Tag Archive for: #kingsroyal

In three races in Central Pennsylvania last week, Kyle Reinhardt qualified for all three dashes, won two heats, and earned a starting spot no worse than 7th in the three feature events.  Sounds like an excellent week, doesn’t it?  Unfortunately, the story doesn’t end that way.

8/26:  Grandview Speedway – Bechtelsville, PA

      (26 cars, Qualifying 12th, Heat 1st,  Dash 5th, A-main 24th)

Thursday night, 26 teams made the trek to Eastern Pennsylvania to compete at the 1/3rd mile clay oval.  Reinhardt qualified mid-pack with a lap of 12.016, placing him 12th quick.  The single group qualifying format placed the All Star Rookie of the Year candidate on the pole for the 3rd heat.  

Reinhardt capitalized on the starting spot, holding the lead throughout the 8-lap contest, winning by 6-tenths of a second over Justin Peck and locking himself into the dash redraw.

The redraw wasn’t as friendly.  Reinhardt drew pill number five, giving him the inside row three starting spot.  Kyle was unable to gain any positions in the 6-lap dash but did hold onto 5th at the checkered flag.  

The real loss in the dash wasn’t positions, it was the motor.  It came up lame in the final lap, leaving the Capitol Renegade team a very small window of time to make repairs or swap motors, depending on the diagnosis.  The team quickly determined an engine change would be needed but there wasn’t sufficient time to do so, leaving the team with only one option to collect a paycheck for the night.  They would have to give up their 5th starting spot and elect to start at the rear of the field.  Reinhardt would take the green, then park the No.91 immediately to prevent further damage.

A solid night that looked primed to provide Reinhardt with a top-5 finish, instead left him watching from the sideline.

8/27:  Williams Grove Speedway – Mechanicsburg, PA

Unfortunately, Mother Nature claimed victory on the second night of the 4-race swing through PA.  Weather forced the legendary oval, Williams Grove Speedway, to cancel the annual Jack Gunn Memorial Twin 20’s program.  

8/28:  Lincoln Speedway – Abbottstown, PA

      (38 cars, Qualifying 4th in group D/20th overall, Heat 1st, Dash 4th, A-main 6th)

Following the night off due to rain, the All Star tour rolled into the Pigeon Hills of Pennsylvania for the Kramer Klash, in honor of the late Kramer Williamson.  The field was 38 teams strong in pursuit of the $7,300 winner’s share.

Kyle Reinhardt was the 31st overall to go under the clock for qualifying.  His 13.562 second lap was solid for the late slot and good enough for 4th in his group and the pole of the 4th heat.

For the second consecutive night, the Neptune City, NJ native did not waste the opportunity, grabbing the lead at the drop of the green.   Reinhardt never gave up the top spot, cruising to a convincing 1.7 second victory over Alan Krimes. 

Reinhardt had to be sensing deja vu.  First there was the pole and heat win just like Thursday, then yet again the dash redraw turned up the 5th starting spot in the first dash. This time he was able to make forward progress, grabbing the 4th spot and securing the 7th starting spot for the A-main in the process.

The 35-lap feature at the 3/8-mile high banked oval provided the stage for Reinhardt to play out the final act of a solid night.  He raced solidly inside the top 10 throughout the event, ultimately netting one spot and finishing 6th, completing his career-best overall night at Lincoln Speedway.

8/29:  BAPS Motor Speedway – Newberrytown, PA

      (32 cars, Qualifying 4th in group A/5th overall, Heat 2nd, Dash 4th, A-main 23rd)

The fourth and final night of the PA swing for the All Stars led the series to Lincoln Speedway, a 4-tenths mile oval in the heart of Posse country.  

The night started well for Reinhardt, drawing the number one slot for qualifying.  He promptly turned in the 5th quickest time overall and 4th fastest in his group, once again putting the Capitol Renegade No.91 on the heat race pole.

