Racing brothers enjoy successful season

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The racing Hines brothers enjoyed a very successful 2016 season with Jeremy capturing the Ultimate Battle of the Bluegrass Late Model Series points standings, and his younger brother Jacoby winning the Modified Track Championship at both Bloomington and Brownstown Speedways. Both are natives of Seymour, with Jacoby now residing in Nineveh.

Jeremy, 39, will be honored at the Fastrak International Companies Annual Awards Banquet on Jan. 21 at the Park Vista Hotel in Gatlinburg, Tenn. He will share the celebration with his family and close friends, as it has always been through the years.

Jacoby, 32, who already has been honored for his Bloomington Speedway championship back in the fall, will be fêted at the Brownstown Speedway annual awards banquet to be conducted on Jan. 21 at the Pewter Hall in Brownstown. Jeremy finished fourth in this year’s Brownstown Late Model points standings.

Jacoby took his first career title at Brownstown over Rick Gumm of Crothersville and Dennis Boknecht of Seymour. His Diamond Race Car Chassis, which is built in Seymour, is sponsored by Century 21 by Corina Jones, Warrior Race Engines, Honey Creek Auto and 31 Auto Group.

“It was really a good season for us, we didn’t get to race as much as we wanted to, with a brand-new baby it really makes it tough on my wife to come to the races. It seemed like the summer just flew by. We won four races and two of those were races that I have wanted to win for a while now,” said Jacoby, a 2003 graduate of Brownstown Central High School.

The two races that Jacoby was referring to were the Josh Burton Memorial at Bloomington Speedway and the Jackson County Grand Champion Fair Race at Brownstown, both of which he went to Victory Lane in. His pit crew consists of his wife Kristin and his father Rick along with Chris McCoy, Joe Hines and Aaron Fields.

Jeremy Hines’ championship chassis was built not far from his home by the Masters family at Mastersbilt Race Cars in Crothersville. Hines learned how to race at nearby Brownstown Speedway. It was at his home track in front of his family, friends and many fans when Hines clinched the 2016 Ultimate Battle of the Bluegrass Championship on Oct. 1, but it wasn’t easy.

“It feels great to clinch this championship here at my home track where my dad and my family have raced for years,” Jeremy said. “It was a lot of fun to run the Ultimate BoB Series, as we traveled to five different states and I got to run at a lot of track I’ve never been to before. My plan is to defend my title in 2017,” said Jeremy, a 1995 graduate of Brownstown Central High School.

Jeremy competed in all 11 races and accumulated 350 points in the 2016 Inaugural Ultimate Battle of the Bluegrass Late Model season. Consistency was the key to the title as he had four top five and eight top 10 finishes.

All Jeremy had to do was start the main event in the Ultimate BoB season finale at Brownstown Speedway to clinch the championship on Oct. 1. That should be an easy thing to do for a guy at his home track, and a driver who made the main event of the 10 previous races.

The second heat race saw Jeremy start on the outside of the front row. When the green flag came out, Hines jumped the cushion in turn one and his championship hopes suddenly became a challenge. His car flew out of the wall-less track tail first and landed on the back of the car bending some very important bars and pieces that make the racecar go fast.

“I guess if I had to pick a place to have such of a misfortune, it would be here at my hometown track, Brownstown Speedway,” Jeremy said. “I had a lot of family and friends here tonight, and I think they were all in my pit area doing whatever they could to help us fix the car enough to start the main event to clinch the title. There were even guys helping that I have had some tough battles through the years at this track helping to get us out there.”

So many times in the history of auto racing has the most wins not won a championship. Consistency and that never-quit attitude have won many championships through the years. Jeremy Hines and his race team are a product of that racing spirit.

After starting 14th in the main event, Jeremy took the green flag and clinched the 2016 Ultimate BoB Dirt Late Model Championship. He finished the race in the 10th spot. It wasn’t the result he wanted, but after what he had gone through during the evening, it was like a win just to finish. Besides that, he was racing with a purpose in dedicating the race to a family friend that had recently passed. Myron “Turtle” Owens was remembered in a special ceremony before the race, and Jeremy Hines participated in the tribute.

Jeremy finished the season with a 72-point advantage over Columbus native Derek Fisher, who had 278 points. Dustin Linville of Bryantsville, Ky. was third with 175 points and Chad Stapleton of Edinburgh took the fourth spot with 145 points. Michael Chilton of Salvisa, Ky. rounded out the top five of the Ultimate Battle of the Bluegrass Dirt Late Model Series standings with 130 points.

Jeremy Hines’s sponsors include; Don’s Auto Sales, Genesis Shocks, Kimball Midwest by Krissie, Alcorn Industries, DeHart Farms, Lucas Oil Products, Hoosier Tire, Automotive Recycling and Jason Ayers Trucking.

James Essex writes a motorsports roundup for The (Columbus) Republic, a sister paper of The Tribune. Send comments to [email protected].

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