11_19

DONNIE MORAN

THE FAMILY MAN PLANS AHEAD

November 19th, 2003

By Doc Lehman

Donnie Moran hasn’t spent the early part of the off-season channel surfing. He’s already hard at work aggressively putting his program together for 2004 and one change for the Million Dollar Man is a new engine program and sponsorship deal with Robert Vincent’s SMS Racing Engines, based in Childersburg, AL.

“We’re going to start out next year with some new motors and also the guy who is doing the carburetors for those new engines is Shannon from Rapture Carburetors,” stated the veteran Dresden, OH racer.

“SMS is out of Alabama and he actually built the motor that won the ARCA race at Daytona this year. We went over to the track testing and we have turned some really good lap times so I’m pretty pumped.”

“I think I’ll have a great season.”

As for Moran’s chassis if choice for ’04, he has made a commitment to Mastersbilt despite running a CJ Rayburn during the very latter stages of the ’03 season.

“I’m going to run Mastersbilt next year,” confirmed Moran. “I’ve been over to the track testing and we learned a few things on that car and I know what Schlieper did, and I know at this point in time I won the (ELDORA) MILLION in the Rayburn, but right now the Mastersbilt seems to be better for me. I’m pretty excited about it.”

“We did some testing and I found out what I wanted to know and I’m exited about coming out of the box next year on ‘kill’. We took a little time off and went on the Mastersbilt cruise and with all the Mastersbilt people and Keith (Masters) and I worked out some things for next year and I’m really excited about that. So we’re all looking forward to it and ready to rock ‘n roll for next year!”

Moran will also find himself busy come spring with a whole new schedule for his Donnie Moran Driving School which has brought novice as well as experienced drivers to Ohio to attend his courses.

“We’re going to have a new driving school flyer out probably the week of the PRI Show with all the new dates for next year, so it will be full-go for the school next year,” commented Moran. “We’ll start the first or second week of April. I’ll have the schedule put together real soon. I’ve already talked to a bunch of people who are coming. I had a guy call from Wisconsin who is coming down for it.”

With Moran being an Xtreme Dirt Car Series regular recently the subject of XDCS President Doug Bland’s recent announcement of Stacker 2 sponsorship was a subject that couldn’t not be brought up. Even though only the initial announcement has been made and minimal details have been released, Moran was asked what his initial reaction to the news was.

“I think it will be good,” stated Moran. “I think it will be good for dirt Late Model racing and I think it will be good for Xtreme and for Doug Bland and everyone else involved. I don’t see how it can be a bad deal in my opinion.”

“Like us drivers that need more money because the cost of things is so great today, with Doug being able to do this and being able to put more money out to drivers from a corporate sponsor like Stacker 2 and I think there will be other corporate sponsors that trickle in because once other corporate people take a look, I think they’ll actually see how good the racing is and the dirt Late Model world is and will think they need to be a part of it.”

“Doug was my marketing man before he bought Xtreme this year. I have known him for a couple years now. He went with me to Eldora when I won the ELDORA MILLION and we talk quite a bit, and Doug and I are friends on and off the race track and I think it’s a really good deal and I’m behind him 100%.”

“He has the marketing ability. Like with QPI, I got that deal but Doug put all the paperwork together for us and he was a big part of me signing with QPI when he was working as marketing agent.”

Moran was also asked how he felt about the proposed expansion within the ‘new’ Stacker 2 Xtreme Dirt Car Series, which has already started with the recent purchase of the now former Renegade Dirt Car Racing Series. Apparently a weekly series is in the works along with the possible purchase of up to two more series.

“I think it has its pluses and a few minuses,” replied Moran. “The only thing I can say is time will tell whether all of that will work or not. But for Doug’s situation, if he were to go in and have a tire rule with Goodyear, he will have to have more of a base of support with people instead of just his travelers. Because if he doesn’t, and let’s say he comes in here to Muskingum, he would only have 10, 15 , maybe 20 cars show up. But if he has local participation with the racetrack and it doesn’t matter if it’s Hoosier, or Goodyear or American Racer. When he has local participation with whatever he chooses, it will bring the car count up.”

“From my racer’s standpoint, we definitely need a tire rule. And I’ll use this for an example, when we go to Eldora for their two biggest races our truck in not full of tires. We can go with half a load of tires and know that we will run that four compound ‘LM’ tire deal. And then when we go to say, a local race like at Muskingum, we have to have all our tires mounted.”

“I’m not saying I’m behind him whether it’s Goodyear or Hoosier or whatever, Hoosier has been a sponsor of mine for a long time but people who can put more money in this sport who can help me and racers like me, we will all benefit from it.”

As for the 2004 season and his racing plans, Moran, like most traveling racers, hasn’t been able to confirm anything until the schedules come out, but he is staying busy preparing cars, motors, hiring crew and attainting sponsors.

“I don’t know if (QPI) will be back yet or not,” said Moran. Right now he has some things in the works so we’ll see. But as of today nothing is confirmed yet. What we have confirmed for 2004 is that Eddie’s Sunoco is coming back and we’ll also have Sunoco Race Fuels, Bazell Oil, Banshee Graphics and a lot of the other contingency sponsors we have will be back. And part of my team next year will be with Mike Farr and Farr Motorsports and Carrera Shocks.”

“Tim Marshall will be back with me on the crew and I might be looking to hire somebody else. I’m working on doing interviews right now, too. So if anyone is looking for a crew job they can contact me.”

As for scheduling, Moran is undecided until the schedules and series plans and direction is released.

“It’s undecided until I see what Doug has to offer (laughs)” offered Moran with a chuckle. “I do know I will be at East Bay for Speedweeks. I don’t know if I’ll be able to be out on the road full time on the national deal like I did last year but now that he has this Northern Xtreme deal I might end up running that deal because with me, my wife and my five kids, we had to change some plans because it kind of got (Moran’s wife) Brenda down on the home schooling with all five, so maybe in 2004 we will run a series, but a more local series.”

“Like last summer we were out west and I saw Mt. Rushmore and we were out on the road for 3 ½ weeks and I didn’t have my family with me.

The reason I got married was to have someone to love all my life plus have a family. And I don’t want to be out on the road like that. I don’t think people realize that being out on the road like that for so long how big a chore and difficult it is for both parents to participate in raising your family, especially with as many kids as we have.” “And being out on the road for 3 ½ weeks is just too much for Brenda. I love to race, and I’m going to race for a very long time, but it takes it’s toll on a family. I won’t say I won’t go for a week at a time, but three weeks or more at a time is to much for us.”

Regardless, Moran will spend the majority of his time following sanctioned races.

“I love racing series, even in the beginning when it was MOSS then the All Star Circuit of Champions, then STARS and then UDTRA and Renegade and now Xtreme,” explained Moran. “I like series because they are actually supporting what I do. I like it better than just being at races here and there. There is consistency with them and I know what to expect.”

But for the short term, one of racing’s more popular and well-known father’s is going to spend ample time with his five children, which consists of four sons and a daughter.

“This weekend is the first weekend my kids race their quarter midgets in Columbus,” revealed Moran. “Devin and Tristin are racing, Wylie is tentative right now, but Saturday is their first race. We’re going to Columbus Friday night to watch a tournament football game. I went to Licking Valley and they’re playing Kenton in Division III. Last week was the first game I got to go to and they won in the 4th overtime 63-60!”

“Unbelievable!”