Wild Speedweeks end in great Daytona 500 for Cassill

CEDAR RAPIDS – The last 10 days have been a whirlwind of pain, relief, boredom and celebration for Cedar Rapids native and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Landon Cassill.

The fifth-year Sprint Cup driver – he made his Cup debut in 2010 – and Hillman Racing team driver had about as bizarre a 10-day stretch as a person can have.

It began with an accident on his bicycle in Daytona Beach, and culminated with a tie for his best career finish of 12th in the sport's biggest race – the Daytona 500 on Sunday night.

“This definitely goes down as one of my career's greatest accomplishments, for sure,” Cassill said. “It was incredible. As a team, we were just happy to be in the race, let alone running in the top 15 as much as we did and have a finish as good as we did. It was a pretty special race for us all.

“The week definitely was (bizarre).”

It was a special race that almost didn't happen for a number of reasons.

The bicycle accident happened on Feb. 15, the day before Daytona 500 qualifying. He was hit by a car and suffered some road rash on his chin and legs, some bad bruising and a black eye, and was lucky to be walking, let alone healthy enough to race a car and somewhat laugh it off.

Then came the actual qualifying procedure. With Cassill's time trial speed and team's points position from last year, he had to race his way into the Great American Race through Thursday night's Gatorade Duel.

He did that, missing the pileup on the final lap, and qualified for just his second Daytona 500.

“It's pretty stressful qualifying into the Daytona 500, just because it's such a hard race to get into, and there's so much on the line – especially for a small race team,” Cassill said. “The prize money alone is enough money to get us through the next four or five races.

“There's just so much riding on the Daytona 500, that it does create a lot of pressure. And when you think you've got a 150 mile race as your opportunity to get yourself in, one little mistake on a pitstop or anything like that could be the end. That could be what sets the tone for your whole season if you miss the race.”

Then, in a race which was delayed six hours by rain, Cassill avoided three pileups – one of which he had to dance the car on and off the racing surface, narrowly missing Ryan Newman's car sliding down the banking.

He got his new sponsor, Carsforsale.com, some good TV time with his display of skills in navigating the banking and apron. The company, which Cassill said had a blast watching the race, showed faith in the driver and team by signing on before they were even officially qualified for the race.

And when it came to that moment – the move that kept his race going – Cassill laughed and said it was all instincts.

“No, no, there was no thinking there, whatsoever,” Cassill said with a laugh. “It was just reaction, that's all.

“I can't remember exactly what I said on the radio (after making it through). I was more concerned about if I did any damage to the car or not.”

Cassill said the racing was wild, and with so many guys jockeying for position, it was hard to pass without help from another car.

That help is hard to come by when you're a small team and don't have a reputation for running up front. Cassill said the mentality of the bigger-name drivers at the major teams is to simply get that unrecognized car out of the way.

Racing as well as he did and earning a good finish goes a long way towards earning respect and trust among his peers.

“Honestly, it takes multiple races of doing that to earn the reputation that, ‘Hey, that 40 car is always a top-15 car. We should work with him,'” Cassill said. “We've just got to continue to compete at those races, and eventually they're going to say, ‘That guy always runs good at these, and I'm going to stick with him.'”

So at the end of a wild and crazy week, Cassill and Hillman Racing head to Phoenix next week to do it all over again. The team still has to qualify on speed, based on last year's points, but will do it with another new sponsor.

Fuhu, named by Forbes as the No. 1 most promising company in the U.S., is on board as primary sponsor for 18 races this season promoting its Nabi Tablet brand, an Android-based tablet for kids. Cassill said he's donating 5 percent of his winnings in every Fuhu-sponsored primary race to Nabi Inspire, Fuhu's philanthropic arm, with the mission to offer direct support for families living with Autism Spectrum Disorder and help raise awareness.

The positive ending and boost in funding for his team has Cassill excited to get the season rolling.

“It's huge, it gets us off to a great start and is a huge payday for our team,” Cassill said of his Daytona 500 finish. “It just gives us a head start.”