5/6/2014
Willamette Speedway
Getting Up To Speed With…Dave Miller
Getting Up To Speed With…Dave Miller
By Ben Deatherage
Dave Miller of Salem, Oregon will be back at Willamette Speedway in 2014. Looking to compete in the Crocker’s Cars Super Sports for the first time in his career after historically being in the Sportsman division and look’s to compete full-time. Last year Miller ran the first half of the season at Willamette and the other half on the pavement at Roseburg’s Douglas County Speedway.
We got a chance to talk to him about the upcoming campaign and what he looks forward to the most, why he races the #22, and what are some of his favorite moments of his racing career. Now let’s get up to speed with Dave Miller.
Driver: Dave Miller
Home Track: Willamette Speedway
Hometown: Salem, Oregon
Occupation: Owner/Operator of Dave Miller Cores
Age: 48
Years Racing: 5
Classification: Crocker’s Cars Super Sports
Chassis: MasterSbilt Race Cars
Sponsors: Mossy Oak Camouflage, Dave Smith Decoys, Bower’s Race and Rod Shop, DeClutch Brothers Racing, Cherry City Metals
Special Thanks: Mike Shank, Joe Bowers, Loren Kruesi, Jerry Miller (Father)
BD: Brian do have any specific plans for 2014?
DM: I’ve been trying to get back to the Sportsman class but I’m moving up to the Super Sports. I’ll commit to the class this season and I hope I do well. There are a lot of good drivers with a lot of good cars in the Super Sports.
BD: Is there a story behind you racing the #22?
DM: The Sportsman car came from Rick Wyatt. It was his daughter’s car and that was why it was #22W. I changed it to #22M down in Roseburg because there was another Dave Miller from Coos Bay who was also #22. It’s just a number that has stuck with me.
BD: How exactly did you get your start in racing?
DM: My dad sponsored and built my nephew Steve Miller Jr.’s car and that’s when I first went to Willamette and watched. Steve ran for a couple of years ran Sportsman, Super Sports, and Late Models but stopped shortly after. Five or six years later I decided I wanted to race myself and get my dad back into it around 2009 or 2010.
When I would watch my nephew race I would leave the track and I felt like I wanted to roast the tires and be all pumped up. Now that I race I leave the track I’ll, really calm and leave it all on the racetrack when the motors shut off.
My dad found Rick’s car for sell and we went in to it together when we got the car and Mike Shank helped us get it ready to go. I stayed in the Sportsman class and really wanted to be competitive and I drove that thing the best I could. I tried my best to drive as fast as the tube chassis cars and my goal was to get one.
I started 2013 in the #22 Nova and got into the wall a little. I knew I could be faster so I bought an old asphalt car. I was going to convert to dirt but my friend Joe Bower said try and keep on asphalt. I ended up racing the last half of the season in the Late Models at Roseburg.
It was different but it was a long ways to tow and my love is the dirt. The Late Models on pavement are fast and very thrilling but going that fast should the transition to the Super Sports a lot easier. I went to their last race of the season down there last year and I made it a goal of mine to get back to the dirt. I then found Loren Kruesi’s Super Sport for sale and that’s what I’ll be running this year.
BD: What is your favorite racing moment up to this point?
DM: Last year I finished second to Brian Winkler and I was actually showing a nose and catching him. More than that was my dad’s birthday on July 9th in 2012 when I won the B-Heat and the B-Main the same day.
BD: Do you have any goals that you have set for yourself either this season or in the future?
DM: Just to finish races and not wreck or get wrecked and have fun more than anything. This is my Disneyland and this is my thrill ride. Racing has taken the number one fun spot for me and I’d love to win some races.
Willamette Speedway will be back in action this Saturday May 10th. Classes in action include the X-Factor Race Cars Super Late Models, Crocker’s Cars Super Sports, Albany & Eastern Railroad Sportsman, and 4-Cylinders. For more information log on to www.trophymotorsports.com.
Submitted By: Ben Deatherage