2004 Year In Review - Part 3

Welcome to the final installment of the “Jeremy Miller Racing 2004 Year in Review.” In this final article we will cover July through the end of the 2004 racing season. There is a lot of content so be ready to read! Please also be sure to view the assortment of photographs at the bottom of this page.

Jeremy started out the month of July attending his fourth race in seven days. After three races on the local dirt tracks, this final race of the week long stretch would be on pavement. The USAR Hooters Pro Cup series was at Kil-Kare Speedway in Xenia, OH. Jeremy arrived to find a very distinct track layout. USAR officials decided to officially label the track with three turns. However, the competitors had a difficult time figuring out where these three turns were located in the small 3/8 mile track that resembled a circle.

It became evident that Jeremy had gained much experience from his first asphalt race at Salem. He was able to get up to speed very quickly in practice and was higher in the speed charts all day long. Jeremy ended up 17th quickest in practice for the day. Unfortunately, there had been smoke coming out of the exhaust all day long. The team was unable to find the problem at the track, but the motor’s performance was not affected so everyone felt safe that the motor was good.

Jeremy made some final changes to the chassis before qualifying and hoped for the best. He qualified 22nd and found the car was handling worse than in practice. He started the race that evening and really did not like how the car felt. USAR officials were keeping a close eye on the exhaust smoke and asked Jeremy to pull the car in to check things out early in the race. The crew was able to show officials that there were no leaking fluids. USAR allowed Jeremy on the track for one last try, but pulled him back in as the problem continued for they felt it was distracting to other drivers. He only completed 60 laps at this event and ended in the 23rd position.  "It’s too bad we got black flagged early because it would have been a unique track to gain experience at," Jeremy said.

Upon returning home, Jeremy went to work finding the problem with the motor. He ended up finding a minor problem on the newly installed aluminum heads. The fix was easy and would not return for the rest of the year.

Now back home, Jeremy decided to run a couple more dirt races in July. He went to the Scotland County Speedway in Memphis, MO on Friday the 9th of July while the USMTS modified touring series was in town. The car was working very well for Jeremy. The problem was the track wasn’t allowing much passing. He finished towards the rear of his heat race and waited for the feature to move up to the front. He started 13th and only had 15 laps to race. Jeremy had to wait on the field to get sorted out. He then drove to the 5th spot where he would finish. Overall it was a very good night considering the short race.

The USMTS modified touring series moved on to the Eldon Raceway on Thursday July 15th. It was a chance for Jeremy to race again at the track where he grew up. He found a surprisingly low car count for the stock car class that night. During his heat race, some tight racing packs caused Jeremy to fall out with a flat left rear tire. He made a few changes to the car for the feature where he would start 9th. It took him a few laps to get going as he was held up by some slower cars. Once he cleared them it was time to go. Jeremy chased down the front group of three cars that were ahead of him by almost the full straight away. With just a few laps remaining, he fought with that group of cars and ended in the 4th spot that night as they all crossed the finish line in one pack.  Jeremy reflected on the two races saying, "It was another good run on dirt, but getting caught back in the pack doesn’t give you a finish that shows how good the car is."

Shortly after his final night of dirt stock car racing, Jeremy decided it was time to sell the car to fully concentrate on the USAR Hooters Pro Cup series. It was not an easy decision for him to make. However, he sold the car and was ready to move on to his last two races. Jeremy would compete at Mansfield Motorsports Speedway and Illiana Motor Speedway to complete his 2004 racing season.

After a two week layoff from racing, Jeremy went to Mansfield, OH on July 31st for the Pepsi 250. Having been to Mansfield twice already, he was hoping for good results at this track. The day started out just as it had back in March for the BF Goodrich tire test. Rain, clouds and a gloomy atmosphere plagued the morning. However, just as in March, the track crew went to work and had the track ready almost on schedule. The team joked to Jeremy that his best days had started out with rain, but at the end of this day it would prove to not be a joke.

A full field of cars was at Mansfield Motorsports Speedway for race day. Jeremy practiced very well and ran with the field all day. Although he only showed 30th on the speed charts, the car was working great for him. He felt he had quite a bit more in the car for qualifying, but again ended up 30th. A little disappointed, he still had no reservations about the car for race time.

