HAMPTON, VA :: Casey Wyatt is excited about the 2013 season. He feels the new pavement at Langley Speedway, along with upgrades the team has made during the offseason, will make him competitive as he seeks the Langley Speedway Track Championship.
“We’ve upgraded our car quite a bit from where it was and upgraded the front end suspension,” Wyatt said. “We’ve made a lot of upgrades on the body so I’m looking forward to this season. We took a car down to Myrtle Beach before we took it to Langley. Just the car from last year was a whole lot faster. I’m really looking forward going in to this season, it gave us some confidence.”
Wyatt has several new sponsors for his racing program this year. The most noticeable change for the veteran driver will be the car number. He will change his car number from 29 to 92.9, a result of the radio station that will sponsor his racing program. Wyatt is sponsored this season by 92.9 The Wave, Art Newsom Heating and Air, Edward Jones Investments, Get Some Xtreme Wear, Signature Mulch, Forever Green Lawn Care, Joe’s Auto Parts, Vinny’s Pizza and Pasta and While You Were Out Cleaning Services.
“It’s better to have more than enough sponsors than not enough for sure,” Wyatt remarked. “That’s brought a lot of excitement to the offseason. We’ve got a lot of support and a good fan base behind me.”
Wyatt feels the new asphalt will be an equalizer for competitors this season and could erase some of the advantage CE Falk and Greg Edwards have had over past seasons.
“I think the asphalt will be an equalizer. The old pavement was harder to get around. There were a lot of tricks to get around and CE found those tricks. It wasn’t that he was that much faster but his car just never fell off. They hit the money spot on the setup. The new pavement seems to have helped, it’s eliminated the tricks. The track has more grip and the car can be more forgiving.”
Wyatt thinks it’s possible to contend for the championship.
“Halfway through the season last year, we were leading the points before we blew the motor at the Hampton Heat. We got desperate on the setup. We got back on track at the end of the season but it was too little too late. We finished one point out of third. It’s going to take some good luck and you’ll have to keep yourself out of trouble.
“The track’s going to be faster so you’ll crash harder and things will happen faster. It’s going to put stress on our equipment so we’ve always been well prepared every week without our car and we have a good maintenance program. It’s going to be tough. I won’t say we’ll win the championship but we’ll be in the hunt. If not for the blown motor, we would’ve finished second in points or better. This season will be the toughest season though because there will be more cars and the new surface. It will be an exciting season for the fans.”
Wyatt does feel he has an advantage with experience.
“Experience matters. That’s why we might have a leg up on everybody. I’m 29 years old and this will be my 21st year of racing and 13th year in LMSC. I’ve done a lot of schooling and I’ve graduated chassis and shock school and all that. I started setting up my own cars when I was 18 and others cars when I was in 22. Having that experience, and having feedback from guys in the NASCAR ranks and that sort of deal, that’s where experience pays off. Going to other tracks also helps. We’ve always had a knack for getting everything out of the car.”
Wyatt has grown up around Langley Speedway. The third generation racer is the son of former track owner Wayne Wyatt.
“My dad and my granddad were racing back in the days of showroom cars being raced. My granddad raced up and down the east coast and made a living. He raced everywhere from Maine to Daytona Beach. He raced at Darlington and other tracks like that. My dad, growing up, he was in to racing and hot rodding and everything else. I just followed in their footsteps.”
Wyatt feels confident about Langley Speedway and says the track has always been on the map and will continue to grow.
“Langley’s always been on the map. Growing up racing out there, my dad owned the track from 1995-2005. When we did all the renovations to the track, Langley was top five in the nation for a while. My dad received a lot of awards. You’ve got the K&N race, the Southern Modifieds, my dad had ASA out there. We’ve been on ESPN and TNT. That deal with CE Falk at Daytona lit up social media and was all over TV and SPEED. I think it brought a lot of attention to Langley Speedway.”
Wyatt will compete in Langley Speedway’s season opener on Saturday, April 6th. RACE22.com will have live coverage of the season opening race.
