Craig Goess and his No. 81 Greenville Toyota were on their way to a top-five finish this past Sunday at Salem (Ind.) Speedway. That is, until a right front tire blew and sent Goess' Camry into the backstretch wall with less than 25 laps remaining. Goess managed to complete the race, finishing in the 15th position, 10 laps down to the leaders after running in the top-five a majority of the 200-lap race and starting on the front row.
“I'm pretty happy with how things went this past weekend for the Greenville Toyota team,” said Goess. “I definitely gave it everything I had in qualifying and surely didn't have anything left. It would've been nice to have gotten the pole, but we got the next best thing by starting second.”
Goess was making his first career ARCA RE/MAX Series start at the high-banked half-mile. Even though this was his initial appearance at the track, he certainly mastered the place quickly. Goess was fifth on the speed chart during the practice session held on Saturday. For qualifying, Goess held the top spot for a while until his Eddie Sharp Racing teammate, Justin Lofton, eclipsed him in the final stages.
From the drop of the green flag, Goess held his positioning in the top-five, even leading the first lap, until pitting on lap 111 for four fresh tires and to pull out the right front fender.
“The handling went away and we pitted two times during the race to make adjustments,” Goess explains. “The car didn't like those changes until the last stop and it finally came back around. I grazed the right side of the car along the wall and I think it knocked the toe out, but we were able to get it better at the end.”
The Eddie Sharp Racing team certainly did get the No. 81 Toyota Camry better. After restarting in the 12th position, Goess had made his way up to the eighth spot until lap 177. Goess was making the move on previous series champion Frank Kimmel, when the right front tire gave way and he hit the wall.
“We were in the process of passing Kimmel and I heard a 'pow' going down the backstretch,” said Goess. “I guess we melted the bead on the right front tire and it sent me into the wall. We were able to get a new tire on the car, but just had to ride around to the finish after suffering some damage.”
Goess managed to complete the race in 15th position, 10 laps down to the leader, but more importantly earned valuable points and left Salem in the sixth position in points and now, also, leads the rookie of the year standings.
Goess is testing Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway on Wednesday, April 8 in preparation of the series' race in three weeks. The next race on the schedule is next weekend, April 18-19, at Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway for the Carolina 200.
Tire Blows Goess' Chance for Top-Five Finish
First Trip to Salem is a Successful One
Craig Goess (#81) keeps ahead of eventual winner Patrick Sheltra (#60) at Salem. (ARCA Photo)
