Story By: A2DPR / KYLE KEEN MOTORSPORTS – PORT ROYAL, PA – It’s been a tough summer for 410 sprint car rookie Kyle Keen.
His season started reasonably well for a rookie on the tough Central PA circuit. He qualified for 11 of his first 15 events and had an average finishing position of 18th. It wasn’t about the finishing position, it was about finishing. Making as many laps as possible each night to give himself the best chance to learn and improve. He was accomplishing that goal.
As summer got into full gear, there seemed to be one challenge after another. Between part failures, the learning curve, and incidents it seemed never-ending.
Keen went into 410 sprint car racing knowing it wouldn’t be easy though, so he just kept grinding it out.
QUICK RESULTS
DATE: September 2, 2024
Event: Labor Day Classic
Division: 410 Sprint Cars
Location: Port Royal Speedway, ort Royal, PA
Stats: 40 cars, Group 1 Qualifying 3rd, Heat 2nd (4), A-main 20th (9)
OFF TRACK
PA Speedweek brought on the first hurdle of the summer for Keen when he encountered an engine part failure at Hagerstown Speedway in Maryland. It was his third Speedweek race attempt and third DNQ (did not qualify) but against the stout fields that series draws, there was certainly no reason to stress over the results.
The engine issue sidelined the Fine Line Auto Body, Hess Bid / Hess Auctioneers, Keen Parts / CorvetteParts.net, Shetron Trailers, Heishman Racing Fuels, DL Lehman Construction, Fuel Ox No.17k for four weeks. Keen returned to Williams Grove Speedway on August 2nd, shook off the rust, and logged a 16th-place finish. It seemed all was normal again.
That feeling was replaced with frustration over the following two weeks. Keen raced four times, making only one feature and damaging two cars.
After showing good speed early in the evening in his first-ever venture to the track, Keen got caught up in an incident that started a few rows in front of him in the A-main at Lincoln Speedway on August 17th, then suffered a steering part issue one week later on August 23rd at Williams Grove Speedway in the B-main.
Each week he bounced back after long hours in the shop preparing to get back to the track. The labor and expense are difficult enough to overcome but the mental toughness required to soldier on through trials like these is even harder for a driver, even if sometimes the circumstances are not your fault.
Confidence wanes. Self-doubt creeps in.
Overcoming that can often be more difficult than figuring out the right setup for the race car. They say a confident driver is worth two-tenths of a second, so when the going gets tough, all focus turns to getting back to basics. The goal becomes to simply put together a full night, make the show, and get back to the shop with everything in one piece.
BACK ON TRACK
With racing action on August 30th and 31st washed out by rain, Keen shifted his attention to his first-ever Labor Day Classic at Port Royal Speedway. The event provides a unique challenge to drivers and teams on the tricky daytime surface.
Keen got his afternoon off on the right foot by spinning off the 3rd quickest lap in his group to earn the 2nd starting spot in his heat race.
The Carlisle, PA native kept the momentum going, challenging for the lead on the opening lap of the heat race. Chase Dietz fended off the surge by Keen, who settled into 2nd. He went on to maintain full control of the runner-up spot to the finish.
Keen found himself with a top-ten starting spot for the 73rd Annual Labor Day Classic, something that quickly reinstated at least some of his confidence behind the wheel.
The only thing that didn’t go right for Keen on Monday afternoon was his setup choices for the feature. The daylight surface was a new challenge and they guessed wrong, causing the No.17k to fall back in the running order.
Mired in 20th with less than ten laps remaining and nothing to gain from continuing, Keen retired from the event.
“We had the boat anchor out.”, Keen said with a good-natured grin. “We missed the setup for the feature but it’s all good, it’s part of us learning to figure out what we need to be more hooked up with a full fuel load.”
“I’m proud of our team! We’ve been getting closer and closer this season. And we haven’t quit despite some really tough challenges. I’m really proud of how well we have been qualifying the last few races, which is a super important part of being successful in these things.”
Keen has the right attitude and work ethic to weather what his rookie season throws at him. There are still a few races left and he intends to finish 2024 strong.