JIM RASEY USES TECHNICAL BREAKTHROUGHS TO LEAD DIRT MOD POINTS
by Brian Spaid

 June 28, 2003

                As the racing season nears its midpoint at area tracks, one DIRT Modified driver has used some technological breakthroughs and savvy driving to lead the point standings at Sharon Speedway and Tri-City Speedway.

                Jim Rasey of Southington, Ohio, is the hottest driver in the open-wheel, big-block modified stock car division. And he’s driving a chassis that many pit observers consider to be inferior.

                “We’ve done well racing our Troyer chassis against all those new Bicknell cars,” said Rasey, who is the manager at a hazardous materials recycling plant, AKJ Industries in Warren, Ohio. “Everyone stepped up in the DIRT Modifieds with new chassis and engines, but we’re comfortable running our old stuff and improving every week.”

                DIRT Modified racing has evolved over the last three decades. In the early days of the division, old jalopies were converted into modified stock cars. The late Dick Tobias of Lebanon revolutionized the class when he built the first tube frame chassis in 1973. Tobias, fellow driver Dave Kneisel of Clarks Summit and famed midget car owner Grant King became well-known DIRT Modified chassis designers throughout the rest of the decade.

                In 1981, NASCAR Modified star Maynard Troyer of Rochester, NY, took the division to the next step. Following the 1980 Eckerd Syracuse 200 when sprint car and modified star Kenny Weld rocked the DIRT Modified world with the famed and aerodynamic Batmobile that carried Gary Balough to victory, Troyer created his own design using his knowledge of asphalt racing and converting it to dirt. Three-time Mr. DIRT Modified champion Alan Johnson piloted Troyer’s first car to victory in its first race. From there, Troyer and his car, originally known as the Mud Buss, became one of the top chassis in the class. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Troyer and Budd Olsen took over the class. Olsen, a former modified driver, used stars like Brett Hearn and Doug Hoffman to make the Olsen Eagle a household name.

                By the mid-1990s, Canadian small block modified star Pete Bicknell and New Jersey race car engineer Bobby Hearn came on the scene. Bicknell’s cars gradually became dominant, and his chassis are now the top cars in the region. Like Bicknell, Hearn’s Teo Pro Car is popular, but more so on eastern New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey tracks. In 2002, Olsen Eagles became extinct and were replaced with the Dirt Wheels chassis built by a new group from the Garden State.

                All the while, Troyer cars were still part of the action. Numerous drivers in our region have piloted Troyer DIRT Modifieds to feature wins and track championships. Nowadays, however, to beat the Bicknell cars is a major feat.

                Which brings this whole topic back to Rasey. Last season, he debuted a brand new Troyer DIRT Modified, but struggled with it. As a result, he and his family-owned team focused their attention to detail during the offseason.

                “We did our homework this past winter,” said Rasey, who started his racing career in 1996. “We worked closely with Troyer Engineering to improve our setup. They’ve lost some major customers and big names recently, and they’re struggling because Bicknell is doing so well. But I’m confident in their cars and I’m used to them.”

                With some new-found knowledge, Rasey, 31, traveled to Florida and North Carolina for some early season DIRT Modified events. Down south, he improved his performance from prior events in that region, and then he met a new friend.

                “I met Todd Thompson in North Carolina, and he introduced me to ProTrac shocks. Todd’s worked with Late Model driver Donnie Moran. He’s also worked with Troyer and another DIRT Modified driver, Todd Burley. These shocks work real well, especially at Sharon. They’re triple adjustable. That includes the compression and rebound. I can change the shock performance from inside the race car, and it’s a huge improvement.”

                Now armed with new technology, Rasey drove with confidence into the new season up north. On opening night at Sharon, he literally “shocked” everyone when he passed defending track champion Ron Smoker late in the race to win. The following week, he salvaged a third place finish following a huge wreck.

                “We bent the chassis three inches to the right. It was so bad, we couldn’t take the valve covers off the engine. So, my dad and I along with a couple of veteran mechanics, Keith Robinson and Jimmy McFetridge, cut and added some new bars. We basically put some old racing technology back into the modern design.”

                To Rasey’s pleasant surprise, the car improved even more. He picked up another win at Sharon and now has seven top five finishes in eight races at Hartford, Ohio, track. At Tri-City, he has six top five finishes in eight races with a top finish of second.

                “We’re real consistent, and that’s what it will take to win both titles,” said Rasey. “We’ve actually got an older Troyer chassis I acquired from Jeff Hoffman a couple of years ago ready to race. It makes me more comfortable with a backup car ready to run in case the good one wrecks. I’m a little frustrated that I haven’t won at Tri-City, though.”

                Rasey’s lack of appearances in the winner’s circle at Tri-City is unusual given his success this season. Rasey attributes the losses to a different type of track.

                “Tri-City is a little more dry and slick than Sharon, and the Bicknell cars really seem to hook up on that type of track. The Troyer car works better on a heavier surface,” said Rasey in reference to the water quantity in the clay.

Rasey’s solution is simple and humorous.

“I just need to drive the water truck for a few laps during the week to fix that,” he laughed.

In just eight seasons, Rasey has moved from a backmarker to race winner to possible champion. He’s gained a lot of knowledge over the years to get to this point in his racing career. It just goes to show how technical the sport has become since the days when a racer could drive his stock car to the track.

Rasey’s Troyer No. 32 is sponsored by North Carolina’s Twin Oaks Services South as well as Victory 1 Performance of Salem, Ohio, ProTrac Dampeners Technology of Zanesville, Ohio, Canfield Cylinder Heads of Canfield, Ohio, Moody Ads of Southington, Ohio, Barrickman Images of Cortland, Ohio, Minor’s Performance of Lordstown, Ohio, and Wedge Motorsports of Niles, Ohio.