Fuller Content with Thompson Finish

RFM and company left Thompson Speedway with their goals accomplished… finish in one piece.

Practice started Saturday and the Draco Mod was fast out of the trailer. “We tested some new things last week and that really put us ahead of the curve this week,” explained Rob.

Rob sat top ten on the NASCAR scoring sheet most of the practice and was ready for the weekend’s unusual format. This race was the first UNOH Shootout of many to come. The format was different but made for great racing. Two 125 lap races were first, one for the Northern cars and one for the Southern cars. Rob ran the Southern race as there were fewer cars in that event and the track promoter needed to have as many cars as possible in both fields. These races were followed by a 50 lap dash for cash between the best 36 Modifieds the country had to offer. The RFM group had a plan. It was to feel out the car in the first race and charge in the second. The first 125 lap race was underway. This race was special to the Fuller Family and the Northern Modified fan base for another reason. Jeff Fuller (Rob’s uncle) made the trip north to compete in the Southern Modified race. “This is definitely cool”, explains Rob. “Jeff has done so much in this division and to race him this weekend is definitely a moment I won’t forget.” The two had actually never competed against one another, so the fans got a real treat to see them compete at the track where it all began for the Fullers 40 years ago.

The RFM group stuck to the plan. Rob rode around the high banked track until it was about 50 to go and the charge was on. Rob got up to the sixth position and with just 6 laps to go the teams luck ran out. The Draco Mod was out of gas. “Wow…. pretty embarrassing here”, is all Rob said about that. This misfortune left the RFM team starting scratch (36th) in the 50 lap shootout. Rob wasted no time in coming to the front in this race. By lap 10 he was 21st, lap 25 he was in the top 15 and still coming strong. The end result was 13th and a bunch of smiles. “That’s what it’s about”, describes Fuller. “We had a great car and best of all we had fun.”

The RFM group has some new faces this year and each did their part. “We all joke around about the contractor, plumber and Boylston Public Works Department, but I couldn’t be happier with Dana, Rob and Steve. “We set out to have fun and be competitive in this series and that’s what we did this weekend.” Jimmy Fuller is getting the car ready during the week at the new RFM facility in Shrewsbury and Steve Garepy is bolting the fresh Hoosiers on for Rob each week. “That’s special to me”, Rob says of Steve and Jimmy’s efforts. “Steve Garepy was friends with my Mom and Dad in the ‘70”s and 80’s and always was there for my Dad when he was racing. To have him help me out as well means the world to me. Jimmy’s work has spoken for itself, without his experience holding all of us together none of this would be possible.”

The RFM group will head to the shop and regroup for Loudon in 2 weeks. A couple more runs like this weekend and look for the RFM boys to be battling for top 10’s in no time!

Fuller Reflects on Loudon

RFM and company made the first trip of 3 to the famed New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, NH last week. Robs back was against the wall before the hauler pulled out of the new shop. “Two of our main guys are on vacation with their families this week, so we are shorthanded which isn’t a good feeling heading to Loudon,” explained Fuller.

Practice started Thursday afternoon and right off the bat the Draco modified had issues. “We had a wicked skip in the motor for the first few runs,” explained Fuller. “Bono and his guys lent us a spare ignition and it seemed to fix the issues.”

With the first problem behind them, the RFM team continued with remainder of practice. On the fourth run Rob radioed to the team that the transmission didn’t sound right. After looking into the issue, a big problem arose. “I have to take the blame on that”, explains Fuller. “Gordy, the guy who does my transmissions, is pretty good at not safety wiring the plugs if there is no fluid and sure enough it was dry.”

NASCAR let RFM unload on Friday while the Nextel Cup cars practiced to change the transmission. Unfortunately, Rob’s bad luck was about to turn worse. Race day morning Rob and the guys unloaded the Draco Modified ready to put there bad luck behind them. While priming the motor before am practice Rob noticed the oil pump belt was missing teeth. “That was not good at all”, says Fuller. “At that point we decided to just load up instead of risking the motor blowing up in practice.”

