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Silver Crown
Saturday, 19 May 2018

INDY NATIVE/SILVER CROWN CAR OWNER NOLEN AFTER 4TH INDY MILE WIN

Jerry Coons, Jr. will be behind the wheel of Gene Nolen's famed No. 20 for the "Hoosier Hundred" on Thursday, May 24 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. Jerry Coons, Jr. will be behind the wheel of Gene Nolen's famed No. 20 for the "Hoosier Hundred" on Thursday, May 24 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. Rich Forman Photo

 

INDY NATIVE/SILVER CROWN CAR OWNER NOLEN AFTER 4TH INDY MILE WIN

By: Jay Hardin - Track Enterprises Staff

Indianapolis, Indiana………Growing up in Indianapolis in the 1950’s, USAC Silver Crown car owner Gene Nolen had plenty of opportunity to be infected with the racing bug.  The Indianapolis 500, the Hoosier Hundred at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and midget action at the old West 16th Street Speedway all served to give the 1961 Indianapolis Tech graduate a taste of the racing life.

Nine years after forming his own plastic injection molding company, Nolen bought a midget race car and placed Wisconsin driver Paul Huntington behind the wheel.  For the last 29 seasons Nolen has fielded one or more cars in the top tier USAC Silver Crown Champ Car Series.  The Whiteland, Indiana-based team has won numerous events including the Little 500 at Anderson and employed a Hall of Fame stable of drivers including Tony Stewart, Johnny Parsons, Jr., Jim Keeker and Tony Elliott.

Nolen nearly retired after the 2014 season, decided to return to the series and at times put three cars on track in USAC’s top division.  This season the Hoosier son returns armed with two USAC national champions in his stable and a chance to capture his fourth win as a car owner in the Hoosier Hundred on the Indy Mile.

Gene’s first entry appeared in the first night time Hoosier Hundred at the fairgrounds in 1989 with Rocky Hodges at the wheel qualifying 17th and finishing in the same spot.  It would take another ten years before a Nolen entry found victory lane on the Indy mile.  Ironically, the late Tony Elliott would lead the last 20 miles in Gene’s familiar number 20 on the way to victory.  Elliott repeated in 2001 in similar fashion, leading the last 17 miles.  The third Hoosier Hundred win for a Nolen-owned entry came with fellow Indianapolis native and second-generation driver Shane Hollingsworth who captured a very emotional win on the home track.

Should Nolen win a fourth race, he will probably break one of his own streaks.  Each Hoosier Hundred win for the Indiana car owner has come with an Indiana driver at the wheel.  This year Nolen has 2008 USAC Silver Crown champ Jerry Coons, Jr. of Arizona behind the wheel of the yellow 20, Coons is also a two-time Hoosier Hundred winner.  The other member of the Nolen stable is 2016 USAC Silver Crown champ Chris Windom who broke through and gained his first mile dirt track win at Du Quoin in 2016.

The Hoosier Hundred is the second of three events in USAC’s “Week of Indy,” featuring the 48th “Tony Hulman Classic at the Terre Haute (Ind.) Action Track on Wednesday, May 23; the 63rd “Hoosier Hundred” at the Indiana State Fairgrounds on May 24; and the “Dave Steele Carb Night Classic” at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg, Ind. on May 25.

A great deal is available for those who don't want to miss a single lap of "The Week of Indy."  A Superticket is being sold for a savings of 25% off the regular three-day prices.  For just $60 (a savings of $20) a fan will receive general admission at Terre Haute and Lucas Oil Raceway as well as a reserved seat for the “Hoosier Hundred.”  To purchase a Superticket, visit https://usacracing.ticketspice.com/2018-week-of-indy or call 217-764-3200.

For more information on any of the events, visit www.trackenterprises.com, www.usacracing.com or call the Track Enterprises office at 217-764-3200.

The May 24 “Hoosier Hundred” presented by TBA Oil & Warehouse begins with the pits opening at noon, grandstands opening at 3pm, practice at 5pm and racing at 7pm.  The 100-mile main event is scheduled for an 8pm start.

The “Hoosier Hundred” will be streamed LIVE on http://www.SpeedShiftTV.com/.  A day following each of the races, you can watch it again, on-demand, at http://www.Loudpedal.TV./