Travis Eddy carrying on family's winning tradition at Berlin Raceway, other tracks

Travis Eddy carrying on family's winning tradition at Berlin Raceway, other tracks
By Steve Ungrey
The Grand Rapids Press

MARNE -- Ever since Travis Eddy was 6 years old, he can recall helping out around his father’s garage as the family worked on the latest racing vehicle.

The Midland native now hopes a little of the family fortune rubs off on him.

Travis’s father, Mike Eddy, was a standout on the now-defunct American Speed Association circuit, having won numerous races in addition to seven ASA championships over a career that spanned four decades.

“I’ve been around racing my whole life ever since I was a little kid. Naturally I’ve wanted to race since I was little,” Travis said before Saturday’s USA Modifieds race at Berlin Raceway.

“I can remember when the racecar got back (following the night’s racing) I’d clean out the rubber from underneath it and start cleaning the body. As I got older I learned to do more stuff and help out.”

Eddy competed in the 50-lap USA Modified race and finished fifth, but he was bumped up to fourth when Holland driver Mike Bursley, who originally was first across the finish line, was disqualified due to an infraction on his car.

Eddy already has three wins in six races this year, including a win at Berlin on May 1 in the new Modifieds category, which is not related to the USA Modified circuit.

Eddy has matched his win total of 2007 in just the first month of racing. He won six races in 2008 and 10 races (out of 38 starts) in 2009.

“Every year I keep learning more and more from my dad,” Eddy said. “I have a fast learning curve racing. I’d like to move up in racing and I would do it any time I had the chance, but right now we just have the finances to do modifieds.”

In the USA Modified race, Kyle Jones (Germantown, Ohio) was declared the winner following Bursley’s disqualification. Jones was the leader until six laps remained in the race, when Bursley took command. Jones finished in second before the postrace inspection.

In a bittersweet 4-cylinder A feature, Muskegon resident Ryan Hamm and his brother Kyle took first and third, respectively.

Ryan, who lost his 6-month old daughter Ashlynn Elizabeth last June due to illnesses after she was born prematurely, and Kyle mourned the loss of their mother, Stephanie Gross. She passed away Thursday at age 50 due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.