19-Year-Old Brandon Hermiller Looking For SpeedFest Victory To Start The 2013 Racing Season

Special from H.S. Die / VISI-TST Ford Racing Team

January 24, 2013

Being from the state of Michigan, 19-year-old Brandon Hermiller's options to get out onto the race track in the middle of the winter in the Great Lakes State are very limited. However one of the traditional door openers to any race season in the country offers the chance for the Walker, Michigan driver to get some valuable seat time while the snow continues to fall in his home state.

The 2013 racing season begins for Hermiller and crew on Friday-Sunday, January 25-27th at the fast 4/10s (0.400) mile

semi-banked paved oval of Watermelon Capital Speedway, located south of Macon and north of the Florida / Georgia

state line in Cordele, Georgia for the running of SpeedFest 2013 which will be headlined by the 200-lap non-points

main event for the ARCA/CRA Super Series.

Hermiller and the entire H.S Die / VISI-TST Ford Racing Team are hoping for a strong start to the 2013 racing season

in the warmth of the Peach State; "We are really looking forward to SpeedFest. We have been working hard during

the winter to get our cars dialed in and our equipment to where it needs to be to compete for wins." He stated as he

and the team make final preparations for the 15+ hour trek from Michigan to Georgia.

"We are excited to get back to the race track and go racing.  It’s just nice being that we're from Michigan to get a

break from the cold and snow and the single digit and even below zero temperatures that we've had lately to be able

to go to places like Georgia to race in January.” Hermiller continued. "I have a really good feeling about SpeedFest and

I know we can compete for the win down there." He added.

After spending the 2012 racing season competing for the Howie Lettow Memorial Rookie of the Year title in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance where he finished as the freshman runner-up in the Salem, Indiana based series to Anderson Bowen, Hermiller will shift focus for the 2013 campaign by competing primarily in the ARCA/CRA Super Series.

He'll also focus on his home track of Berlin Raceway, located just 10 minutes from the Walker, Michigan race shop in Marne, Michigan in the tracks Coors Light Silver Bullet Super Late Models Series when the schedule allows and in addition, Hermiller will also make select appearances in the ARCA Midwest Tour and in other special events scattered throughout the country.

"I can't wait for the rest of the season after SpeedFest. We're going to travel to a lot of different places that we haven't seen before, going to hit some of the bigger shows throughout the Midwest and we'll stay close to home at Berlin for some races too." Hermiller added.

In the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance during the 2012 season, Hermiller was the 2012 Rookie of the Year Runner-Up while also finishing ninth overall in the season long points chase. He grabbed three top 10 finishes, all of which were 10th place showings and those came at Illiana Motor Speedway in Schererville, Indiana in May, also at Berlin in August and at Watermelon Capital Speedway last October.

Hermiller also made limited appearances within the ARCA/CRA Super Series as well as Berlin Raceway's Template Super Late Models Series now known as the Coors Light Silver Bullet Series where he recorded another 10th place finish back on June 9th at his home track.

The West Michigan rising star began his racing career in Indoors Racing with the Arena Racing Series during the 2008 / 2009 Winter Racing Season before moving up to full bodied stock cars in 2009 competing in Berlin's Young Guns division where he finished fourth in points with four Feature Wins and he also collected the Most Improved Driver Award.

After another Winter of Indoors Racing where he finished fourth in points and collected his first Indoors Feature Win, Hermiller made the move up to Berlin's Pro Stocks division where he won the 2010 Rookie of the Year title while finishing an impressive third place in the final points standings with two Feature Wins, four Fast Qualifier Awards and he was also voted Most Popular Driver. He also made two appearances in what is now the Top Speed Fabrication CRA Late Model Sportsman Series where he grabbed finishes of eighth at Toledo Speedway and 11th at Winchester Speedway.

The 2011 racing season proved to be a banner year for the then 17-year-old as he captured the 2011 Pro Stocks Track Championship at Berlin Raceway with an impressive eight Feature Wins. He also ran the tracks Template Super Late Models division where he garnered a 12th place finish in the points.

He also made his debut in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance and promptly picked up the Fast Qualifier Award in his first ever start, which came at Berlin and then backed that up with an impressive fifth place finish. Hermiller also made his ARCA/CRA Super Series debut in 2011 and picked up the win in the Last Chance Race in that seasons Rowdy 251.

Beginning in Cordele, Georgia, Hermiller's red #6 H.S. Die / VISI-TST Ford Racing Team Port City Racecars entry with an Ernie Elliott powerplant under the hood of his Ford Fusion will carry sponsorship on the side of the car from; H.S. Die & Engineering as well as VISI-TST Software, River Hills Lodge, West End Body Shop, Steuhower Frozen Foods, M.P.H. Promotions, and Beaver Research Company.

To learn more about Brandon Hermiller and the entire H.S. Die / VISI-TST Ford Racing Team, head over to the teams website at: www.brandonhermiller.com You can also go to both Facebook and Twitter to keep up with everything as well by going to both: www.facebook.com and www.twitter.com and by searching for "Brandon Hermiller"