Third in a series of 14 announcing the 2009 ASAMT Touring Stars

By: Kevin Ramsell
BURLINGTON, WI (Tuesday, November 25, 2008) – A year ago, Nick Murgic was racing his Super Late Model at tracks around central Minnesota. One year later, he competed in the American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment and became the 2008 Lane Automotive Rookie of the Year.

The 2008 ASAMT Rookie of the Year made the feature field in 13 out of 14 events this past season. He earned three top-ten finishes for his efforts and finished 12th in the final point standings, making him eligible to be a Touring Star in 2009.

He is also becoming a household name as he currently sits in the top-five for Speed 51’s Super Late Model Most Popular Driver Award (You can vote for Nick or any other ASAMT driver at: http://www.speed51.com/2008_Stories/MPD/SLM_MPD.html. You are allowed one vote a day and have until December 15th.)

“It’s been a big learning experience. There are a lot of great guys to race against. We are learning every track and each has its own different thing and the home guys usually have the advantage,” Murgic stated when asked about his first season in the ASAMT. “We are learning a lot, just working on the car getting it figured out and learning the tracks. I have a lot of great guys to work with, they are always helpful. It’s just a lot of fun actually.”

Murgic will agree that the learning experience came with the competition he faced at every ASAMT event this past season, “Oh, its crazy. You got guys that win six championships in a row at their home tracks that you are racing against. You got Donny Reuvers, Jamie Iverson, and Dan Fredrickson that runs good everywhere. Then Kyle Busch will come in once in a while. It’s just really tough,” Murgic explained. “The top-ten guys always have a chance to win. You look at the qualifying times; the whole field is usually within half a second with a field of 40 cars. It’s just really tough, probably the best in the country.”

As the 2008 Rookie of the Year, Murgic will pick up a prize package of nearly $10,000 courtesy of Lane Automotive. One of the awards is a Roltek Transmission valued at $5,000.

Murgic is proud of this accomplishment, “It’s amazing. People look at this in a couple of years and say wow! This is one of the hardest series to race in and it will look really good, especially with running against guys like Reuvers, who won the NASCAR Regional championship, Steve Carlson and others. It’s just a real good thing to have.”

Murgic did also state that his plans are to run in the ASAMT in 2009 with a simple goal of improving in the point standings and having fun.

The ASAMT Touring Star program was developed to help the series promote each special event prior to, during, and after each event. Each year a group of Touring Stars will be selected to the travel bonus program.

In 2009, the top-14 from the 2008 points standing will be eligible for the Touring Star program. Those drivers who are eligible will be required to sign an agreement with a promise to attend all ASAMT events and to participate in all promotional programs or opportunities. Failure to do so will result in removal from the bonus program. Touring Stars will be allowed one (1) excused absence due to unforeseen reasons that is approved by the ASAMT office.

Those eligible drivers must have their agreement signed by February 28, 2009 to be in the program. If an eligible driver declines, then the Touring Star offer will go to the next eligible driver in the 2008 points standing prior to the start of the 2009 season. If a star drops out during the season, it will go to the next eligible driver in the current 2009 points standing.

The 15th spot in the ASAMT Touring Star program is reserved for the highest finishing rookie at an ASAMT event. If they are the highest finishing eligible rookie at any 2009 ASAMT events, they will receive a Touring Star bonus at the next event.

“The Touring Star program accomplishes a major goal that Tim (Olson, ASAMT President) and I set when we started this series. That is we want to have our fans local heroes to compete against the best Midwest drivers,” Steve Einhaus, ASAMT Vice-President stated. “When we come to compete at a track with our Touring Stars, we encourage the local competitors to race with us. This is a win-win for everyone. The fans get to see some great racing and the local heroes get to show their talent against some of the toughest competition in the United States.”

The next event for the ASAMT will be the 2008 Championship Banquet on Saturday, January 24, 2009 at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells, WI.

To learn more about the American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour presented by Echo Outdoor Power Equipment log on to www.asamidwesttour.com or call the ASA Midwest Tour office at (262) 514-3880 or e-mail Tim Olson at tim@asamidwesttour.com or Steve Einhaus at steve@asamidwesttour.com.

To learn more of the Daytona Beach, Florida-based Racing Speed Associates or the American Speed Association Racing Member Track program, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from racetracks and regional tours involved in the American Speed Association, visit www.asaracing.com.