NASCAR: Woodside Hoping for Success in Familiar Territory
29 September 2000
September 29, 2000 (Palmdale, Calif.) - Sean Woodside, driver of the REF Motorsports #4 Pontiac in the Featherlite Southwest Series, NASCAR Touring, is happy that Altamont Raceway Park in Tracy, Calif., where he has logged many successful miles, is the next event on the Southwest Series schedule. Bad luck has plagued the REF team the past couple of races. Last weekend, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway's Bullring, Woodside was collected at the drop of the green flag in a multi-car crash that badly damaged the front of his racecar. Valiant efforts by the team put him back out on the track, where he held his own despite the damage, however, forty laps were lost in the process. At Madera (Calif.) Speedway, earlier this month, Woodside was hit from behind and spun out not once, but twice during the race. He struggled to take home an 18th place finish in that event. Disappointed, but not discouraged, Woodside and the REF team are looking toward this Saturday's event with optimism. They all hope that Woodside's 1st, 2nd and 5th place finishes at Altamont during the 1997 and 1998 seasons, as well as his three Bud Pole Awards for those events, will give him the edge they need to take the REF car to a podium finish and improve their current 4th place points position. "Hopefully, Altamont will be where we turn our luck around, and build some momentum for the remaining races this season," Woodside commented. Of his successes at Altamont, Woodside said, "Altamont has a Saugus Speedway feel to it. Saugus and Altamont are both flat tracks, and I believe my history at Saugus played into what I was able to accomplish at Altamont." Woodside earned two championships, numerous wins (ten during the 1995 season alone) and many other awards, including Most Popular Driver and Rookie of the Year awards, during a five season run in Saturday night racing at the former Saugus Speedway. Team owner Bob Farmer said, "The team has been working overtime to get the car ready for this weekend. We're hoping to put these past couple of races behind us, and concentrate on this weekend." For more information, see REF Motorsports' official Web site at http://www.refm otorsports.com. Bob Farmer, owner of REF Motorsports, owns and operates the No. 4 Stick Only Transmissions, Maropulos Racing Engines, Speedway Engineering, Hoosier Pontiac in the Featherlite Southwest Series, NASCAR Touring with Sean Woodside as driver. Woodside won the 1999 NASCAR Winston West series championship after finishing second in the point standings in the series in 1997 and 1998. REF Motorsports finished 6th in the Southwest Series points standings in 1999, with six top five and seven top ten finishes during the season. The team is currently fourth in the point standings in the Featherlite Southwest Series, NASCAR Touring, with one win, four top five and seven top ten finishes.