After being sidelined for a couple weekends, Kyle Reinhardt eagerly returned to the seat of the Capitol Renegade No.91. The team returned to the track for the 59th Annual Champion Oil National Open at Williams Grove Speedway.
The event is attended by tens of thousands of fans, watched by even more and is one of the most coveted events for winged sprint car drivers and teams. Not only is the race lucrative, paying $75,000 to the winner, but it has been won by a who’s who in sprint car racing over the years. The winners list includes names that range from Indy 500 winner, Gordon Johncock, to the King of the Outlaws, Steve Kinser. It’s one of those handful of events that provide a sense of pride just to make the starting field.
10/1: National Open Prelim Night at Williams Grove Speedway – Mechanicsburg, PA
(49 cars, Qualifying 6th in flight 1, Heat 4th, A-main 23rd)
The month of October opened with a perfect Central Pennsylvania autumn evening that saw 49 teams unload in the pits at Williams Grove Speedway. They were there not only to chase the $10,000 winner’s share, but more importantly, learn everything they could so they could be at their best the following night, when the eyes of the sprint car world would descend on the legendary oval.
A good pill draw put Kyle Reinhardt fourth in line to take the track for time trials in the World of Outlaws’ sanctioned event. He used that opportunity to record the 6th quickest lap in the flight of 25.
The format called for four 8-lap heat races, from which the top 5 would transfer to the A-main. Reinhardt’s qualifying effort placed him 3rd for the start of heat number two. After a tough battle in the opening laps, the Neptune City, NJ native settled into the 4th position and held on to that spot to transfer to the night’s finale.
Reinhardt took the green for the 25-lap A-main from the inside of row eight and struggled from the start. He battled an ill-handling racecar throughout the event, slowly sliding backward through the running order to a frustrating 23rd place finish.
10/2: 59th Annual National Open at Williams Grove Speedway – Mechanicsburg, PA
(48 cars, Qualifying 21st in flight 2, Heat 9th, B-main 13th)
Saturday night brought 48 teams back to take their shot at the $75,000 top prize. A less friendly pill draw had Reinhardt near the less desirable end of the qualifying order, taking to the track as the 17th of 24 drivers in flight 2, and 41st overall. Kyle was unable to wring the kind of lap he needed out of his Capitol Renegade No.91, leaving him a disappointing 21st when the dust settled.
With only the top five finishers in each heat race moving to the A-main, Reinhardt had a tall order from his 11th starting spot in heat number three. In that situation, when a giant leap forward will be difficult, the strategy is often to take two smaller steps. The first step would be to at least finish somewhere between 6th and 9th to get into the B-main, where the team would have a chance to take the second step into the A-main. Finishing 10th or worse in the heat race relegates teams to the C-main and creates a nearly insurmountable challenge to get to the finale.
The All Star Circuit of Champions Rookie of the Year candidate came out of the gate quick in his heat race, surging to the 8th spot on lap one. From there, he found himself in an intense battle to maintain position to make the cut for the B-main. He managed to survive, bringing home a 9th place finish to avoid an unwanted trip to the C-main.
Figuratively speaking, Reinhardt once again found himself looking up a steep hill when the green flag dropped on the 12-lap Last Chance Showdown. Starting outside the 8th row, Reinhardt gave it everything he had, but ultimately finished 13th in the B-main, ending his night.
“We were a lot better Friday but I didn’t have things quite right for the feature that night“, Reinhardt commented, referring directly to himself and alluding to the fact that he was handling the setup chores after the team recently parted ways with crew chief Bob Curtis. “Saturday we tried to improve using what we experienced Friday but it made it worse for qualifying, so we were trying to play catch up all night”, he concluded.
Up Next
Reinhardt and the Capitol Renegade team will close out their first full All Star Circuit of Champions season on October 8th and 9th at Fremont Speedway in Fremont, OH at the Jim and Joanne Ford Classic, where the Saturday night finale will pay $10,000 to the victor.
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.
