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A silent sportsman…. Who comes to mind? How about Kenny Coolbeth? He doesn’t show up at the track with umbrella girls, No side burns cover his face, media doesn’t follow him and rarely do we get a chance to see him on an interview or spotlight in Cycle News. Why is that? Surely he is a top competitor, a force to be reckoned with. He is highly respected by his peers and get him going he will make you laugh your butt off. I guess he is just a regular guy who is highly talented. If his stats could speak for themselves they would be screaming.
The 2004 season was filled with these statistics that are rather impressive. Take a look…
17 Rounds of racing boils down to 68 laps of Qualifying or scratch heats. 170 Laps of Heats and 425 laps of finals.
WINS- 9/17 Qualifying heats
SECONDS- 4/17 Qualifying heats
WINS- 9/17 Heats
SECONDS- 4/17 Heats
OVERALL TOP 5 FINISHES- 10/17 Races
OVERALL TOP 10 FINISHES- 14/17 Races
DNQ………………………………......- 1/17 Races
With over 20 years of experience under his belt and an impressive resume what gives? Clearly there are many Kenny Coolbeth fans out there but are they as silent as Kenny? Did you know that he received The Congressional Award for lifetime dedication to Motorsports at the Smithsonian Institute in May of 1996? In 1994 he was Grand National Rookie of the Year and made 15 out of 22 main events. Improving every year maybe this year will be Kenny’s turn and a chance to win the covenant title as “Champion”. In 2002 with one win and a finish of 3rd to kick off 2003 finishing 4th with two wins to 2004 finishing 3rd with one win; where do you go from here… you twist the grip a bit more and focus on everyone’s goal… Just Win!!!
He has paid his dues. He has shared ideas with flat track fanatics through his cross training schools. He has been there time and time again. Does he want it bad enough? We will soon find out…
I have known Kenny just as long as I have known Hacker and while I won’t be cheering for Mike for the next few races, I will be cheering for the next best thing… Kenny Coolbeth #31.
Good Luck Kenny.. Do your thing and get it done. We will see you on the podium.
Show your support to Kenny at the track or thru his guest book on his website www.kennycoolbeth.com Maybe he just needs more fans to help him get to the top; because we all know one can’t get their alone.
Published on www.pitchicksrule.com by Jennifer Sierzega 2005
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