Jack Vanderboom and Fast Jack Racing entered the 2021 season with high hopes. Hopes of a consistent season, a 410 Sprint Car debut, but most of all, a feature win.
Check, check, and check.
In the first two seasons of Jack’s career in 2019 and 2020, the 18 year old turned heads with podium finishes and strong runs against the likes of Jim Melis and Brandon McMullen. However, Jack had yet to tick off that elusive feature win. After a season full of consistent results, an exciting run of four 410 races with the IRA (including an impressive 11th place run at the massive Antigo Half-Mile), it looked like that taste of victory may never come for Jack, his father Rick and the Vanderboom family.
Then came the Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships.
Vanderboom had been running a strong second to front-runner Will Gerrits, until a yellow flag flew with 11 laps to go. On the ensuing restart, 3rd running Travis Arenz dive bombed Gerrits into turn 1 and took both himself and Gerrits out of contention for the win. Vanderboom avoided the incident and assumed the lead, but his work was not done.
“Under yellow with about 10 laps to go, I saw a red 98 pull up close to me.” Vanderboom said. “That’s an intimidating thing. I’d lost to Brandon at Dodge last year and I wanted to make up for that so badly.” Vanderboom made up for it, alright. The young star nailed the restart and actually gapped Four-Time MSA Champion Brandon McMullen en route to his first career A Main victory in a 360 Winged Sprint Car.
“I’m just speechless.” Jack said after the race. “We’ve been so fast all year but hadn’t put it all together. So happy we could do it at such a special race.” The season wasn’t over for the Bluemound Express Moving and Storage team, as the MSA tour added two non-points events at the Beaver Dam Raceway, as part of the IRA Wingless Nationals weekend.
The Friday night portion of the event went well for Vanderboom, with a 12th to 6th run, but nothing would compare to Saturday.
Jack qualified quick time in his group, and with a 4 car invert lined up 4th in his heat race. On the initial start, the Dousman, WI native took the front row three wide and ripped the cushion to take the lead exiting turn two. He never looked back and picked up the Heat race victory. That result put Vanderboom on the outside of the front row for the night’s A Main.
“I knew we had a great shot.” Jack said. “The car was flawless on the cushion and I knew we were one of the fastest teams there. It was just up to me to close it out.”
On the start of the 25 lap season finale Feature, Vanderboom once again railed the top side and snatched the lead from polesitter Tim Haddy to lead the first circuit. Jack stretched his lead as he began to dice through thick lapped traffic, but 2021 series Champion Travis Arenz had moved into 2nd and was closing on the U2. Arenz finally caught Vanderboom in traffic and momentarily took the lead down the front stretch, but Jack kept the throttle pinned and took the lead back from the 25T.
A late race restart allowed Kurt Davis to pass Arenz for 2nd and once again Vanderboom rocketed away from the field in clean air. Then, with around six laps to go, Arenz seemed to grab another gear and began to reel in the U2. Jack continued to pound the cushion as Arenz closed in and attempted a Hail Mary slider coming into turn 1 on the final lap. Jack once again ripped around the 25T and held on for his second MSA Victory in seven days.
“The Beaver Dam win was amazing.” Jack said. “To go toe to toe with Travis and win was amazing. We were kind of robbed of that at Plymouth and got some luck to get the win there, but Beaver was a straight up war. Credit to my Dad and my crew for a perfect setup all night.”
“He’s got this ‘mojo’ now after the Plymouth win.” Rick Vanderboom said at Beaver Dam. “I don't think earlier this year we could have gone at it with Arenz and won. It says a lot of how far he’s come as a driver this year and where we’re at as a team.” Rick then laughed, “Is it next year yet?”
“Fast Jack” recorded some fantastic stats across both 410 and 360 competition in 2021.
Races: 30
Average Finish: 9.56
Top 10’s 16
Top 5’s: 4
Heat Race Wins: 6
A Main Wins: 2
The 2022 season for Jack is sure to be one for the books, with both 410 and 360 Sprint Car action on the docket. A full schedule will be released later this off season. To support Fast Jack Racing via a marketing partnership, email box3racing@gmail.com.
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 would like to thank their 2021 partners for all their support this season!
Bluemound Express Moving and Storage
R&H Racing Equipment
Advanced Engine Concepts Inc.
Box3 Media
Ultrashield Race Products
Maxim Racing
Competition Suspension Inc.
Sage Fruit
PC: Emily Schwanke
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