Dirty Dozen Late Model Series: Reid Lanpher

Southern Nat’l Motorsports Park Race Preview

THE STORY

MANCHESTER, Maine – Reid Lanpher of Manchester, Maine, returns to JR Motorsports this Saturday, March 16, in the Southern National Motorsports Park Twin 100s – the second event in the 12-race Dirty Dozen Cup – in Lucama, N.C. The 14-year-old Lanpher will drive the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet for the team owned by NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the .4-mile banked oval. Lanpher posted a pair of Top-12 finishes two weeks ago at Southern National Motorsports Park in his first career Late Model start, finishing 11th in the first 100-lap race and 12th in the second 100-lap feature. The Dirty Dozen Cup consists of 12 races – six each at Southern National and Motor Mile Speedway in Virginia.

THE FACTS

WHO: Reid Lanpher, Manchester, Maine
TEAM: No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Seth Kooika, Mooresville, N.C.
BEST CAREER SOUTHERN NATIONAL FINISH: 11th
LAST RACE AT SOUTHERN NATIONAL: 12th
WHAT: “Dirty Dozen” Southern National Twin 100s
WHERE: Southern National Motorsports Park, Lucama, N.C. (.4-mile banked oval)
WHEN: Saturday, March 16 – 9 a.m., practice; 12:15 p.m., qualifying; 2 p.m., race
Dirty Dozen Cup
NEXT RACE: April 6, Southern National Twin 100s, Southern National Motorsports Park, Lucama, N.C. (.4-mile banked oval)

DID YOU KNOW?

Reid Lanpher became the youngest driver in history (14) to win an event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when he won an Amsoil NELCAR Legends Tour race on the road course at the facility last May.
Reid Lanpher won the Super Late Model feature at the Wiscasset Speedway’s “Fall Brawl” last October, earning a victory in just his third career Super Late Model start.
Reid Lanpher will compete as a teammate at JR Motorsports to Josh Berry. Berry won the 2012 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track championship at Motor Mile Speedway in Fairlawn, Va.
Just 14 years old, Reid Lanpher has already won Super Late Model, Modified, Legend, go-kart, Mini-Cup, motocross and snowmobile feature events in his career.
Reid Lanpher will also compete in PASS-sanctioned Super Late Model races this season with his family-owned team at both Oxford Plains Speedway and Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, as well as compete in select weekly NASCAR Whelen All-American Series races at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING

REID LANPHER, Driver of the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, On how he feels heading to Southern National Motorsports Park for a second time with JR Motorsports this weekend: “I’m so much less nervous than the first time I went in there two weeks ago. I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can do this week knowing what we have for a car, what we’re going to see for competition, and what the track is like.

“I’ve got a lot of laps in there, so it should be a lot better off going into the event. Hopefully, we’ll keep gaining on what we did last time. Every time I get in the car, I learn something different. It’s about finding little things and learning and learning off of those. Hopefully, we’ll find a couple more tenths (of a second per lap) and get in the Top-10 this week.”

On how his goals have changed for the return trip to Southern National: “Like I said, we really want to get a Top-10. We were bumming last time because we were right in the Top-10 there for one of those races toward the end. A lot of teams were in the same boat we were, not having raced much or at all this year before that, so we know everybody else is going to be better this race – just like we hope to be. We can’t expect to gain and other people not to.

“It’s still going to be very, very difficult competition, but I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do.”

On whether the style of racing surprised him at all: “No, not really. There were just a lot of good guys there. They’ve all been racing a long time. Most all of them raced with respect, and there wasn’t anybody I was intimidated to be be around on the track. Everybody was clean out there, but the only difference down there is they don’t seem to mind wrecking as much as we do up here (in the northeast).

“But as far as the racing goes, everything’s really close. It’s good racing down there.”

UP NEXT

The Dirty Dozen Cup returns to the track at Southern National Motorsports Park in Lucama, N.C., for Twin 100 Late Model events on Saturday, April 6… Reid Lanpher will make his third consecutive start in the JR Motorsports No. 8 JRM Chevrolet in the event.REID LANPHER