RIDGEWAY, VA :: Justin Snow has made two previous attempts to run in the Martinsville DuPont Credit Union (MDCU) 300 but engine problems have prevented him from pursuing his dream to compete in Late Model Stock Car racing’s biggest event. Now, with a new engine, Snow hopes to change his luck and make the 42 car field at Martinsville Speedway.
Snow enters the race having won two races on the 2014 season – one at Ace Speedway and the other at Orange County Speedway. His victory at Ace came in the Rodney Cook Memorial. That victory alone, combined with other starts during the season at Ace Speedway, gives Snow confidence about his chances this year – mainly because of the similarities between Ace and Martinsville.
“The car seems like we pretty much have it set up like we did at Ace Speedway and we just brought it here because I always heard the same thing that it’s very similar the way the corners work,” Snow said in an interview with RACE22.com during last week’s test session. “We brought it the way it was at Ace Speedway and it seems to be pretty close.”
During the test session, Snow said that, as the day progressed, the team actually made the car slower and ended up going back to the Ace setup they unloaded with.
“We unloaded off the trailer and ran some decent times,” Snow stated. “We’ve worked on it and managed to make it a little slower but we put everything back and put it where it was when we unloaded. Hopefully we’ll pick up some speed and get up there with Lee Pulliam and Philip Morris.”
Snow comes to Martinsville with his car that appears fast and a new engine and looks destined to be a possible upset contender. But, for Snow, his main focus right now is on just making the 42 car field that will chase the $25,000 prize and the grandfather clock.
“This is going to be only the third time in my life I’ve ever attempted this race,” Snow explained. “The first two times, I lost an engine in practice so this is one of my dreams to run this race. I’ve got all the backing I need right now. I’ve got a good engine, a brand new one. I feel good about it, just got to make it in.”
With a little bit of luck, a dream to compete in MDCU 300 could become a reality for the veteran racer from Danville, Virginia.
