Travelers Rest, SC - June 28, 2008 – Steven Lines from Melbourne Australia charged from his outside row four starting position into victory lane in the first of twin 20-lap O’Reilly Auto Parts United Sprint Car Series presented by Lucas Oil main events on Saturday night at Travelers Rest Speedway. The visiting Lines drove noted Cherryville, North Carolina car owner and crew chief, Jeff McCall’s #23 J&J Auto Racing car to his first O’Reilly USCS feature win and first win on US soil since arriving for a two month stint two weeks ago.
Lines charged from eighth place into fourth place on lap one of the first feature at the well-groomed 3/8 mile red-clay oval. He was in the third position on lap three. Lines then raced past the 24x car of young gun Nick Bashford from Mexico, New York on lap four into the runner-up spot and took up the chase for the race-leader, Johnny Bridges from Cherryville, North Carolina who won the previous night’s feature at Carolina Speedway.
Lines reeled in the leader, lap after lap attacking the racing surface high and low. Bridges who has three 2008 O’Reilly USCS Southern Thunder Tour regional series feature wins, led the first fifteen laps of the caution-free twenty lap sprint to pay window. Lines caught him and bolted into the lead on lap sixteen and raced the final five laps to victory lane.
Bridges came home in the runner-up spot followed by three-time O’Reilly USCS Hoosier Tire Young Gun Champion, Danny Martin, Jr. from Sarasota, Florida who started fifth. Josh Weller from Mertztown, Pennsylvania who started sixth followed Martin in the fourth position. Defending series Champion and current point’s leader, Terry Gray from Bartlett, Tennessee who started ninth rounded out the top five.
The next group of finishers included seventeen year-old Nick Bashford in the sixth position followed by Trevor Lewis from Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania in seventh place. O’Reilly USCSSouthern Thunder Rookie point’s leader, Jake McLain from Indian Trail, North Carolina followed in the eighth position. Matt Linder from Hoschton, Georgia was ninth and 2007 O’Reilly USCS Asphalt Thunder Tour Rookie of the Year, Nick DeFeo from Marietta, Georgia rounded out the top ten.
The six-time and defending O’Reilly USCS National Champion, Terry Gray kicked off the evening’s racing action with a win in the six cars, six laps Lucas Oil Power Dash shootout featuring the top six cars from the previous night’s event at Carolina Speedway. Sophomore USCS driver Nick Defeo from Marietta, Georgia garnered the K&N Filters Pole award. Steven Lines was the Hoosier Tire Young Gun of the race. Jake McLain was the race’s Rookie of the Race.