Sport mod driver Taylor Metz couldn’t contain his excitement after winning this race. He scored the victory during last weekend’s Spring Nationals at Beatrice Speedway in Nebraska.
“I hadn’t won a race in the past few years,” Metz, of Washington, Kansas, said. “It was 30 degrees, the fans were huddled in the grandstand. I decided to liven things up and make it exciting for the fans.”
Metz shares driving duties of the car owned by Mike Jueneman with his father, Greg Matz, a two-time Harris Clash winner.
“When Dad was sick and in the hospital, he took a step back from modifieds to sport mods … nine years ago,” said Metz. “We raced together in the sport mod division, and then we decided to share driving of Mike’s car. Luckily, we are built the same, so we don’t have to change the seat or anything else with the car.”
After taking a job in western Kansas, Metz now lives more than two hours away from his father.
“I drive home on Friday nights, meet Dad, and then go to Beatrice Speedway another 45 minutes away,” Metz said. “My dad is more talented as a driver than I am. I will struggle one week; he will win the next week. It is both fun and stressful at the same time. I keep telling myself if he could do it, I can do it.”
This past weekend, it seemed like the stars aligned for Taylor Metz to have success.
“When we drew front row, I jumped into the lead,” said Metz. “It was surreal for me to be in the lead. I hadn’t run up front much. There were three or four cautions in the feature. I stayed calm. I tried to not think it was the Spring Nationals — a race not easy to win.”
After the checkered flag waved, Greg Metz greeted his son in victory lane.
“He was close to crying,” Metz said. “He told me how proud he was. [My dad] got as much joy in seeing me win as I did to be jumping on the car. He told me I could keep my seat for a few more weeks. As long as I keep on winning, he won’t kick me out.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