Needless to say, it was a long ride home for Rob. On the flip side, the ride provided time for the weekend to sink in. “Man, I knew I should have waited until I was organized in my new shop, house, and life for that matter before I tried to make a race”, explained Rob. “This is not how I got to where I am in my career now by rushing and being unorganized. It’s embarrassing!”

Fuller, obviously upset, ended the interview with that moment. When the team gets the power plant back from Tony’s shop they will assess the situation and make a plan for the remainder of the year. The overwhelming amount of pressure and stress applied to Rob over the last few months with all that’s going on in his world it is almost unfathomable. With the house about done and the and the new RFM /Draco Racing shop in its last week of construction, it would be safe to say that the RFM group will be back in winning race form in no time.

RFM Completes Thompson Test in New Modified

RFM and company set off to Rochester, NY, home of Troyer Race cars on Wednesday to assist in the final touches on the all new NASCAR Modified before heading to the track on Friday night. The test was a one day deal on Saturday so the RFM group had their hands full to shake down the new piece and then put the hammer down and see what they had. “We were a little behind at the shop, but I couldn’t be happier with the car that Billy Colton and his team put together”, says Fuller. “Honestly that is one of the things I look forward to in moving back up to the Northeast. Guys like Billy do whatever it takes to get the job done at hand without making excuses and they completed the task I set for them….. build the baddest modified they could.”

The car that unloaded in Thompson, CT was one of the most technologically advanced modifieds to make a lap on the famed 5/8 mile. After a 15 minute shake down, Rob went out in the next practice and found himself a mere .2 off of the reigning tour champ Bobby Santos (who is also on the famous purple springs this year). “I’m very pleased”, explains Rob. “When you put it all in perspective we over achieved at this test.”

The 2011 RFM team added a few new faces this year as well. Rob reunited with some old friends from Massachusetts that are lending a hand and Jeff DeMinck will be on board in the crew chief roll as well. “I think Jeff will be the perfect fit for our organization”, explains Fuller. “He is detailed, organized and loves to race, what else could I ask for?”

Although the test was a success on most levels, Rob still thrives to improve when they return in 2 weeks. “If it wasn’t Thompson, I would be happier”, says Fuller. “This is my home track, I’ve been coming here for 30 years and have seen my family (Bobby, Ricky and Jeff) do some amazing things here, so I tend to put a little more pressure on myself to run good, even though I have limited time on the tricky 5/8 mile.”

The RFM group will head back to Rochester, regroup and come back stronger and ready to race at the infamous IceBreaker 2011. Look for Rob and the rest of the RFM group to be a threat at the track that he calls “home”.

Draco Springs to Have a Dominating Presence at IceBreaker

When Rob and his RFM, Draco Spring Modified rolled into the Thompson IceBreaker in 2010, they found themselves alone on the Draco Spring “purple island”, if you will. Not the case this year at all.

After watching the speed the RFM modified had during the 2010 season, Rob and his purple springs started turning heads in NASCAR’s oldest division. “This is what I enjoy the most”, says Fuller. “I love developing, testing, and then offering a superior product to these racers that work their butts off to race on a weekly basis without 7-Post Rigs, engineers, and private planes.”

Among the new customers is the reigning Whelen Modified Tour Champion Bobby Santos. After leaving the Thompson test last week, the famous 4 car was on the top of the leader board with the purple springs. “I’m very impressed with the product,” says crew chief Bob Mueller. “I especially like how much nicer it is when scaling the car. One turn is always a consistent increase or decrease where my old springs were all over the board.”

Another car that had power of purple was Todd Szegedy in the 2 car. Todd was one of the fastest cars all day at Thompson as well. “We did a back to back test at Caraway and it was a huge improvement in forward bite,” describes crew chief Phil Moran. “I worked with Rob and Draco Springs last year and got first-hand experience on the advantage we had in springs.”

The battle for the title could come down to these two drivers this year. Then throw in the Draco modified driven by Rob for seven shows this year and the “purple island” could be a popular place next season for sure!

