Photo Credit: Ashley McCubbin
As the season kicks off, there seems to be a bunch of drivers that are going to be really busy this year with running a bunch of races, especially on the super late model side. Derrick Tiemersma has become the third driver to commit to running the full OSCAAR Super Late Model tour and Avenue Auto Parts Super Late Model schedule for 2016.
“It should be a good season,” he told Race Time Radio. “It’s going to be a busy season between both series.”
The driver of the No. 7 Wayfreight/Speedy Auto Machine SLM admits, though, that making it happen will boil down to time and money as “the cost of racing is crazy out of hand”, but is putting the plan in motion on opening weekend by running Flamboro Speedway on Saturday May 21, followed by Sunset Speedway on the Sunday.
Tiemersma is one of the familiar faces on the tour, having been involved in super late model racing since 2007. An OSCAAR Champion and Don Biederman Memorial Champion, he also knows how to get it done behind the wheel. Though he also knows the competition he faces, with plenty of past champions and race winners set to mix it up in both fields.
“I don’t know if there’s a safe way to go about it anymore,” he commented. “So many guys come out with good equipment now so I think at the end of the day, especially the 50 lap feature, there’s no saving time. It’s go from lap one because when you have drivers like J.R. Fitzpatrick and Glenn Watson, you can’t rest on your loyals. You have to go and go now.
“So hopefully you can get to the front and maybe save your tires a bit. But the quality of drivers and equipment right now, it’s go-go the whole time.”
Though while trying to make sure to be as quick as he needs to be, he notes that you need to save the right rear as if you can do that, you will “have something for the end”.
Beyond racing super lates, he’s also dipped his feet in other racing avenues, running a late model and as part of CASCAR in the past.
“It’s been a fantastic career so far, and a lot of fun,” he said. “I’m still one of those guys that love to travel to different tracks – I’m not a one track guy. I like the fact that I’ve driven in a bunch of different series. It’s been a lot of fun.”
Despite all the experience, he admits that super lates are the most fun to drive.
“When those things are hooked up there, you can’t do no wrong; you’re flying around the track,” he commented. “But when they’re evil, evil.”