Despite a side by side battle through the first corner at the start, Reinhardt could not claim the top spot from Bill Balog, who used the cushion to build momentum.  The pair exited turn two and powered down the backstretch with Reinhardt nipping at Balog’s heels.  On lap 3, Lucas Wolfe worked his way past Reinhardt, claiming the runner up spot at the line.  Kyle was up to the challenge, crossing over and pulling a slider on Wolfe to retake the spot on the next lap.  From there, Reinhardt built up a cushion and rode home in 2nd.  

Reinhardt was locked into the dash redraw for the 3rd race in a row and this time his pick was a little better.  Rolling off from inside row 2 in the dash, Reinhardt was looking to earn a starting spot at the front of the field.  Things didn’t quite work out that way.  The setup was off a touch, and he slipped to a 4th place finish, once again slotting him in the 4th row for the A-main.

The Capitol Renegade team applied what they had learned from the 4-lap dash and rolled Reinhardt out for the 30-lap feature.  It was evident from the drop of the green that Reinhardt had something good to work with.  As he flashed under the flag stand to complete lap 1, he was already up to 5th position.  A split second later, contact from behind turned Reinhardt around and sent him sliding down across the front straightaway and into the inside barrier.  The impact damaged his J&J Auto Racing No.91 and ended the night for the Capitol Renegade team.  They were officially credited with a 23rd place finish.

“We had good speed all weekend, making 3-of-3 dashes, but we only have one finish to show for it.  I’m happy about our night at Lincoln.  That’s the best I’ve run there.  The other two nights were just things that were out of our control, so it’s frustrating.”, Reinhardt commented.  

He continued, “At Grandview we would have started 5th in the feature but we hurt the motor at the end of the dash and ran out of time to change it.  We had a great start to the night last night at BAPS.  Started 7th in the feature and was up to 5th on lap one but unfortunately got turned on the front stretch and it ended our night.  I have to thank my guys and Capitol Renegade for everything they do for me“.

Up Next:

There are ten races remaining in the All Star Circuit of Champions 2021 season.  The first two of those will take place this weekend, September 3rd-4th at Attica Raceway Park in Ohio.  Kyle and the Capitol Renegade team struggled at Attica earlier this season but have been consistently fast over the past six weeks.  They will carry that momentum into Attica to go after the $10,000 top prize in Saturday night’s finale, the “Attica Ambush”.

Thanks to Our Partners!

RQM Enterprises would like to express their appreciation to all of their partners for the continued support!  Thanks to Capitol Renegade, Capitol Custom Coaches & Trailers, Champion Brands, Fibreworks Composites, Henry’s Wrecker Service, J&J Auto Racing, FK Rod Ends, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Kelly Racing Fuel, B.C. Walter Trucking, Arai Americas, Auto Meter, KSE Racing Products, InTech Trailers, Fel-Pro, Taylor Ignition Wires, Miller Welders, K&N Filters, Mettec, AL Driveline, Jesel Valvetrain, DMI, All-Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads, ISC Racers Tape, HMS Motorsports, Ultra Lite Brakes & Components, Rider Racing Engines, Saldana Racing Products and HP Engines for their support during the 2021 racing season.

Kyle Reinhardt was hoping the third time would be the charm.  

He had tried twice before to make the prestigious Knoxville Nationals, the most recent being in 2018 in the Capitol Renegade No.91.  Each of his prior attempts would likely best be described as long shots.  This year was different.

The Capitol Renegade program has come a long way since 2018.  That year, their week in Knoxville included a scratch on their qualifying night and they opted not to run the D-main on Championship Saturday.  This year, Reinhardt and Capitol Renegade had a legitimate shot at making the big show together.  

8/11:  410 Sprint Car Knoxville Nationals – Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA

      (Qualifying Night:  49 cars, Qualifying 32nd, Heat 1st,  A-main 21st)

As is always the case with the large number of cars that enter the Knoxville Nationals, half of the field qualifies on Wednesday night, while the remaining teams qualify on Thursday night.  

