WHEN THE BAD TURNS GOOD

 Milwaukee, WI (August 24, 2008)   The day was thought to be going well as everyone made it to Milwaukee on time and the car was finished and ready for practice.  But it didn’t take long for the Eilen Motorsports team to have their day turned up side down.  Jonathan was one of the first drivers out to practice, but after driving the first half of a lap he soon realized something was not right after loosing oil pressure.  Eilen pulled the car in for his crew to look at and to their disbelief they found a broken oil pump.  It was not possible for the crew to fix the pump nor was it possible for them to take it off the back up car due to the difference in motors.  This left the Eilen Motorsports team with one choice: use the back up car.  The crew quickly unloaded the back up car (which is mostly used for shorter tracks) and began working furiously to get it ready for the big Milwaukee Mile.

  Two hours later the Eilen Motorsports team had the car ready to race but there were many questions on their minds.  Is this car set up for this track?  How is it going to handle in a 100 lap race?  With no practice, the crew and Eilen were stuck with a lot of guessing.  They were very grateful for the help that came from various crews and are pleased with everyone’s generosity.   “Without the help we got we wouldn’t have been able set this car up in time for qualifying” stated crew chief Jason Cihawk.

  Eilen qualified in the 29^th position putting him on the fifteenth row, inside for the feature race. “It isn’t exactly where we wanted to be,” stated Eilen “especially since we knew how fast the other car was, but we will do with what we have and hope for the best in the feature.”

   As the feature began, Eilen’s fans watched him move his way up through the pack of cars.  “This back up car might surprise all of us!” stated a friend of Eilen.  At the fifty lap break Eilen found himself sitting in the 18^th position.  The crew changed a few things during the ten minute break and with some water for the driver they were all ready to go out for the next fifty laps. 

   The Eilen Motorsports team was blessed with a few cautions that tightened up the field of cars and the fans were again astonished with the way Eilen was driving.  Jonathan proved what a talented driver he is by driving his way to finish in the 10^th position.  “Wow! To come from 29^th and race to finish where we did is awesome” stated a happy driver “I couldn’t have done any of this without the help of my crew.  We all worked hard to get this car ready for this afternoon’s race and it definitely showed how dedicated we all are around here.  I am very grateful to have them all on my team.”

A MINNESOTA RACE WEEKEND!

 Shakopee, MN (Sunday, August 17, 2008)  With temperatures in the mid 80’s, the Eilen & Sons Motorsports team, along with many other teams, were worried about their driver surviving the heat. It was a rough start practicing, qualifying, and the feature but they made it through alright.  Lots of water was passed around as the drivers lined up. Eilen was off to a good start for the day qualifying in the “lucky 7” position.  After the invert, Jonathan started on the inside of the third row for the feature race.

 As the race got underway it was obvious that the inside grove was the favorite.  Eilen quickly proceeded to third place where he would find himself sitting in for the first seventy-five laps before being able to get around Rich Loch.  As both Eilen and Steve Carlson passed Loch, Jonathan found himself trying to play “catch-up” to Donny Reuvers while trying to hold off Carlson.

 With a caution at lap 11 Eilen had the chance to catch Reuvers, but Reuvers’ car was too strong for Eilen to challenge. “I thought I might have a run for him, but he has a lot of laps on this track, and he probably knows this track like the back of his hand,” Eilen stated. “We have only run like three nights out here, all in all it’s a good night for us.”

 Jonathan finished second and was pleased with his run. “It was a real good run for us to finish second and hold off Steve (Carlson),” Eilen stated after the race. “Donny’s car is just a little bit better than ours and just glad to bring it home in one piece.”

 The Eilen & Sons Motorsports team will travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin next weekend to race the ASAMT All Star 100 featuring Sprint Cup driver Matt Kenseth.

 Elko, MN (Saturday, August 16, 2008) Tonight was the first Race for the Championship which put the top twelve drivers thus far this season, back to zero points.  Jonathan started the night off qualifying in the fifth position putting him in the third row for the feature race. 

 Eilen started sixth in the heat race and was able to drive his way to a third place finish. “We are hoping we can finish in the top three cars with our old tires, but it will be a challenge since most of the other drivers have newer tires” stated Eilen after the heat race.

Kaukauna, Wisconsin   August 5, 2008

Eilen was off to a great start Tuesday evening! He qualified tenth putting him on the pole for the feature race after the invert. “I have a good feeling about tonight” stated Eilen during the autograph session “the last time I started on the pole (in Jefferson) we lead all 100 laps and took home our first ASAMT win this year.”

