CRA: Tim Kaeding Las Vegas preview

'TK' Gets Ready for 'Vegas USAC/CRA Event

LAS VEGAS, NV (October 23) -- Three years had elapsed since Tim Kaeding drove a non-winged sprint car when he was crowned co-champion of the American Sprint Car Series' Third Annual O'Reilly Sprint Bandits Tour 'N Topless Midwest Swing in August.

Kaeding, who drove the #10 Tom Rolfe Racing Maxim to top-three finishes in all five races in the ASCS speedweek, will be among the drivers to beat in Saturday's United States Auto Club/California Racing Association event at the Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"Hopefully, we can turn things around in 'Vegas," said Tim, who has run several World of Outlaws winged sprint car races at the half-mile oval. "We've had decent luck with the non-winged sprint cars, so we hope we can keep it going and try to get a good finish there. Then we'll head to Perris (Auto Speedway) for the Oval Track Nationals.

"It will be only the seventh non-winged race in my career. In the Tour 'N Topless Midwest Swing after the Knoxville Nationals, we had three seconds and two thirds so I can't complain at all."

Kaeding finished second in the TNT opener at I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, NE, was the runner-up at Mid-America Speedway in South Coffeyville, OK, ran third at Creek County Speedway in Sapulpa, OK, and Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, KS, and was the runner-up in the Ron Shuman Classic to tie Robert Ballou for the series title.

"It will be a different kind of competition in Las Vegas though," Tim said. "The guys from Tony Stewart's and Kasey Kahne's teams and all the guys who usually run out west will be there, so it will be entertaining. There will be a lot of good cars there, and we'll just see how well we can do against them. I think we have a good non-winged program; we just don't have as much experience as the other teams do."

-credit: trr