After two solid races to open the 2019 season, the CARS LMSC and SLM Tour will return to action this weekend for the MTP Tire 300 at Hickory Motor Speedway.
Sprinkled in with the usual CARS Tour veterans will be a handful of Hickory track regulars such as Vince Midas, who will be making his series debut this weekend driving his #14 family-operated Late Model.
Midas has waited for the right opportunity to make his CARS Tour debut after watching many of the best Late Model drivers battle for victories over the past few years, which has him enthusiastic about taking the green flag on Saturday evening.
“I’m very excited,” Midas said. “I’m just eager to be there and meet new people, but also to have fun. I can’t wait for Saturday.”
Midas’ love for auto racing began back in 2011 when he watched Tony Stewart win five of the last 10 races of the season to pick up his third championship over Carl Edwards by virtue of a tiebreaker. Stewart’s title run ultimately convinced Midas to get behind the wheel himself, where he would carry the #14 as a tribute to his favorite driver.
After getting his start in go-karts, Midas moved up to racing Legends, where he received guidance from Jordan Stillwell and former NASCAR driver Chase Pistone to refine his skills in the driver’s seat over the next five years. Midas competed in numerous Legends races around the East Coast that included the Bojangles Summer Shootout at Charlotte Motor Speedway, which eventually propelled him into the Limited Late Model division at Hickory.
Midas’ 2018 season at Hickory did not get off to the start he wanted, as he was forced to deal with numerous mechanical issues that prevented him from contending for victories. As the season progressed, Midas began to find his footing with his family-owned team, which eventually culminated with his first victory at Hickory on June 23 after holding off Gage Painter in the closing laps.
Midas would sweep both Twin races the following weekend at the track and would establish himself as a favorite for the Limited Late Model track championship alongside Painter and Pat Rachels. Despite putting together several more solid runs at the track that included two more victories, Midas was forced to watch as Rachels held on to the points lead in the final few races to bring home the championship for himself.
Midas’ success in the back half of 2018 gave him confidence heading into the current season, but he and his family have already endured their fair share of setbacks that have hindered his hopes of a track championship at Hickory. Despite these misfortunes, Midas is confident that a strong run in the CARS Tour this weekend will help move his Late Model program in the right direction.
“We were going to run the first race at Hickory, but I ended up getting diagnosed with pneumonia and bronchitis, so I didn’t run” Midas said. “We really can’t run wherever we want to due to financial reasons, so I talked to my dad and I suggested that we do the CARS Tour race. We had to do something to get noticed.”
Midas has accumulated his fair share of laps at Hickory prior to Saturday’s MTP Tire 300, and he knows that saving tires early on will be imperative to bringing home a solid finish. While he believes that his experience will help him out in some ways, Midas still expects Saturday’s feature to be more of a learning experience as he adapts to running Late Models on a regular basis.
“This is going to be my first 150-lapper,” Midas said. “I have to make the right moves and see how everyone else runs their line, but we also have a bigger carburetor on these cars, so the racing strategy is going to be different for us this weekend.”
With 30 cars entered for Saturday’s Late Model feature at Hickory, Midas will look to obtain a solid qualifying lap so he can start towards the front and make the prospects of a Top 10 finish slightly easier. He will have to deal with a variety of talented drivers that will include former CARS LMSC Tour and Hickory Late Model champion Josh Berry, as well as the most recent Late Model track champion Jacob Heafner.
Cover photo by Sherri Stearns
