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Tony Elliott has always lived his life in the fast lane, literally. And December 3 was no different.
Well, maybe a little different.
The Warsaw native, who now lives in Kokomo and whose name means sprint car racing to folks in this area, test-drove an Indy Racing League car at Texas Motor Speedway, reaching speeds between 210 and 220 miles per hour.
Elliott, a 1980 graduate of Warsaw Community High School and a seven-time champion at Kokomo Speedway, won the United States Auto Club (USAC) Sprint Car national championship, giving him the tryout and a chance for a dream come true.
"I've never driven the car," said Elliott. "I've always wanted to, but we won the championship and had the chance to test it. I've always wanted to race in the (Indy) 500. They gave us 60 laps, and we got it up to 210 mph."
Elliott noted the difference between the sprint car he's used to driving at near speeds of 100 mph and the IRL car he drove owned by NFL quarterback Jim Harbaugh, television executive producer Terry Ligner and automobile businessman Gary Pedigo, is substantial.
"There's quite a bit of difference," said Elliott. "The sprint car has a 100-inch wheel base compared to 150 in the IRL car, which is more stable, longer and wider. I'm used to moving around in the corners. We got it up to 220 in the straightaway. The biggest factor was concentrating and not lifting my foot off the gas pedal in the corners."
Each year the USAC champion is given a tryout with the IRL, and Elliott, who was more than happy to conduct a 30-minute interview over the phone, knows the importance of this accomplishment.
"They (IRL) put a deal together with USAC," said Elliott. "Treadway Team, who Arie Luyendyk drives for, did it last year. Tony George (owner, Indianapolis Motor Speedway) put a lot of money up for it. It's a big accomplishment. I've run sprint cars forever. Just running USAC, there's a lot of publicity, 50-60 cars at every race. I'd say it's one of my bigger accomplishments."
Elliott recieved his championship checks and awards at the USAC banquet held January 8 at the Westin Hotel in Indianapolis.
Despite his success in the IRL car driven by two-time Indianapolis 500 runner-up Scott Goodyear, Elliott said he could never forget where he got his start in the racing community.
"No, I wouldn't give it up," said Elliott. "I'd do what I could, I've run sprint cars all my life. It just depends on what team I got hooked up with."