At race time the stands were packed with nearly 13,000 fans. The race started and Jeremy ran well all night long. Pit stops went without problems and one track bar adjustment was made throughout the night. Jeremy ran very well and finished in the 20th position. The only true incident was when another car left pit road with the fuel can still attached. As Jeremy went around the outside of that car, the fuel can came off and slid up the track in front of Jeremy. "It’s not every day you punt a gas can during the race," he said.  It didn’t cause any real damage to the car and everything was okay. Jeremy’s experience from the previous two races showed tremendously throughout the night. He ended up finishing in the 20th position. Although he was shown 6 laps down, that did not represent how well the night had been. Jeremy had raced beside everyone in the field throughout the night and was always competitive with them. Once again, a rainy day had turned into a great day.

Jeremy then had three weeks off to prepare his Chevrolet Monte Carlo for his final race of 2004. On Saturday, August 21st he showed up to Illiana Motor Speedway in Schererville, IN. The track is a fairly flat, half mile oval similar to Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, IA. Having been on Hawkeye Downs a few times, Jeremy hoped this would shorten the learning curve for the day. He ran well in practice throughout the day. Again, the experience he was gaining from race to race was showing. The car was tight all day and never really did get fixed for him. He ended the day 16th fastest in practice. Jeremy then qualified the car in the 15th position. He was fairly happy with the .0221 second gain from practice to qualifying with the tight condition still in the car.

At the start of the race, it was immediately obvious that the car became much better after the sun had gone down. Jeremy started passing cars right away. Unfortunately, in the first few laps of the race, he slid up into another car as he came off the second turn. This ripped the rear bumper cover off the car taking away the spoiler and all the down force. Jeremy fought the extremely loose car all night and did his best to stay out of trouble. He did spin the car out twice, however once was not of his doing.  He got into some rear end fluid dropped on the track by another competitor. Finally, after completing 218 laps, Jeremy had enough of the ill handling race car. He pulled to the infield as he had no more possible positions to gain on the track and ended in the 13th position. Once again, he was pleased with the experience gained. He was just frustrated to have made a mistake with such a good race car.  "It was my best qualifying attempt, but the altercation cut the hopes of a good night short."

Jeremy’s 2004 racing season was over. As a whole, his year had gone very well. He had patiently waited for his first asphalt race experience. To get a top ten in that first race was excellent. Even better was to see how that experience paid off with obvious improvements on each race weekend. At the end of the season, Jeremy was able to look back and know that he could be happy with how things had gone.

Jeremy can look back now and see how much help he received in his 2004 racing season. He would like to thank everyone involved this year. Jeremy’s special thanks go out to the following people who were an integral part of the 2004 racing season.

Through the whole year from start to finish:
•Father and mother - Rod and Bonnie Miller
•Fiancée - Heather McCoy
•Brother and sister-in-law - Jon and Rebecca Miller

At the paved tracks of the USAR Hooters Pro Cup series:
•Frank O’Neil now soaking it up in sunny Florida
•Paul & Sheli Marshall whose help in the pits made the difference
•David Brooks who put in a ton of work to help the team
•Kay Weidner who helped with racing fuel costs

At the dirt tracks of Iowa & Missouri:
•Shawn Moore
•Justin Malone

Pictures from July and August 2004.
Click on each picture to view it, then click the back button in your browser to return to this page.

Jeremy on track for practice at Xenia, OH	Jeremy on track for practice at Xenia, OH	Jeremy on track for practice at Xenia, OH	Jeremy on track for the race at Xenia, OH	Jeremy watches on from the pits at Xenia, OH
Jeremy going out for his heat race at Eldon	Jeremy on track for his heat race at Eldon	Jeremy on track for his heat race at Eldon	Jeremy on track for the race at Mansfield, OH	The full field paces the track at Mansfield
Jeremy racing into turn #3 at Mansfield	Jeremy pacing during a caution at Mansfield	Nearly 13,000 fans showed up to Mansfield	A USAR official does his job at Mansfield	Jeremy's #18 Chevrolet after the race
The car wasn't the only one worn out in OH	Before the race at Illiana Motor Speedway	Jeremy pacing before the race at Illiana	The car sets a little banged up at Illiana	A collage to commemorate the '04 season