"Z-Man" On The Money In Solid Drive To Runnerup Finish At Hamlin Speedway
by Steve Pados, GA Motorsports Media

West Park, NY- West Park, New York driving talent Zachary "Z-Man" O'Connell, in only his third race competing with the regular Slingshot division, drove his ZTO Motorsports signature numbered 327 race car to a second place finish on Saturday night at the Hamlin Speedway. For the 14 year old driving star the finish was a complete turn around from a week earlier when his racer was heavily damaged in a backstretch skirmish and needed towing assistance back to the pit area. This week O'Connell left nothing to chance as at the start of the 27-car feature event a first lap incident sent cars scurrying everywhere in turn three and the alert O'Connell quickly turned left, hammered the gas and avoided the pile-up that collected a few cars.

On the restart, O'Connell quickly moved up to contend with early leader Daniel West. O'Connell followed West for a couple of laps but couldn't find the spot he was seeking to complete the pass into the lead. Coming up to join the duo from his seventh starting position was the "Bushkill Bullet" Kyle Rohner and Rohner was on a roll as he quickly found his way to the front. Rohner wasted no time in moving into the lead as he utilized the bottom of the raceway to take the point. O'Connell took advantage of the hard-charging move by Rohner to slip by West and climb back into second place. With Rohner in a league of his own, the racing for the runnerup spot proved to be the hot spot on the race track. Lap after lap clicked off and 2007 Kutztown Speedway Slingshot Champion Shannon Smith now moved into the picture as she hustled the S&S Speedways entry into contention. Smith slipped by O'Connell for second only to have the young speedster keep the revs up and regain the runnerup spot with an inside move coming off of turn two. Smith was relentless with her pressure and pulled even with O'Connell down the frontstretch. The pair touched wheels with Smith gaining the advantage driving into turn one. O'Connell, utilizing the triple lane of the five groove racetrack, dove to the bottom of the raceway off of turn two and the regained the runnerup slot as the pair of warriors once again touched wheels. O'Connell took over the runnerup slot for good this time around as the feature wound down. Smith followed O'Connell but now had to contend with Slingshot Rookie Cody Kline as he raced to the front in his Kline's Auto Repair sponsored/Billy Weaver owned entry. Kline moved to the bottom side of the raceway and shot by Smith with a few laps remaining in the event to take over third. Rohner came across the line for the win in his Spectrum Communications sponsored entry and was followed by O'Connell, Kline, Smith and the "Rocketman" Ryan Wood.

The "Z-Man" also captured his heat race making the weekend a very successful one. The ZTO Motorsports Team would like to thank Accord Speedway driving star Howard Jarvis for lending his valuable assistance to the team for the entire weekend. During the past week the ZTO Motorsports Team agreed to lend assistance to the Rode Motorsports Team and their young driving star Kyle "Hot Rod" Rode. Rode has moved from the Jr Slingshot division from a year ago and is now competing with the regular Slingshots at Hamlin. The young speedster suffered from mechanical woes on Saturday night and was an early retiree from the event.

The "Z-Man" will put the ZTO Motorsports Slingshot on the backburner temporarily as this week on May 17th will find the up and coming driving star taking part in the test and tune session the CRSA 305 Sprint group has put in place at the Glen Ridge Motorsports Park. This will be the first opportunity the "Z-Man" will encounter as he steps up to his new surroundings in the open wheel division. The group has set aside a time from 10 AM until 4 PM for the teams to shake down their equipment for the new season. The all-day session will provide valuable information for both the veterans and rookies before the new season kicks-off on May 30th with the teams once again returning to Glen Ridge for the opener. The 14-race schedule will find the series making stops at Penn Can, Accord, Utica Rome, Five Mile Point, Orange County, Virginia Motor Speedway and the Rolling Wheels Raceway in the states with a weekend swing into Canada in July. May 24th will find O'Connell and the rest of the CRSA driving stars taking part in the CRSA Car Show at the Fonda Fire Department and encourage all racing fans to come out and meet the series drivers. May 26th will find the team taking part in the Fonda/Fultonville Memorial Day Parade.

The ZTO Motorsports Team has picked up the completed the 305 Sprint Car from Graphics man Chip Gross who performed his usual great wizardry on the new ZTO Motorsports entry. ZTO Motorsports would like to thank veteran World of Outlaws Crew Chief Ray Brooks for all of his technical advice in helping the new team prepare for the new division in which they will be racing. Brooks, who met the O'Connells at Orange County last year, provided some great advice and guidance to the ZTO team. Plans are underway to find an open wheel driver to test the car prior to the "Z-Man" taking the car out for his maiden voyage and introduction into Sprint Car racing. Originally it was hoped Mares Stellfox would shake the new car down but a prior commitment will keep her racing elsewhere.

Extended plans for the ZTO Motorsports Team will 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 team has geared up for the new division they will be racing and look forward to the many new faces and fans who follow the CRSA Tour 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 will soon be completing 8th grade 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 end 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 and has done an extensive amount of work with the school yearbook. 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 down to the S&S Speedways to continuously hone his skills in 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