Dustin Rumley cruises down the front stretch at Ace Speedway. Photo by Angie Meeks
At the age of 22, Dustin Rumley has already seen the highs and lows of short track racing. He has also learned how those lows can easily turn around and give you success.
It was back on April 9, 2010 when Rumley was running in the feature event at Ace Speedway, an ASA Member Track in Altamahaw, NC, when he got involved in an accident during a feature event that caused his car to catch on fire. Rumley was able to safely exit the car, but the car itself was gone.
He would miss the next two events as he and his father Mark built a new car at their McLeansville, NC shop. His return on May 7, 2010 was successful as he finished second in the feature event. He would go on to capturing four wins, 14 top-five and 17 top-tens en route to the 2010 Late Model Championship at Ace Speedway.
Not only did Rumley win the track championship, but came within 0.0028 of winning the 2010 ASA Member Track National Championship. He finished second, in the closest margin to date, to National Champion Bryan Wordelman from Rocky Mountain Raceways, an ASA Member Track in West Valley City, UT.
“I learned that no matter how far down you fall, you can always pick yourself up,” Rumley said. “This sport is like a roller coaster ride. You can be a hero one week and be a zero next week.”
He started his racing career at the age of 8, competing in go-karts all across North Carolina where he won several championships. Rumley moved up to Legends, where he competed in the Summer Shootout Series at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He then progressed up to Limited Late Models at Ace Speedway and Caraway Speedway where he won at both tracks until moving up to the Late Models at Ace Speedway, where he finished third in the standings in 2009.
“Racing at Ace Speedway is nice,” Rumley said. “It is a great track and I love racing on Friday nights. It is a lot of pressure to perform being a past champion, but it is really cool being so young and already having a championship on my resume.”
This past season, he finished third in points with eight top-five and 13 top-tens in 16 starts.
Even though his 2011 season didn’t mirror what he accomplished in 2010, that hasn’t slowed down Rumley’s motivation.
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Dustin looks at his father Mark as a great mentor. Mark has also competed at Ace Speedway and now spots for the champion driver. With his dad’s help, Dustin knows what he has to do in order to be more successful in racing.
“I’ve learned a lot being a Late Model driver,” Rumley said. “You really learn to drive and running longer races especially with how to set up a car for those events.”
As far as his future plans, Rumley is taking it one day at a time.
“I’m not really sure,” he said. “We will just have to see what happens.”
“The Rumley family has been a staple at Ace Speedway over the last four decades and it is great to watch Dustin keep the lineage going,” Brad Allen, Ace Speedway Promoter said. “He came close to winning the ASA Member Track National Championship in 2010. He struggled a little during the 2011 season, but had a strong finish. He has a large fan base. He is a great young driver but a hard nose competitor. He is definitely one to watch in 2012.”
Rumley will start his personal chase for the 2012 Late Model Championship at Ace Speedway on Friday, April 6 with regular season opener.
Fans can follow Rumley’s progress during the season by visiting acespeedway.com.
To learn more about the ASA Member Tracks and Sanctioned Series in your area, please visit asa-racing.com.
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