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03-17-2008
TEAM NEWS: Dustin Skinner Working Towards NASCAR Career
Key Motorsports has established a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver development program for 22-year-old son Dustin Skinner - the youngest son of former NCTS driving champion Mike Skinner. That project entered the action phase recently when the parties tested for two days at New Smyrna Speedway in New Smyrna Beach, Florida - Dustin's home track.
The game plan is to raise enough money from sponsors to continue the testing process and to run Dustin in a maximum of six NCTS races in 2008 beginning with half-mile venues. Upcoming NCTS races at the Mansfield Motorsports Park in Ohio, the Milwaukee Mile; Kentucky Speedway; the O'Reilly Motorsports Park in Indianapolis; the Gateway International Raceway outside of St. Louis, and the Texas Motor Speedway are the target venues.
The goal is to provide Dustin with the necessary seat time and experience that he would need to secure NASCAR certification on all level tracks. This would allow him to maintain his rookie status, test at Daytona next winter to gain approval for the super speedways and then be in a position to compete for Rookie of the Year honors in 2009.
"I've seen what Curtis (team owner Curtis Key) has done the last few years in the truck series, and he has done it almost entirely out of his own pocket. That shows a passion for this sport, and I really respect that, and I think a program with Dustin can help not only him attain his goals but could also give Curtis a real opportunity to gain even more creditability than his team already has in our division and to help lure sponsorship his way. It's a 2-way street," Skinner stated.
The younger Skinner has been racing professionally for several years, running Super Late Models and trucks in FASCAR competition in Florida. Dustin also had a stint in ASA Late Models, and in the final season of NASCAR Dash Series competition in 2004, when he was just 18, he qualified for and finished 9th in the Series' opener at the Daytona International Speedway.
"I raced go-karts and 4-wheelers when I was younger but didn't catch the bug to start racing more regularly until I was 19..when I knew that I was not going to go to college," Dustin explained. His first racing experience in a stock car took place at New Smyrna Speedway in the Super Stock Division, and primarily because of his championship-winning father, Dustin was one of the Jack Roush Gong Show contenders several years ago and obtained a bunch of track time at fabled NASCAR tracks like Darlington Raceway and North Wilkesboro Speedway.
Dustin also tested an ARCA car at the Chicagoland Speedway last season and is therefore no stranger to super speedway activity.
As for embarking on a possible career in the NCTS, Dustin is welcoming the opportunity and believes that the kind of program that Key Motorsports has set for him will help in his transformation from short track racer to speedway racer.
"I have been blessed by having a father who has raced in the highest levels of NASCAR and who has been a champion in the very division in which I am trying to establish myself. That's something that not many other drivers my age and with the same aspirations can brag about," said Dustin. "I've learned an awful lot just watching my dad race, and his experience with the Craftsman Trucks has helped me in this transition.
"The most difficult thing for me so far is getting used to the heavier equipment. I am running with more horsepower at this level, but the toughest thing for me to get used to is how long it takes to slow these trucks down and how long it takes to get back on the throttle going through the corners.
"With my Late Model, I can run a whole lot deeper into the corners and get back on the gas quicker than you can with these trucks, so that is the biggest challenge so far," the younger Skinner added, but he and his father were both pleased with the New Smyrna test with the Key Motorsports organization.
"Everyone (at Key Motorsports) really worked hard with Dustin to give him the education he needed, and he's only going to get better," Mike Skinner said. He drove my truck (the Bill Davis Racing #5 Toyota Tundra) last fall when we tested at New Smyrna for the Martinsville race (that Skinner won) and he ran some lap times equal to mine, so I know he has it in him to be successful at this level. His times in the #40 were good and got better with each lap he ran but he still has a way to go," added Skinner who wants to see his son attain the same competitive level that he had achieved.
Dustin's best lap times during the two days of testing were in the 18 seconds flat range in the #40 Chevy and was within a tenth or two of his father's lap times in his #5 Toyota. "What we had at the end of the test in terms of a race truck and how it drove was really a huge improvement from where we started. It was pretty sporty," said Dustin.
"Dustin really did a great job," Showalter said. "You can see that he definitely has the talent and his father's no-fear driving style, but what impressed me most is his knowledge of the chassis and what the truck needs to get better. We were genuinely impressed with his performance over the two days," Showalter added. Dustin's dad knows what his son has the capability of achieving and why he elected to go to Key Motorsports for this project.
"Improvement will only come in time," Mike said. "And as the team gets more used to Dustin and his driving style and listens to his feedback, they then can give him what he needs to improve, and as I had expected, Curtis has dedicated the money, time and personnel to get this thing off on the right foot. He has some really experienced people that will be working with Dustin on this deal so I'm really pleased," he added.
As for Dustin, he is loving the attention and the experience and believes that this new-found relationship will help him.
"Gary (crew chief Showalter) is really attentive to my needs and is making the changes to the truck that will allow me to drive it through the corners better and to get back on the gas quicker. The truck ran good, and I was really happy with the way everyone worked to get the truck so that I could get off the corner and down the straightaway the way I wanted.
"Gary and Tommy (Director of Competition Morgan) have also worked hard to get me to listen and to forget my Late Model habits when driving the truck, and I have become more comfortable with every lap. The more time we spend together the better I'm going to get," Dustin predicted.
Key is committed to the program but needs sponsorship support to maintain it.
"I love the challenge of helping to develop Dustin's talents at this level and will commit whatever I can to it as long as it does not interfere with our #40 program. What I do know, though, is that the relationship with Dustin can only help our organization overall, so we will do whatever we can to help him achieve his goals with this project," Key stated.
The first priority for the program is to secure financial support for the program and Key's #44 race truck and to allow for more testing opportunities. As more money is secured, more races will be added to the schedule that will provide Dustin with the experience that will ultimately have NASCAR approving him for all tracks up to 2 miles in length.
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