(Stafford Springs, CT)---With the 2013 season on the horizon at Stafford Motor Speedway, Enfield native Kris Fluckiger is ready to count himself among the challengers for the 2013 DARE Stock track title.  In only his second season of competition at SMS, Fluckiger recorded his first victory to go along with 12 top-5 and 16 top-10 finishes to end the season in fourth place in the points standings.  With a victory in the season ending non-points Paradiso-Muska DARE Stock Shoot-Out, Fluckiger is ready to carry that momentum into 2013.

“I’d like to think we can be contenders for the championship this season,” said Fluckiger.  “That was our plan last season, but we were playing catch up for most of the year.”

One of the main factors in Fluckiger having to play catch up was a faulty transmission that Fluckiger and his team misdiagnosed as a handling issue for the majority of the 2012 season.

“We struggled with what we thought was a handling issue with the car and it was actually the transmission,” said Fluckiger.  “We went through probably about one thousand things to try to figure out what the problem was.  The car was sliding all over the track and I couldn’t get the car to set going into the corners.  We had Paul from Start/Stop transmission rebuild our transmission and while it was getting rebuilt, Albert and Cliff Saunders lent me a transmission to use for about 4 weeks and our first win was with Albert and Cliff’s transmission in the car.  Once we got the transmission figured out, the car was really good, so hopefully we can pick up where we left off last year.  We’d definitely like to find a little more speed in the car and hopefully the changes we’re making to the car over the winter will show up on the times when we get out on the track.  We’re bringing the motor to Don Wood to get refreshed and we have a few things we want to try on the chassis with Barry from Fluckiger Race Chassis, so we’re looking forward to getting back out there.”

On paper, Fluckiger looks to be one of the championship favorites as the three drivers who finished ahead of him in the DARE Stock standings, Cliff Saunders, Austin Bessette, and Kyle Casagrande, will be moving up to a higher division or not running a full DARE Stock season.  But Fluckiger is quick to point out that the 2013 DARE Stock field will be strong and he still has to get the job done out on the track.

“I’m hoping we can be one of the faster cars this year,” said Fluckiger.  “But you have Stacey Botticello coming back, Fran Siana is coming back, and you have guys like James Carroll that have been in the division for a couple of years now, so it’s going to be a stout field of DARE Stocks.  I remember coming to the track and sitting in the stands watching Stacey and Fran race and it’s going to be pretty cool that I get to race against them now.”

In addition to winning races and contending for a championship, there is another reason why Fluckiger is looking to finish up front as much as possible in 2013.  During the 2012 season, Fluckiger donated his race winnings to Autism Speaks as part of Stafford’s CARQUEST Champions For Charities program, and he will once again donate his race winnings this season to Autism Speaks.

“We’re definitely planning on donating our winnings again to Autism Speaks,” said Fluckiger.  “Last year Stan Mertz was racing for them and I’m not sure who will be representing them this year, but we’re going to donate our winnings again.  Last year it was only $232, but we were fighting the tranny issue for most of the year, so hopefully we’ll be able to finish up front more this year and be able to give more to a great charity.”

Fluckiger will take his first shot at CARQUEST Victory Lane with his #28 Star Hardware / Rental, Jay’s Auto, and Rob Roy Electric Chevrolet when the 2013 season kicks off with the 42nd Annual CARQUEST Tech-Net Spring Sizzler on April 26-28.  Tickets for the “Greatest Race in the History of Spring” may be ordered by calling the Speedway Box Office or by CLICKING HERE. Tickets are priced at $38.50 for adult general admission tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult. Reserved seating is $42.00 for all ages. All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax. 

For more information on the 42nd Annual CARQUEST TECH-NET Spring Sizzler®, or to order tickets, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.

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