Adam Turner
Belleville, ONT — March 16, 2009 – By Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications
One of the first things you’ll learn about Adam Turner is that he doesn’t take anything too seriously. The second generation DIRTcar racer from Picton, Ontario would rather face the problems of his world with a smile than worry about them.
If you’re not laughing when you start talking to him, you certainly will be by the time you’re finished. Turner has been known to keep the crowds that gather near his family-run race team well entertained on a weekly basis. His parents, Paul and Pat, have often thought about writing a book of ‘Adamisms’. Their only concern is that few would believe some of the stories they’d be telling.
Turner likes to have a laugh and can spin a tall tale with the best of them, but when he fastens the safety-belts and slips behind the wheel, it’s an entirely different world. “There’s a job to do and when the green flag waves, I need to focus”, Turner says. “I’ve never lost track of the fact that racing is supposed to be fun. We don’t race for a living, so it’s nice to have a no-pressure, relaxed atmosphere around the team. My Mom and Dad are with me at the track. We set-up some illuminated palm trees next to the camper and have a barbecue after the races. People always drop by for a visit before the races and we always have a big crowd come by when the show finishes. Most weekends, we don’t leave the pits at Brockville until Sunday morning after a home-cooked breakfast.”
The 2008 racing season –the 25 year-old driver’s second year in a DIRTcar Sportsman Modified– resulted in a 13th place points finish in a limited schedule at Thunder Alley Speed Park in Evans Mills, New York and 6th in the final standings at Brockville Ontario Speedway. Turner also racked up a top-5 and a pair of top-10 runs in 3 starts at Can-Am Motorsports Park in LaFargeville, New York.
For two years, Turner and his team travelled back and forth between the Friday and Saturday night venues with fellow Prince Edward County racer and high school friend Tyler Rand, often camping at the track and working on each other’s cars between shows. With Rand trading his Sportsman car for the seat of a 360 sprinter, Adam decided it was time for something new as well and will debut a new look for his #92 DIRTcar Sportsman Modified once the 2009 season opens.
Turner says he’s already been experimenting with a few different designs for the car and is thinking about a paint scheme similar to Tony Stewart’s 2008 dirt late model. “We still have the same Bicknell car we ran last year. It’s a former Sweetners Plus car we bought from Watertown, New York’s Billy Dunn at the end of the 2007 season,” Turner explained. “Right now, it’s in about a million pieces on the shop floor. We’re going over everything. Checking welds, adjusting brackets and straightening a bar here and there. I want to make sure everything is set to go about a week before the season opener.”
Even though there’s snow on the ground, Adam Turner is thinking about racing non-stop. He has circled tentative dates on the ’09 calendar that hangs on the shop wall. He’s definitely headed back to Brockville, with an eye on improving his 2008 points position.
With all the talk on various racing forums through the off-season, there may also be a new Friday night home for the popular Prince Edward County racer. The biggest news to come out of the shop that houses the #92 ride is a plan to follow the Mr. DIRTcar Sportsman Championship Series.
“We’ve done quite well with the limited resources of the family-run auto repair business on the side of the car and some sponsorship from long-time friends and supporters, I’d like to see what we could do with a solid marketing program in place,” Turner remarked. “We’re going to get some sponsor search materials put together and see what kind of support we can drum-up. As a team, I feel we have a lot to offer a sponsor – both on and off the racetrack. I’m very proud of where I’m from and Prince Edward County is growing and becoming quite a vibrant and popular tourist destination. The wineries are well known world-wide and anything we could do to help spread the word in our travels would be a win-win situation for everyone.”
Media contact: Jim Clarke – Clarke Motorsports Communications
clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com, 613/968-6410 or 613/922-0654
