,” Youster said. “It’s unfortunate that we had some overheating issues that kept us from a better finish, but at least I was able to complete the race. We’ve been working hard on diagnosing the issue and we feel we’ll be okay for Du Quoin on Labor Day.”

As far as Friday night is concerned, the rookie driver looks towards more experience behind the wheel and bettering his season-best finish of 14th which occurred at Winchester (Ind.) Speedway earlier this season.

“I’ll be honest, I’m not sure what to really expect on Friday,” Youster explained. “I’ve never been to Madison and no one on our team has, so we’re going in with an open mind and some setups that we feel will be a good feel to start us off with. If it’s not going like we want, we’ll come in and keep making adjustments. The main thing is to get into a comfort zone for the race that night.”

Speaking of night, Youster is excited about racing under the “Friday Night Lights.”

“Who doesn’t like racing at night?” Youster smiled. “Usually the weather conditions are better and the intensity has a chance at picking up which can make it fun or upsetting for us drivers. Just depends on what kind of night we are having. I’m looking forward to Friday, simply because it’s a new race track for me and I heard the fans are great there!”

Jumping up to 14th in the ARCA Racing Series championship standings after his effort last Sunday, Youster knows his chances of landing inside the top-10 would be difficult but there are still spots to climb with five races remaining.

“I really didn’t set any expectations as far as points were concerned going into the year,” he said. “It’s been cool seeing my name climb every week or so, but like I said before it’s about seat time. If we have a chance to finish inside the top-dozen (12), then I’m going to gun for it. If not, I’ll be satisfied with wherever we eventually land.”

Joining Youster Friday night on the Hixson Motorsports frontline will be Ron Cox in the No. 28 Fox Realty Chevrolet Impala and Rob Jones in a third entry in the No. 29 Cox Masonry Chevrolet Impala.

The Herr’s Live Life With Flavor 200 (200 laps / 100 miles) is the 15th of 19 events on the 2011 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards schedule. The fourth-ever ARCA event held at Madison International Speedway is a one-day show. Practice begins Friday, August 26 with an hour and a half practice session planned from 2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Menards Pole by Ansell qualifying is slated to begin at 5:30 p.m. An on-track autograph session has been etched into the schedule from 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. The field will take the green flag shortly after 8:30 p.m. that evening. The event will not be televised but race coverage including live timing and scoring throughout the 1,327th race for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards since it was formed in 1953 will be available through the ARCA Racing Network (ARN) online at arcaracing.com presented by ARCANation.com. All times are local.

Stay tuned for the latest on Levi Youster and Levi Youster Racing (LYR) by “liking” the team’s official Facebook page by clicking here.

PHOTO CAPTION: Levi Youster, driver of the No. 23 Fox Reality / Hixson Construction Ford Fusion in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards for Hixson Motorsports.

MEDIA CONTACT:

NAME: Chris Knight, Knight Motorsports Management
PHONE: 239.834.9797
EMAIL: chris@chrisknightpr.com