Wayne Chinn - The Sniper

It's the thing in today's motorsports career. Get into open wheel cars as soon as possible and gain lots of dirt experience for good car-control skills, then make the move to pavement stock cars. And if you're lucky and good-very lucky and good-you just might make it to NASCAR.

Well, meet Wayne Chinn of Bradford, Ohio, who started his career with the aforementioned open wheel machines. In his case it was Karts, then Kenyon Midgets, and finally into the big time, with Midgets and Champ Cars in a couple of traveling series.

The guy was good. For example, from 1995 through 1997, he brought home 104 Dirt Kart victories. "I even surprised myself during those years," Chinn, 27, recalls. "I could hardly ever lose. There were also a number of track titles."

There was, however, the notion that his career might evolve into stock cars some day as his grandfather ran coupes at the old Dayton Speedway and his dad Jim ran Street Stocks and Modifieds on pavement. Guess they figured that might be the way the next generation would go too.

"During the final years of my open wheel racing, I ran against Ryan Newman when he was moving toward NASCAR and I thought how great it would be to follow his trail," says Chinn. "But it didn't quite work out that way for me."

His final open wheel race was the famous indoor Chili Bowl national Midget race. He finished 13th in the feature out of the 187 drivers who were present. He also received the National Hard Charger award which brings out the interesting nickname he carries.

"Came down to a situation where my brother filled out a form and put down that my nickname was 'The Sniper' and it really stuck," he says. "He said that it fit because I usually picked off cars one at a time like a sniper."

When a chance came in 2002 to sell the open wheel stuff, the Chinn team jumped at the chance and went Modified racing at Eldora.

"Going to a much larger, 2,600-pound Modified from an 800-pound Midget was a huge transition," Chinn says. "With the Modified, I usually ran out of tire and had a few spinouts. One thing, though, those Modifieds were certainly a great learning tool for the Dirt Late Models that would follow."

Quick learner, this Chinn guy. He won the Ohio UMP points title and finished Second in the Eldora Speedway series points, both during the 2003 season.

"If I had it to do over," he says now, "I think I would have looked at a Dirt Late Model earlier. I had this tunnel vision of the Midget taking me to NASCAR because of the many guys who had made that trek."

The Dirt Late Models began in 2004 with a five-year-old Rocket model and an engine that he bought off eBay.

"Of course the car drove differently than the Modified, but the biggest difference I immediately noted were the fans," he says. "They are much more dedicated than open wheel fans and really appreciate your efforts on the racetrack. They cheer you, they boo you, but you know that they are watching you."

Success came immediately that first Late Model year with the Rookie of the Year title at Florence (Kentucky) Speedway and Ninth in Eldora points, both being very tough places.

The 2005 season marked his first full year in the sloping, low-slung Dirt Late Models and he spent it with the national Battle of the Bluegrass series. It didn't take long to see that this newcomer had talent, with an Eighth in points, Second in the Rookie of the Year voting, and the Most Improved Driver award.