Steven Wallace finished out the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series season in seventh place. (Photo: Lat Photographic)
Article by Jeff Hood, RacinToday.com
Steven Wallace doesn’t yet own the hardware that comes with a NASCAR championship.
But he does have the upper-hand on his father, 1989 Sprint Cup champion Rusty Wallace, when it comes to Snowball Derby titles.
Steven Wallace scored his victory in the famous 300-lap Super Late Model race at Five Flags Speedway in 2004.
That’s a feat that Wallace’s dad and two uncles, Kenny and Mike Wallace, never managed to achieve.
“The Snowball Derby is really a big race for a lot of people,” Steven Wallace said. “I’ve always been really interested in this race.
“My dad used to run it and my whole family did. I’ve always liked coming down here. To win it is a huge deal.
“It’s the biggest short-track race of the year. It’s like the Super Bowl. It’s fun. You can come down here and have a good time. You can race hard.”
A veteran in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, Wallace is accustomed to racing against the same competition on a weekly basis.
The Derby attracts top competition from all across the country. But many of those drivers have never raced against one another.
“I think there’s just such a wide variance of different types of drivers,” Wallace said. “A lot of these guys have never raced together before. They all show up at this one big race.
“They all get to beating and banging and get their stuff torn up. And then there’s tire management. Tires get wore out real bad. There’s a lot of stuff. There are a lot of variables.
“It’s a fun race, but it’s always been kind of a rough one.”
