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Royle Steps Up To 2009 Minnesota NASCAR State Championship

A fourth-generation driver won the 2009 Minnesota State NASCAR Whelen All-American Series championship.

Adam Royle, 28, of Northfield, Minn., won the state title as well as the NASCAR Late Model track championship at Raceway Park in Shakopee, Minn. He also finished third in points at nearby Elko (Minn.) Speedway.

Royle’s great grandfather started racing in 1921, and his grandfather owned three-quarter Midgets. His dad, Jerry, drove cars for a time and then switched to a car ownership role when his son was born. Interestingly, Jerry Royle’s driver, Brian Johnson, is now a crewman for Adam’s team.

Royle has attended racing since he was a baby, so it was natural for him as a 15-year-old to ask if he could drive a race car. Royle teamed with driver Dean Johnson, who owned and drove a Sportsman car at Elko Speedway. Their deal was Johnson would drive the first half of the season, and Royle the second half. In exchange, Jerry Royle would use his experience to improve the race car’s performance. Adam benefited by working on the car, too.

“We worked on the car, dad and I, and improved its performance. We did okay racing. It was a good way for me to get my feet wet and learn. The next season we built our own Sportsman car and won the Rookie of the Year Award and the division championship.”

After racing in the Sportsman division for three years, Royle moved up to the Late Models, teaming with Ron Touche. He scored his first Late Model feature win in his first season in the division.

In recent years, Royle spent time as a traveling racer, hitting the big races and Midwestern series events. The experience proved beneficial.

In 2008, he won the track championship at Raceway Park and placed third in points at Elko. This year, he repeated the Raceway Park title, fourth at Elko, but consistent performances brought him the addition of the Minnesota state championship.

Donnie Reuvers, a popular young lion in Minneapolis area Late Model racing, has won track, regional and state NASCAR championships. He became the promoter of Raceway Park this year and decided to take himself off his own speedway. He did race at Elko full time and won the 2009 track title there. Reuvers is pleased that Royle and his family stepped up to the state championship in 2009.

“Adam carried his 2008 championship very well in 2009,” Reuvers said. ”We’re excited that he not only repeated the track championship, but won the state title as well. Adam and his dad are dedicated competitors and they’ve worked hard to get great results.”

Royle said Reuvers has turned into a great track operator.

“Donnie is a great racer from a great family,” Royle said. “He’s done an excellent job in his first year as a promoter. He applied VHT (a sticky substance applied to asphalt most commonly at drag-racing facilities for improved starting line traction) to the track, and I’ll have to admit I was skeptical. The stuff did wonders for our racing. We have a two-groove race track now, and the tire life is the same … three to four weeks.”

Royle is quick to credit his crew for their success. His dad, Jerry, is crew chief and team members include Johnson, Craig Howe and Mike Heinzerling.

Their race car is based on a home-built Royco Chassis powered by a B&B Racing Engine. Sponsors include Impact Printing, Anchor Bank, Simply Suspension, Cihka Farms and the Royle family business, Independent Black Dirt Company, which hauls landscaping material.

Royle and his wife, Joy, have three sons: Davis, 6, who already has an interest in Quarter Midgets and represents a fifth racing generation in the family, Allen, 5 and Henry, 1.