RFM Takes Aim at a Busy 2011

After a successful PRI show and a week of much needed R&R, RFM and Draco Spring are ready to go again early in 2011.  In only the second week of the New Year, Rob has already been to Draco headquarters in Houston, visited the new construction site in Massachusetts, went to Upstate New York to Troyer Inc. for a couple of days and finally back to North Carolina to oversee the Super Late Model construction at Leavitt’s in Mooresville.  “I’ve spent more time at airports than home so far, but I couldn’t be more excited about all we have going on”, explains Fuller.  “Billy Colton and his guys are doing a great job on the new car.  It will definitely be different from any other modified out there.  I really believe every time Billy and I put our heads together we really raise the bar with every car we develop.”  The feeling is the same from Billy.  “I really love working with Rob on new cars,” explains Colton.  “He loves pushing the envelope and really brings a lot to the table on the development side of things.  I’m looking forward to Thompson to see if all the hard work shows on the track.”

When asked about the construction site Fuller simply sighs.  “Wow, what a different deal there!  The house is simply gorgeous and the builder is doing a great job.  The shop will be perfect when it’s done but it just seems like it’s in slow motion at this point”, says Fuller.  “We are real excited to finally get up there which just makes it seem like forever in between stages.”

In route home, Fuller’s final stop was at Leavitt Chassis.  The new Super Late Model will run up to 10 times in ’11 for RFM.  “I just love the challenge of the bigger cars”, describes Fuller.  “We had a lot of success with the NASCAR Late Model and I just hope we can carry the momentum up to the New England area.”

In total look for the RFM team to be at 15-20 races this year.  With Draco Racing Springs having its best January to date, this finds Fuller buried in development and technical support issues in all levels of racing.  “Daytona is only 3 weeks away and all those teams are full speed ahead.”

With the Draco SA86 Lightweight Rear Line taking off, along with the newly designed front springs selling faster than Draco can produce them, Fuller finds himself on the phone and at race shops most of the day.  “I really never thought we would take off this fast”, explains Fuller.  “With the majority of my time focused on Draco the results have been better than I could have hoped.”

With the Draco Coilover up 150% in sales, along with the SA86 line up 200% the proof is in the pudding if you will.  Draco CEO B.J. Drager couldn’t be happier.  “All of Rob’s hard work is finally paying off for him”, explains Drager.  “With Rob’s focus now on Draco, we really feel the sky is the limit for us.  We look forward to a huge 2011 in the race division of Draco.”

With all lights green, RFM is off and running in 2011.  Stay tuned for another huge announcement from RFM later this season which will bring RFM, Draco Spring (and others) to the top of the totem pole in Northeast racing!

Contact: Tracy Olszewski
Rob Fuller Motorsports Media Relations : tolszewski03@gmail.com

RFM and Draco Heat Up In Off Season

Just as most race teams are unwinding and starting to slow down for the off season, the polar opposite is the case at RFM and Draco Racing.  As Fuller put it, “I sometimes wonder how I plan on fitting lunch in on a daily basis.”

Let’s dive right in and talk about the two new race cars scheduled to be at the RFM shop in a month.  First of all there is the new NASCAR Whelen Modified.  “I couldn’t see our new shop without one”, explains Fuller.  The new 2011 Troyer Modified will be the first of its kind.  While in NC for the DIRT series racing, Billy Colton made time to stop by and talk to Rob about the newly designed 2011 mod.  “I always like to pick Rob’s brain about designs and ideas when it comes to any style of racing”, explains Colton.  “His Draco springs really helped out our DIRT modified this year.”  The 2011 Troyer Modified will have updates in suspension, body style and overall mechanical engineering of moving parts.  “I really wanted to do what we did with the ’09 design which was making it (the design) unique to the model.  I want to unload it and have people know that it’s a 2011 Troyer.”

