(FLAT ROCK,
Michigan - August 23, 2012) - Two of
the top female stock car drivers in America are slated to compete at Flat Rock
Speedway Saturday night, September 8 when the ARCA/CRA Super Series Late Models
make their first-ever appearance at the ¼ mile paved oval for the 7-Up 125.
Kenzie Ruston
of El Reno, OK
and Becca Kasten of Mequon,
WI have some very impressive
credentials. Ruston, at the age of 20, is currently 2nd
in the ARCA/CRA point standings while Becca sits in the third spot as the
season winds down for the short track Late Model tour.
Kenzie began
her racing career in the Bandolero cars at the age of 14. The Legends Cars Series was next for Kenzie,
where again she was very competitive at the age of 16. In 2009, Ruston won 7 championships in the Legends
Series and became the first female driver to win the Asphalt National Legends
Series. With much of her racing taking
place at Texas Motor Speedway, Kenzie was voted Driver of the Year and
participated in the “Women of the Winner’s Circle”, which was created by nationally-recognized
female driver Lyn St. James. The display
promotes women in racing.
In 2010, Ruston moved to the
full-bodied stock cars, competing in the Pro All Star (PASS) Southern division,
racking up multiple top ten finishes and gained respect of her fellow
competitors. Despite missing 2 races,
Kenzie finished 12th in the final point standings.
The next
season saw Ruston
make the jump into the spotlight of the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards
stock cars. She competed in 4 ARCA
events and became the first female to lead laps and finish in the top 10 in her
debut race. Kenzie also became the fist
female to ever qualify for an ARCA/CRA Super Series event. At the end of the 2011 season, Ruston became the first female to win a CRA contest, which
took place at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis,
IN. And she started her day by setting fast time
in qualifying for the event.
Becca Kasten,
also now 20 years old, entered the racing scene at the age of 16, starting in a
full-bodied Late Model. She toured the
short tracks of the Midwest for 3 seasons from
2007-2009. She became the first female
to win a Late Model race at Madison,
WI International Raceway and also
at Wisconsin International Raceway. Wins
at Rockford, IL, Dells, WI Raceway Park and Golden Sands,
WI sent notice that Kasten had the credentials to become a successful racer.
For the 2010
season, Becca was selected to compete in the Revolution Racing and the NASCAR Drive for
Diversity Program, all while being enrolled at Marquette University
as a sophomore. Becca put school on
hold and moved to North Carolina
to pursue the Revolution program, where she collected 6-top 3 finishes.
There’s no
place like Florida
in February to win a race! Becca did
just that in 2011, winning a Late Model feature at the World Series of Stock
Car Racing at the New Smyrna Speedway, along with 3 consecutive second place
finishes in the 9 nights of racing. For
her exploits, Becca has landed the driver role on the Car # 51 BDI Racing Cars
team fielded by SPEED broadcaster Bob Dillner and continues to compete across
the Midwest, in addition to her commitment to
the ARCA/CRA Super Series. Becca enjoys
golf, fishing and hockey in her spare time.
Flat Rock’s Saturday,
September 8 schedule has practice from 3:30 to 4:30 for the ARCA/CRA machines,
with time trials at 5:30. Big Wheel
races for the kids will take place at 6, an on-track autograph session with Ruston, Kasten and all the
ARCA/CRA drivers will take place at 6:30 and the green flag will drop just
after 7 p.m.
Tickets may
be purchased online at www.flatrockspeedway.com. Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/toledoflatrock
or follow us on Twitter @flatrockspeed.
The track is located on Telegraph
Road, 5 miles from I-75 or I-275. The track phone number is 734-782-2480.