Kyle Reinhardt and the Capitol Renegade team were among 49 cars slated to qualify on Wednesday, the opening night of the 60th Annual edition of “The Nationals”.  The All Star Circuit of Champions Rookie of the Year candidate was the 38th driver to take to the track for time trials.  On his second circuit, he logged the 32nd quickest lap in the field.  

Reinhardt knew his No.91 had a better lap in it, but the motor wasn’t exactly cooperating during his shot under the clock.  However, it was good enough to provide him with an outside front row starting spot in the second heat.  The crew went to work after time trials to make sure Reinhardt had what he needed to capitalize on the starting spot because the top 4 finishers would transfer directly to the night’s A-main, providing a solid opportunity to accumulate points for the week.  The better the finish, the better their position to make the A-main on Championship Saturday, which would pay a hefty $10,000 to start.

The car was stout in the heat race.  Reinhardt blasted to the lead at the drop of the green.  He never relinquished the top spot, cruising to the win by 2.144 seconds over Zeb Wise, and locking himself into the 25-lap feature event later that night.

Unfortunately, just a few laps into the A-main, the earlier issues Reinhardt bubbled up again and he slid backwards in the field, ultimately finishing 21st.

“Motor issues hurt our time trial, got it sorted out and won our heat race, but motor issues resurfaced in the (feature) race, and we couldn’t go anywhere.  Car was fast when it would run, which was encouraging, but at this deal you can’t afford to miss the slightest opportunity“, Wayne Quackenbush of Capitol Renegade shared.

8/13:  410 Sprint Car Knoxville Nationals – Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA

      (Hard Knox Night:  69 cars, Qualifying 5th in Flight #2, Heat 2nd, A-main 9th)

With both qualifying nights in the books, points were tallied to set up the remainder of the week.  The top 16 teams in points were automatically locked into the A-main on Championship Saturday, while the next 10 teams in points would make up the first five rows of Saturday’s B-main.  The remaining teams, 27th and lower in points, would compete in Friday night’s Hard Knox program to take another shot at making Saturday’s finale.  

The 69 teams who signed in to make the most of Friday’s second opportunity were divided into two flights for timed qualifying.  Kyle Reinhardt was the 18th of 34 cars to take to the track in Flight #2.  He tripped the timing light on his second lap with a 16.031, ranking him 5th quickest for the night.

In the fifth heat, Kyle started inside row two behind the front row of Wayne Johnson and Sammy Swindell.   Reinhardt charged past Swindell into 2nd on the opening lap and never looked back.  He was unable to close on Johnson but rode home comfortably in 2nd, locking into Friday’s main event.

Reinhardt and team had a solid night going and had put themselves in position to achieve the main goal of the week.  The Capitol Renegade, Champion Brands, Henry’s Wrecker Service No.91 would line up 4th in Friday’s 25-lap A-main, behind a front row consisting of the legendary Jac Haudenchild and the ever-popular Rico Abreu.

Reinhardt held serve near the front of the field, running 3rd or 4th during the first half of the event.  At the midpoint of Friday’s A-main, the Neptune City, NJ native was still running in a transfer spot to put himself in his first ever Knoxville Nationals Championship Saturday A-main, but issues arose that left the dangling carrot just out of reach.  

“Unfortunately, I lost brakes and couldn’t hold the bottom. Dropped back a few spots and finished 9th”, Reinhardt commented.  

He would have one more shot on Saturday night to advance from his 15th starting spot in the B-main to a top-4 finish to make the show.

8/14:  410 Sprint Car Knoxville Nationals – Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA

      (Championship Saturday:  88 cars, B-main 22nd)

Saturday’s mission at Knoxville was clear cut for Kyle Reinhardt:  Roll off 15th in the B-main, pass eleven cars, and transfer to the A-main.  It was also a tall order in a last chance qualifying race that had a starting lineup that was better than almost any feature event across the country on any given night.  Everything would have to be perfect.  

