Ben Rhodes and the Fat Head Racing team headed to Hickory Motor Speedway (NC) on Saturday, August 20th, to race in the twin Late Model features at the track. After starting ninth in the first race, Rhodes moved to eighth, but after an early yellow, a multiple-car incident on the restart collected Rhodes, ending his day early.

The team unloaded the car and had a good practice session, preparing them for qualifying. During the qualifying session, Rhodes had two solid laps.

“Since there were two races, our first lap set our starting position for the first race, and the second for the second race,” explained Rhodes. “We timed in ninth fastest in the first lap and seventh fastest in the second lap, so we were pretty satisfied and shifted our focus to the races.”

After moving up one position before the first yellow flag flew, a restart on lap three of the first race ended his day when a car in front of him appeared to miss a shift or break, causing a massive pile-up.

“I am not sure what happened,” said Rhodes. “A car in front of us on the restart missed a shift or broke. Either way, none of us had time to get slowed down in time. We were one of many cars damaged and done for the day in the incident.”

Despite the early end to his day, Rhodes was optimistic about the performance of his team.

“Lee McCall, Jamie Yelton and the entire Fat Head Racing team and I have really worked well together during our first three Late Model races together. Wrecks happen in this sport, and while it wasn’t the end result we wanted, it will not shake us. We are looking forward to the next race together.”

Watch a video of Ben’s day, including interviews with him throughout the event. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoxLP0PM2HQ