Next we have RFM teaming up with another manufacturer that is also familiar with the benefits of joining forces with Rob.  Leavitt Racing and RFM announced the joint effort in heading north to enter a Super Late Model at the Thompson Speedway in 2011. “This is a no brainer on our end”, explains Steve Leavitt.  “We joined forces in 2008 with Rob on our NASCAR Late Model venture and found instant success.  We expect the same when he heads north next year with this division.”  In 2008 Leavitt Racing turned to RFM to help design a chassis for that division.  Leavitt was hit pretty hard with the “newly designed” COT car in NASCAR.  Most teams found it more economical to do their repairs in house.  This left Leavitt with no choice but to diversify to survive.

RFM will call on services of RoushYates for the motor under the hood of the Super Late Model and of course his stepdad Tony will supply the engines for the Modified again.  “It’s great to work with the guys at RoushYates”, says Rob.  “They are really a great group of serious racers that do what it takes to succeed.”

Just last week Rob stepped into another venture….. the broadcast booth.  He made the trip to Bristol, TN and did the color commentating for the North/South Shootout produced by Fox Sports.  “Yea, those guys called when they found out I wasn’t running and asked me to do the voice over or color commentating for the event”.  Rob was able to find the upside to being in a room for 11 hours with the other analyst.  “It was like a closet!” explained Fuller.  “It was about 3’x6’ with padded walls.”  Derek Pernesiglio was the main commentator with Rob providing a driver’s opinion of the race.  The show will air on December 11^th at 7:00pm on Fox Sports.

That leaves us with the racers vacation known as the PRI Show in Orlando, FL.  The folks at Draco Racing are proud to announce that Jimmy Phelps and the HBR DIRT Modified will be on display in the Draco booth for the 2010 PRI Show.  With the help of Draco Springs, Jimmy Phelps had a banner year.  Multiple wins and poles helped the team secure a second place points finish in the challenging DIRT Modified Series.  Rob will head to Florida on December 7^th for the show.  PRI will be the place for racer to be until Saturday the 11^th when the Fullers will head to the Walt Disney World Resort for a little well deserved R&R.  “We have worked the family vacation into the PRI show this year and couldn’t be happier”, says Fuller.  “My wife Monica will be helping us out in the booth while the kids are at Disney with her parents.  We will join them when the show is over on Saturday and hang out with Mickey for the week.”

Between all that we just spoke of, Rob and Draco racing continue to work feverishly on the valve spring yet to be unveiled.  “We are real close”, says Rob.  “We are in the middle of testing them now and so far so good.”

Stay tuned next month for a huge announcement on the latest plan from RFM and Draco on how they plan on helping out local racers at designated tracks.  Until then rest assured that RFM and Draco are full steam ahead to say the very least.  Stop by the booth at PRI and visit Rob personally from 9 am -4pm all three days to discuss springs, suspension or any other topic that will improve your own team’s performance!

Contact: Tracy Olszewski
Rob Fuller Motorsports Media Relations : tolszewski03@gmail.com

Fuller Excited To Head Into Off Season

With only 2 more races on the RFM schedule, Rob decided to wrap up the year early and focus on the relocation process. “This year has been crazy to say the least”, explains Fuller. “Between NASCAR deeming my Whelen Modified illegal for the second half of the season, to breaking ground on a new shop and home 1,000 miles away, to the booming Draco business my head is spinning.”

Fuller will wrap up 2010 with 11 starts in his NASCAR Whelen Modified. With 5 top five starting positions, including 1 pole and 6 top 10 finishes, Rob still finds himself striving to be better. “We definitely were fast every time we ran, but I really believe my lack of experience is hurting us. That’s why I believe I’m making the right decision until I can put more focus on this part of my career.”

