COLDWATER, ON- After an August 1st performance that left fans speaking more of his close-call with the backstretch retaining wall then his performance on the speedway, Sunset Speedway Late Model rookie Jordan Latimer is eager to get his Ken Semkin-owned No. 90 back on track and back to the front of the field.
The third-generation driver battled through a host of adversity one week ago, recovering from a ride atop the backstretch wall and a late-race cut tire for a hard-fought 13th place finish.
“If you get to the track still worked up about what happened last Saturday, you’ve already beat yourself,” explains Latimer matter-of-factly. “If this team wasted time focusing on all the little things that go wrong from week to week, we would drive ourselves crazy. It’s all about working through the bad nights and coming back stronger. That’s our goal for this weekend”
Latimer’s close-call came after contact with his teammate Marcus Keeler in the event’s opening laps, sending Latimer up and onto the wall, only for his No. 90 to travel along the top of the barrier and back onto the speedway seemingly unscathed.
“That was the wildest ride I’ve ever had in a stock car,” laughs the teenager when asked about the early-race incident. “It’ll make for a good story, I’m sure, but let’s hope we don’t get to do that again. I still can’t believe we didn’t roll it over. I thought we were lucky just to finish the race, but when we got it home and saw that we didn’t take any serious damage it blew my mind”
“My grandfather used to say it’s better to be lucky than good – last Saturday was definitely one of those situations”
And though he’s received a bevy of praise for keeping his wits about him during the incident, Latimer admits his team is ready to move past the mishap.
“When I strap in on Saturday afternoon, I’ll be concentrating on qualifying strong and getting our car back to the top-5,” explains the popular freshman. “No distractions. We know this car is good enough to run at the front of this field. Now, it’s all about putting the pieces together and making it happen”
The Rookie of the Year contender has been a weekly fixture in the front half of the Sunset field, and the 16-year old is intent on returning to the fold this Saturday.
“I’m more than satisfied with how the second half of our season has played out,” offers Latimer. “We’ve been consistently in the top-10, and we’re getting better every weekend. We’ve hit a few speedbumps, but we were ready for that from the moment we put this deal together. With everything we work through as a team, we get closer and we get better. And all of that is setting us up to be even strong season next year.”
Details for Sunset Speedway’s August 8th event can be found at www.SunsetSpeedway.ca.
Jordan Latimer’s 2015 season would not be possible without KICX 106, 104.1 The Dock, Creechers Design, Kitchen Tire, Krueger Electrical Services, North River Motorsports, Tax Smart, T&C Construction & Welding, AC Electric, TSS Top Shops, HWY 400 Transmission, Shepherd Family Trucking, JRH Auto Body, EPIC Racewear, Get Jack @ RE/MAX and OnePromo.ca.
Fans can follow Jordan on Twitter @LatimerJordan and stay up to date on the team by visiting the official JLMotorsports page on Facebook.
By Spencer Lewis (@itsspencerlewis)
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