Ace Speedway will cap off a tumultuous season shortened by COVID-19 pandemic restrictions with its most prestigious race in the Rodney Cook Classic, which has attracted several strong drivers in two-time CARS LMSC Tour champion Bobby McCarty and defending winner Layne Riggs.
Dustin Rumley, who brought home his fourth track championship in Ace’s Late Model division this year, has also filed an entry for the race, and is eager to cap off his stellar season with a victory after tallying four consecutive second place finishes.
“We had some good runs this year even though we didn’t get to race a whole lot,” Rumley said. “We’ve been consistent and we got this car running really good. Now I’m just ready to cash that $10,000 check.”
When North Carolina governor Roy Cooper forced Ace Speedway to suspend operations following a weekly event on May 30, Rumley elected to step out of his Late Model and exclusively focus on running his family business in Rumley Trailers.
Although Rumley wanted to keep racing during the pandemic, he admitted that primarily working on Saturdays made it impossible for him to visit other facilities, but he added that the extra time with Rumley Trailers helped the company succeed in a year marred by economic downturn.
Rumley said that nothing was going to keep him away from the 2020 edition of the Rodney Cook Classic, as he is determined to add his name to the exclusive list of winners after a potential, race-winning run was derailed in the closing laps of last year’s race.
Rumley ran inside the Top 3 all afternoon while conserving his equipment, but he saw an opportunity to take the lead by engaging in a three-wide battle with Riggs and McCarty with less than 30 to go, only for Rumley to end after making contact with McCarty, which left him furious after the race.
“We had pretty much cleared for the lead, but McCarty decided that he didn’t want any part of that,” Rumley said. “He just turned hard right on us heading in Turn 1, which locked us together, threw me up in the air and put me head on into the wall. I haven’t forgotten that either.”
Rumley said he plans to be in front of McCarty for the whole race, but he knows that maintaining a lead over the other competitive cars will be a tough task requiring consistency, patience and good fortune.
“The Rodney Cook Classic always brings a good crowd,” Rumley said. “It’s all going to be about getting the car to drive good and making it 140 laps. The fastest car doesn’t always win this race and that often ends up being the case a lot. Brakes and tires will be important at the end, but you just have to see how things play out.”
Qualifying for the Late Model portion of the Rodney Cook Classic is set to begin at 1:30 p.m.. The 140-lap feature will serve as the fifth race of the afternoon, with the first support event set to get underway at 3:00 p.m..
