2016 Minnesota Auto Sales

Hard Crash Ends Debut Race for Aubrey Wood

Flint, Michigan's Aubrey Wood is one of the latest drivers to debut in the FARC Smash/Beer Lowe Dollar Series. The Duckroll Super Series graduate made her first career start tonight at the 3/8-mile Elko Speedway in Minnesota, after failing to qualify in two previous attempts.

This week's effort nearly ended in her third DNQ, but the Desert Star Motorsports team just barely managed to get Wood's car into the show by placing in the 10th and final transfer spot in the 21-car heat race. With Todd Lacy missing out in the first two races of 2016 and Wood missing the third, this was the very first start of the year for car #83.

Unfortunately for Wood and her team, the main event would not turn out as well as hoped. Fighting conditions that Wood described over the radio as "crazy ridiculously tight" for most of the first half of the race, she showed little speed and hardly improved following the halfway break. Eventually, she would push so far up turn 2 that her car left the racing surface and smashed into the concrete wall lining an access opening, protected by tires and situated at a right angle to the racetrack.

"I messed up" said a disappointed Wood after the race, answering a question as to what happened in the accident. "I turned into [turn] 1 too late and could not get the car to come back down. This isn't how I wanted to start my FARC career. I know accidents happen but that one was bad; I just drove it into a wall. It was just the worst feeling sitting there with the car destroyed knowing that I let everyone down and I'm really sorry to all of you. But we're going to stay focused and make more races and run better. I hope I can give my team some of the good runs they deserve."

Wood would be scored in the 20th position of the 26 starters.

When the FARC Smash Beer/Lowe Dollar Series returns to action at Mosport, driver Dan Francis, Jr. will be piloting Desert Star Motorsports #83 car, and will be attempting to make his series debut.