FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 21, 2011
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Chub Frank Toughs Out A Fourth-Place Finish At I-55 Raceway Racing With Injured Thumb

BEAR LAKE, PA – Sept. 21, 2011 – An injured thumb couldn’t stop Chub Frank from turning in a solid performance in last Saturday night’s World of Outlaws Late Model Series Pepsi Nationals at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo.

Racing with his right thumb in a protective brace after breaking it the previous week in a World 100 heat-race incident, Frank charged forward from the 11th starting spot to finish an impressive fourth in the 55-lap A-Main at the high-banked, one-third-mile oval outside St. Louis.

Frank, 49, of Bear Lake, Pa., registered his fifth top-five finish of the 2011 WoO LMS. Considering the circumstances, this one had to rank as his most hard-earned.

The popular driver known as ‘Chubzilla’ entered the WoO LMS weekend in the Midwest uncertain about his prospects thanks to his injury. His broke the thumb on Sept. 10 on the opening of his heat race for the World 100 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio; his hand got caught in his car’s steering wheel when he got swept up in turn-two tangle. While he immediately knew the thumb would need medical attention, he went on to run a B-Main that evening (he failed to make the World 100 cut) and sought treatment upon returning home.

Frank aggravated his injury last Friday night at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill., where his car bounced in the air and slapped the outside wall after its right-rear wheel broke and bounced off as he entered turn one on his first time-trial lap. He parked his damaged machine and was prepared to run his second car – the distinctive orange-colored Corry Rubber/Hino Toyota/Horton Equipment Rocket No. 1* that he unveiled at the World 100 – but he never got the chance because rain moved in and forced the cancelation of the WoO LMS event.

Frank was back in his head-turning orange mount on Saturday night at I-55. And rather than use the smaller thumb brace that doctors had provided him for racing (it was on his hand at Tri-City), he decided to wear the larger apparatus that he had been told to use whenever he’s out of the car. The switch ended up helping him immensely.

“I’m glad I tried that brace I did,” said Frank, who slipped his racing glove over the brace when he climbed into the cockpit at I-55. “It was a lot better. I had a lot more confidence with that one on.

“I definitely could still feel (the injury),” he added. “But it wasn’t too bad. When you’re out there, you’re racin’.”

Frank hustled his machine forward with some strong outside moves on the tight track. He briefly overtook Jason Feger for third late in the distance but fell back to fourth the following circuit.

“I got by Feger but I didn’t clear him enough to slide up,” said Frank. “I figured he was racing me pretty clean so I had to give him a lane and he got back by.

“I’m happy with the night,” he continued. “We still could never get the car to turn where we needed it to turn, but it was better. Josh (Richards, who won the evening’s A-Main) helped me out a little bit and got us going in the right direction.”

Frank’s car was powered by a new Roush-Yates Chevrolet engine, which he used for the first time in a major event the previous week at Eldora.

“The motor ran great,” said Frank. “This Roush-Yates is a good piece. I’m excited to see what we can do with it.”

Frank, who sits fifth in the WoO LMS points standings with five events remaining on the 2011 schedule, plans to race close to home this weekend in the ‘Fall Classic’ at McKean County Raceway in East Smethport, Pa. He’ll compete in three nights of ULMS action – the ULMS ‘King of the Hill’ Challenge on Thurs., Sept. 22; the $4,000-to-win Dave Lundgren Memorial on Fri., Sept. 23; and the sixth annual ULMS Priority Care RaceFAN 50 ($13,000 to win) on Sat., Sept. 24.

For more information on Chub Frank, visit his Web site at www.chubfrank.com.

Chub Frank Racing receives support from many valued sponsors, including Corry Rubber, Lake Shore Paving, Hino Toyota, Sorbera Family Chiropractic, Horton Equipment, All-Star Performance, Slavic Corporation, Custom Race Engines, GW Performance, Integra Shocks, Hoosier Tire and Roush-Yates Racing Engines.