PRO BOOST

Kevin Rivenbark (far lane) got the Pro Boost win over Tylor Miller.

The three-car GALOT Motorsports team went into this weekend’s Dragstock XIII with an undefeated record after Kevin Rivenbark won the first three races and John Strickland swept the three most recent events. Understandably, the Todd Tutterow-led group was intent on maintaining that record at GALOT Motorsports Park, the pristine new racing facility owned by Earl and Peggy Wells.

John Strickland

As eliminations progressed, it became clear that a GALOT car had a significant chance of ending up in the winner’s circle. All three team cars reached the semifinals after Rivenbark drove his 2015 Corvette to round wins over Kenny Ferguson and Jeremy Ray; Strickland defeated James Linton Jr. and Pete Farber; and Tutterow eliminated Rick Hord and Marc Caruso. Tutterow would fall to Tylor Miller’s Pee Dee Fleet Chevelle in the semifinals, but Rivenbark and Strickland’s pairing ensured that a GALOT car would race for the event victory.

“I start sweating whenever I race John because I know he’s just as good as I am or better. Basically you have to win on the tree. John has progressed tremendously since he started driving these cars a few years ago. You can’t depend on beating him on the lights every time now because he’s been like a machine lately. He hits the tree, goes A to B and does his job well,” Rivenbark boasted of his teammate.

Unfortunately for Strickland, he let go of the trans brake button too soon, throwing away a 3.815 at 195.59 compared to Rivenbark’s winning 3.839 at 193.57. In the Pro Boost final round, Rivenbark repeated his semifinal elapsed time to defeat the quicker 3.834 effort of Miller, who appeared in the last two final rounds against Strickland.

“The only thing that would’ve been better is John and I meeting in the finals, or Todd and I in the finals. To get the win for Mr. and Mrs. Wells at their home track at our first PDRA race at GALOT Motorsports Park is just a wonderful thing.”