Sprint Car Rookie Carson McCarl is Experiencing a Stellar Season
- Jul 18, 2011
At sixteen years of age, most folks are just getting accustomed to driving, but Carson McCarl is a far cry from your average driver. In fact, during his rookie year as a sprint car driver, Carson doesn't seem to be intimidated in any form or fashion by his older and more experienced competitors, as he has managed to win two feature races this season in the 305 division at the Knoxville Raceway.
Although earning his first win was a memorable feat, Carson was equally excited about his second win of the season, if not more so, and for good reason. In fact, the race on June 16 was fast and furious, as Carson and a fellow driver exchanged the second spot on four different occasions. Carson made his move into the lead with two laps to go and managed to hang on to the position for the win. I think the win made a statement," he said. "I think they all take me pretty seriously now," he continued, referring to his competition. Upon getting his first victory, Carson became the youngest driver to ever win a sprint car feature at the Knoxville Speedway. "That was awesome," shared Carson. "I've been going there my whole life, and to get a feature win was very special. To be honest, prior to the race, I thought we would get a top five if we were lucky and was prepared to be happy with that, so a win was great." According to Carson, as a third generation driver, his father, Terry, has played an important role in his early success. "He's won a lot of races at Knoxville, and won a lot of races everywhere, and has really taught me a lot." When asked if there were other keys to his success as well, Carson explained, "We've got a really good team. We're really positive all of the time and are having fun no matter what." Of course, Carson has anticipations of continuing success throughout the remainder of the season. To do so, one might suspect that he should continue doing exactly what he has been doing throughout the first portion of his rookie season. "I'm really an aggressive driver," stated Carson. When asked the key to continue success throughout the remainder of the season, he said, "I have to keep cool and not make any stupid mistakes." Living in the neighborhood, only thirty minutes form the Knoxville Raceway, Carson benefits from the opportunity and experience he gets from competing at one of the largest sprint car venues throughout the entire country on a consistent basis. "Knoxville is the only place where I race right now," explained the driver. "I eventually want to go and race at other places, so I can see what I can do, but right now, it's just Knoxville." "I'm pretty confident right now," stated Carson. "My team and I are pretty fast and we haven't run out of the top four yet, and haven't finished under the top two of any of our heat races." When asked if his two recent wins were of important elements of his future success, Carson answered, "Yeah, I think it got people talking about me and got me on the radar a little bit." Although Carson has not been in the industry long enough to have a strong understanding or opinion of many products on the market, he is aware of the importance of keeping his engine well-lubed and dust free. That said, Carson depends on, and is no stranger to K&N Filters. He has watched his father, Terry McCarl, use them. In fact, Carson is actually the third generation using K&N products, as Terry recalls seeing his father use them as well in his race cars. When asked about his sponsors and fans, Carson said "My sponsors are really great, and my fans are really great." In closing he stated, "Just keep supporting me." Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world. |
