Levi Youster Embraces Salem Speedway’s Haunting Demeanor

Topics:  Levi Youster, Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA Fall Classic

Chris Knight
Knight Motorsports Management
Levi Youster Racing
September 16, 2011

SALEM, Indiana (September 16, 2011) - With just three ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards races left on the 2011 calendar, Levi Youster will return to the intimidating high banks of Salem (Ind.) Speedway for Saturday night’s running of the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA Fall Classic by Federated Car Care.

The Oak Harbor, Ohio native will make his third start at the Southern Indiana short track in search of his third consecutive top-20 finish. Youster made his inaugural showing last fall where he qualified 19th before wrestling a 15th place finish. Earlier this year, the youngster was able to climb from his 24th place starting position to claim 18th.

After encountering the dirt tracks of the Illinois State Fairgrounds (Springfield) and the DuQuoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds for the first time in his ARCA career, the driver of the No. 23 Fox Realty / Hixson Construction Chevrolet Impala is looking forward to returning to familiar territory where the 18-year old feels he has a chance at a respectable finish.

“It’s back,” said Youster. “I really like Salem, but it’s a real brutal place. At first glance, you can look at the track and think it could be a piece of cake, but once you put those four rubbers onto that asphalt, you find out much of a beast the track really is.

It definitely provides some great racing for the fans, but puts the drivers and teams on edge because I learned there that things happen in a hurry and you have to be ready to take swift action. Unfortunately, we were entangled in a wreck in the spring, so my goal on Saturday night is to see the green and checkered flag.”

He added, “I feel like the short tracks have really been our strength this year. We’ve shown speed elsewhere, but competing on a short track puts most of the field on the same level playing field which tends to the keep extremely interesting.”

Indeed, the short tracks have been the Buckeye’s native strength in 2011. In four out of the five short track races the Hixson Motorsports pilot has competed in, he has finished inside the top-20 including a season-best of 14th at Winchester (Ind.) Speedway earlier this summer.

“Everyone really works hard at Hixson Motorsports,” sounded Youster. “It’s a team effort. We usually have two to three cars running at each race, so we all work together collectively as a team to make sure everyone has what they need and ready to race. We may not be the most funded organization on the track, but we definitely make do with the resources we do have. Like I’ve said in the past, I’m just blessed to have the opportunity to race.”

With a solid entry list on-deck for the 17th race of the season, Youster offered his insight on what can be expected on Saturday night. “A lot of action,” he said. “I think the field is going to be very close and tough, so you have to be on your game and really try and stay on the lead lap. You’re going to have a bunch of drivers on different agendas, so it will be interesting to see how it all pans out. I’m just hoping we can have a relatively clean race and finish somewhere inside the top-20.”

Moving back into the top-15 in the championship standings following DuQuoin and with further advancement still possible, Youster is aiming to end his season on a high note.

“Overall, I’ve been satisfied with how we’ve ran,” he said. “We’ve had some flops throughout the year, but that goes for any team. We still have a spot or two that we can gain in the point standings, so we’ll see what we can do this weekend at Salem and the following two races after that to give us some drive heading into 2012.”

Joining Youster Saturday 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 Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA Fall Classic by Federated Car Care (200 laps / 111 miles) is the 17th of 19 events on the 2011 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards schedule. The 90th ARCA event held at Salem (Ind.) Speedway is a one-day show. Practice begins Saturday, September 17 with an hour and a half practice session planned from 1:05 p.m. - 2:35 p.m. Menards Pole by Ansell qualifying is slated to begin at 4:00 p.m. The field will take the green flag later in the evening at approximately 7:15 p.m. The event will not be televised but race coverage including live timing and scoring throughout the 1,329th 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.

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