Ron Silk celebrates his pole winning effort Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
LOUDON – NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour team owner Danny Watts wasn’t sure if his nervousness level would be coming down or rising further Saturday morning at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Watts, in his first season as a full-time team owner with the series is making his first trip to New Hampshire Motor Speedway with Ron Silk as his driver.
And Watts understands that there comes an obligation for him when it comes to have Silk as a his driver.
Of active drivers with the series, Silk has some of the best statistical numbers at the 1.058-mile oval.
“I’m a nervous wreck,” Watts said. “All day long, just a nervous wreck. I just want to make sure that we have the best car for him because he’s one of the best here. My crew works hard so I have to put out on my part to give them the best stuff that we can.”
Silk rewarded his owners dedication to giving him the best Saturday morning by starting the day off right.
The Norwalk driver won the pole in qualifying for today’s Whelen Modified Tour New England 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Silk put up a fast lap of 29.594 seconds (128.702 mph) to score his 10th career series pole and fourth at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
“It’s good because it means you have a fast car, but this is a track where a lot of passing goes on and you don’t necessarily have to start up front to win,” Silk said.
Silk has two career victories at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, 11 top-five finishes in 24 career starts and a career average finish of 10.2.
That 10.2 average is one of the highest of all-time for Whelen Modified Tour regulars and even more impressive considering Silk had finishes of 22nd, 30th and 33rd in his first three career starts at the track driving for a family owned team in 2003 and 2004.
“I do feel that this is probably my best track,” said Silk, the 2011 series champion. “And that average finish is with the first couple times that I came here with my own car. … SO it’s kind of misleading. It would be lower. It’s just a good track for me, it always has been. I don’t know what it is that does it, but I definitely like coming here.”
Donny Lia (29.641 seconds, 128.498 mph) of Jericho, N.Y. was second in qualifying and Doug Coby (29.683 seconds, 128.316 mph) of Milford third.
Rowan Pennink of Huntingdon Valley, Pa. and Ryan Preece of Berlin rounded out the top-five respectively during time trials.
And strategy for Silk in the 100-lap event that will have a halfway break?
“There’s no strategy to be had,” Silk said. “You pretty hard the first 50 [laps] to make sure your car will last the second 50. It’s kind of looking at as two 50-lap races, it’s just that the second one is a lot more important than the first.”
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