KITCHENER, Ont. – May 24, 2017 – Ryan Hunsinger drove from the ninth starting position to take the lead from Jesse McDonald and held off a tough field to win Ohsweken Speedway’s season opening Crate Sprint Car feature last Friday night. It was the first win of the season for the Durnin Motorsports team in the Transport Sales and Service/Retail Design Group No.43h J&J Chassis and the first since June 3 of last season.
“It’s great, especially after the ending of the year we had last year,” Hunsinger said of the win. “It’s good to come out of the gate strong. It feels really good because we had a horrible second-half to last season. It’s good for the morale and everybody involved to get our first win out of the way.”
The Stouffville, Ont.-based driver had a challenging start to his night as he battled a problem with his arm restraint system during his heat race, but solved the problem mid-race and rallied to a fourth-place result for the Kitchener team.
“The first half of the heat race was horrible until I got it sorted out,” Hunsinger said. “We finished fourth in the heat which put us ninth for the feature.”
The ninth-place starting spot may have seemed ominous, but Hunsinger knew immediately he would be a contender.
“I knew I had a good car right from the start and I just kind of moved my way forward slowly,” he said. “We had a few restarts, which always helps. Once I got to second I knew I had a real good car. I just wasn’t sure on the timing in terms of catching and passing the leaders.”
Hunsinger then got the opportunity he needed when a long green flag run allowed the leaders to work into lapped traffic. Hunsinger made the most of his chance to take over the point position.
“I knew as soon as I saw the lapped cars that it was giving me a good shot to set him up for the pass,” Hunsinger explained. “It’s always easier to be in second than it is to lead. I took advantage of a lapped car and passed Jesse (McDonald). It was good from then on.”
The win was a major boost of confidence for the Durnin Motorsports team, which suffered through an unrelenting string of problems throughout the second-half of 2016, including a blown motor. With a new power plant under the hood for this year and a win in the bank, the team is in good shape moving forward, Hunsinger said.
“I think it definitely helps with our confidence and when you’re confident it’s one of the biggest factors in running well every week,” he concluded. “It’s good to start off the year with a win and hopefully we can build on that momentum.”
Hunsinger was also excited to get the win not only for car owner Jeff Durnin, but also for new crewmember Chris Pomeroy, who joined the team to start the new campaign.
“He’s been a huge help,” Hunsinger said of Pomeroy. “He’s worked on the car every time with Jeff and I. I’ve been doing some special projects at work so I was working like crazy leading up to the first race. Those guys really stepped up to get everything ready because I wasn’t able to be there as much as I would have liked.”
Hunsinger and the Durnin Motorsports team return for the second round of Ohsweken’s Friday Night Excitement on Friday, May 26. Race time is 7:30pm. For additional event information, please visit www.ohswekenspeedway.ca.
SEASON STATS
Ryan Hunsinger – 1 Start: 1 Win, 1 Top-5, 1 Top-10
DURNIN MOTORSPORTS MEDIA
Website: www.durninmotorsports.com
Facebook: facebook.com/DurninMotorsports
Twitter: @DurninMotorsprt and @Ryan_Hunsinger
The Driver is proud to partner with several dedicated marketing partners for the 2017 race season, including Transport Sales and Service, Retail Design Group, Hunsinger’s Plumbing Heating and Electrical, Saratoga Homes, Tyson Hinschberger Planet Realty Guelph, Durnin Motors, Bicknell Racing Products, NAPA Kitchener, Leaf Racewear, Creative Edge Signs and Graphics, and Pomeroys Racing Services.
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