Kevin Holland's #66 team takes 2006 points championship.
Big Diamond Raceway 08-25-2006:
The #66 car went into the last race at Big Diamond last Friday with a 60 point lead
for the championship. This meant Kevin had to take 12th or better to win it even
if the second place driver won the race. Not too much pressure, but a lot can happen
in a night. One DNF could have thrown it out the window. The game plan was to finish
anywhere in the top ten. As the evening went on, the second place in points wound
up dropping out with mechanical problems and Kevin babied the car to a 6th place
finish. Congratulations Kevin!
I am sure Dave may send me a good picture from winner's circle and a better write
up. Stay tuned, race fans.
Keystone Garage Club becomes sponsor of Kevin Holland's winning dirt oval car.
Over the years, the garage club was been involved
in Street Racing, Drag racing, even pitched in a little with Lloyd Kapp's Enduro
car. The recent resurgence and interest in Dirt Circle track racing has shined the
spotlight on long time Garage Club member Kevin Holland. Kevin Holland is currently
the points leader in the Road Runner division at the NEW Big Diamond Raceway near
Minersville Pa.
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The Garage Club has stepped up to the plate and become a sponsor on
Kevin’s #66 1975 Chevy Nova. The phrase “THE GARAGE CLUB” now graces the hood of
the #66 which is the only straight part left on the car. The donation from the club
of $100 minus the $10 for the lettering leaves $90 for Kevin which will be used to
cover fuel costs or possibly a new race tire. |
| Kevin started racing Road Runners at Big Diamond 5 seasons ago in
2002. At the time, I thought Kevin was nuts for wanting to race dirt. We were always
street racers. Kevin was well known at the time for his 9 sec. Street legal, no NOS
71 Vega. Influence from a mutual friend and winning Road Runner Driver Dave Miller
+ Kevin’s own Father’s racing history at the Reading Fair Grounds was fueling his
desire. |
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With a lot of input from Dave Miller’s year’s of experience at Big
Diamond, Kevin’s Grandfather’s (PAP) old school ingenuity, and Kevin’s commitment
to detail, Kevin built his 1st first Road Runner, the car he still runs today. See Big D Road Runner Rules.
As the date got closer to opening day, Kevin asked me if I would be
his crew chief. I didn’t have much interest in dirt track racing at the time but
thought “Sure, What the hell, it’s something different to do on a Friday night”. |
| I remember our very first race. I told Kevin to just ride around the
back of the field for a few races till he gets the hang of circle track racing. He
agreed. But, if you know Kevin, you know he’s not happy unless he’s competing. He
drove around the back of the pack for 2 laps, then started passing cars, heading
for the front. On the last lap, I had my eyes closed when he went from 7th to 4th
by splitting the 5th & 6th place cars as they battled for position in turn 3. |
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Kevin’s 4th place finish in his very 1st race was a sign of things
to come. Kevin ran good that year but was deployed to Germany half way through the
season which cost him the Rookie of the Year award. While Kevin was away, his wife
Pam, son Chris, his PAP, Dave Miller, and myself prepared the car for the 2003 season.
We finished 3rd in the points that year and ran good but did not score any wins.
In 2004, we were on fire with 10 wins of which 3 were taken away from our record
due to rule infractions. We missed the championship by 35 points. |
2005 was another good season with 4 official wins. We came back from
a large deficit in the points to finish 2nd in the Championship, 35 points &
1 rain out away from capturing the title.
As for 2006, Kevin’s effort has been fruitful. We used to get Booooed. Now we get
cheers. We were even guests on a radio show.
Hear
the radio show here |
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We have 3 wins and with the exception of 2 DNF’s (did not finish),
we have finished inside of the top five every race. Just like the 2005 season, Kevin
had to recover from a point deficit this year. 2 DNFs (one when our jack broke during
a pit stop & one for a snapped axle) had Kevin as low as 13th in the points. |
A few races ago, the points leaders got in a wreck and got hauled
off the track on the hook. Kevin had damage also and had to come in. A large zip
tie was the fix. Kevin entered the field in 16th position, a half a lap behind the
rest of the field. Kevin’s maturity as a driver shined that night. With 11 laps to
go, he reeled in the field and like a surgeon, meticulously passed 10 cars up on
the “high groove” to finish 5th and take over the point lead. The following week,
with a bent upper A arm, Kevin drove a crippled car to a 3rd place finish to extend
his point lead.
Big
Diamond Roadrunner Points |
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Hopefully, 2006 will be Kevin’s year. He has definitely worked hard
for it. You can come cheer on the Garage Club #66 every Friday night at Big Diamond
starting at 7:PM.
#66 Big Diamond Road Runner
Crew Chief,
David (Herk) Lehr |
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Sponsor List:
Holland's performance parts
Keystone Garage Club
www.classicjunkyard.com
Shiley Fabrication
Harris' Car Care
Jeck's Service Center
Sterling Reber's Garage
Lebanon Valley Livestock Auction
below:
Some hot lap pictures at Big Diamond Raceway.
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