Budds Creek, MD- It would be an understatement to say that Potomac Speedway’s U-Car class has provided a very affordable way to get into racing. Since the class became a weekly attraction in 2010 the racing has been tremendous and has given a jumpstart to several drivers’ careers that have burgeoned through the years.
Mikey Latham who tallied 18 career division wins during his class tenure has since moved on to become a three-time hobby stock champion collecting 22 wins in the process. Jeremy Pilkerton started in this class and would post four wins before moving to the street stocks where he was a 12-time winner. Since then Jeremy has collected the past two crate late model championships and has scored 10 victories.
The 2013 season would see a changing of the guard in the class that was dominated by male drivers up to this point. Erica Bailey would become the first female in class history to not only win a feature event, as she took two on the season, but would also become the first female track champion in Potomac history. The trend continued in 2014 as youthful Megan Mann would rack up 4-feature wins and become the second consecutive female driver in the class with the score of the track title.
I don’t think anyone would be prepared to see what would happen as the class entered the 2016 season. The name Savannah Windsor became a household fixture and would have a division run like no other in class history. After scoring her first win in that same season, Windsor would go on to win track championships in 2016, 2017, and 2018 picking up 20-feature wins along the way. Savannah’s 20 victories have her at the top of the division’s all-time win list, a distinction that no other female driver has even come close to in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Since then the wins have been few and far between for the “Women on wheels” even though several class regulars would start to string together strong finishes. Faith Lacey, Mackenzie Smith, Kristy Whitehouse, and Brooke Bowles, just to name a few, have had many stellar events and appear poised for their first Potomac win. By the numbers, Potomac has hosted 160 events for the class with the ladies notching 27 feature wins (17% of all class wins) and 5 track championships along the way.
The U-Car’s made its first appearance of the season last Friday night and attracted a quality 17-car field. The event got underway with Joey Suite jumping into the lead until his car quit on the 8th lap. Meanwhile, third starting Kristy Whitehouse was in the right place at the right time with Suites misfortune and would take the race lead and would pace in the remaining seven circuits to become the 42nd different division winner in the track 160th class event.
“Well after leading two races back to back last year and then falling shortcoming to the checkered flag I was a little hard on myself,” Kristy stated. “Friday night I started third and dropped back a few positions and really didn’t think I was going to win. I was just waiting for the right time to make my move and once I saw the opportunity to take the lead I took it and never looked back.” Despite being in the same position twice this season prior, Kristy held tough for the breakthrough win. “When I was leading I just had to tell myself that don’t rush it, don’t try to push through the turns just take my time I got this. To finally be able to win and be in victory Lane was a feeling I’ll never forget!!”
Notes-
- Taking part in the track’s second race of the season was 9 Late Models, 9 Street Stocks, 22 Hobby Stocks, 14 Strictly Stocks, and 17 U Cars. After troubles on an opening day with is ARC race car no.78 defending hobby stock champion Mikey Latham would take a second in the division feature
- After having a subpar night in Friday’s late model feature, Kyle Hardy would steer his Sommey Lacey owned Rocket no.45 to a solid fourth-place finish in Saturday’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Event at Hagerstown Speedway
- Greg Mattingly’s strictly stock victory would be his 19th career division win
- Hobby Stock rookie Justin Hatcher has oddly enough, started in 11th in both features run at the track to date steering his family-owned no.77, taking 6th place finishes in both features
- With 71 cars total in the pit area, every car in every division would start their respective features except one driver, Kaitlyn Inscoe in the U Cars
- Dylan Penn’s third-place finish in the U car feature was impressive in the fact that it would be his first career start at the track and it would come from way back in the 12th starting spot
- Eric Hanson has been equally productive in the early season as he has carried his no.21 to finishes of 2nd and 3rd in the hobby stock class
- Defending late model champion Jamie Lathroum was noticeably absent from the first late-model event at Potomac this season as an off-season foot injury kept Lathroum out of the driver’s seat for this most recent event
- Stevie Gingery’s first-ever street stock feature wins on Friday made him the 100th different driver to win in the class overall 669th feature event.