It didn’t take Reinhardt long Saturday night to determine things were not perfect.  The brake issue from Friday night reared its head again early in the B-main.  Attempting to be fast around Knoxville with brake issues was an unwinnable battle.  Reinhardt eventually retired from the event and was officially credited with 22nd, bringing an end to the team’s Nationals week.  

“I have mixed emotions.  We were so close.  Friday was our moment.  Despite our motor and brake issues, we were right there, fighting for it, running in a transfer spot.  To be that close and not make it is really disappointing”, Reinhardt commented.  “We haven’t had brake issues all year, so it’s frustrating for it to happen here.  All that said, the B-main is nothing to be ashamed of here.  We have nothing to hang our heads about“, he concluded.

Thanks to Our Partners!

RQM Motorsports would like to sincerely thank Capitol Renegade, Capitol Custom Coaches & Trailers, Champion Brands, Fibreworks Composites, Henry’s Wrecker Service, J&J Auto Racing, FK Rod Ends, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Kelly Racing Fuel, B.C. Walter Trucking, Arai Americas, Auto Meter, KSE Racing Products, InTech Trailers, Fel-Pro, Taylor Ignition Wires, Miller Welders, K&N Filters, Mettec, AL Driveline, Jesel Valvetrain, DMI, All-Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads, ISC Racers Tape, HMS Motorsports, Ultra Lite Brakes & Components, Rider Racing Engines, Saldana Racing Products and HP Engines for their support during the 2021 racing season.

Up Next:

Kyle and the Capitol Renegade team will resume their All Star Circuit of Champions rookie campaign this week with events in Michigan and Indiana on August 20th and 21st.  Friday night, the series will compete for $5,000 to win at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, MI.  The tour will move on to Plymouth Speedway in Plymouth, IN for a shot at the $6,000 winner’s share on Saturday night.  Just 16 races remain on the series’ 2021 schedule and Reinhardt currently sits 9th in points in his first season on the tour.

SCHEDULE UPDATE:

The 8/21 event at Plymouth Speedway has been CANCELLED.  Instead, Kyle and the All Stars will race at Waynesfield Raceway Park in Ohio Saturday night.

If your method of getting race results is to check feature rundowns on your favorite website, or check quick results on social media, you may not know the full story of how Kyle Reinhardt’s rookie season with the All Star Circuit of Champions is going.  You’ve certainly seen his name several times and you’ve read about some notable achievements, but if you look a little closer, it might be going better than you think.  More on that later.

7/29:  Missouri State Fair Speedway – Sedalia, MO

      (23 cars:  Qualifying 11th, Heat 1st,  Dash 8th, A-main 17th)

On the final Thursday of July, the All Star series rolled into Sedalia, MO for stop number five of the “Thunder Through the Plains” swing.  The fairgrounds half mile dirt oval drew a group of 23 cars for the $10,000 to win Ron Ditzfeld Memorial.  Kyle Reinhardt’s night started with a respectable qualifying run , 11th quickest in the field.  The night went from good to better when the Rookie of the Year candidate was victorious in heat number two, locking himself and the Capitol Renegade team into the dash redraw.

Reinhardt ultimately started 8th in the 35-lap A-main and raced inside the top 10 for the first half of the event.  He had moved his J&J chassis within striking distance of the top-5, holding down 6th on lap 15.  Following a lengthy red flag for Zeb Wise, who went over the fence off turn two, things started to go downhill for Reinhardt.  

Unsure why the handling had changed, Reinhardt wrestled with his mount trying to regain a rhythm.  Despite what turned out to be a tire issue, he held on to a top 10 spot until the final seven laps, then faded to a 17th place finish as the issue with his No.91 got significantly worse.  

7/30:  34 Raceway – West Burlington, IA

      (23 cars:  Qualifying 4th, Heat 3rd,  Dash 2nd, A-main 19th)

The swing trudged on through the hot and humid Midwest summer weather, this time chugging into Iowa to compete at the 3/8-mile clay oval.  Teams were working hard, traveling, and racing in the midst of a string of days with a heat index of 114 degrees. 

