USAC Arkansas Doubleheader Turns into Interesting Trip for Gage Walker
By Jessica Jenkins

Gage Walker’s Arkansas debut with USAC came this past weekend when the series went to Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, AR for the first time. It was a long trip for the kid from Indiana, but he was ready to embrace a new challenge.

He and his family-owned #7x rolled out of the trailer fast on Friday for night one, setting the fourth fastest time in hot laps. His inexperience on the 1/4 mile dirt track then likely played into his 17th place qualifying run. But he didn’t let that hold him back as he lined up ninth for the first heat race in his red midget. He’d jumped up a position by the time the first yellow flag waved with one lap on the board. After the field was once more given the green, he was almost instantly in a 3 wide race for seventh place. Ultimately he held on for eighth place over the following seven laps and was placed in the position he qualified (17th) when the feature rolled off. It was a tough battle all race long, but he survived and finished up with a solid 10th place finish. Afterwards he exclaimed how fast and fun it was with the long straightaways and tight corners. He shared that as the “track went away we didn’t tighten the car up enough”. But he was happy with the run and all he had learned.

With night two at the speedway approaching on Saturday, Walker was eager to get back on track. He turned his tenth fastest time in hot laps into the eleventh quickest speed in qualifying. That put him on the pole for the first heat race, but he had a bit of a tough time getting going, likely due to a brake issue. So instead of starting on the front row next to Bryan Clauson, the 18-year-old tagged the tail of the field. He did not stay back there long though, jumping past two competitors and moving into 7th place early on. He then set his sights on the sixth place car and stayed close to him for the remainder of the ten-lap heat. Taking off from 11th place in the feature was a much better view than 24 hours earlier. However, his view began to be hindered by the mud that started to plaster his helmet. When his attempts to wipe it off and race with his visor open failed, he had no choice but to pull off as he couldn’t see where he was supposed to drive. However, in a race of attrition, he still finished in the place he started: 11th.

All-in-all it was a pretty successful weekend with the top ten finish on a brand new track far from home against a stacked field of champions and drivers with NASCAR experience.

The next USAC National midget series race isn’t until August 2nd in Nebraska, but the USAC Indiana Midget series takes to the track again June 29th at Plymouth Speedway.

To keep up with Walker between races and to get updates while he is on track, visit his fan page at Facebook.com/GageWalkerRacing. Visit his website for more information and videos through the years at GageWalkerRacing.com. Or you can also give him a follow on Twitter @GageWalker7.