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 TALLADEGA,
AL (January 5-9, 2011) -- It had been 10 frustrating years for Hoosier
representatives and drivers attending the Ice Bowl at the famed Talladega Short
Track. For many reasons, no Hoosier-shod driver had put together a winning
weekend at the event since Mike Head in 2001.
That
all changed during the first week of January when Fayetteville, Georgia's Shane
Clanton drove his Hoosier-shod, RSD enterprises, Rocket Chassis into the Ice
Bowl Victory Lane for his third triumph in the event and Hoosier’s first win
in 10 years.
After
much discussion and evaluation, Clanton opted for a Hoosier 1350 right front
and left rear tire combination with a 1450 right rear for his dominating win.
Clanton's right rear tire, introduced in July last year, featured Hoosier’s
new NRM construction which provides increased sidebite. Clanton paired the NRM
tire with a C4000 left rear.
“We
tried several tire combinations throughout Thursday and Friday’s
practices,” said Hoosier Product Manager Shanon Rush. “We thought we knew
what direction to go but after the Champions Race, we had to rethink
things."
Rush
continued, "Brian Key from Hoosier Tire South, Ronnie Johnson, Shane and I
worked hard to develop a different plan for Saturday. Once Shane tried the
1350/1450 setup in practice Saturday, and we saw the forecast for Sunday, we
were locked in.”
The
compound and construction changes not only drove Clanton to the Ice Bowl
feature victory, they also carried the 36-year-old driver to fast time honors
in qualifications and a dominant heat race win.
“I
made all of our team nervous in the heat race,” recalled Clanton. “I drove
hard the entire race to test those 1350’s and 1450’s. We even caught lapped
traffic at the end. We needed to know what we had for Sunday, and those Hoosier
tires definitely passed the test.”
Clanton
was not the only driver competing on Hoosier tires at the 2011 Ice Bowl.
Veteran racer Ronnie Johnson drove from 7th starting spot to a
top-five finish. He was joined by eight other drivers in the starting field on
the Indiana-based, purple tire brand.
“This
is a great way to start off the 2011 season,” Rush stated. “I can’t thank
our engineering staff enough. This was definitely a win we all wanted. It gives
not only our drivers, but our distributors and dealers, a positive boost to
begin the year.
Rush
concluded, "We hope to carry this momentum into Florida Speedweeks and
throughout the rest of the year.”
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