Catchfence

HUNTERSVILLE, NC (9/15/10) – Known for their diversity of tracks and demanding schedule, ARCA is making their 88th series visit to the historic Salem Speedway with this weekend’s ARCA Fall Classic 200. Though only his third start at the high banked, fast paced short track, Joey Coulter feels undaunted at the Saturday (9/18/10) night, under the lights challenge. The second year ARCA racers past performances have bode well for his short track reputation and he looks to build upon that in his No. 16 Darrell Gwynn Foundation, Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet.

“Salem Speedway is a rough and tough venue, with high banks and tight side-by-side battles,” commented an excited Coulter. “The track is full of history and steeped in tradition, and I am happy ARCA keeps two races on the schedule. We have had great runs here in the past and I am really looking forward to this weekends race.”

While Coulter has been the recipient of bad luck and involved in racing incidents, in his past Salem starts his competitors always knew he was there. He has qualified within the top-five in each previous start, twice starting in third (4/5/09 and 4/11/10) and once in fourth (9/19/09). The 20-year old mechanical engineering student (University of North Carolina Charlotte) has also led a total of 62 laps around the .555-mile paved oval. Thirty-nine of those laps led came in dominating fashion during the fall 2009 event (9/19/09), where Coulter piloted his No. 16 machine past the leader and lapped all the way to the third place car before a blown tire took him out of the event.

Earlier this season, Coulter looked poised once again for a top-five finish at the demanding Southern Indiana oval. After taking the lead, he led 23 laps, and after working his way back into the top-five after a pit stop, was taken out of the race by a lap down car. Most would have hard feelings towards such a challenging track, but not Coulter, who actually considers Salem one of his favorite stops on the ARCA Racing Series tour each season. Knowing Coulter’s determination to conquer Salem, Coulter Motorsports Crew Chief Harold Holly has prepared chassis No. 010. One of Coulter’s favorite cars, 010 ran at Toledo Speedway last weekend, where Coulter led 34 laps before a blown tire relegated him to a fifth place finish. Chassis 010 also holds a special place with Coulter, as it was the car he piloted to his first ARCA victory a little more than a month ago at Berlin Raceway (8/7/10).

“Once Joey (Coulter) gets on these short tracks, his head automatically enters into the zone and he becomes more focused than any driver I’ve seen before,” said Coulter Motorsports Crew Chief Harold Holly. “He has run very well at Salem in the past and I know how much he looks forward to racing here so it should be a great weekend.”

The 200-lap, 110-mile Kentuckiana Ford Dealers ARCA Fall Classic 200 is scheduled to begin at 7:15 p.m. ET Saturday evening (9/18/10). Make sure to tune to LIVE timing/scoring and audio at www.ARCAracing.com to catch Joey Coulter and his No. 16 Darrell Gwynn Foundation, Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet.

- Coulter Motorsports Press Release