The Scoop
RACE TEAM FORMED THROUGH A 4M CHATROOM – JUSTIN REED & JEFF CURTIN
Posted on: Wednesday November 4, 2020
The old 4m racing forum is where Illinois dirt late model racer Justin Reed and Shawano crew chief Jarrid Curtin hit it off back in 2016.
Reed, from Camp Point, Illinois, was racing the Deery Brothers late model series at tracks in Illinois and Iowa. He also built racing shocks. Curtin, who was crew chief for his dad Jeff Curtin’s race car, had started to banter back and forth on this racing forum discussing shocks, setups and everything in between.
The 33-year-old Reed and the Curtin’s hit it off through talking shop in cyberspace. “We just kept talking and eventually they asked me to come and rebuild their shocks one winter,” Reed recalled. “I was still driving my own race car back home.”
Turns out Jeff Curtin, who had raced dirt late models for many seasons, needed a driver for his number 11 racer. “He called me when this Dirt Kings tour deal started and he asked me if I’d be his driver,” Reed said. “I was happy to.”
Curtin, who had been involved in motorsports as a pit crew member, crew chief and driver since he was a teenager, had some medical issues which sidelined him from climbing behind the wheel. “Justin hit it off with Jarrid and we all have always gotten along very well,” Jeff Curtin said. “Justin’s Dad Mark Reed lends a hand and we’re happy to have him wheel our race car.”
Having an average of a seven-hour drive one way from close to St. Louis was just the least of Reed’s issues when he started racing at Wisconsin’s dirt bullrings. “The driving style is totally different up here in Wisconsin compared to down in Illinois,” Reed explained. “For example, my home track in Quincy, Illinois it’s elbows up racing. You ride the top, slap the wall and there is usually a cushion. Most of these Wisconsin dirt tracks it’s more technical and more of a finesse deal. There are so many divisions the tracks get really dry and slicked up. That part of it for me has been a learning curve up here. It’s a very different driving style up here. Luckily Jarrid and Jeff usually know how and when these tracks in Wisconsin will dry out and they make the appropriate adjustments. Even though I haven’t won a race for them yet, we keep getting closer.”
Reed has a mutual friend who’s buddies with professional late model racer Brandon Sheppard. Through this mutual friend they share setup tips. “It’s nothing for Brandon (Sheppard) to come race our weekly track once in a while,” said Reed. “I wouldn’t say we’re real good friends but when I’ve got setup questions Brandon usually answers the phone and we trade some information back and forth.”
The state of Illinois is a hotbed for dirt late model racing. Covid-19 restrictions aside, from June through August there is usually a higher paying dirt late model show somewhere in the state most nights. “Quincy Raceway is my home track and I have a lot of wins there,” Reed said. “But I did cut my teeth a lot in Iowa. I love Boone Speedway. We ran the IMCA late models. We’ve also run the tracks at Allison, Marshalltown and Tipton, Iowa. I won a Deery Brothers series race at Allison once.”
Another favorite of track of Reed’s is the tiny 1/5-mile bullring at Macon, Illinois. “I recommend everyone get there at some point and if you can get to the Herald Review 100,” Reed suggested. “The car setups in that race go out the window. It’s the last true coliseum to race in. Whoever gets up on the wheel and makes it happen will win. It’s a true driver’s track where you can still make up some ground with your driving style if you miss the setup a little bit. There aren’t many tracks around like that anymore. It’s a true gem.”
Reed has four years under his belt running tracks on the Dirt Kings tour and he’s got a few favorites. “I love 141 Speedway in Francis Creek when we’re there,” Reed said. “I slipped up and gave away the Diamond 41 last year. I was leading with four laps to go and I slipped the cushion and knocked the spoiler off. I really love the people at Plymouth, too. The folks running that deal always make us feel welcome. Wilmot is a really unique, paper-clip shaped track. The only track I struggle at and don’t care for is Shawano. It’s just not my style. I like to charge and push the car. It seems like there if you break the air or try a different groove you just go backwards fast. It’s not a knock on the people running it or anything. I just struggle there is all.”
In terms of the competition, according to Reed he’d put some of the Dirt King tour drivers against Illinois’ best any day of the week. “These guys in Wisconsin are tough,” Reed admitted. “I mean guys like Nick Anvelink and Brett Swedberg for example. They could run with anybody down in Illinois. Those guys are good. I’ve had a couple of dust ups with a racer or two up here but that’s racing. I try to keep a real good attitude. I enjoy racing up here.”
The car Curtin fielded for Reed this year was a Rocket XR1. “These cars are as good as advertised,” Reed said. “Our motors are put together by Triple R Race Motors out of Quincy, Illinois. He’s built my motors for years. We’ve got a good stable of motors and when I hooked up with Jeff and Jarrid we decided to pool our resources together in the engine department. You’ve always got to have a fresh mill under the hood. Motors are usually the weakest part of any racing program.”
The team’s pit crew consists of Jeff and Jarrid Curtin, Mark Reed and Mike Curtin. “Those guys are all great,” Reed said. “Dad (Mark Reed) is a diehard. If it’s 8 o’ clock on a Saturday morning and we’ve got to drive north to Seymour, Wisconsin he’s the first one in the driveway ready to go. My Grandpa is 86-years-old and comes on occasion when he feels up to it. Jeff and Jarrid perform a majority of the work on the car.”
Their team of sponsor’s includes Triple R Race Motors, Midas of Quincy, Jeff Curtin Construction, Charlie’s County Market and Shock First Technologies.
According to Jeff Curtin, the number 11 car will be spreading it’s wings a bit in 2021. “We’re still going to some of the Dirt Kings stuff next year, but we also plan on running the MLRA series and some World of Outlaw shows too,” Curtin said. “We looked into the MLRA stuff. If we sign Justin up and register for the rookie-of-the-year chase our show money per show will be $750. That series has shows in Oklahoma, Illinois, Iowa and even in Minnesota. As far as the World of Outlaws stuff we plan on making a better attempt to make more of their regional shows within a somewhat reasonable driving distance.”