Casey Currie Overcomes Early Obstacles to Have a Solid First Weekend in Chandler, AZ
CORONA, California (March 29, 2016) – The race season has officially started for the Lucas Oil Off Road Series and though it got off to a rough start, Casey came away with a solid finish to the weekend in Chandler, Arizona. A few days prior to the races, Casey had to switch to his backup truck with no testing or tuning done to it. However, that didn’t slow him and his team down. During the weekend’s races, Casey made huge strides and was able to find his way through the field and finish in the top 10 on Saturday and in the top 5 on Sunday. Though not quite the finishes he wanted this weekend, he has put himself in a place where, in the next few races, he can work his way to the front of the field in points.
A few days prior to the race weekend, Casey and his team were going through the race truck and found out that they had lost the engine. They were going to need to start the back up truck with no testing and no tuning. Because he was starting with a blank slate, it wasn’t surprising that Casey had some issues during practices and qualifying. Casey knew there was work to be done on the vehicle, but with his team ready to go, they got to work and got the truck ready to take on the largest class of Pro trucks in short course off road racing. Saturday rolled around and still with a few early-season racing bugs to work out managed to pull out a top ten finish, avoiding any carnage and keeping his Jeep on point for Sunday’s race.
After Saturday’s race, Casey commented, “It has been a rough few days, but my team has really put together a vehicle that is just getting better and better. We had such a great truck that we had tested and prepared for this weekend…it was such a disappointment to have to leave that behind and start all over with our backup truck. However, even though we started from scratch, I’m pleased that I was able to keep it in one piece and pull off a top ten finish today. My guys have been working very hard to get this truck ready, and I think tomorrow will be even better.”
Sunday’s qualifying put Casey out of the top ten to start, but that didn’t matter when it came to be race time. Casey worked his way through the field and showed the numerous rookie drivers that experience pays off. He muscled his way through the 14 laps and ended up taking a top 5 finish. When asked about the Sunday race, Casey commented, “I knew we were headed in the right direction. Qualifying didn’t go as well as I had hoped, but the truck came together for the race. The truck felt great and between getting faster and staying out of any incidents, we were able to come home with a top 5 finish putting us right back into the mix of the top teams. The next race at Lake Elsinore we will come out fast and in front.”
With a month between races, Casey and his team will have plenty of time to get a brand new engine in his primary truck and perform proper testing and tuning before heading back to the race track for the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series Rounds 3 & 4. They made great strides in their back-up truck in just a few days for Rounds 1 & 2, so with this extra time, he will be ready with a dialed-in truck to take on the Pro-Lite class at Lake Elsinore.
Casey is on the move and in Moab, Utah for the 50th Annual Easter Jeep Safari.