'It Gives Me More Confidence': Taylor Reimer Is A Winner On Pavement
'It Gives Me More Confidence': Taylor Reimer Is A Winner On Pavement
Taylor Reimer claimed her first career victory on pavement during Saturday's night's Limited Late Model feature at Tri-County Speedway.
Just a few months into her first full asphalt Late Model season, Taylor Reimer is now a winner on the pavement.
The Oklahoma native picked up the win in the Limited Late Model feature at Tri-County Speedway (NC) Saturday night. Starting fourth after the invert, she quickly took the lead and never looked back, winning the 50-lap event, her first on asphalt.
“At the beginning of the night we qualified second and there was an invert so we ended up starting fourth," Reimer explained. "I think I took the lead on lap 11 and honestly we were just gone after that. We didn’t have any more cautions. I think we had a straightaway on the car behind me.”
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Reimer has split time this season between Tri-County and Hickory Motor Speedway (NC) and has run well at both tracks, having had three top-five finishes in the four previous races before Saturday night. As the top-fives kept piling up, Reimer knew that first win was coming.
“I’m really happy with how the weekend went. It’s a testament to how hard everyone at Lee Faulk Racing and I have been working throughout the year. We’ve came close several times and I knew it was just a matter of time before we got that first win.
“It’s definitely early. All the hard work we’ve been putting in, for it to finally pay off is an amazing feeling. It gives me more confidence going into the next races to come.”
Reimer made a single start in the Limited Late Model in 2023 before making pavement racing her primary focus in 2024. With the transition comes numerous differences from her past experience on the dirt in Midgets, from the cars themselves to how they are raced.
“Last year I only ran once at the end of the year and that was the only Late Model start I had previously. This year has been a huge learning curve. How much bigger the cars are, how much more they weigh compared to what I’m used to on dirt.
“Having a spotter is also a huge transition. Shifting on the restarts, it’s all a part of the learning process. Figuring out how to pass people, especially on short tracks where there’s not as much room to move around as on dirt, the motto is to go where they’re not. With pavement it’s the opposite; you’ve got to follow them into the corner and try to get them on exit.”
Now with her first pavement win under her belt, Reimer shifts her focus towards the rest of the season in the Carolinas. Along with continued starts with the Late Model, she will also return to the ARCA Menards Series for a pair of starts.
“I think we’re going to be doing about 25 Late Model races throughout the season, and then two ARCA races but those are on dirt. That’s really our only plans right now, just getting seat time in the Late Model preparing for when we’re ready to make the jump up to ARCA.”