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IT’S HALFTIME - Alli Owens has
reached the halfway point of her 2008 season. The driver of the No.
12 ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet is currently scheduled to
compete in 10 ARCA RE/MAX Series and the Racing for Wildlife 200 at
Michigan International Speedway marks the start of the second half
of her season. THE SWEET TASTE OF SUCCESS -
After a bitterly disappointing finish to last week’s race at Pocono,
Alli Owens is anxious to pick up where she left off. The 19-year-old
was heading toward her career first top-10 finish when, with four
laps remaining, she was swept into an unavoidable accident. Instead
of dwelling on the negative, Owens heads into her first race at
Michigan International Speedway, the Racing for Wildlife 200, with
renewed confidence. HAPPY FATHER’S DAY DAD! - This
weekend, fathers throughout the country will be honored and Mike
Owens, Alli’s father will be no exception. The driver of the No. 12
ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet hopes to honor her father the best
way she knows how - with a career best finish. Regardless, she is
happy just to spend her weekend with him. OWENS FINISHES 15th AT ‘THE ROCK’
“My goal last week was to finish,” said Owens. “Then we set a goal to finish in the top 15, which we did today. Our next goal is a top 10 finish. I’m learning that if we start small, we will finish bigger in the end.” The 312 lap race under the scorching Carolina sun proved to be a challenge for all drivers, but Owens, a rookie, approached it like a seasoned veteran. She battled the ever-changing track conditions and 49 other competitors in grand style. “To be able to finish at ‘The Rock’ with the car in one piece in a 50-car field is huge and really awesome,” said Owens. “We’ve been able to run all the races without a scratch on the car. It’s a trend we hope to continue.” Owens started from the 22nd spot and in the early portion of the race, found her car much to her liking. As the race wore on, the car became tight, a condition she battled until the late stages of the event. “The car was perfect for the first 50 laps but as the track changed, it became too tight,” explained Owens. “Mario (Gosselin) made adjustments to it throughout the race and it kept getting better and better. Toward the end, the car and track conditions came to us and we gained a bunch of spots.” In the final 25 laps, Owens gained four spots en route to her 15th place finish. “Our ElectrifyingCareers.com team was awesome and as always did a fantastic job,” added Owens. “I’m pleased with the day knowing the circumstances and issues we fought and knowing that we overcame them. We learned a lot today and are definitely satisfied. This is an extremely difficult race track. Even the top points leaders had trouble. It’s a major accomplishment for us to finish 15th and without a mark on the car. This was a very good day and this is something we can build upon as we head to our next race.” The next race for Owens and the ElectrifyingCareers.com team is the Pocono 200 at Pocono Raceway held on June 7th. IT’S A PRIVILEGE TO RACE AT THE ROCK -
“Rockingham is a place where many legendary racing stories have played out,” said Owens. “I always hoped that one day I would have the chance to create my own racing stories there. Now that I have my chance, I view it as a privilege. This weekend is definitely something special to me.” Owens drives the No. 12 ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet and is competing in selected ARCA RE/MAX Series races in 2008. The Carolina 500 marks the Daytona Beach, Fla. native’s first visit to Rockingham “It’s awesome to be among the drivers that are bringing professional stock car racing back to its North Carolina roots,” added Owens. “This first race here means so much to everyone - the local community, the racing community. There is going to be electricity in the air. To be a part of this is a huge honor.”
Alli Owens, driver of the No. 12
ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet will carry an in-car camera in the
Kansas Lottery 150 and it will be sponsored by the IBEW Local 347. Based
in Des Moines, IA, IBEW Local 347 was scheduled to sponsor Owens’ in-car
camera last week at Iowa Speedway, but poor weather hindered its use.
OWENS REACHES FIRST ARCA GOAL WITH 18th PLACE FINISH IN KANSAS Kansas City, KS (April 26, 2008) - After two disappointing finishes, Alli Owens and the ElectrifyingCareers.com team turned their fortunes around with a solid 18th place effort in the Kansas Lottery $150 Grand ARCA RE/MAX Series race at Kansas Speedway. It marked the first time the Daytona Beach, Fla. native has taken a checkered flag in the series. “We finished,” said Owens, after she climbed from her No. 12 entry. “That was goal number one. It was cool to look up and see the checkered flag. I was starting to miss that feeling. Now that we’ve finished a race, we have better and bigger goals to look forward to.” Owens’ weekend was strong from start to finish. She was ninth fastest in practice and her qualifying lap of 169.476 mph lined her up in the 14th spot, her career best series start. “Qualifying was awesome,” said Owens. “Starting 14th was way cool.” In the race, Owens found it a bit tougher. Her car was tight from the start and while the many adjustments made by crew chief Mario Gosselin helped, it was never quite to the liking of the 19-year-old rookie driver. “Unfortunately, we struggled with a tight car the whole race,” explained Owens. “After Mario made some changes it was better but still not perfect. We’ve only worked together in three races and are still learning each other. As the year goes on, there is no doubt we will continue to improve.” As has been the trademark of her career, Owens fought on despite the adversities. “I worked with what we had and made the best of it,” said Owens. “The team did a great job keeping me in it and the pit stops were awesome. I gained several positions in the pits and that’s big.” In the end, Owens was happy to finish but disappointed because she knows her and the team has even greater potential. “I knew our goal was to finish so I stuck to our game plan,” said Owens. “I’m happy to be able to check something off our to do list, but I’m super competitive and am never completely satisfied without a win.” The next race for Owens and the ElectrifyingCareers.com team is Sunday’s Carolina 500 at the newly reopened Rockingham Speedway
In two ARCA RE/MAX
Series starts, Alli Owens has yet to see a checkered flag. The
19-year-old has proven to be competitive, but mechanical woes have
relegated her to a 41st place finish in Daytona and 27th in Iowa. ENGINE FAILURE ENDS ALLI OWENS’ STRONG EFFORT IN IOWA Newton, Iowa (April 19, 2008) - Alli Owens’ finish in the Prairie Meadows 250 at Iowa Speedway does not reflect her top notch performance. After starting from the 29th position, the 19-year-old driver of the No. 12 ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet marched her way to the 12th spot before an engine failure ended her race on lap 204. She finished 27th.
