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trail's season-opening events on Feb. 14 and 16 during the 37th annual Alltel DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla.
"To be honest," said Shirley, "I'm setting out to run the whole deal this year, so I'm looking to contend for the championship. We're prepared to go the whole distance, so I feel like we should have a chance to win everywhere we go now.
"We just have to buckle down and go for it."
Discount Shirley's confidence at your peril. The 26-year-old from Chatham, Ill., might only be in his second season as a WoO LMS traveler, but his history suggests that he's a prime candidate to make the leap from a rookie who finished ninth in the 2007 points race to a stalwart at the top of the standings.
Shirley has proven to be a quick study behind the wheel of a dirt Late Model. Since jumping into a full-bodied car six years ago after a hand injury ended his promising career as a flat-track motorcycle racer, the X-Games-cool driver has made a meteoric rise from the dirt Late Model division's local UMP DIRTcar Racing scene to the national stage. He won the Macon (Ill.) Speedway points title and UMP DIRTcar Racing Late Model Rookie of the Year crown in 2002, the regional Northern Allstars Late Model Series championship in 2004 and the Knoxville (Iowa) Late Model Nationals in 2006, setting him up for his first season out on the road with the WoO LMS in 2007.
Though Shirley didn't begin the '07 campaign with a plan to follow the WoO LMS and thus skipped the season-opening Alltel DIRTcar Nationals in the Sunshine State, he ultimately entered 37 of the season's 45 programs. There were some first-year-driver bumps in the road, but he won his first career WoO LMS event on May 13 at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway - becoming the second racer in WoO LMS history to win an A-Main as a rookie - and registered four runner-up finishes.
With longtime St. Louis-area team owner Ed Petroff of Petroff Towing fame providing Shirley quality equipment for the fourth consecutive year, the driver known as 'Squirrel' certainly has what it takes to run up front against the country's best competition. This time around he also has the knowledge and experience he gained racing and fraternizing with the Outlaws in '07.
Take, for instance, Shirley's off-season preparation. With the lessons of '07 squarely in his mind, he's done some things differently this winter.
"We've just tried to be a little smarter getting ready for the season," said Shirley, whose sponsors include Petroff Towing, Jayco Construction and J&J Steel. "We realized last year that we need to have everything organized a little better in advance. A lot of times last year it was only me and Zach (Pointer, Shirley's longtime friend who was recruited to serve as his mechanic) at the track, so we gotta do what four people usually do - and if that kind of situation is gonna work, we have to have everything in order so we don't get behind."
All of Shirley's off-season work has also been centered upon attacking the grueling WoO LMS - a big change from his mindset entering '07.
"It definitely helps knowing what direction you're going in," said Shirley, one of two announced '08 WoO LMS regulars under the age of 30 (Josh Richards, 19, is the other). "We've gotten everything together - our cars, our trailer, our truck, our spares - to run the World of Outlaws Series."
Shirley's arsenal features two Rayburn and two Rocket cars - one of each is brand-new, and the others were new near the end of '07 - and six Pro Power engines, including three new powerplants.
"We worked on getting all our motors set for the start of the year," said Shirley. "We realize that we're taking on a big situation here. There's a lot more competition than you'll find anywhere else, so you've gotta be loaded up with everything you've got at all times.
"I think with the stuff we have and the way we've prepared, we're hopefully in position to go to every race and be in position to win."
Shirley will find many familiar faces on the WoO LMS road in the Rocket Chassis crowd, including Mark and Josh Richards, Steve Francis, Shane Clanton and Darrell Lanigan - a group he worked closely and traveled with in 2007. The veteran Outlaws provided valuable setup assistance to the WoO LMS neophyte.
"Those guys kinda had my back," said Shirley. "It's cool the way they all help each other. Having them to lean on a little definitely helped me out."
Following the tour will also give Shirley a chance to spend more time with his girlfriend, Candi Beitler. Her father, Dale, happens to own the Reliable Painting No. 19 that defending WoO LMS champion Steve Francis will drive this year, so you can bet Candi, who attends college in Maryland, will be in attendance at many WoO LMS events.
And she's expecting to see Shirley battling with her father's driver for plenty of checkered flags - just like everyone else.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
Tickets for the Alltel DIRTcar Nationals are available on-line at www.volusiaspeedwaypark.com.
Fans unable to attend the spectacular week at Volusia can still catch all the action on the DIRTVision Cybercast. For just $29.99 fans can purchase the 'Alltel DIRTcar Nationals Racepass' and watch live streaming video of all 12 nights of racing action from Feb. 5-16. Log on to www.dirtvision.com for more information.
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