ROCK HILL, S.C. – North Carolina dirt-track racer Colt Gilliam, 29, has landed a ride for the upcoming NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Dirt Derby at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway.
Gilliam, who competes regularly in the Super Street division at Carolina Speedway in Gastonia, N.C., will pilot the No. 8 Chevrolet Silverado for NEMCO Motorsports during the seventh edition of the Gander Trucks’ annual excursion onto the half-mile Ohio dirt track.
The Aug. 1 event will mark Gilliam’s first foray into one of NASCAR’s three national touring series.
“The past few days have been crazy,” said Gilliam. “There have been a lot of restless nights just thinking about what we’re going to get to do next week. I still get butterflies jumping into a street stock or anything else, so I can’t imagine what it will be like when we get ready to go truck racing next week.
“I’m excited. There’s been a lot going on as we prepare to do this, but it’ll all sink in pretty quickly when we get to the race track and get going next Wednesday.”
It’s the realization of a racing dream for Gilliam, who has pictured having a career-defining moment such as the opportunity he’s being afforded by team owner Joe Nemechek for as long as he’s been racing.
“Not only am I getting to drive a truck, but I’m getting to drive at Eldora Speedway,” Gilliam noted. “That’s insane for me to think about. Really, it’s letting me kill two birds with one stone. It’s incredible and I’m thankful for the opportunity from everyone at NEMCO who’s allowing me to go and do this.”
Gilliam explained that his connection with the NEMCO team came about in part due to a family connection that led to a phone call about the ride, when Nemechek’s son John Hunter became unable to compete in the Eldora event due to other obligations with GMS Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
“My stepdad had some involvement in NASCAR in the past, and he was over at PME getting some engines done and decided he’d go over and talk to Joe a little bit,” recalled Gilliam. “Joe’s son, John Hunter, was going to run the truck … but ended up with another obligation he has to do before he goes to Watkins Glen (Int’l), and he called me up because they had a tire sponsor already in place and asked if I wanted to come and drive it.
“When I got that phone call, it was an out-of-this-world, completely out-of-the-blue moment,” he added. “It was just a case of everything lining up at the perfect time.”
While Gilliam is setting modest goals for his NASCAR debut, his team is behind him to the fullest extent, and the South Carolina driver noted that they believe he can surprise some people next week.
“Joe has helped me a lot in getting ready,” he added. “He was the first one to jump in and tell me what to expect and helped me get comfortable in the seat. It has been a process to get to this point, but we feel ready and we’re going in hoping for some magic.
“I told Joe that I just wanted to make the show, and he told me, ‘You won’t have any problem doing that; we’re going there to win the race.’ We’ll just see what happens.”