Driver Profile: Clint Garner
Saturday, August 6, 2016
by Joanne Cram
On the pole tonight for the 26th annual Arnold Motor Supply 360 Knoxville Nationals presented by Great Southern Bank is Clint Garner!
With 26 Knoxville Raceway career wins to date in a 360, Clint Garner is closing the gap on current all time 360 feature wins holder, David Hesmer. Heading into this year’s Nationals, Clint hopes he can put his Midwest Excavating #40 to a podium finish on Saturday night.
Clint started his racing career at the age of 14, as an 8th grader in Junior High. Growing up in a rougher part of Sioux Falls, he was surrounded by peers that consistently made bad choices and were easily swayed into going down the wrong path. Taking Clint under his wing, boss Jeff Davis decided to find something for Clint to turn his attention to. Jeff bought a sprint car that he asked Clint to work on. Clint had already shown interest in working on anything mechanical, as he had been hired as a serviceman on trucks as a 14 year old. Clint hasn’t missed a Saturday night race since. He jokingly says that Jeff caused him to miss out on so much mischief with his well placed mechanical jobs he gave to Clint.
Shortly after his ninth grade year ended, Clint was badly injured in a rock climbing accident. Falling 30 feet off the edge of a quarry rock wall, Clint earned himself an eight day stay in the hospital with 12 broken ribs, and a failed kidney. He was ordered to play no more contact sports from there on out, putting an end to any athletic dreams he had in his high school future. With racing to pour his passion into, Clint dove into working on sprint cars for his sophomore and junior years of high school, getting to hot lap in his senior year.
In exchange for Clint’s hard work in the shop and working on the sprint car, his boss negotiated a trade for Clint to begin racing Friday nights at Lake County Speedway in Madison, South Dakota. Clint began to make a name for himself and really turned heads when he won the fairgrounds race from dead last. He broke his leg in his last race of that season, and had the winter to prepare for his future in sprint car racing.
At the age of 18, Clint began racing three nights a week, in addition to working at his trucking mechanic job. He would race Lake County Raceway on Friday nights, then onto Hartford, South Dakota’s I-90 or Red Devil Speedway, then hit Huset’s to finish out Sunday evening. Over the years of 1993-2000, Clint collected numerous wins. He never achieved any track championships, but recalls appreciating having those years as years to learn the ropes and understand everything he needed to know about racing on a 3/8 mile track.
Feeling like he needed a change and wanting to learn more about 410 sprint cars, Clint hit the road with the World of Outlaws as a mechanic, starting with Scott Young and then moving between several other teams. Having had to work so hard for everything he’s ever had, this was the first opportunity Clint had to save money. He recalls the $200 weekly cash pay checks, having no expenses needed for his day to day living allowances, he was ecstatic to save up his first $1000 in his life. He continued to work between different teams, learning all he could from crew chiefs and drivers such as Bob Hubbard, Ricky Logan, and Dean Jacobs. He was on Dean’s crew the year they set quick time at the Nationals.
In 2001, Steve Kinser called Doug Wolfgang, asking if this Garner kid was any good at crewing. Clint jumped at the opportunity to work for the King of the Outlaws and began crewing for the #11 team for the February and March season starter. Clint headed home in time for the April season start at Huset’s and won 10 out of 21 360 races that season in the 17V Verhey car. They finished first in points that season as well.
2002 was the first season Clint began traveling down to Knoxville in the Boyd and Glenda Fluth owned #40. The number 40 came from his boss, Jeff’s car number of 0 and Vance Peterson’s car number of 80- they took half of 80 to get Clint’s number of 40. He ran 2nd to Brian Brown in points that season. The following years of 2003 and 2004, Clint captured a handful of wins before moving to a 410 in 2005. He got 3rd in points that season in the 410. Each off season, Clint continued to work at his mechanic job as well as hit the road with drivers such as Jason Sides and Tyler Walker; eager to gather as much knowledge as he could to make himself stand out and be the best.
Seeing that running a 410 on a working man’s budget, Clint saw that to remain competitive with the rebuilds every 7-10 races that a 410 took to stay fresh, he made the decision to go back to a 360. He credits Al Parker with always supplying him with the best motors and advice in his racing program.
From the years of 2008 to 2015, Clint has captured seven out of eight track points championships at Knoxville Raceway. Making the decision to head back to the 410 class in 2014, Clint was met with a frustrating season of inconsistent performances and struggles with the 410 car and motor. He knows now that he is most comfortable in a 360, and knows he can dedicate the time and money to that program better than the 410 program. He plans to stay with his 360 program until it’s time for his nine year old son, Cole, to take over the wheel. The family has recently begun racing Winged Outlaw Karts at English Creek each Friday night, where so many future sprint car racers get their first taste of open wheel racing.
Clint’s goals for the Nationals are to be in the top 5 finishers of the 360 Knoxville Nationals, a podium finish being his overall goal. Getting to that point, he knows he needs to be in the top 10 of the Saturday night lineup.
Being consistent is key to staying on top at Knoxville. Clint credits his wife, Sommer, with being one of the most supportive assets of his racing career. He is one of a handful of working class drivers who can stay highly competitive with career professional racers. Putting in 50 hours weekly at his family-owned business, then heading to the race shop for all night maintenance nights can take a toll on a family. Sommer puts in a lot of work to keep their kids’ schedules running smoothly, as well as helping Clint stay organized with his race business. He claims there’s no way he could do it all without her loyal support which allows him to continue pursuing his self-described “selfish” racing career.
The whole Garner Racing operation is a family affair. Sommer and their two kids, Cole and Luke, rarely miss a weekend of racing. Clint’s dad, Randy drives the truck and trailer down weekly. Clint’s brother, Matt is the chassis set up man. Close family friend, Jason Cronin takes care of all the tires; and Al Parker and Marv Bokhoven handle all the engine details. Sponsors of the Schnee chassis, Parker powered #40 include Boyd and Glenda Fluth, Parker Engines, Action Auto Parts and the Hesmer Family, and Octane Ink. Garner Racing just released new shirts in three different colors for $20 each.
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