Life is anything but a drag for Orangeville racer Mike Hinbest

The year may be drawing to a close but it is one that this local race car driver and the crew of Hinbest Racing wont soon be forgetting.

It’s only been four years since Hinbest started drag racing but the “need for speed” has caught hold of this young driver.

For the 2009 season, he and his team stepped it up a notch with a new car, competing in the Top Dragster class where the team was able to place seventh in the NAPA sponsored Quick 32 Sportsman Series Championship Point Awards for the inaugural year of the new drag race series.

“It was a big step up for us,” said Hinbest. “To finish seventh out of 28 in our first season at that level really was quite an accomplishment but it couldn't have happened with out the hard work of everyone on the team and great support from our sponsors.”

Hinbest Racing’s NAPA Auto Parts Top Dragster qualified well in the six-race series, including the number one spot in three races, at Grand Bend June 27 and Cayuga September 19 and 20.

Hinbest also qualified number two during May 16 at Cayuga, and at Grand Bend August 15, and again during the Labor Day meet at Grand Bend.

The ERD (Engine Research & Development) power plant powered their Mike Bos Top Dragster into the number one spot at five race events during the 2009 season.

Hinbest’s best finish in the Quick 32 Sportsman Series was a runner-up during the season ender Cayuga race. The team’s best lap with the car was a 6.33 second, 220.10- mph pass, setting the Quick 32 speed record that is now the bar for all teams to beat.

The racing may be over for 2009 but that doesn’t mean the season is. Over the last few months Hinbest Racing has been busy with charity work.

During the 2009 season, crew chief Roy Hinbest, won the inaugural golf cart race for Quick32 teams, the winnings were donated to the team Jaxs cancer fund.

After the season, they attended The Maples Elementary School for their 25th anniversary handing out Frisbees and balloons to the kids and were also present at Georgian College for the Canadian Automotive Institute’s yearly student ran auto show, which is North America’s largest outdoor auto show.

With 2010 just around the corner, the team is already well into preparations for next season and Hinbest is looking forward to again slipping behind the wheel. “I am very happy with our success and what we accomplished in 2009. With the great sponsors we have behind us and support of our fans, I can't wait to prove what more we can do in 2010.”

For further information on the Hinbest Racing team, go to their website, www.hinbestracing. com