Billy Tornado Alley Strikes Victory Lane at I-80 Speedway Near Greenwood, Nebraska

The Billy Alley Jr. Fan Club, the "Alley Katz." Members get t-shirts, club decals, autographed photos, regular pizza parties, and the opportunity to cheer on their local hero.
The Billy Alley Jr. Fan Club, the "Alley Katz." Members get t-shirts, club decals, autographed photos, regular pizza parties, and the opportunity to cheer on their local hero.
From sprint car racer Billy Alley's perspective, there were times this season were victory lane may as well have been the moon, he had a clear view of it, but he just couldn't reach it. The Lincoln, Nebraska driver has been racing on a limited schedule this year and he's faced a plethora of mechanical hardships. Last Friday night the seemly endless string of vindictive motorized gremlins took the night off, as he recorded his fifth career win over a very competitive 29-car ASCS-Midwest field at I-80 Speedway near Greenwood, Nebraska.
K&N sponsored Billy Alley finally got the mechanical gremlins off his back by notching his fifth career ASCS victory at I-80 Speedway.
K&N sponsored Billy Alley finally got the mechanical gremlins off his back by notching his fifth career ASCS victory at I-80 Speedway.


After the race Billy Alley commented, "It was just a fun race. At the same time, it was nerve-racking. We've had some bad stuff happen to us this year, and I was afraid it was going to happen again. It didn't, and we were the car to beat."

The win marked the tenth straight year that the 26-year-old Alley has graced Victory Lane. A string of strong finishes over the last few weeks was the harbinger of better things still to come.

"Our race team has had a lot of success in the past. The expectations are always high. We were fast all year, and had some strong consistent finishes. But the wins were becoming very hard to come by. I believe success in racing comes from surrounding yourself with successful people and businesses like K&N Engineering. I have been very fortunate in doing this and I want to win every time I hit the race track for all the people and fans that support me. So not winning on a regular basis gets to a guy!"

"We had some engine issues we were chasing and finally figured out the problem," explains Billy Alley. "But really it was just bad luck. There was a night we were leading late in the race and a wheel broke. Then in another race we started on the pole one and a mag box failed. When writing my weekly press release I never write the words 'bad luck' along the headline. I feel you have to work through the bad luck to enjoy the good. I had to make an exception this year, because it didn't seem like the bad luck was ever going to go away."

Billy Alley's predicament is yet another lucid example of capricious racing providence intervening. The best that can be done under those circumstances is just the best that you can do - and to hold on because it too shall pass.

"The equipment that our race team performs with is top-notch. We never get beat because someone else has better equipment. That is an excuse you will never hear from me," remarks Alley.

"I feel our engine program is very strong. An engine is the most important and expensive piece of a race car. Therefore, I use the best products on the market for our engines - and that's the K&N Sprint Car Airbox. There are no air restrictions and air helps produce power. My favorite part though is how easy it is to maintain. It takes just minutes to remove, clean and reinstall."

"I also use K&N oil filters. I admit I learned that lesson the hard way using another brand of oil filter in the past. During a heat race the rubber seal on the filter blew out. I lost oil pressure for a brief moment before I got the engine shut off and it destroyed a lot of expensive parts in the engine. With K&N filters I never worry about that. Also my engine builder really likes it during rebuilds.

"I am a proud supporter of K&N performance products, and I am thankful for their support."

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