Elko-Experienced Hackenbracht Forecasts Speed

Chad Hackenbracht won a national asphalt legends championship at Elko Speedway in 2008, making him one of the few drivers in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards with any idea about what Elko Speedway has to offer.

Hackenbracht spoke about the track before arriving for tonight's Akona 200 presented by Federated Car Care, and is forecasting a fast, tight race.

"It's fairly fast for a legends car; I don't know as far as a stock car is concerned," said Hackenbracht, who is currently fourth in series points behind Tom Hessert, Chris Buescher, and Brennan Poole. "It'll be fairly tight for full-bodied cars. I honestly don't remember too much, other than that it was fast. It had a bunch of grip. I don't think it's been too long since it was paved."

One thing Hackenbracht knows is that the Elko Speedway experience will be a shining one for fans in attendance.

"It's a pretty cool place," he said. "Victory Lane's not in the center or down in the pits or anything; it's actually right next to the grandstands off of Turn 1, so you've got to drive outside and they have to open a gate for you. It's pretty unique in that perspective. It's a heck of a track for fans. They've got a bar under the grandstands, and it's a really nice facility with TVs everywhere to watch timing and scoring, and they've got them all throughout the pits. I remember that about it; it's a lot of fun."

Despite his high standing in the points, Hackenbracht is uncertain whether CGH Motorsports has the wherewithal to make it to each of the 20 races on the 2012 schedule. Sponsorship is always a need, and Hackenbracht admits his team has holes to fill.

"We weren't even really planning on going to Elko, but I actually signed the entry form right after we got out of the car at Toledo," he said. "I didn't know we were headed there until then. I don't know exactly - after the TV races - what we'll end up doing."

If he can continue to show up at the race track, the New Philadelphia, Ohio driver understands that consistency and another 15 starts just like his first five will be key.

"I definitely feel like we've had a good year so far," he said. "It's still early, too early to say whether you're going to be in it or not at the end. Obviously, if we keep having the good races that we've had, we'll be able to be there in the end. Like (crew chief) Kevin (Reed) keeps telling me, like when we finished eighth at Toledo, it's not where you want to finish but it's a great points day because it tightened everybody up. It's a whole different ballgame when you're looking at the bigger picture rather than just race to race."

The 200-lap, 75-mile Akona 200 will begin at 8 p.m., with two 45-minute practices scheduled for 2 and 3:15, and Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell following at 5. Each driver in the starting field will participate in an on-track autograph session from 6:30 to 7:30, just before the green flag. (All times listed here are Central.)

ARCARacing.com and the ARCA Racing Network will feature live streaming audio coverage of the 8 p.m. race, which will be the sixth in ARCA's 60th Anniversary Season.