August 13, 2008; ImageFIRST [befirstnow.com]
WINSTON-SALEM, NC – After a long delay in starting his 2008 season, Jerame Donley got back on track two weeks ago and did it in style, winning in his first start of the season. Starting with a new car and having been away from the track for months, the entire team was excited about their performance right out of the box and was looking forward to keeping the ball rolling.
And that they did, almost. After a Friday afternoon test, Jerame was not pleased with the car; however, the team worked over the evening and came up with a solution they liked. Not only did they like it, it worked; and, in final practice, they posted the second fastest time. "We had a better car than we had originally thought," said Jerame after practice.
Jerame posted a time of 16.061 seconds in qualifying, placing him third on the starting grid for the 150-lap event. Jerame wasted no time moving the #5 LJM Machine Impala forward; and by lap 10, he had moved into second place behind Phillip Morris. As the race wore on, the car got snug, and Jerame adjusted, moving to the apron of the track, which helped his car to close to within five car lengths behind Morris, where he stayed for a majority of the race. A late caution and a Green, White, Checkered gave Jerame a chance to battle for the lead. "On the restart, I went into turn one real good and came off nice and low and got under him some, drove into three and four and got even further under him. We drag raced down the front stretch (to the white flag) and back into turn one. I got in low, knowing the car would turn good on the flat, and also knowing he wouldn’t give me much room. I came up off turn two, and he smacked the wall pretty hard; but I was loose and sideways (he had bounced back into me) and
I couldn’t take full advantage of it. I had a nose ahead of him getting into three and through four, but he had more momentum coming up off turn 4 and snagged us at the line by just a couple feet [.049 seconds]."
"I couldn’t do what I do without the help of everyone and the support of my Mom and Dad," Jerame said after the race. "Thanks to them for allowing me to do what I love to do and supporting me and my younger brother, Cory. Thanks to my crew chief, Mike Jewell, for not giving up on me and our team after last year’s sub-par performances. Thanks to my brother, Cory, for his hard work on the car and doing a great job spotting (in only his second time). Thanks to Billy Banks for a great engine and track support and to Jay Hedgecock for an awesome chassis. Thanks to Trevor Townsend and his Dad, Tim, for their continued help and support at the track."
It was almost two races and two wins, but almost doesn't count. However, with two starts for the Donley Motorsports team, which yielded a victory and a strong second place run, has put momentum on their side when they return to Motor Mile Speedway for the Toyota 150 this Saturday night. Cory Donley may also be returning to the Limited Sportsman division, so come out to the track and support the Donley brothers this weekend.
