Wilk Is Primed For a Summit Expedition
Posted by: Team Manager Bob Wilber
NORWALK, Ohio. (July 1, 2014) -- It's often said that drag racing is a cruel sport. Get there first and you move on. Come in second and you're dead last. Cruel as it is, drag racing is also fickle. One day you're the darling, the next day you're lost in the wilderness. Put the two characteristics together and you paint a landscape where every day, and every lap, is a new chance to either be a hero, or a zero.
Over the course of the current four-race dragapalooza that has taken the NHRA Mello Yello tour from Appalachia to New England, and then to Chicago along the shores of Lake Michigan, and now to Norwalk in northern Ohio, Tim Wilkerson has seen his fate shift from a dominant near-victory in Bristol, to being the hard-luck champion of the world in Epping, and then to the frustration of a missed opportunity at Route 66. This weekend, at the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals, Wilk aims to revert back to hero form, and he hopes to take it one more step.
"Bristol was almost everything we wanted, and at Epping we were pretty much the quickest car there but we got nothing for it, and in Joliet we made a few mistakes and we let a winnable round get away from us," Wilk said. "You put all those races together, knowing how well we were running under such a variety of conditions, and it's hard to believe we don't have a bunch more round wins. I'm glad we got the three in Bristol, but we could easily have won seven, or eight, or nine in the same stretch.
"Norwalk is always huge for us, because we've been partners with the folks at Summit Racing Equipment for a long time and it's one of the best and most loyal relationships we have, after Levi, Ray & Shoup. We've had some success here, we love the track, we love the fans, and it's time we lived up to what we're capable of. I'm not heading into this race hoping to do okay. We're all anticipating that we will do very well, and winning the race would be the real goal."
Wilk has had a few successful Sundays at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park, including 2010 when he won the race and 2012 when he was runner-up. The "even years" scenario could play into his favor this year, in 2014.
"2010 was a wild one, and they were pushing us hard to get the final in with a big storm coming," Wilk recalled. "They even juggled the order for the pro finals, just going with whichever classes got up there first. It was looking pretty bad, but we got the round in and we beat John Force. Then the downpour hit and we got soaked just towing to the Winner's Circle. Timing is everything, I guess.
"In 2012 we went up there against Mike Neff and it was a really challenging track on a brutally hot day, and I got a little timid. I didn't want to hand it away, so we calmed it down to make sure we went down the track and we just flat got beat. I'm still learning from that lesson. If we get to the final round this year, I'll try not to make that mistake again. We've been trying to be a bit more aggressive here lately, but you can only get after it as much as the track will let you. If it was easy, we'd all be tied for first place."
There's ample reason to be motivated at every stop on the NHRA Mello Yello tour. Add in the need for a rebound, a major race and venue for a valued sponsor, and the important fact that 2014 is an even year, and Wilk has a lot of extra incentive. Capping off this four-race marathon with another trip to the Norwalk Winner's Circle would be just the ticket, and doing so without being drenched would be even better.
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