"Z-Man" Zach O'Connell Shines in Hamlin Speedway Opener
by Steve Pados, GA Motorsports Media

West Park, NY- ZTO Motorsports made the two hour trip last Saturday to take part in the Hamlin Speedway opener as Promoters Randy and Denise Smith opened their gates for the 2008 racing season. Stating a new motto of "Five Wide on the Outside" proved to be the new buzzword for the drivers as 130 competitors battled throughout the day and evening hours with some tremendous battles all being waged from side by side to five wide on the totally refurbished 1/5 mile banked speed-plant.

14 year old New York State driving talent Zach O'Connell made his debut on Saturday in his new division, the Regular Slingshots. O'Connell, who along with winning two main events last year, capped off the 2007 racing season by finishing fifth in points in the very tough Hamlin Junior Slingshot division. O'Connell, in limited appearances, finished 8th in the final National Jr Slingshot tallies and his ZTO Motorsports team was awarded the best appearing Junior Slingshot car on the National circuit. In a non-points race last year at the speedway, his parents gave him the green light to try out the regular division and the 14-year old driving talent responded with a very respectable 12th-place finish. That event set the stage for his jump into the Regular Slingshot division this year.

With 34 of the best Slingshots drivers coming together on the East Coast at Hamlin, it was necessary to run four heats. Mack Brink, Billy Van Inwegen Sr and Jr, and newcomer Cody Kline were the winners in the highly compettiive heats that resembled mini feature events. The "Z-Man" lined up in 8th-starting place on the grid for his heat. Leaving nothing to chance, O'Connell was methodical in making pass after pass to move into second on the 8th lap of the 10-lap heat event. Even though O'Connell was able to close the gap considerably in the final two laps, it was Brink in for the heat race win.

O'Connell lined up in fifth place to start the 25-lap feature event. The field got off to a nice start but on lap four the caution was displayed as O'Connell became sideways and spun into the infield, necessitating a restart. This is where the race truly began to take shape. With the Van Inwegens,Brink and Rohner waging a war up front, the racing in mid-pack was absolutely ferocious with every driver driving their racer to the limit.O'Connell recovered from his spin and was determined to claw his way back to the front. Utilizing an outside to inside move on turn three and an outside line on turn one proved to be the "Z-Man's" time to shine as he moved into the top twelve as the track curfew edged closer. It was announced the feature would be cut short five laps after Tyler Potts up-ended his 3T Slinger on the 11th lap of the feature.

On the restart, again battles raged throughout the pack. As the final laps clicked off, Billy V Jr and Kyle Rohner proved to be the class of the field on this night. Brink was solid with a third place finish in his first ever Regular Slingshot event. Billy V Sr, who won the Super Slingers event earlier in the evening, held on for fourth. Shannon Smith used her hot pink racer to rally after a tough start to round out the top five. Former Go-Kart wizard, Cody Kline was 6th in his first ever Slingshot ride and the much improved Simon Egan was 7th. Zach O'Connell, in a never say die effort, drove by Rob Marino at the checkered flag to capture eighth place in a spectacular drive to the front, showing poise and polish throughout the event. The crowd on hand gave a tremendous round of applause to all of the drivers for the great opening night performance.

The "Z-Man" will find additional challenges ahead of him once the season hits full stride begins as in addition to all of his Slingshot racing in 2008, the young racer will be moving into the 305 Sprint cars once the season gets underway. While the ZTO Team has had their signature numbered 327 Slingshot locked, loaded and ready for action for the 2008 racing season, the new sprint car program is being buttoned down this coming week. Team Manager Paul O'Connell has been busy putting the final touches to the car and in the process is being educated with what sprint car racing is all about. The team is hoping to have the car ready to go shortly to enable the "Z-Man" to adjust to his new division and gain some valuable seat time before the schedule kicks-in. In recent weeks, some valuable assistance was given to the team by veteran World of Outlaws Crew Chief Ray Brooks. Brooks, who met the O'Connells at Orange County last year, provided some great advice to the fledgling sprint car team and helped with some valuable set-up tips to begin the season. The original "Lady Outlaw" Mares Stellfox has offered to shake the new racer down for the ZTO Team should she have a break in her schedule when the car is completed.

Plans for the ZTO Motorsports Team include a regular Wednesday night stop at the newly configured Accord Speedway when the Midweek Madness action commences during the first week in June. Additional Slingshot action will take place at the Hamlin Speedway on non-conflicting dates with the 305 CRSA Sprint Car schedule.

The "Z-Man" continues to excel in the classroom to go along with increasing on track skills. He has maintained Honor Roll status for every semester and has entered the 8th grade this year at the Highland Middle School, situated in Highland, New York. The Honor Roll status is part of an agreement worked out by his parents for the capacity to drive the race car. Zach will start his 5th year in the school band this year as he plays the jazz trumpet. Zach is heavily involved with the school newspaper, "The Blue Review" as an at-large reporter. He is also a member of the Ski Club and the Mile Club. Zach also competes in the Port Ewen Athletic Basketball Association. When not playing sports or completing his homework, the "Z-Man" likes to take the drive to the S&S Speedways to continuously hone his skills at racing, as he finds the more laps he runs indoors, the more adept he is becoming on the racetrack during the summer.

ZTO Motorsports would like to thank the great supporting cast of sponsors who have come on board with the relatively new racing team. The list includes, Apple Greens Golf Course, Lowes Home Improvement of Kingston, D&D NAPA of Highland, Stock Car Fantasy, John J Pezzo, CPA, P&Z Rental Management Inc, Northern Dutchess Archery, Hig-Fab, Dynamic Impressions Ink, Port Ewen Athletic Association, and
GA Motorsports Media.

For more information and further updates regarding the "Z-Man" Zach O'Connell and the ZTO Motorsports team, log onto their website at: www.zacharyoconnell.com