1/12/2021
Ransomville Speedway
ZACH GEORGE LOOKING TO MAKE AN IMPACT AT RANSOMVILLE IN 2021
This season is shaping up to be an ultra-competitive one for the Investor’s Service Sportsman division at Ransomville Speedway. In addition to a number of returning veterans that we’ve seen at the top of the points standings in the past, there are a handful of young guns that spent 2020 honing their skils away from the “Big R” that are looking to make their presence felt in the division this season.
One of those drivers is Zach George, who spent the past season traveling around the state while gaining valuable seat time aboard his family’s #126 Sportsman and the Wolfe Pack Racing #80x ride. George scored four wins last season with a pair of them coming at Genesee Speedway and the other two wins taking place at the Outlaw Speedway in Dundee, N.Y. The two wins at Genesee helped him to finish fifth in Sportsman points at the Batavia oval and just 40 points behind track champ Cameron Tuttle.
“2020 was definitely a different season,” said George, “I think running a bunch of different tracks helped a lot with our setup game because it gave us the opportunity to try new things based on the track’s build.”
George’s father is 2003 Sportsman track champion Scott George, and having a former champion racer in your pit stall certainly helps to make you a better driver. “I still ask him (Scott) when I climb out of the car to tell me the mistakes I made and how to fix them, so I can understand what I’m doing wrong,” said George.
The working relationship between Zach and Scott George was best described in a social media post by Scott Wolfe, one of the owners of Wolfe Pack Racing, following George’s second win of the season at Outlaw Speedway. “Good racers are like pottery, you can mold them into anything and create something of fine art.” All that molding it appears to be paying off as 2020 was a breakout season for George.
George will be back at Ransomville in 2021, driving his family’s car while driving for Wolfe Pack Racing at Canandaigua on Saturday nights. The “Big R” can be a handful for any young driver, but George is looking forward to getting back to his home track. “I like the way the track is laid out,” said George, “with the right line you can carry a lot of speed there. I personally feel like the biggest challenge I face at Ransomville is how nervous I get when entering in the top of the turn. Those walls come up pretty fast.”
One change for George this season will be a new number on his Sportsman. He is switching from his usual #126 to #36M in honor of Mackenzie Kulesza, who passed away in November 2020.
The George family has an eye on the future in 2021 as well. There’s a chance that Zach George could get his first start in a 358 Modified late in the season depending on how things go with the Sportsman. On top of that George’s young sister, Greenley, will be getting a chance to get her feet wet in the Novice Sportsman. She is a former go-kart winner at Ransomville and has spent the past three seasons racing in the Bandit (4-Cylinder) class at Genesee.
Zach George would like to thank his mom and dad, Scott and Donelle Wolfer, Scott Stopa Attorney at Law, Bud’s Apple Pie, Stirling Lubricants and Scotty’s Halfass Bumper Service for supporting his racing efforts.
Photo by Tom Stevens
Submitted By: Dave Buchanan