  As the race started and Jonathan fell to second place, but it was only a few short laps before he would take the lead.  Eilen lead the rest of the 75 laps up to the scheduled ten minute break.  As the second half of the feature started (another 75 laps) Eilen was off to a good start, leading the first eight laps before being passed by Steve Carlson.

  Shortly after being passed, Eilen’s throttle spring broke leaving him with the choice to stay out and try to hold on or to pull off and call it a night.  Eilen without a doubt chose to continue the race and try to finish within the top ten cars without wrecking anything.

Elko Speedway -August 2nd

  It was another weekend close to home for the Eilen team as Jonathan, once again, proved that he has what it takes to be a talented driver.

  After qualifying second to Nick Murgic by two hundredths of a second, Jonathan was set to start on the front row for the heat race.  He raced his way to a first place finishing a few car lengths between him and the second place driver.

  "The car is running really well tonight" stated Eilen as he climbed from his car "I am excited to see how well it does in the feature."

  The Eilen Motorsports Team decided to take "The Challenge" and start from the back row in the feature in hopes of gaining enough points to make The Race for the Chase. For each car Eilen would pass he would receive five points.  Jonathan needed twenty extra points plus finish ahead of the driver who was currently sitting ahead of him in the point standings, to make The Chase for the Championship.

  “I knew it wasn’t going to be easy to pass everyone, but it was the chance I needed to take to gain the points needed for the Chase” exclaimed a happy driver after driving from seventeenth position to finish a respectable fifth place.  “Man! The car was awesome!” he stated with a big smile.

MAGNIFICENT WEEKEND FOR THE EILEN TEAM! 

Cedar Rapids, Iowa - The ASA Midwest Tour hosted their “Western Swing” this weekend.  This included races at Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Friday night and Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa on Sunday night.

The 36^th Annual Keith Fleck Miller 100 at Hawkeye Downs Speedway was a re-scheduled race that was supposed to be held on the 13^th of June.  However, the event was postponed due to the recent flooding in the area.  The Eilen team did really well in all of the practices, but the car did not handle the same in qualifying as it did in practice due to a small amount of moisture on the track and a slight temperature change.  Only the top sixteen drivers are guaranteed a position in the feature, and Jonathan qualified 21^st.  In order to advance to the feature, Jonathan needed to place first or second in a qualifying heat.   

“I wasn’t too nervous about the heat race since I have raced well here in past years” stated Eilen after placing second in the heat race placing him into Friday night’s feature race. 

Jonathan started in the eleventh row for the feature and raced his way up to finish in eighth place. 

“Man the car was fast!” said Eilen after the feature race. “I wish I would have qualified a little better, but I can’t complain about the car; it was awesome!” 

After the race at Hawkeye Downs Speedway the Eilen team packed up and headed to Newton, Iowa for Saturday’s practices. 

Newton, Iowa - The team encountered slight problems with the Eilen race hauler, and they were a little nervous for practice. “We have had pretty good luck the last few weeks, I just hope this doesn’t mean our luck is turning around” stated Eilen as he worked on unloading the race car. 

As practice began, the Eilen team was consistently within the top five fastest cars. “We made a few slight adjustments throughout the practices, but the car has been awesome all day.  I am anxious to see how tomorrow goes.” 

Jonathan Eilen was the second fastest driver at the end of Saturday’s practices, leaving the entire team excited for Sunday’s race. 

After a good night’s sleep, the Eilen team was ready for the Rasmussen Group Twin 75’s at Iowa Speedway..   

Morning practices went well for the Eilen team where Jonathan continued to stay within the top five fastest drivers. Without making many changes, the Eilen team was able to qualify fifth fastest with a time of 23.597, just behind Sprint Cup driver Matt Kenseth. 

“Qualifying well is defiantly a plus” stated Jonathan, “Now we need to get ready for the big race later on today.”   

With temperatures reaching the 90 degree mark, all of the race teams were worried about their driver’s health.  The Eilen team prepared for the heat with extra ice water on hand for the ten minute break between the two 75 lap races. 

After the inversion Eilen found himself sitting on the fourth row for the feature race.  As the race progressed, Eilen was consistently within the top ten drivers.  At the ten minute break Jonathan was sitting in second place and itching to get around the Sprint Cup driver Kyle Busch, who continually remained in first place.

“I know he is going to be hard to get around, but I really think our car is good enough to make it happen” stated Eilen in an interview during the break. 

