BEATTIE HUNTS BEST FINISH YET IN SALEM
July 22, 2001 - Salem, IN

Round 13 of the AC DELCO ASA Series was held at the Salem Speedway, in Salem, Indiana. Defending Champion Gary St. Amant picked up his second win of the 2001 ACDelco Series season, winning the Tecumseh 300, with J.C. Beattie Jr finishing 12th, his best finish yet of the 2001 season.

J.C. felt optimistic about the car going into this weekend's race and was anxious to get started. With a lap time of 17.684 seconds, Beattie Jr was just .4 seconds off the time of pole-sitter, Butch Miller. "The car felt good in turn one and two, but was a little loose in three and four" said Beattie Jr. "We'll just have to wait and see how the race goes."

The green flag dropped shortly after 9 PM Saturday night and the sound of Vortec engines filled the air. By lap 5, J.C. had moved the #09 ATI Performance Racing Chevy Monte Carlo up to 22nd place and was looking to make a move on the #38 car of driver, Johnny Spaw. He would have to wait until lap 78 to get by after an amazing pit stop by the ATI pit crew that got him out just ahead of Spaw.

Late in the race, J.C. had managed to weave his way up to 13th place, and was closing in on Mike Garvey, who had started up in 7th. On lap 286, Garvey went wide in turn three and J.C. slipped the #09 down the inside. It was a bold move by the boy Beattie, but crew chief, Jack Smith, had assured him that the tires were matched perfect and staggered special. The move put him in 12th place and J.C. held that position to the checkered flag.

"We've been working hard all year," J.C. said. "It's feels great to have this kind of result after spending so much time and effort. It's nice to have some consistency, and the crew and myself are only looking to get better."

Gary St. Amant still trails Sauter in the race for the 2001 ASA National Championship, heading into the 14th event of the season, the Texas Roadhouse 300, at Hawkeye Downs Speedway. The August 4th Texas Roadhouse 300 is set to go green at 8 PM (local) and will be telecast live on TNN.

Fans in the Baltimore area can listen for J.C. Beattie, Jr. on The Checkered Flag, a radio program covering NASCAR, CART, IRL, and Maryland racing. The Checkered Flag can be heard on WNST 1570 AM, Saturdays between 9 and 11 AM. Be sure to check www.jcbeattie.com or www.asaracing.com often for the latest information on J.C. Beattie, Jr. and the ATI Performance Racing team.


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