Last year, Shirk won two features in his old modified racer, and “could’ve won three more” — all while a new car sat in his trailer.
“My old car was so sweet to me that I didn’t have the time to get this car set up,” Shirk said.
This year, however, Shirk was bent on racing his new car.
“I was going to run it until we got it right,” Shirk said. “It’s definitely a mean car we’ve got together now.”
It took until mid-July, but Shirk is finally reaping the rewards. Last week, Shirk said the car showed signs of being the fastest on the track.
“We were second last week, but ran out of laps,” Shirk said. “We needed about two more laps.”
This week, he said he started sixth and needed about 12 laps to pass the leader. He led the rest of the way.
“It almost felt like my first (victory) really,” Shirk said. “It’s been a struggle all year.”
Shirk was named Most Popular Driver at Columbus last season, and is known for clean racing. He gets a thrill out of what he calls “true racing.”
“You’ve got to go to the outside and pass,” Shirk said. “You have to be so much better than the person on the inside lane. (The car’s) got to be perfectly sweet.”
As for his old car, Shirk loaned it out to a friend in need. Two weeks ago, New Carlisle native Dick Dunlevy Jr. and crew chief Dick Ater lost their car in an accident.
Shirk had to help out his friend. Dunlevy Jr. finished seventh in Shirk’s car last Saturday.
“It’s a very good car, he’s just not used to it,” Shirk said.
Despite his early season struggles, Shirk is still hoping to make a run at a points title. He’s currently fifth and said he’ll need several strong finishes and some good luck to win the title.
“Hopefully, this next half is better than the first half,” Shirk said.
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