Jake Racing’s Flying 51 Car Destroyed at the Orange Show Speedway
The Flying 51 car lived up to its name at the Orange Show Speedway on June 5th, but not in a good way. After the Jake Racing Team posted its fastest qualifying time ever, Jake Engle, the team’s talented, young driver, started in the eighth position. When the green flag dropped, he wasted no time moving up in the ranks. By lap three, he had claimed the fourth position, using the outside line to advance – something most drivers avoid on this particular track in hopes of staying out of trouble.
“After posting our qualifying time, the entire team was as pumped up as I have ever seen them,” said Engle. “There was electricity in the air, we knew had the best car in the field, and all that energy translated to my driving early on. I was in the zone.”
Unfortunately, Engle’s good fortune didn’t last long. Heading into lap four, the caution flag waved as the leader spun out. During the restart, the new leader, #80, drifted high and ran into the #22 car, which was just ahead of Engle. Engle darted inside to avoid a collision, but was cutoff again by the #22 car as it caromed off the wall. This time, Engle and the cars following close behind had nowhere to go.
The multiple-car pileup sent the Flying 51 car into the air, over the #22 car, and back down hard into the pavement. The good news is Engle walked away uninjured. The bad news is that the race will be recorded as the team’s first finish outside of the top 15. Not to mention the status of the car.
“A roof and four wheels – that’s about all I could recognize,” said a frustrated Engle, as he continued to reflect on the night. “Racing happens in seconds. For a moment, I felt like I could drive anywhere; and I was headed to the front of the field. The next, I was looking at an oversized paperweight.”
“I’m not sure how it’s going to happen, but we’ll be back on June 19th,” added Engle. “I want to thank my team, including Fred Hernandez, and Linny White of WTG for giving me the chance to race such an amazing machine. Obviously, I wish the outcome could have been different.”
June 18th, 2010 | Posted in Media / Publicity, Newsworthy