Throughout the 2010 season, not only was Rob running his modified but also designed two completely new product lines for Draco Springs. The Legend car spring was successful right off the bat. “That line was actually pretty simple”, explained Fuller. “The competition in that spring line is little, if any, so we really had rave reviews with the product in our first attempt.” Draco and Fuller also headed down the infamous valve spring road. For those unfamiliar with this line it is a very particular and time consuming venture to say the least. “On the other hand, those springs were almost the death of me. My hats off to all the people at Draco that worked so hard for so long with me on this, but after 14 months, our first samples are being completed as we speak. This was the main reason for my decision to cut back on races this year,” explains Rob. “The market for this product is absolutely huge. We have a bunch of interest already and I really think the sky is the limit with this deal!”

Fuller is extremely proud of what this year has delivered for RFM, and is already working on a newly engineered design modified with the folks at Troyer Inc. The company is also building a new Featherlite trailer that Rob himself will bring to select few tracks when he himself is not racing. The trailer is equipped with a conversion kit from Nitro Manufacturing which will contain state of the art engineering equipment that he will use to display the forces that springs and shocks control. “I really enjoy helping the racer”, explains Fuller. “With this equipment in a trailer at any track I will offer services such as shock dyno testing and rate displacement spring testing to help educate the racer as to what is available to them. I really think when they see what is I have developed and compare it to what they currently run they will have enough data to make a decision on which is better for their application.”

With all the different directions RFM is headed you can bet that the success that was reached in 2010 will only increase in 2011. Look for a release next month on the new products being offered by Draco Spring and information on the upcoming PRI show in Orlando, FL where the Draco Spring booth will yet again have a winning car present for viewing pleasure. “I have had each of my cars there for the past 3 years. This year we are offering any team that has won with our support to display their car.”

RFM and Draco have already decided who will participate this year. Stop by the Draco Spring booth to see or simply wait for the pictures to post on www.purplespring.com.

Contact: Tracy Olszewski : Rob Fuller Motorsports Media Relations : tolszewski03@gmail.com

Fuller Completes a Busy June

The RFM Team is back in NC after a long, drawn out June.  The team recently ran Whelan Modified Tour race at Loudon, NH, where the result doesn’t reflect the team’s progress.  After placing in the top 10 in both practices sessions and an impressive 9^th place qualifying effort in the 40 car field, the day was cut short for Fuller on just lap 4 of the 100 lap event.  “Boy we were good in practice, but after the cup cars peeled all of our good rubber up, I was loose as heck!” explained Fuller.  “Our set-up was almost identical to Newman’s.  I should have played it smart like he did and just fell back until the track rubbered up and went forward like he did.  I guess that’s why he does it for a living and I do it for enjoyment!”

On a positive note Rob got reunited with friends and family for the week leading up to the event.  “That’s the important stuff for me at this point, to see my friends and hang out with the family at the track means the world to me.”

Rob and his family are planning to move back to Massachusetts soon.  With the schedule Fuller is keeping, time is definitely not on his side.  “We are really trying hard to relocate up North, it’s just difficult to try and keep things going smooth in the process”, explains Rob.   “The folks at Draco are very supportive and the product line is doing so well, I don’t want to take time away from that.  The move for the family needs to be as smooth as possible as well, so the modified might have to take a backseat to those things for a while until we can get organized and do it the correct way when we return.”

The RFM schedule slows down until mid-August when the mod will return to Bristol.  “Man I love that place, but if we can’t do it the right way we will have to run the races that make the most sense.”

With only 5 races left on the racing schedule, the RFM group will make every effort on hitting all of them, but don’t look for anything but a top level effort from them.  “If I can’t do it the right way, I just won’t do it”, explains Fuller.  “I know I have the best equipment in the garage, but without organization and good people at the track you’re wasting your time.”

Look for an August press release from RFM to let the fans know what the remaining schedule will look like.  “I will race as long as I am breathing, “says Rob, “but it will only be the correct way.”

Contact: Tracy Olszewski : Rob Fuller Motorsports Media Relations : tolszewski03@gmail.com

Fuller Fights With Lady Luck at Martinsville

Rob pulled into Martinsville Speedway this weekend with high expectations of a strong showing. Having his uncles Jeff and Jimmy along with his father Bobby in his corner still wasn’t enough to fight off the bad luck that plagued the team during the two day event. The blistering heat just added to the trying times that the paperclip-designed Martinsville often shows its competitors.

