Havens kicks 2013 season off at Evergreen Speedway
![Braeden Havens will slide behind the wheel of his Western Rail Inc. Chevrolet fielded by Thompson Motorsports for selected events on the 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. (Photo courtesy of Thompson Motorsports)](https://thumb.spokesman.com/zE7XSTNLOZurYWtm2-hRoMa8FDA=/810x0/media.spokesman.com/photos/2012/01/06/bradenhavens20002.jpg)
Braeden Havens, who finished third in the 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series Rookie of the Year standings, has found success at Evergreen in the past with his late model. Getting the chance to run the high speeds of the .675-mile oval as the first race of the season will be a good test to start the year.
For Immediate Release: Killer “B” 83 Motorsports Media Relations
SPOKANE, Wash. (April 3, 2013)-Braeden Havens gets his racing season underway this weekend as the Spokane native brings his Killer “B” Motorsports team to the Northwest's biggest race track and a run on the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.
Havens, who finished third in the 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series Rookie of the Year standings, has found success at Evergreen in the past with his late model. Getting the chance to run the high speeds of the .675-mile oval as the first race of the season will be a good test to start the year, he noted.
“Evergreen's big track is so fast and very challenging to drive. We ran some late model events over there last year for the first time as we got ready for our K&N race and I really like the track. To be successful we have to find a good balance between our handling and getting the speed we'll need to keep up with the field. For this race we're bringing a car we had been running on the ICAR series. It has the horsepower similar to a crate engine so that will really help to keep the tires underneath it.”
Spending two days of practice at Stateline Speedway to fine-tune his No. 83 Western Rail Impala, Havens is mindful that Evergreen's surface, length and speed are much different then the .250-mile Idaho oval. With some adjustments to the engine to get the most from the horsepower he'll bring to the Mark Galloway 150, the practices have been helpful, Havens explained.
“Our team knows the biggest thing we can take away from our practices is knowing the motor will run strong and give is the speed we'll need to be there at the end of the night,” he said. “The car got through the corners well and we made a few adjustments thinking ahead to this weekend at Evergreen. Knowing we'll have a Friday night practice on the big track to adjust the car for the conditions of the race then being able to come back the next afternoon and work on it more is big for our chances this weekend.”
Another bonus to the weekend will be the chance to compete against some of the region's top late model talent, Havens added.
“To have our first race of the season come with the likes of Garrett Evans, Gary Lewis, Jason Fraser, Naima Lang and Shane Mitchell also out there chasing the win in the Mark Galloway 150 is pretty cool. This team and I have worked hard over the last few years to be able to run with those guys and after nearly winning the Idaho 200 last year, making our first Montana 200, the good runs on the K&N Series and getting so many compliments on how far our team has come means to me as a driver that we're getting better every time we race and hopefully we'll be able to keep climbing. This year we've said the sky's the limit to what our team can do.”
Fans can keep up with Havens progress this weekend on the Killer B Racing Facebook page, on Twitter @BraedenHavens and on RacingWest. Havens will be a guest Thursday night on NorthSound Racing, which can be heard in the Puget Sound region on 1380AM KRKO. The team will be debuting a relaunch of their website in coming days at www.killerb83.com