Seavey is not unaccustomed to winged racing, but he feels that anytime you are in an unfamiliar ride more attention is demanded.
“When I lived in California, I ran winged cars more than I do now and it didn’t seem to bother me,” he said.
Things proved to be a bit different at Eldora.
“When you run Eldora in a winged car you hardly move the wheel,” he said. “So I don’t know if it was because I was nervous or just tensed up because I was doing something I’m not used to, but it wore me out a little more. You don’t breathe as much and you grip the wheel tighter.”
Tyler Courtney has also raced in four divisions at Eldora and pondered doing it last year. Because of his stellar record at the track, many felt Sunshine had a legitimate shot to run the table. In the end, it seemed the spotlight burned brighter on the affable Indiana racer because of the expectations of others. In the end he found the event more of a mental than physical test.
“You are trying to make sure you know what you are doing with each car,” he said. “But the physical part isn’t too bad because you are running on pure adrenaline the entire time. At the end of the night, you are pretty run down. You must stay mentally focused especially if something bad happens with one car because you don’t want to let that effect the other races you have.”
Courtney missed five weeks of competition this summer with a back injury suffered at Eldora on July 14 and he’s not expected to pursue rides in all four classes during the 4-Crown Nationals.
“One reason why I didn’t do it last year wasn’t because there was pressure,” he said. “It was, for the lack of a better word, because it was annoying. I found that it was nice to go there and focus on winning at least one class instead of trying to do an almost impossible feat and winning all four. Not that it is impossible, but it is tough. Everything must line up in all four classes in one night. That’s what makes what Kyle and Jack did so special.”
Because it brings such diverse disciplines together over the course of a single weekend the 4-Crown Nationals deserves far more attention than it generally receives. Perhaps the same can be said about what Hewitt achieved on one memorable night. One would expect Eldora Speedway to properly recognize Hewitt on the silver anniversary of a signature moment in a stellar career.
All those summers ago the sentiment was that Jack was just doing Jack-like things at his home track. It was noteworthy when it happened, but one is left with the feeling that perhaps what he accomplished deserved even greater accolades. Why? Because as it stands today it is unlikely that anyone is prepared to take on all four divisions, and even more unlikely that one driver can grab all the glory.
The 41st edition of the 4-Crown Nationals is Sept. 22-23.
This story appeared in the Sept 13, 2023 edition of the SPEED SPORT Insider.
