ACTON, ON – Three weeks into his inaugural season in the Ohsweken Speedway Thunder Stock division, dirt racing rookie Brandon McFerran is enjoying the ups-and-downs of his brand new venture with car owner Steve Perry.
‘The Astronaut’ opened his season with top-15 finishes in his first two starts in the wildly competitive division, before a qualifying wreck removed McFerran from competition in Week 3 – breaking his early season streak.
“There weren’t any plans to just walk in here and start taking over,” insists McFerran with a smile. “The competition is incredibly stout. We’ve been ready for an uphill battle from the word ‘go'”
“This is unlike anything I’ve ever done,” continues the asphalt Mini Stock standout. “I’ve had a blast in my first three weeks behind the wheel. It hasn’t gone entirely the way we would’ve liked it to, but the experience has been awesome so far”
Transitioning from asphalt to dirt has been an interesting development for the Acton, ON native, but the freshman has shown continuous improvement in his first few nights of action.
“Learning how to attack the track has probably been the most difficult part,” says McFerran. “My first night I struggled just trying to find some forward bite. After Week 1, I sat down with [former Thunder Stock winner and current 360 Sprint Car sophomore] Cory Turner and he gave me some pointers on how to read the track better”
“Talking to the guys that have experience at Ohsweken has made a world of difference for me,” continues McFerran. “Without their help, I think I would still be just as lost as I was on practice day”
Though his freshman Thunder Stock campaign is, to this point, a far cry from his championship Mini Stock campaign at Sunset Speedway in 2014, McFerran is still pleased with his early-season progress.
“I can’t be mad at a top-15 finish in my first two starts on dirt – especially when you consider the division draws more than 30 cars every night,” reasons the third-generation star. “I just want to find a way that we can load our car on the trailer at the end of the night without Steve [Perry] having to do a ton of repairs to it through the week”
“We want to focus on getting faster – and it’s tough to do that when you have to put all your energy into replacing bent parts and fixing body damage”
As Week 4 of the 2015 season approaches, McFerran is unsure just how to categorize the teams goals for the remainder of their rookie year.
“I’m not entirely sure what our goals are at this point,” shrugs the personable 16-year old. “We all came into this season intending on learning as much as we could. That’s definitely the team’s goal”
“But, after three weeks in this car, I know that it’s capable of running in the top-10. Steve Perry gives us some fantastic equipment – now it’s up to the driver to put it at the front. That’s my personal goal for the year.”
Brandon McFerran’s 2015 Ohsweken Speedway season is made possible thanks to the support of Air Quest, D.J.’s Tees Photos & Designs and Brandon’s Landscapes.
Fans can keep up with Brandon on Twitter @BrandonMcFerran or by visiting the official Brandon McFerran Racing page on Facebook.
By Spencer Lewis (@itsspencerlewis)
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