Bill Elliott Racing Team

This is the third installment in our new series which looks at ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards competitors involved in driver development programs.

Name: Casey Roderick

Date of Birth: August 8, 1992

Hometown: Lawrenceville, Georgia

(3-24-10) – Casey Roderick is part of the Bill Elliott Driver Development team in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards. The 17-year-old racer drives the No. 51 Monolith Hospitality Dodge in select ARCA races. He also currently drives a Pro Late Model and Super Late Model in select races at Gresham Motorsports Park and Five Flags Speedway.

The young driver started racing when he was 5 years old and began to impress drivers and owners immediately. In 2001, Roderick competed in the World Karting Association Gold Cup Series Junior Sportsman Championship and went on to become the youngest driver in WKA history to win a national championship.

Roderick continued to bring in trophies, winning the WKA Winter National Championship in 2003 and the Legends Racing Series Bandolero Bandits Championship at AMS in 2003 and 2004. At the ripe age of 12, Roderick was granted a waiver to move up to the Legends Semi-Pro division, winning the championship in his first season. He was also voted the AMS Thursday Thunder Most Popular Driver.

In the 2006 season, Roderick became the youngest driver in INEX history to win the Summer Shootout championship, a title previously held by NASCAR driver Reed Sorenson. As he won more championships, his popularity continued to soar. For the second year in a row, the 13-year-old won the AMS Thursday Thunder Series Most Popular Driver Award. Ending the season, Roderick went on to take four more titles, including the Legends Pro Nationals.

Roderick continued to push towards history in 2007 as he won 6 more titles, including the Legends Racing Series Pro Championship in the Thursday Thunder Series at AMS, a Legends Car Asphalt Nationals Pro Title and the INEX Pro Nationals Points Championship. While racing for the National Race of Champions Legends Pro Title, Roderick also set a new track record at Las Vegas Motor Speedway of 16.873 seconds.

The 2008 season was a turning point for Roderick. He won 23 career Legends feature races at AMS, which placed him second in all-time Legends victories at AMS, ahead of NASCAR drivers Joey Logano and Reed Sorenson.

With his continued success across several racing platforms, Roderick caught the eye of NASCAR Legend Bill Elliot and was picked to be part of the Bill Elliott Driver Development program. “As far as developing the skills that I need to be in NASCAR one day, I think I’m on the fast track there, but we are working on some things to try to get more races.” Roderick continued, “I am thankful for Bill giving his input on everything I do, the ability to ask him questions on what I have to work on, and just getting his opinion on my career.”

Elliott explains why he picked Roderick on the Bill Elliott Racing website, stating, “Casey just has what it takes. There’s a certain passion you see in some drivers – you can almost see it in their eyes -and you just know they can do it. It’s about more than just winning races; it’s a true love for everything about the sport. There’s no doubt in my mind that Casey Roderick has that passion.”

Roderick made his first career start in the ARCA Racing Series with Bill Elliott Racing in Oct. 2009 at Rockingham Speedway. He qualified third but started at the rear of the field due to a rookie mistake on pit road. Roderick passed every car in the field and took over the lead. He eventually finished second behind race winner Parker Kligerman and ahead of Justin Lofton, the 2009 ARCA Racing Series champion.

Also in 2009, Roderick started 14 Late Model races, with two wins, nine top-5′s and 11 top-10s. The highlight of his season was beating out NASCAR superstar Kyle Busch and some of the best Late Model drivers for the SpeedFest pole. Roderick went on to lead 100 laps in Speedfest at Lanier National Speedway and was on tap to finish in the top-three until his race ended 25 laps early due to a transmission failure.

In 2010, Roderick took the pole in his first ARCA Racing Series road course event at Palm Beach International Raceway. The driver of the No. 51 Monolith Hospitality Dodge led 22 laps but ended the race on lap 44 of 65 with a broken transmission.

Roderick explained his decision to pursue racing in the ARCA series, “ARCA is really the only place at 16 or 17 years old that you can get a ‘Cup car experience. The ARCA car is basically a Cup car; the only thing that is different is the tires and spoiler. It’s a 3400 lb. car, and at 16 or 17 years old, it’s the only place that allows you to get that experience.” The ARCA rookie continues, “Looking at where I want to go and the amount of money that we have rounded up, I think that Bill is more interested in doing the ARCA series than anything else. I am also doing a few late model races, but we are real focused on getting experience in the ARCA series.”

Under ARCA’s rules, Roderick, who is just 17½ years old, is only eligible to run on tracks up to one mile in length until he turns 18 on Aug. 8. Currently, he is scheduled to tackle two mile-and-a-half speedways following his 18th birthday.

In addition to being grateful for being a part of the Bill Elliott Driver Development program, Roderick also appreciates his sponsors lending support for his progression in racing. “I am grateful that Monolith has come on and supported my development in the ARCA series. They have allowed me to get on the track this year and get some experience under my belt.”

Roderick’s next scheduled ARCA Racing Series start is the South Jersey Building Trades 150 at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Aug. 15.

Stay tuned as we continue to highlight other development drivers in the series each week! To go to the ARCA website please Click on the ARCA banner to the right.