Keen’s Grove Debut a Rough One; Busy Week Ahead to Prepare for Lincoln

Kyle Keen had attended countless races at Williams Grove Speedway over the years as a fan and as a member of a family who was heavily involved in racing from an ownership and sponsorship perspective.  Yet somehow the idea of actually racing the legendary oval himself had never really crossed his mind.

For that matter, Keen had not considered racing anywhere.  After a successful year in iRacing in 2018, his appetite had been spurred and the thought crossed his mind.  In 2019 he entered the sport as a driver in the 305 sprint car division, but during his first two seasons he didn’t get the opportunity to make laps at ‘The Grove’.

Now, after moving up to 358 sprint cars for the 2022 season, he here was, about to make laps on the famous Mechanicsburg, PA speedway in his Fine Line Auto Body / Keen Parts / Doubling Gap Ranch / Shetron Auction & Equipment, LLC. / Wicked Dog Grille / Heishman Racing Fuels / Wicked Cushion / DL Lehman Construction, LLC. / GearHead Coffee / Jeremy Zarfos Photography / Coyle’s Lawn Maintenance / One Nine Design, Kyle Keen Motorsports No.17k.

Despite having never circled the track before, Keen registered very respectable times in hot laps.  A favorable pill draw placed him 3rd on the starting grid for heat number two.  When the green flag dropped on the 8-lap qualifying event, issues arose for the Carlisle, PA native.

Something was off from the start and Keen lost a few positions on the opening lap.  As he began the second circuit, the part causing the handling difficulties failed completely, sending Keen into the fence.

“I felt good in hot laps.  Something didn’t feel right in the start of the heat though and it was throwing the car off.  I had my hands full.  I tried to hold onto it for a transfer spot, but as I went into (turn) one, something broke in the right front and I was along for the ride into the outside wall.“, Keen shared, recounting the events that ended his debut at ‘The Grove’.

The team believes the failure involved a component in the steering or front suspension, although it’s difficult to be certain with the amount of damage that was caused by the resulting impact.  The contact with the outside fence caused frame damage that will keep the team busy this week if they hope to be ready in time for this Saturday’s 358-sprint car event at Lincoln Speedway.

The team started their week by stripping the car down to the bare frame so it could be sent for repairs.  When the frame is ready in a couple days, Kyle and his team will begin rebuilding the car from the ground up, with a goal of being ready to go Saturday.

“We have a lot to learn, but I know we can be right there.  It’s a seat time thing, but I’m loving every second of it.  Tons of new challenges and obstacles so far this year for sure, but we will overcome!“, a positive Keen shared via Twitter this week.

Up Next

Kyle Keen Motorsports will be looking to put the misfortune behind them when they return to action Friday, June 10th at Williams Grove Speedway.  The following night they will head back to Lincoln Speedway where they will look to log another top ten run as they build their first-year 358 sprint car program.

Season Stats

6 races, 0 wins, 0 top 5’s, 1 top 10’s, 2 top 15’s