By Kari Shear-Carlson
June 21, 2012 – Jason Weinkauf may be running for the ASA Midwest Tour presented by SCAG Power Equipment and Lester Buildings Rookie of the Year title, but he is no rookie when it comes to Marshfield Motor Speedway. In fact, Weinkauf is looking to defend his 2011 ASAMT victory on June 30th for the Marshfield 100.
“I am really excited to run for Rookie of the Year in the Tour, but I can’t really claim that I am a rookie at Marshfield,” said a very humble Weinkauf. “I’m really looking forward to getting to Marshfield and hopefully gaining some ground,” he added.
Marshfield Motor Speedway is Jason Weinkauf’s home track. He won the track championship in 2009 and 2010. In 2009, Jason and his brother Chris, an ECHO and ECHO Bear Cat Touring Star battled down to the wire for the championship. After Chris suffered some engine trouble in his own car he was able to jump in another car and Jason just edged him out for the championship.
While Weinkauf was not running for a track championship in 2011, he ran a few races leading up to the ASA Midwest Tour event. When he had some dreaded motor trouble in his own car, Jay VanDerGeest said, “You’re running my car!” And that’s exactly what he did.
The team was not off to a good start. They were not very high on the chart in practice that day but made a few changes before qualifying and it made a big difference. “We were able to get out front and never fade,” said Jason. “It was really cool after we won. I was proud to represent the locals and come out on top knowing how tough the ASAMT was,” he added.
Speaking of the ASAMT, Jason is running for the 2012 ASA Midwest Tour Rookie of the Year. He is currently third in the ROY standings only nine points out of the lead. Jason has always had a great respect for the competition in the ASAMT. “In my opinion, the ASAMT is one of the best series in the country. The guys are all top-notch. You have to be on your game. Being off just a little bit, makes a big difference,” Weinkauf said.
Jason Weinkauf is the first to say that he does not take all the credit for what he does. “I appreciate everything that Jay VanDerGeest does to allow us to run. Even though we [Chris Weinkauf] race against each other, we all work together in the shop as one big team and it wouldn’t be possible without VanDerGeest,” said Weinkauf.
When asked who else he would like to thank, Jason spoke with an incredible amount of thankfulness for the support of his wife Beth. “She has been with me from the start. I could not do it without her.” He also wanted to thank his co-crew chiefs, Dan Weinkauf (his father) and DJ Fritz as well of the rest of his crew.
Come on out to Marshfield Motor Speedway on Saturday, June 30th for the Marshfield 100 to see if Jason can make it two in a row.
For more information and details go to asamidwesttour.com.
Be sure to follow the ASA Midwest Tour on Facebook (asamidwesttour) and Twitter (@asamidwesttour).
To learn more about the ASA Midwest Tour presented by SCAG Power Equipment and Lester Buildings, log on to asamidwesttour.com. For questions call the ASA Midwest Tour office at (630) 212-6022 or Tim Olson at (612) 327-5831 or e-mail Tim Olson at tim@asamidwesttour.com or Steve Einhaus at steve@asamidwesttour.com.
To learn more about the Daytona Beach, Florida-based Racing Speed Associates or the American Speed Association® Racing Member Track program, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from racetracks and regional tours involved in the American Speed Association®, visit www.asaracing.com.
