ROSSBURG, Ohio (Oct. 9) — Garrett Alberson finished eighth in Friday’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series feature at Eldora Speedway, which most drivers would typically consider a mediocre finish. But the Las Cruces, N.M., racer was all smiles with a top-10 run as he continues his comeback from facial injuries he suffered in an August incident at Florence Speedway.
“Overall it was a huge step forward in our progress from where we’ve been,” Alberson said after the Clash on the Wabash opener. “Looking at the last couple of weeks were pretty depressing. We rode the struggle bus way harder than I thought we would. Obviously it’s not the result that you want, but it was still a huge confidence boost. Like, you feel like you’re back in the mix with the guys.”
Alberson, who was struck in the helmet by an object during Florence’s North-South 100 on Aug. 8, returned to the cockpit two weeks ago at Brownstown Speedway’s Jackson 100 weekend after a lengthy absence. He finished 19th in the C.J. Rayburn Memorial and 20th in the 100-lapper, then placed 21st in last Saturday’s Pittsburgher feature.
“I think our car’s pretty fast,” said Alberson, who posted the overall quickest lap in Friday’s time trials. “I’m just rusty on the racing part of it for sure. We need a little balance work to go win the race, but the speed’s pretty decent. I’ve just got to put all the pieces back together myself, I feel like.”
Alberson entered Eldora’s action in the same Longhorn Chassis he debuted at the Pittsburger.
“I didn't get the right set-up (at PPMS),” Alberson said. “You know, the guys built a good car. I just made some big mistakes on the setup end of it. We were able to stop and go through it really well and kind of get back to our program that we had before all that stuff happened. And now I feel like we’re kind of back in the ballpark speed-wise, so I feel good about that. I’ve just got to work to make a little better decisions on the driving part of it now.
“I swear, like, the aggression level has stepped up since I've been out of it,” he added. “I mean, you would think a few weeks wouldn’t make a difference. I just kind of have to acclimate to that, I think.”
Alberson, who started second, was able to get a strong run off turn two on the opening circuit of Friday’s 40-lapper. But when he attempted to pass Chris Madden down the backstretch he misjudged the cushion in turn three, slipped high against the wall and lost several spots.
He was proud to salvage eighth. He readily admitted that the past couple weekends have made him question whether he can return back to his old form before the accident.
“Aside from the vision stuff (from an injury to his left eye), I felt like my head got hit pretty hard and you just don’t feel like yourself for a long time,” said Alberson, who was very emotional after his heat win. “On top of that, just the way things transpired, timing-wise, there was just a lot of difficult weeks in there. Just weeks where you're like, ‘Are we even going to make it?’ you know what I mean? Just mentally, physically, just a lot of difficult weeks, and then we’re going to get back in the car. And then we were so bad, when I got back in the car, it’s like, ‘Man, can I even do this?’ The last couple weeks were pretty trying. It’s just been a lot.
“You got a lot of support from the racing community as a whole, right? That also kind of feels overwhelming,” he added. “Everybody treated us so well, and, like, basically kept us afloat there. It happened to be a pretty difficult time and the racing community stepped in and saved us. I go back to the track not knowing if I’m ever going to be able to, like, live up to your expectations that was made for a couple tough weeks. I want to feel like I can kind of make it worth all their time and their money. That was just a huge step forward.”