September 18, 2007 (Inman SC) -  In stock car racing, sometimes your actual on-track performance is not accurately reflected in the final standings of the race.  That was the case this weekend for Carl Long and the James Hylton Motorsports crew at the Eddie Gilstrap Motors 200 ARCA RE/MAX Series race at Salem Speedway.  Due to a pre-race problem in tech, the Hylton Motorsports Dodge was denied a qualification run.  Long started in 34^th, a position based on the provisional points standing of car owner James Hylton. The Roxboro, North Carolina driver stated before the race, “I am running this race on a mission and that mission is to get to the front….”

As the race progressed, Carl Long’s mission followed schedule.  Within the first 30 laps, Long had worked himself into the event’s Top 20.  A caution on lap 32 brought the car into the pits with the crew removing a spring rubber and adjusting the car’s right-rear weight.  Long continued his quest for the front until he was caught up in an accident on lap 69 of the event.  The Hylton Motorsports Dodge Charger sustained a bent upper-control arm and broken shock on the right side and was unable to return to the race.

“Carl and the crew did an outstanding job,” stated James Hylton after race, “It was unfortunate that the night ended the way it did for them.”   The crew is led by Crew-Chief Jon Sykes (front tire changer) and consists of Joshua Brandt (front tire carrier), Dale Klaver (jack), Colin Arey (fueler), Rick Heflin (catch can) and Dan Collins (spotter).  For the Salem race, the crew was augmented by Hylton Motorsports crew members James Hylton Jr (rear tire changer) and Jeff Droke (rear tire carrier). 

Front Row (Joshua Brandt, James Hylton Jr, James Hylton, Dan Collins, R L Carter

Back Row (Dale Klaver, Jon Sykes, Colin Arey, Rick Heflin)

The crew has been working with stock car racing legend James Hylton during the 2007 ARCA RE/MAX Series.  The first-year team scored a Top Ten finish in the ARCA 150 at Gateway International Speedway with Carl Long only two weeks ago.  Crew Chief Jon Sykes stated, “I have never learned so much from anyone as I have from James Hylton”.  Crew member Rick Heflin stated “I’d really like to thank James for taking us under his wing this season.  I feel as if I learned as much this year about racing as I would learn in ten years on another team.  We wouldn’t be where we are now without him.”