MARTINSVILLE, VA – Veteran racer Bobby Gillespie is hoping to make the field for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 for the first time in his career on Saturday night – and he will almost certainly have the largest celebration in Martinsville if he does.
The 49-year-old from the small town of Floyd, Virginia, is a former track champion at Franklin County Speedway. Despite being a local driver who has a championship at a nearby track, he has never qualified for the ValleyStar Credit Union 300.
“We tried it two years ago and I’d get up there in the top-10 then we’d have a wreck,” Gillespie said. “It was about four times and I just didn’t make it in. It wouldn’t start up in that last wreck we had. But we had a pretty good car. We saved some of the notes on it. We’ll see how it does and what goes on from there.”
Gillespie is used to racing at higher-banked tracks, such as Franklin County and Motor Mile Speedway, so the biggest adjustment for him has been navigating around the flatter confines of Martinsville.
“With this being a lot flatter, it’s a lot different for me. Even where I’ve been running Motor Mile this year, it’s got more banking over there than it does here. It’s a challenge but we’ll see what we’ve got here in a little while and see if we’ve got a shot at it. I’ve got to get my rhythm back on the braking and getting into these turns again.
“It’s been two years since I’ve been here. That’s the main thing, getting the brakes in good so we can get up off the turn real good.”
Making the field will be the first main goal for Gillespie. If he does make the show, he could be in a position to make a splash, just as Kyle Dudley did in 2014 when he raced his way to a top-10 finish. However, just making the field would be cause enough for Gillespie to celebrate – and the party may begin before the green flag waves.
“I told everybody if I ever made the field, I was going to do a donut at the beginning of the race just to say I made the field. I would have to take a couple of weeks off of work for this.”
Qualfying for the ValleyStar Credit Union will take place on Friday night at 8pm. Heat races will get underway on Saturday at 3pm and the feature event will commence at 7pm. Race22 will have continuous Solid Rock Carriers RACEDAY LIVE coverage all weekend and the race will be streamed on FansChoice.tv and broadcast on MRN Radio.