Fuller started the first practice fast as usual for the RFM team. Sitting fourth was a good feeling to the newly constructed team. At the end of all the qualifying runs made by other teams, the RFM group still sat in the top 20. Second practice was also good for Rob. He sat 9th until the end of practice when during his qualifying run he spun the Draco modified in turns 3 & 4. “The track was too slick to push as hard as I was”, said Rob. “It sure would have been nice to see what we could have done, but it was a lazy spin and we will try again when it counts.”

An early draw wasn’t what Fuller wanted to see but when all the 39 cars made their run the RFM group was sitting a respectable 18th. “I always want to be on the pole, but I haven’t run a modified here since 1998, so we will take it and move on.”

At the start of the 200-lap event, Fullers luck started running out. A ballast bag was left in the car at the driver’s feet and was interfering with Fuller’s ability to work the gas and brakes as needed. After driving up to the 12th spot Fuller had no choice but to pit to remove the bag for safety reasons. After getting back on the track on lap 14, Fuller began to turn the heat up on his own. Passing 8 cars in just 5 laps in one green flag run and another 10 in the next found the Draco Ford in the 14th spot.

The RFM group planned a pit stop and a repeat of their charge through the field that they displayed earlier. On lap 87 Fuller gave up the 14th spot to come down on pit road. While changing right side tires the Revolution Racing Team, that Fuller had pitting the car, found the studs to be knocked out of the hub making it impossible to change the tire. A speedy recovery was made but still left Rob down 5 laps to the competition. At this point the decision was made to not risk the car or the motor and regroup for the next event.

“It was an unfortunate deal, but what can you do?” questioned Fuller. “The car was pretty fast and we were actually catching the leaders during that green flag run so I can’t be too down I guess.”

Fuller still finds himself pumped up for Loudon. “We planned on running our new car but this one runs real well everywhere we take it, so I figured we will bring it back to Loudon where we were so fast last fall.” The RFM teams leaves in two weeks for New England and plans a long week of great weather and a top five to top it off. “I just love it up there, after the blistering heat at Martinsville, I can’t wait for the northern summer weather”, explained Fuller. “It really is a good feeling to have all my family helping out and friends that I miss a lot around me. I really look forward to a nice top 5 or 10 to end the month. I know we can do it.”

After Loudon Rob heads to Texas for a visit to Draco, then back to NC where he will get ready for the next event.

Contact: Tracy Olszewski : Rob Fuller Motorsports Media Relations : tolszewski03@gmail.com

Fuller Gears Up For Busy June

After returning from a week long trip to the Draco plant in Houston, TX Rob is ready to get back on the track. His uncle Jimmy is now running Rob’s tour efforts for the remainder of the 2010 season. “It’s really cool having Jimmy and my Dad around my cars again,” explains Fuller. “Between the two of them there is a ton of success with the Modified’s that I can’t wait to pull from.”

Martinsville will be the first outing for the newly formed team. Rob had ran his dad’s cars there on the tour back in 1998 and can’t wait to pull off pit road in 2 weeks for practice. “I really love that place. Every time we go there we have really fast cars, and trucks for that matter. The tight corners and long straits really keep you on your toes with the open wheel cars. It should be a great show for the fans as well.”

After the tight corners of Martinsville, RFM will head north for Loudon, NH. This is the track that Rob has circled on his calendar. “I can’t wait for that race,” explains Fuller with a grin from ear to ear! “I love the speed of that place and the draft is something I feel I get better and better at each time I play. The RFM modified was the fastest car on the track for much of the last race there but radiator issues ended the day early. That’s my fault,” says Rob. “It’s hard for them to cool when you cave in the nose.”

Either way the RFM team will have a full plate in June and it all ends with Rob’s birthday at the end of the month. Hopefully he and his new team will have something more than just a birthday to celebrate!

Follow Rob and his RFM team all year at www.robfullermotorsports.com.