Ross Rolls Into September: Three Straight Top Tens Highlight Stretch, Qualifying Remains the Missing Piece

Tyler Ross has found his rhythm in race trim over the past two weeks, picking up three straight top-ten finishes and four in his last five outings across stops at Lincoln Speedway and Selinsgrove Speedway. 

The team has passed a combined 21 cars in A-main competition over that stretch — including a run from 20th to 10th at Lincoln Speedway — proof the speed is there. 

The one piece still nagging at Tyler: qualifying.

A Quick Trip Back to a 410 Pays Off at Selinsgrove

Tyler had been looking forward to getting back into a 410 at Selinsgrove Speedway, and the August 30th visit didn’t disappoint. Leaning on notes from a previous run there in the No. 75 car, Tyler qualified 3rd overall, started 4th and finished 5th in his heat, then started 4th and drove to a 3rd-place finish in the A-main.

“We timed good, managed through the heat race, and missed the setup a little for the A-main,” Tyler said.

“We got a little help with the crash that took out two of the leaders, but I was able to pass a couple cars under green. The open red helped, and we made some adjustments and got better.”

Tyler noted Selinsgrove demands running up against the fence to find speed, and it took him a few laps to readjust to that style.

“We were pretty good this time, but I’m looking forward to coming back, because now we know what we need to be really good,” he said.

The team expects to return to Selinsgrove in October.

A Familiar Story at Lincoln Speedway

Tyler made three trips to Lincoln Speedway during the stretch — August 29th, September 5th, and September 6th — and the same story played out each time. Qualifying never put him better than 10th, and one night he rolled off 20th of 30 cars, but Tyler and the team quietly went to work from there. 

Strong runs through the heats set up a starting spot in the A-main, and from there Tyler methodically sliced through the field each night, closing out with a 10th, a 10th, and an 11th — three straight top-ten-caliber runs built on nothing but hard-earned forward progress.

“To be honest, we suck early in the nights,” Tyler said with a laugh.

“We had a midseason lull where we couldn’t pass anyone, but now we’ve got our race trim back to where it was earlier in the year.“

The Qualifying Question

Starting further back has become the recurring theme of Tyler’s season, and he’s the first to admit it.

“I time-trial good at Selinsgrove, but historically I’ve struggled in qualifying, even back to my start in smaller cars,” he said.

“We’re working hard to figure it out, but I think it might mostly be my — our — mentality. We lost confidence in our qualifying program. We have speed, and the car races well. If we can qualify better and start closer to the front, we know we can run up there and contend for wins.”

As a driver, Tyler said he actually relishes the challenge of time trials — chasing every tenth of a second the car has to give.  He isn’t worried about making bold changes to the qualifying setup at the expense of his race-night speed.

“It’s possible to take big swings at the qualifying setup and go back to our known race trim. That isn’t an issue, but we have to find the right changes to make for qualifying.”

The bigger challenge, he said, is translating notes from track to track.

“We’re not making speed down the straightaways. It could be a motor tuning thing, could be our corner exit setup, could be our corner entry setup, could be my driving style on entry or exit.”

“When the track slows down, our straightaway speed improves. It’s tough when you’re really close — I’d rather be a full second off quick time than one-tenth of a second. It’s easier to make big adjustments to find a second than it is to figure out how to gain one tenth. That could be the car, or it might just be a small adjustment by the driver, like when I lift or when I get back on the gas in the corner.”

Why the Top Tens Matter

Beyond the standings, Tyler pointed to the practical side of consistent finishes.

“We have great partners who make this possible, but getting top tens helps keep the team going — it helps pay the weekly expenses,” he said.

“I respect everyone who is out there racing.  It’s a tough deal all around but especially financially.  I’m not sure how teams keep racing these days if they’re finishing at the back, because everything is expensive right now. The fuel to get to and from the track, our tires and parts — everything is up.”

Looking Ahead

Tyler and the team are taking this weekend off before returning to action September 18th at Williams Grove Speedway and September 19th at BAPS Motor Speedway.