Jacy Norgaard Photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nIt\u2019ll be Dotson\u2019s first venture southward to race at Volusia, but he has already been brought up to speed on the history of the track and the family that races there.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat family name is super valued, so it would be cool to win the memorial race,\u201d Dotson said. \u201cIt\u2019s a legendary track for racing Late Models and Modifieds, so it\u2019d be super cool to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though it\u2019s nearly become commonplace in Dirt Late Model racing, chassis brands hand-picking a driver to fill the seat of their self-fielded team is a phenomenon rarely seen in the UMP Modified world. Dotson has been stout in his first venture with the team, becoming one of few drivers to defeat four-time DIRTcar national champion Nick Hoffman this season in a wild finish at Port Royal Speedway.<\/p>\n
Most recently, Dotson won big at Atomic Speedway, pocketing a $15,000 check and his third Renegades of Dirt Modified Tour victory of the season and second in two days.<\/p>\n
At such a young age, Dotson has already beaten some of the sport\u2019s biggest names. So what\u2019s been the secret to his success?<\/p>\n
\u201cMainly, it\u2019s the team and the people I work with,\u201d Dotson said. \u201cThe guys at the shop that put in the work \u2013\u00a0they\u2019re super smart. Whenever I feel I need something, they can put it to the ground for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He and the crew have been working from the Longhorn Chassis headquarters in China Grove, NC, where customer cars are fabricated and the team car is maintained. Though it\u2019s well-kept equipment, Dotson is still relatively new to it and the UMP-style of Modified in general.<\/p>\n
Dotson was a former full-timer in the Dirt Modified ranks around his native California, and never shied away from traveling, collecting several high-profile wins at tracks across the western half of the country. Since debuting in a UMP Modified last fall, he\u2019s ascended to one of the top contenders in the division, to which he credits his big opportunity with the Longhorn team.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe get to go test, so all the bugs that I need to work out as a driver, I get to spend time at the track figuring out,\u201d Dotson said. \u201cSteve [Arpin] raced a lot of UMP, so he helps me with a lot of that stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n
With Arpin, a multi-time Modified champion and Feature winner at tracks across the nation, and help from Longhorn\u2019s lead engineer Kevin Rumley, the trio have formed a combination that threatens for the win in nearly every race they enter.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s nice to have somebody that can watch and kinda nit-pick me and make me better whenever I make mistakes in the cockpit,\u201d Dotson said. \u201cThat\u2019ll help my future, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI get to work a lot with Kevin Rumley. Anything I need, if I need to ask a question or whatever, he helps me.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/a>Zackery Kloosterman Photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDotson made it to Victory Lane two weeks ago at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, collecting an All-Star Invitational win in the World Short Track Championship and later going on to a close runner-up in the Saturday finale. Though he was disappointed with the finish, he\u2019s since turned his attention to his next big opportunity \u2013 the Reutimann Memorial.<\/p>\n
Being in the driver\u2019s seat of any well-backed motorsports team comes with solid expectations, but Dotson\u2019s handled the pressure thus far. It\u2019s an opportunity he takes great pride in fulfilling.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s super awesome,\u201d Dotson said. \u201cIt\u2019s what I\u2019ve always wanted to do since I was a kid. I [also] get to be a little closer to the Late Model world. Hopefully, one day, I\u2019ll be able to get a shot in one of them and do that full-time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Catch Dotson and the Longhorn team compete in the ninth annual Emil & Dale Reutimann Memorial, Friday-Saturday, Nov. 18-19, at Volusia Speedway Park. Tickets will be on sale at the gate on race day.<\/p>\n
If you can\u2019t be at the track, watch every lap live on DIRTVision<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Big wins at Port Royal, Atomic turned heads for the young Californian One of the fastest rising talents in DIRTcar UMP Modified racing will get his first shot at one of the most coveted trophies during Volusia Speedway Park\u2019s Emil & Dale Reutimann Memorial, Nov. 18-19. Ethan Dotson, the 23-year-old Dirt Modified standout from Bakersfield, … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":4578,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,41],"tags":[311,13,46,19,48],"class_list":["post-4576","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-modifieds","tag-ethan-dotson","tag-featured","tag-reutimann-memorial","tag-ump-modifieds","tag-volusia-speedway-park"],"yoast_head":"\nDotson Making Volusia Debut at Reutimann Memorial in House Longhorn UMP Modified - Volusia Speedway Park<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n