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Column By: DYLAN FRIEBEL / RPW – FULTONVILLE, NY – Last Friday marked a first for AJ Miller and his team.
It was the first time his 14aj open-wheel Northeast Modified had Big Block smoke as there was a Kevlar powerplant between the pipes.
The former Sportsman and 358-Modified driver made the jump from mostly lower horsepower to 850 with a big block.
“We just weren’t having fun in the crates anymore,” Miller said of his jump up in division. “There’s a lot of guys coming up through that haven’t been taught to respect their own equipment and yours. The beating and banging has got to stop. It’s a spec class, all of that stuff is.”
The choice to race at his home track, the Utica Rome Speedway, is an interesting one if you didn’t know the in and outs of a race car. However, when you do, it made sense.
“It was dry slick tonight but Utica’s (Rome) always been my home track,” he said. “I’ve just always loved Utica. Fulton (Speedway) was my original western track. I love racing Utica and if Fulton had Big Blocks I’d be there too.”
Ultimately, Miller like simplicity.
“I’m just not going to put a bunch of different combinations together,” he said. “Like I don’t want to be running Small Block, Big Block, or even a big Small Block. Nothing like that. I’m just trying to keep it simple with this program.”
The choice to buy a traditional DIRTcar big block was a no brainer for AJ, but he’s at a disadvantage at Utica, which runs more open motor rules.
“My motor builder did a great job,” he said. “I don’t want to say we’re bringing a knife to a gun fight but that’s what it is. Those open small blocks are a lot more drivable.”
Miller saw more chances to get behind the wheel, at a variety of places, with the Big Block 468 cubic inch engine.
“I went with the Big Block because I can run it a lot more,” he said. “I can take it to a DIRTcar show and just put Hoosiers on my car. They run almost anywhere. I’m just getting my feet wet at Utica and I can play anywhere, not just stuck to one or two tracks.”
While he might have finished 16th when the checkered flag flew Friday, it was his first race in anything of that power. It was also his first race in an open-wheel car since he jumped out of them in last August, but you could see he enjoyed it.
“I really like the Big Block,” he said. “The power is there and it’s fun. I just haven’t driven an open wheel car since late last summer. I need to knock some of the rust off and get more consistent. It’s way more powerful then a 358 for sure and allows me to have an open schedule on this side of our team. We’ll enjoy it.”
The first outing in a big block for AJ & his team was a resounding success. However, there’s more to the story. Stay tuned to Race Pro Weekly for more about that.