Sure enough, he was right.  Eilen was able to inherit the lead for one lap before being passed by race winner Tim Schendel.  As the race continued, Jonathan was able to stay in second place holding off Matt Kenseth and Donny Reuvers. 

“The car was really tight in the beginning and when we came in for a caution, we made a couple of adjustments and the car was really good after that,” Eilen remarked after the race. “Tim was just a little bit better but I had a lot of fun, this is a great place to race at and I look forward to coming back here next year.” 

A SPECTACULAR NIGHT FOR THE EILEN TEAM! 

 Elko, MN (Saturday, July 12, 2008) “The car was awesome in practice; I just knew it was going to be a good night” expressed the happy driver. 

Eilen qualified first with a time of 13.66, just short of the track record. 

Jonathan drove away in the heat race taking first place putting him in the front row for the feature. 

“Man was the car fast today!”  Eilen exclaimed as he got out of the car after placing second in the feature race.  Jonathan led the first thirty laps of the race until a car spun out bringing out a caution.  After the re-start Jake Ryan got under Jonathan and took over first position.  Another caution came out when a few cars got tangled, giving Eilen another chance to regain his first place position. 

Madison, Wis. (Tuesday, June 24th, 2008) Luck was not on Jonathan Eilen's side for the All Star Challenge race in Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday, June 24th.

"The car was completely opposite from Sunday's race." Stated Jonathan after finishing the race which included NASCAR drivers Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, and Kyle Busch.  "Practice went really well and we qualified sixteenth putting us in the feature, but in the feature the car started out really loose and towards the end became too tight."

Overall Eilen finished eighteenth only two cars behind Tony Stewart who finished sixteenth.

UPDATE FROM GRUNDY COUNTY SPEEDWAY IN MORRIS, ILLINOIS

 Morris, Ill. (Monday, June 23, 2008) Bad luck struck the Eilen & Sons Motorsports team again Sunday in Morris, Illinois. 

 “The car was really good in practice, leading us to qualify tenth which put us directly into the feature” stated Eilen.  “The car started out really tight in the feature and as the race went on loosened up too much.”

 Eilen held on without going a lap down to finish seventeenth in the feature.

 “We have a lot of work to do now before Tuesday’s race in Madison” said Eilen in hopes to turn his luck around.

 Eilen and his crew are on their way to Madison right now and are excited for the races Tuesday at Madison International Speedway where Eilen will compete in the All Star Challenge Race with Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, and Tony Stewart.

EILEN TEAM RESTED AND READY FOR ANY CHALLENGE

  Hampton, MN (Saturday, June 26, 2008) With a few weeks off from the ASA Midwest Tour, Jonathan Eilen and his team have kept busy racing at Elko Speedway’s weekly races.  On June 9^th Eilen qualified third putting him on the front row for the heat race.  He placed second in the heat race and went on to place fifth in the feature.  On June 14^th Eilen qualified tenth putting him in the middle of the pack for the heat race.  He drove his way to a third place finish before going into the feature race where he placed tenth. 

“The car was fast” Eilen stated, “but due to the ‘one tire a night’ rule Elko has set, we ran on tires from the beginning of the year leaving us with a slight disadvantage to the other drivers.”

Eilen and his crew will travel to Illinois and Wisconsin during the week of June 22^nd – 28^th where he will race at Grundy County Speedway in Morris, Illinois on Sunday and then travel to Madison, Wisconsin to race on Tuesday.

“We are all really fired up for this up coming week with Grundy on Sunday and racing in the All Star Challenge race with Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, and Tony Stewart in Madison on Tuesday,” stated Eilen as he finished putting the final touches on the car.

EILEN FIGHTS BAD LUCK TO FINISH DELLS 100

 Wisconsin Dells, WI (Sunday, June 1, 2008) – It has been a tough start to the 2008 season for Jonathan Eilen and it appeared that streak would continue. Looking strong in both practice sessions, brought confidence to the 77 team.

Luck went in a different direction from qualifying through the end of the race. "The car was really good in practice but it got tight for qualifying. I knew we still had a good car for the race", stated Eilen. "We started the race 22nd and I brought the car up to 14th when the 75 car spun, we avoided the wreck, but the 99 came in hot under us and broke a break line."

This did not discourage the 77 team as they went to work in the pits to bring the car back out into the racing action. Re-entering the race 14 laps down, the 77 was strong enough to catch the leaders and just about gain back one of the lost laps. The 77 team, unfortunately, ran out of laps in the race in their quest to finish higher than 25th place.

The team is taking it in stride and will try to shake it off on Saturday, June 7th as they compete in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racing action at Elko Speedway.