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A
First Victory Since 2016 and a Repeat Winner During 2024 Edition of
Veterans Classic
Shenandoah,
Virginia (June 3, 2024) – A
picture perfect day of weather graced the track known for “Where
the Mountain Roars” as the Super Cup Stock Car Series opened their
season on Saturday at Shenandoah Speedway for the annual Veterans
Classic.
The afternoon and
early evening were filled with a few first-time occurrences,
beginning with Uniontown, Pennsylvania’s Bill Ashton capturing his
first career Pole Award with a fast time of 17.280 seconds around
the progressively-banked 3/8-mile oval.
With a straight-up
start from qualifying, the No. 35 Ashton Racing Ford was noticeably
the car to beat in the initial 30-lap main event that was slowed by
a yellow flag only once. The
late race restart and a challenge despite an ill-handling racecar
from the most recent event winner, Brent Nelson, turned 
out
to be no match for Ashton in what was the first checkered flag of
2024.
Following a pair of
podium results in September 2023’s edition of the Veterans
Classic, Ashton was already keen on making the return to Shenandoah
heading into the day.
“Actually, last
year I said it’s one of my favorites, so right now it’s the
favorite,” Ashton, a winner for the first time since 2016 at his
home track Jennerstown Speedway, commented. “Any
time you can finish in front of Brent or (2023 series champion)
Harvey (Harrison) or any of those guys, you’ve got to feel 
good
about that. The car was
feeling really good and I wouldn’t have known what to change if I
was going to change anything.”
During the time in
between the first and second features, Nelson’s team went to work
in order to see what they could do to improve on the No. 80
Precision Auto Collision / JEBCO / QH Design / Chevrolet’s
potential.
The top four
finishers from the first race were inverted for the next green flag.
SCSCS debut driver Chris Lilly, a multiple-time champion and
winner of dozens of events at Shenandoah Speedway in the local
Legends division, started out front.
Littlestown, Pennsylvania’s Jason Schue, fresh off a best
career third place finish with preparation and guidance from 2014
champion JJ Pack, lined up alongside.
However, it was Nelson who
used the outside line to maneuver around both and lead at the stripe
the first time by.
Across
the remaining circuits, race one winner Ashton stayed within
striking distance but was unable to make a formidable bid for the
top spot, struggling with grip during the remaining circuits of this
main event.
When the checkered
flag waved, it was the third time at Shenandoah Speedway and 21st
time overall that the Petersburg, West Virginia driver earned a
ticket to victory lane.
“Just made a lot
of changes; I threw the kitchen sink at it and, man, what a
difference,” an ecstatic Nelson indicated.
“It just drove totally different.
It feels fantastic. I
didn’t even think that we would finish second in the first race.
How I held on to it I had no idea, but all in all, I’ll
take a second and a win any night.”
Nelson was helping
another competitor in one of his previous cars get acclimated as
well, longtime crew member Larry Frame, as a SCSCS first-timer
behind the wheel. The
Yellow Spring, West Virginia driver with previous experience at
Shenandoah in four-cylinder cars logged laps and cleanly took the
No. 80x Precision Auto Collision / Nelson Motorsports Chevrolet to
fifth in the running order in both races.
Rounding out the
podium in this one was the aforementioned Lilly, who received the
opportunity to pilot Ashton’s second car mid-week.
“It
was a huge learning curve because I completely had to throw out what
I know from the Legend car to this car,” the driver of the No. 57
Lilly’s Chop Shop / Ashton Racing Chevrolet explained.
“We made adjustments all day on the car, getting the car
freed up and being able to get the power down.”
There was also
unknowingly an issue down the stretch that otherwise may have kept
the Grottoes, Virginia driver in the hunt further up front.
“I didn’t
realize until we were done, they said that my left front tire is
just about flat,” Lilly added.
“It was about on the rim.
Honestly, I didn’t really notice it.
The car kind of faded over the course of the race and I
thought that was just me and the car.
I didn’t know if anything was contributing to that.”
While he swept the
twin Veterans Classic Legends features, a familiar sight at
Shenandoah, Lilly also accomplished what he set out to do in the
SCSCS on Saturday.
“Only goal was to
try and get a podium finish and we succeeded with that, so that’s
a win in my book and the car’s in one piece,” Lilly concluded.
“I was worried about tagging the wall or somebody, but we
had a good race, so I’m happy with that.”
Schue
finished the second race in fourth, but both finishes were the best
of his career at a facility in which the No. 3 GM Goodwrench Dale
Earnhardt Tribute / Jason Schue Racing Chevrolet came to life in
September 2023’s Veterans Classic.
This race day included having to recover from a mid-race
spin, while catching second place Nelson, still to finish on the
podium.
“It was a fun
night,” Schue recapped. “Car
was really good the first race.
Drove it a little deep and looped it, so I knew where the
limit was. Then I came
back to finish third, which was pretty awesome.”
Schue’s
confidence clearly is riding high, not only for when the series
visits the speedway in Shenandoah, Virginia once more on Saturday,
September 7th for the Skyline Classic.
“Yeah, Shenandoah
has become a favorite, but so has Franklin County, the next one.”
Saturday, June 22nd
will be the Ridgerunner Classic at Franklin County Speedway, where
additional drivers that were unfortunately unable to be ready for
this past Saturday have already verbally indicated their intention
to make the trip to Callaway, Virginia.
More information
can be found on the Super Cup Stock Car Series official website supercupstockcarseries.com,
on Facebook (search Super Cup Stock Car Series), Twitter (@SCSCSRacing),
and Instagram (SCSCS_Racing).
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