Story By: A2DPR / KODY HARTLAUB RACING – PORT ROYAL, PA – Kody Hartlaub has been fast all season. He has turned heads.
That said, the finishes have not reflected just how good this young driver and team have been. That may have turned a corner as we head into the first big race weekend of the summer.
ON THE RADAR
Hartlaub started the month of May by checking off two life-long racing goals in one night. He made the dash and participated in the 4-wide parade lap at a World of Outlaws sprint car event.
It all took place at Lincoln Speedway’s Gettysburg Clash back on May 9th after the 410 sprint car rookie clocked in with the 5th fastest lap of the night in qualifying.
Hartlaub went on to start and finish 2nd in his heat race, just behind legend Donny Schatz, then brought home a 5th place finish in the dash to solidify the inside row three starting spot in the A-main.
The night’s finale was the only chapter that wasn’t fitting of a storybook tale. The East Berlin, PA resident slid backwards in the running order and late in the race became collateral damage in a mess someone else created.
Still, the ending didn’t change the fact that Hartlaub was a factor that night and it certainly didn’t erase his name from the racing community chatter.
TURNING THE CORNER
Despite the noteworthy effort against the World of Outlaws as well as several other high points thus far in 2024, Hartlaub had struggled to log a top ten finish in the Brewer Home Improvements, J Fuels, MooseBlocks.com, Bigham Appraisal, Griffith Plumbing Services, T and N Solutions No.95.
Through his first ten starts Hartlaub had an average feature finishing position of 15th, including two 11th place finishes. The team had struggled to put a complete night together.
“We have started strong but then we either missed the setup and slid backwards, or I would make a mistake that cost us spots.”, Hartlaub shared.
“Both are learning opportunities and we are making sure we do gain from those. I’m working hard to eliminate the mistakes in the cockpit and we as a team are building a better notebook so we can finish as strong as we start.”
Sunday night, May 19th, Hartlaub and team showed they were putting it all together and progressing. With 39 cars on hand, the night started strong once again. He turned in the 2nd quickest lap in his group, behind only Anthony Macri, then locked into the redraw with a 4th place finish in his heat.
Hartlaub started 5th but struggled to find a rhythm early and found himself 12th with five laps complete, but this time the story didn’t end there.
After settling down and finding his groove, Hartlaub battled his way back to a 10th place finish, looking much more comfortable in the latter half of the race.
“Fighting back like that was a big confidence boost. We are definitely making good progress as a team.”, Hartlaub said.
“I can’t say enough about all my great partners. Pat (Brewer) does so much for me. We couldn’t do it without every single partner though. And in this sport, there’s always room for more people to join the team. It’s a tough deal that takes a lot of resources if you want to be good at it, and that’s our goal.”
UP NEXT
The upcoming holiday weekend will bring two opportunities for Hartlaub to build on that momentum.
First up will be Williams Grove Speedway on Friday night for the $10,039-to-win John Trone Tribute. Saturday night the team will travel to Lincoln Speedway for the Bob Leiby Memorial.