Five-Time Orange County Track Champion Terry Dease Ready for Orange Krush 200

Terry Dease is optimistic going into Friday’s Rogers Heating & Cooling Orange Krush 200. There may be bigger names on the entry list for the $15,000-to-win Late Model Stock Car event, but they’re coming to Dease’s home turf.

Dease is the defending track champion at Orange County. That title marked the fifth track championship for Dease at the Rougemont, North Carolina facility.

See Ward Burton and More in the Orange Krush 200 on RacingAmerica.TV

Dease will be leaning on all of that experience and more against the stout field in the Orange Krush 200.

“This track has always been forgiving,” Dease told Racing America during testing at Orange County last week. “You can be off a little bit one day and make it up the next. We’re happy with the car. We’re making a few changes on it. I’ve got enough laps on here, it always changes, but the laps around here help. I know what I can go back to.”

He also believes the 200-lap distance will benefit veterans such as himself, as their experience will help them manage tire wear and put themselves in position at the end of the race.

“It’s going to play in our favor. The last 15 years, that’s what we had done. We ran 150 lap races every week. The tires are going to go away, and I think that’s going to play in the veterans’ perspective.”

Dease is excited to go against some of the best in Late Model Stock racing on his home track. The Orange Krush 200 entry list features NASCAR national champions Peyton Sellers and Barry Beggarly, zMAX CARS Tour champions Deac McCaskill and Bobby McCarty and ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winners Mike Looney and Trevor Ward.

“I don’t get out, being my age and being a small-funded team, we don’t get out and do the CARS Tour as much as we want to - we’re going to try to do a couple of them this year – and get to race with the guys that are really good. Deac and all them guys, JR Motorsports, they’re good. I’m getting to a level playing field right here when they come back here.

“We ran good last time up here when the CARS Tour came, but we had an alternator go bad. I didn’t have a gauge in the car, so I didn’t know what killed the power. We were running top-10 then. As long as I can come out of there with a top-10, it’ll be like a win to us to keep up with this caliber of guys.”

Of course, the race will also be a throwback for Dease as well. Beggarly and Dease have battled many times at Orange County, and they’ll be doing battle with Ward and Jeb Burton as well.

“It’s awesome. I’ve got the four-time [track champion] behind us, Barry, and he’s got twice as many laps as I do. It’s cool to come back and race with him, Ward and Jeb, even everybody else."

For those hoping to attend the event in-person, advance tickets and race information can be found at orangekrushrace.com.

Racing America is offering a pay-per-view broadcast of the event from the historic 3/8-mile oval in Rougemont, North Carolina. In addition to the ticket sale proceeds, a portion of the pay-per-view proceeds will benefit The Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation to further their conservation and outreach efforts. The Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation (WBWF) is a 501c3 non-profit organization that was founded in 1996 to promote the sustainability of natural resources through conservation, land management, outdoor outreach and educational practices.

-Photo credit: Will Bellamy, Racing America