Fw: Urban's Bad Luck Continues at Winchester

 
WINCHESTER, IN (Sept. 23, 2002) - When Forrest Urban, Jr., returned to the Hooters ProCup Series this weekend, he thought he had shaken the monkey off of his back and would once again be a contender for the win at the famed, high-banked Winchester Speedway. During Sunday's Alan Kulwicki Memorial 250, Urban was painfully proven wrong when bad luck relegated him to a 17th place finish.
 
The weekend started with a sign of things to come for Urban. Pre-race tech inspection required the valve covers to be removed to gauge the engine's compression, but the gasket around the part did not seal correctly after being rebuilt. Oil slowly began to leak onto the header pipes when fired and caused the No. 46 to smoke during practice. 
 
During the third time that the team attempted to reseal the area, an oil line was accidentally left loose, and oil sprayed all over the motor. The problem was fixed with a new gasket, however, all of the oil dripping off of the motor caused USAR officials to prevent Urban from taking to the track for practice until the oil was cleaned up. Urban got six laps of practice during the two and a half hour session and none at full speed. USAR officials, out of fairness, granted Urban two laps of practice before qualifying to allow him to get some track time.
 
"That oil line really messed us up," said Urban. "We didn't get any practice at all, but Hooters was nice enough to give us two laps on the track. That was enough to make that Panhard bar adjustment."
 
Urban, with only two effective laps of practice, proceeded to put his No. 46 Insurance Doctor Chevrolet in the 16th position during qualifying. Given the circumstances, Urban was extremely pleased with the effort and confident about Sunday's race. However, Lady Luck cast her voodoo spell on Urban again in the race on Sunday. Only a third of the way into the race, Urban had a flat right rear tire that cost him three laps on pit road and a shot at a good finish.
 
"Under the caution, right as they gave us two to go, I was scuffing the tires and it felt like the right rear was low, so we came in with the one to go and changed the right rear," Urban remarked with disappointment. "And, of course, the lugnut jammed up in the gun, so we ended up losing a couple of laps doing that, and from then on, we just sorta rode and tried to get the best finish we could without tearing the car up."
 
Urban ran with the frontrunners all day even though he was scored as three laps down. With a number of top point contenders having problems, namely Bobby Gill, Brian Ross, and Mardy Lindley, Urban had a prime opportunity to make up points in the championship chase because of the attrition. Following a brief rain delay with 51 laps remaining, the voodoo returned, and Urban reported a right front tire down. Fortunately, the No. 14 "Who Crew", who were kind enough to pit Urban even though he had his own crew, was able to change this tire under the caution flag and only lost track position.
 
"By that time, we were just trying to get a good finish and keep the car in one piece. I think under that rain delay we ran over something else with that tire and it started leaking," explained the 1999 South Boston Speedway track champion. "It wasn't a good day, but it could have been a lot worse, so I guess we'll take it and build on it from there.
 
"It sure would have been nice, at a track we're familiar with and have run well at, to get a top ten. We had an easy top ten car, if not a top five car at the end," Urban added with a smile.
 
Coming home in 17th, Urban is looking forward to the next race at Jennerstown Speedway on October 5. In two previous visits, Urban has recorded a third and eighth place finish. The latter finish came after Urban was challenging for the lead and cut a tire with less than fifty laps to go in the June event at the Pennsylvania facility. With so much success, Urban, expectedly, is hopeful about the next event.
 
"It's basically in one piece," Urban pointed out. "We'll get everything done and we're really looking forward to Jennerstown and having a good run there. We've had a real good run both times we've been there. Hopefully we'll have another good run this time."
 
Urban's luck, or lack thereof, at Winchester in the Hooters ProCup Four Champions Championship Series can be seen on SPEED Channel on September 26, at 9 pm ET. A total of two subsequent re-airings will follow; consult listings for times. Urban Racing is actively seeking additional sponsors and marketing partners for the Championship Series and beyond. Interested parties can contact the team through USAR or through Tex Motorsports Promotions at (412) 225-0348 for more information.