Like the night before, 23 team signed in to compete.  However this night got off to an even better start for Reinhardt than the night before.  He tripped the timing loop with the 4th quickest lap in the field, putting himself and his team in great position for the remainder of the show.  

Reinhardt finished 3rd in heat number one, transferring to the A-main and locking into the dash redraw once again.  The redraw was a little more friendly on this occasion, providing Reinhardt with the outside front row starting spot.  He was able to battle his way to the lead at the start of the dash but gave way to Bill Balog one lap later, then held on to 2nd and the A-main front row starting spot that came with it.

In the 30-lap feature event, Reinhardt held solid in the top-5 throughout the event and was poised to finally realize some payoff for all the hard work and recent speed.  With five laps remaining, the rug was pulled out from under Reinhardt when his right-rear tire went down, sending him to the sideline and a disappointing 19th place finish.

7/31:  Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA

      (46 cars:  Qualifying 7th in group, Heat 5th, B-main 10th)

Saturday led teams to the “Sprint Car Capitol of the World”, Knoxville Raceway, for the finale of the 2021 edition of “Thunder Through the Plains”.  A stout field of 46 cars were pit-side to compete for  the $7,000 top prize, which meant there would be five groups for qualifying.  

Kyle Reinhardt was the 26th car to go under the clock in qualifying.  His time was only good enough for 7th in Group C, creating a bit of an uphill battle to make his way to the A-main.  He nearly climbed that hill from his 7th starting spot in heat three, finishing 5th, just one position out of a transfer spot.  Instead, he would need to climb from 6th to 4th in the B-main achieve that objective.  It was not to be though, as Reinhardt slipped a few spots to a 10th place finish, missing the cut and ending the night for the Capitol Renegade team.

“We didn’t time well at Knoxville but I learned every time I went out.  Knoxville races different than anywhere else, so we’re all working hard to get better there.  That’s a big reason we’re going to race the 360 Nationals and the Capitani Classic before the 410 Nationals”, Reinhardt shared.

“We had good speed all week and that’s what it takes to win these races.  We didn’t get the finishes we wanted, but we’ve been putting ourselves in position to compete for wins”, Reinhardt commented.

The stats certainly back up Reinhardt’s statement.  Let’s examine his dash participation.  Being in the dash means a driver will start within the top 8 positions of a feature, which substantially increases their chances of winning.  The Neptune City, NJ native has put the Capitol Renegade No.91 into 5 of the last 7 dashes.  That equates to a 71% success rate.  Compare that to a similar 7-race stretch back in May, during which the team qualified for the dash a mere 14% of the time.   

That trend of improvement is visible in the stats month by month ever since the season kicked off in February.  Given what we’ve seen lately, it’s going to be exciting to see what the remaining months of the 2021 season bring for this young team.  Stay tuned!

Thanks to Our Partners!

RQM Motorsports would like to sincerely thank Capitol Renegade, Capitol Custom Coaches & Trailers, Champion Brands, Fibreworks Composites, Henry’s Wrecker Service, J&J Auto Racing, FK Rod Ends, Kinsler Fuel Injection, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Kelly Racing Fuel, B.C. Walter Trucking, Arai Americas, Auto Meter, KSE Racing Products, InTech Trailers, Fel-Pro, Taylor Ignition Wires, Miller Welders, K&N Filters, Mettec, AL Driveline, Jesel Valvetrain, DMI, All-Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads, ISC Racers Tape, HMS Motorsports, Ultra Lite Brakes & Components, Rider Racing Engines, Saldana Racing Products and HP Engines for their support during the 2021 racing season.

Up Next:

This week Kyle and the Capitol Renegade team will tackle the 360 Sprint Car Nationals at Knoxville Raceway.  Qualifying night for the team is Thursday, August 5th and the event finale will be Saturday, August 7th.  

Following the 360 Nationals, the team will get back to 410 racing, entering the Capitani Classic at Knoxville on August 8th, which will lead into the Knoxville 410 Sprint Car Nationals August 11-14th.F