CONCORD, N.C. – A significant milestone awaits World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series veteran Boom Briggs at the Dirt Track at Charlotte during the NGK/NTK World Finals Nov. 4-6.
The Bear Lake, Pa., driver, is expected to make his 300th World of Outlaws start on Friday, Nov. 5 — a milestone Briggs stated he couldn’t reach without the support from his family.
“I never thought I’d get to 300, but that’s pretty amazing,” Briggs said. “If it wasn’t for my mom, and my family, my brother, my wife; you know it’s been four years since my dad’s been gone, and I get to do this because of him. My father’s love for racing; my whole family has supported his love, and that’s how I get to do this.
“This is totally 100 percent a family effort right down to my wife being home all the time. Hats off to her and thank you.”
The journey toward Briggs’ 300th start involved a change for 2021 — a switch to a Rocket Chassis. Despite three top-fives, including one at Davenport Speedway, and 11 top-10s, he’s been hoping for better results throughout the season.
“I’d like a little bit more consistency, but we’ve had new cars, and I’ve done a lot of testing, which I’ve got to quit doing,” Briggs said. “Overall, I think we’ve shown more speed and a little bit more consistency, but it’s just a long road, and Shane (Winans) is really my only full-time guy. We had one part-timer earlier in the year, and now we have a couple of part-timers now, so for me and Shane to do this, we get behind sometimes.”
Even though he’s hoping for better finishes, a benefit of driving a Rocket Chassis is the advice he gets on the road. Briggs can ask Mark Richards (Owner of Rocket Chassis) for help to put him in the right direction.
“Mark (Richards) and all his crew guys have been great, I mean Rocket Chassis, Mark, they’ve been great to me, helped me a lot,” Briggs said. “Chris Madden’s helped me a lot, the three of us have really worked together, plus Brent Larson and the four of us going up and down the road. It’s been a good year. I just thought we’d have a little bit better results.”
Briggs’s next chance at a good result comes at The Dirt Track at Charlotte. He’s already had some laps around the 4/10-mile track—as part of a Rocket Chassis test session. The Bear Lake, PA driver is enthusiastic about this year’s World Finals.
“I come here and test really good, and then I come back, and I race not so good,” Briggs said. “I think this year with Mark and Chris helping and Brent also I think we can come back here and be real competitive. We’re close; we’re within a tenth or two (of Brandon Sheppard), so we’ll see; I’m looking forward to World Finals this year for a change.”
As 2021 comes to an end, next season is already around the corner. Despite what the calendar says, Briggs isn’t looking too far ahead.
“We don’t have any set goals yet for next year because a lot of things are up in the air,” Briggs said. “The plan right now is to come back with the Outlaws, and a goal would be to be top-five in points next year.”
While making his 300th start is a moment he won’t forget, there’s still a World of Outlaws milestone eluding him. Briggs hopes a trip to Victory Lane isn’t far behind.
“I’m not getting any younger; I just turned 50 this year,” Briggs said. “So, a top-five in points and a couple of Outlaw wins, you’d probably see me retire.”
Briggs and the rest of the World of Outlaws stars are back in action for the NGK/NTK World Finals on Nov. 4-6.