Owens spent most of her race in traffic and managed to avoid getting caught up in the many on track incidents. “It was pretty hectic out there,” said Owens. “Most of the cautions started in front of us. My spotter did an awesome job keeping me out of trouble. Our goal was to finish and we were on our way to reaching it until we had engine trouble.” The next race for Owens and the ElectrifyingCareers.com team is the Kansas Lottery 150 at Kansas Speedway on April 25
Media Contact Copyright©2001- 2008 Alli Owens Racing - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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OWENS’ STRONG PERFORMANCE AT POCONO CUT SHORT Long Pond, Pa. (June 9, 2008) - With 10 laps remaining in the Pocono 200 ARCA RE/MAX Series race at Pocono Raceway, Alli Owens appeared to be on track to better her career best finish. The 19-year-old had overcome much adversity and was charging toward the top-10 when disaster struck. Entering turn two, a car in front of her lost control and blocked the track. When the dust cleared, Owens’ day was over and she was relegated to a 24th place finish. “We had an awesome car today,” said Owens. “We were heading to our best finish of the year and it was snatched from us. We overcame so much today and had a real chance of a top-10 finish. Unfortunately, the No. 39 car just lost it right in front of me and I had nowhere to go. It looked like he just got in turn two too fast.” The Daytona Beach, Fla. native started 18th in the 38-car field and was extremely happy with the performance of her car. On lap 20, she faced her first obstacle when a hose to the power steering pump failed. Owens carried on without power steering for more than 25 laps until a caution period on lap 48 allowed the crew, led by veteran crew chief Mario Gosselin, to fix the problem “It’s frustrating enough that we had a hose break,” said Owens. “But to have the crew do such a great job of fixing it and keeping me on the lead lap only to get taken out so late in the race really stinks.” Owens, who has just five series starts to her credit, has a career best finish of 15th. “I’m proud of everyone on this team,” said Owens. “When faced with adversity, everyone stayed calm and did their job. I’ve only been in the series for a short time and I know my day will come but that doesn’t make today any easier. We will regroup and head to Michigan and look for a better day there.” The next race for Owens and the ElectrifyingCareers.com team is the Racing for Wildlife 200 at Michigan Speedway held on June 13. |
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| SHE’S BACK! - The Pocono
200 not only marks Alli Owens’ first time visit to the unique Pocono
Raceway but also her return to the ARCA RE/MAX Series. The 19-year-old,
whose 2008 schedule comprises select races, last competed at Rockingham
Speedway in May. “Watching the past few races online was like hanging a treat in front of a dog and saying stay,” said Owens. “It was about to drive me insane. It’s very hard to watch others race, especially when we had such a great run in our last race.” In only her fourth series start, Owens finished 15th at Rockingham. She hopes her fifth start brings her even more success. “I’ve been told Pocono is a crazy track, like no other,” said Owens. “I know it’s going to be a challenge. We are going with a few very different setups to see which works best for us. During practice, I will be doing a lot of hands on evaluating and diagnosing trying to figure it all out. I’m looking forward to putting my knowledge to the test.” WELCOME IBEW - On Saturday, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) will host a hospitality event with more than 150 of its members. Included is the IBEW president and several VIP’s. Through a joint marketing effort with the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), the IBEW sponsors Alli Owens via its ElectrifyingCareers.com campaign. “In a lot of ways, this is out biggest race of the year,” said Owens. “We will have a lot of IBEW guests and VIPs. They’ve been my sponsor since 2007 and this is their first race. I look forward to showing them a whole different world than they are used to. It’s going to be awesome to look up in the stands and see more than 150 IBEW members cheering me on.” INTRODUCING THE YANKEES NEWEST PITCHER ALLI OWENS - On June 5, Alli Owens, driver of the No. 12 ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet, will have the privilege of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees game at PNC field in Moosic, Pa. “I definitely won’t be making a Mariah Carey pitch,” said Owens, referencing Carey’s first pitch in Japan which failed to reach home plate. “I play softball so I’m confident I can make it over the plate. I wonder if they’ll mind if I try a fast pitch softball move.” The SWB Yankees are the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. “The Yankees franchise is to baseball what Dale Earnhardt is to NASCAR,” continued Owens. “I’m stoked.” |