[i (Bill W) August 5, 2009]
Everything appears to be in order for “Tornado” Billy Alley heading into the biggest time of year for a sprint car driver. This week, he’ll attempt to win an unprecedented third 360 Nationals title, with a Thursday qualifying effort planned. With a successful 360 effort in Wichita last Sunday, the Lincoln, Nebraska driver is finally comfortable with the racecar.
Comfortable would not have been in Billy’s vocabulary on Friday night. In his first 360 effort in ten weeks since losing his motor in May, he shelled the rear-end in hot laps at the Crawford County Speedway. “We had problems at Denison,” he says. “We broke a rear-end, and I dinged the motor 9700 (r.p.m.’s). We didn’t want to take any chances on it, so we brought it home and checked it out. I had to laugh. What else could I do? It was unbelievable.”
With the 360 in limbo awaiting a leak down, Billy and crew chief Bob “Buns” Richardson inserted the freshened Wesmar 410 for Saturday night’s Knoxville trip. A fourth quick effort in time trials was what the doctor ordered. “The motor was fresh, and that makes a big difference at Knoxville,” says Billy. “I missed on the first lap, but it was still a lot better than we had been doing. It was fresh Wesmar power, and they worked hard to get it freshened within a week. I appreciate it.”
Billy started sixth in his heat, and fell back to seventh early on. A surge brought him back into the top five and a transfer spot. An accident saw him pick up two more spots. “If a batter strikes out five times in a row, their mind starts to wander,” he says. “That’s where I was, and I went a little backwards in the heat to start with. Your confidence gets down and it’s hard to rebound. If I’m patient, everything works out.”
Starting third, he kept the Billy Alley Enterprise #22 in the top five the whole way. Later on, it looked like he may challenge for second, but in the end a solid third place finish awaited. “It was a great third when you’ve been struggling,” he says. “I was still disappointed, because when you’re that close, you might as well win. Granted, the guy who won beat the Outlaws in June, is one of the best around and works hard at it. We should have had something for (second place Brian) Brown, but I made a couple mistakes toward the end. We ran where we should have run.”
Good news awaited back in Lincoln. The 360 checked out fine, so the team headed for and NCRA show at 81 Speedway. “The 360 checked out, so we went to Wichita and raced,” says Billy. “I’ve been struggling with things breaking, and finally things went well. We took the lead from Mike Peters, and the track started to take rubber.”
Perhaps a bit overanxious after so long a dry spell, Billy may have tried to run a little too hard. “I was a car width up from Peters,” he says of his line. “I drove it in hard in four and went over the berm. I think the other cars were running low and throwing dust up where I was running. I just wheeled in a little too hard. When I hit the cushion, my right rear got over the edge on the flat part. I kept my cool…actually, I laughed. I couldn’t believe I did it. It wasn’t the first race I’ve lost that way, and probably won’t be the last.”
Billy rebounded through the field to a seventh place finish, and gained some needed confidence in the car under him. “It gave me confidence in my racecar going into this week,” he says. “I know we have the equipment to get done what we want to get done. We just need a night with no problems, and I can run a good race.”
On the Web
To learn more about Billy Alley, including updated results and photos, visit www.BillyAlley.com!
Billy Alley Gear!
For t-shirts and other apparel, visit www.BillyAlley.com!
Vintage Ric Flair Clip of the Week!
We need someone like Ric Flair in racing. He talks the talk and walks the walk!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tzVirUQ9Uk&feature=related
Down the Alley
Bill W asks: What do you think your chances are of winning a third 360 Nationals?
Billy answers: We need to put a whole night together. We went Thursday last year too. Hopefully, it gets a little slick, because that’s where we are best. You have to keep as levelheaded as possible, but you look at everything and check it over five times because it’s the Natoinals. We’ve got some great people around it, so I’m ready for it to get here, so we can get it done.
Got a question for Billy? Send it to us at sprntcar@iowatelecom.net, and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for Billy" in your subject line.
Alley's Anecdotes
It’s a good bet you’ll see Billy in the top five at the 360 Nationals. When it comes to this event, he doesn’t mess around. In six tries, he has three preliminary wins and two seconds. In five finales, he has two wins (2004, 2005), a third (2008), a seventh and an eighth. Tallying the eleven features run in the 360 Nationals, he has five wins, eight top fives and ten top tens.
Tornado Alley
"Tornado Alley" is an up close look at the past, present and future of 2006 Knoxville Raceway track champion, Billy Alley. To receive "Tornado Alley", send an e-mail to sprntcar@iowatelecom.net with "Alley" in the subject line.
Billy would like to thank Buss Excavating, Bolz Farms, Schmit Automotive, Aeroquip, K&N Filters, Pella Motors, Stepping Stone Genetics, Awesome Racewear, Hoosier Tire, Wesmar Racing Engines, McLain Motorsports, The Buckles Brothers, F&K Rod Ends, “High Roller” the Pig Farmer, JEI Chassis, Red Devil Brakes, Harris Decals, Penske Shocks, RCI, and Terry’s Body Shop.
[i Photo - Billy before he shelled the rear-end at Denison (Gene Kaderabek Photo)]
- Bill Wright on Aug 07, 2009
- Article Date: 8/7/2009