RUSSELL KING: ROOKIE DIRT MODIFIED RACER ADVANCES AT TRI-CITY
by Brian Spaid

July 23, 2004 

   His grandfather was a famous car owner. His father was a track champion. Now, he is a rising star in local motorsports.

   Bristolville, Ohio, DIRT Modified driver Russell King, who is in his first year of racing at Tri-City Speedway, is attracting attention in the pit area. And he’s only 15-years-old.

   “I think he’s doing pretty good,” said his mother, Sis.

   “He seems comfortable behind the wheel and he’s got the car under control,” added his father, Rex, who was the 1985 and 1995 Sharon Speedway track champion. Currently, he is in a battle for the 2004 track title at Tri-City with Andy Priest, Del Rougeux Jr. and Kevin Bolland.  

   Despite praise from his parents, King is the strongest critic of his own on-track, rookie performance.

   “We’ve done alright this season so far, but I feel I can do better,” said the Bristol High School sophomore. “I really thought I’d be a little faster than I am right now.”

   King actually comes to Tri-City with some racing experience under his belt. At nine, King started racing go karts at Good Hope Speedway in New Springfield, Ohio. He competed for four seasons and earned 22 feature wins and two track titles.

   Despite his early success, mom and dad shut the operation down in 2002. Why?

   “Grades,” recalled King. “I ran nothing that season because my parents said I had bad grades and I needed to improve if I want to drive a race car.”

   That rule still exists today in the King household.

   “If Russell wants to race, he’s got to keep his grades up, and he knows it,” stated his father.

    King maintained his school obligations, and he’s now teaching some of the veteran DIRT Modified racers a thing or two on the track. King’s ability to race is somewhat limited. He is allowed to compete at Tri-City with permission from the track’s insurer given his age. Other than the Venango County half-mile oval, King also ran this season at Volusia County (Fla.) Speedway and Merrittville Speedway in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. In August, he will be able to add Central PA Speedway in Clearfield to his resume. When he is 16 next summer, he expects to be able to race elsewhere.

   “I think I’ll race at Sharon and Tri-City next year. The DIRT Modified is just awesome. It’s totally different than anything I’ve ever done.”

   With only 10 nights of racing under his belt, King showed expert skills at Tri-City on Jun. 27 when he ran at the front of the pack early in the 20-lap feature and finished a career-best fifth ahead of his father.

   “It felt good to be able to beat a lot of the older drivers. There are a lot of guys out there who’ve been doing this a lot longer than I have. I think we can win a feature race, but there are a lot of tough drivers out there. I just need a little more experience.”

   His father is giving him a lot of feedback as well. After working on his father’s racers for many years, the younger King knows about setting up a DIRT Modified. Driving one, however, is a little different.

   “Usually, on our way home on Sunday nights, Dad and I watch a videotape of my racing. He’ll show me what I’m doing wrong and teach me how to make adjustments to my driving style.”

   The night he finished fifth, his father raced through the field all the while watching his boy battle up at the front of the pack.

   “Sis told me later that if I was watching what I was doing, instead of watching Russell, I could have won,” chuckled Rex King. “Seriously though, he ran a good race that night. It gave him a big boost of confidence after a rocky start.”

   On opening night, King belted the turn two water barrels in hot laps. The next week, the rookie was involved in an accident with another driver in a heat race. Even the last time out at Tri-City on Jul. 11, King was the victim of a run-in with a different driver, who crashed into him during the feature race, and the damage to his King Bros. Ready Mix Bicknell No. 56 was significant.

   “Mom and Dad have really helped me to learn to keep my cool. That last time, I wanted to get out of the car and talk to that guy. That’s the emotion of it all. But Mom told me that I just needed to calm down and realize that’s part of racing. I now know what the big league racers mean when they say that they’ll remember the next time out.”

   That seems like tough talk from a young racer learning the ropes, but King actually has bigger plans in mind.

   “I see myself racing DIRT Modifieds for a couple of years. I’d like to get into asphalt racing. We’ve seen the Late Models up at Lake Erie Speedway. I want to get on track to make it into NASCAR. When you watch guys like Kasey Kahne and Brian Vickers, you realize that you can make it as a young driver. I’d really like to become a professional racer.”

   And Mom and Dad support him in his endeavors.

   “Rex and I believe he can make the big time,” said Sis King. “We both support him. I have to admit though that I feel like I’m going to throw up when he’s out there. I used to hear other mothers talk about those feelings, but I never thought I’d have them. I was wrong.”

   One thing both parents are happy about is the safety of the DIRT Modifieds.

   “Those cars are good cars for him to start out in,” noted Rex King.

   “You never skimp on safety for your kids,” added his wife.

   Despite a few accidents and a large learning curve, King is doing well. King’s recent top five finish is a bright beginning to a budding career, one that may take him all the way to Daytona.