Jack Vanderboom had high hopes coming into the 2021 MSA 360 Sprint season, and the year started off well for the 17 year old and the Bluemound Express Moving & Storage U2 Team. With 3 straight top 10 finishes, things were looking right on track, but then mechanical gremlins creeped up and cost Vanderboom nearly three full nights of competition and points. However, since those misfortunes “Fast Jack” has reeled off 5 straight Top 10 runs, including his first top 5 run of the year this past Saturday night.
Vanderboom began the night at the already dry slick Plymouth Dirt Track with a 3rd starting spot in his 10 lap Heat race. Using the bottom lane, Jack dropped to 4th momentarily, but stuck with the low side in turns 3 and 4 of the opening circuit to power past Preston Ruh and Doug Wondra to take 2nd place. Wondra made a bid for 2nd on the ensuing lap on the top side, but Vanderboom held off the charge. The remaining 8 laps were spent trying to find a way past leader Alex Pokorski, but no opportunity showed itself to Jack and he brought home a 2nd place finish.
“I felt really strong in the heat race.” Vanderboom said. “I just had nowhere to go on the track to find a way by Alex, and he didn’t make a mistake. I knew a 3rd to 2nd run would put us in a good spot for the A Main so I just brought it home.”
The run did in fact give Vanderboom a good starting position for the night’s 25 lap A Main, lining up on the outside of Row 2 in the 4th spot.
Unlike the heat race, the top proved to be the dominant line for the early stages of the A Main, and that played right into the hands of Vanderboom and his fellow Box3 Racing PR drivers Tyler Tischendorf and Will Gerrits. On the initial start, Vanderboom followed 2nd starting Tischendorf around the outside of 3rd place starter Kevin Karnitz, and both began their pursuit of leader Lance Fassbender. However, the race’s lone caution ensued on lap 2 and that put Vanderboom on the outside of Tischendorf for the upcoming Delaware Double-File restart.
The outside line once again proved dominant, and Vanderboom rocketed by Tischendorf on the restart and into 2nd place. However, Gerrits went even higher in turns one and two and found an immense amount of speed and pulled even with Vanderboom down the backstretch, Pinned on the bottom, Vanderboom attempted to fight back, but Gerrits had too much momentum and the U2 was forced to concede second place to the 21. Following Gerrits on the cushion was series Points Leader Travis Arenz, and Vanderboom was able to fend off that challenge for a few more laps, before Arenz eventually used that same top groove to take the 3rd spot away.
Vanderboom got wise to the top side after that, and popped up right behind Arenz and started to bring now 5th place running Tischendorf with him as the two young stars attempted to reel in the leaders. Vanderboom would get close to Arenz and Fassbender later in the race, but by that point the Plymouth track surface had taken a lot of rubber, and the fastest line had moved down to the bottom. Vanderboom came across the line a very close fourth place behind Arenz, Fassbender and race winner Gerrits, and ahead of Tischendorf, Karnitz and Brandon McMullen.
“I think 4th is a great result for us tonight.” Vanderboom said after climbing out of the car. “If the track hadn’t taken rubber. I think we might have had something for those top 3 guys in traffic, but Will [Gerrits] was just so quick tonight. It’s our first top 5 of the season, so it feels good to finally tick that box after so many 6th and 7th place finishes. I can’t thank my team, Rick, Scott, and my mom and dad for all their help tonight and all year long. We’ll come back next week even better and even stronger.”
The MSA Sprints series will head back to The Dirt Track at Plymouth in Plymouth, WI on Saturday, July 17th for a regular PDTR program. Tickets will be available at the track.
You can follow along with Jack’s 2021 season on his Instagram, @fast_jack_u2, Twitter @Fast_JackU2, and Facebook at Fast Jack Racing, and with Box3 Racing PR on Facebook at Box3 Media, and on Twitter @box3_racing.
Fast Jack Racing is supported by Bluemound Express Moving and Storage and Box3 Media w/Sage Fruit.
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