|
Rutz heading into Skagit third in NSCS
Andrew Kunas, NSCS Publicist
ALGER, Wash. – Roger Crockett put on a very impressive display of driving two weeks ago, winning the inaugural Northwest Sprint Challenge Series event at Grays Harbor Raceway in dominating fashion.
If Travis Rutz gets his way, there won’t be a repeat of that this weekend when the NSCS races at Skagit Speedway.
The 19-year-old out of Langley, Brit. Col. has firmly established himself as a force to contend with every time he races at Skagit Speedway and in August of last year he let everyone know it in a big way when he picked up two big, high-profile victories at the historic 3/10-mile, high-banked clay oval in northern Washington.
In the Bob’s Burgers and Brew Skagit 360 Nationals, Rutz overcame an earlier problem with his car in the A-Scramble and rocketed from the sixth starting position to the lead in only 11 laps. He didn’t look back, put the pedal to the metal and just ran away with the $10,000 first prize.
“That’s how you’ve gotta run this place, wide open!” Rutz jubilantly said after that race.
“Wide open” isn’t a phrase often heard at the Skagit bullring, but the seemingly fearless Rutz on many occasions has made himself comfortable running way up against the crash wall all the way around Skagit Speedway, giving many performances similar what fans saw from Crockett at Grays Harbor the other week.
Two and a half weeks after his 360 Nationals triumph, Rutz did it again in a big way, winning in front of more than 8,000 people who came to watch Kasey Kahne and Tony Stewart race. After starting fourth, Rutz made one of the most spectacular moves of the year, sliding around turns three and four up against the fence to pass both Seth Bergman and Travis Jacobson to take the lead entering the front stretch.
Just like he did before, Rutz took off and was never threatened. The many fans who were intensely watching Kahne, who finished fourth, also kept an eye on the “Canadian Kid” whose star shined brightest that night. Like before also, he received a rousing ovation for his performance.
Rutz, who sits third in the NSCS points standings, is hoping for more of the same when the series visits Skagit on Friday and Saturday. He’ll be looking to place his name in the NSCS record books as a feature winner in its inaugural season and Skagit very well may be the place he’ll do it. Rutz has one career win with the predecessor Northern Sprint Tour. Quite fittingly, it was also in dominating fashion as he lapped everyone but second place finisher Billy Nutter in a jaw-dropping performance at Oregon’s Cottage Grove Speedway in 2005.
Since his debut as a 16-year-old in 2004, the popular Rutz has gone through some growing pains, but has slowly matured into a better, smarter, more professional driver who is chasing the NSCS championship this year. Rutz, driving for father Doug Rutz, is again piloting the familiar No. 8r. This year, the car Rutz is piloting is a Triple X, powered by a Richmond engine.
More information on the Northwest Sprint Challenge Series and its drivers can be seen online at www.racenscs.com. Following this weekend’s events at Skagit Speedway, the next NSCS events are on Memorial Weekend as the series runs three races at three different tracks in Oregon. Rutz’s 2005 NST win came in the Memorial Sunday race at Cottage Grove.
- - -
NSCS: The Northwest Sprint Challenge Series
www.racenscs.com
|
