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February 17, 2000

Dan Schlieper Comes Out Of The Blocks

When the time came to head south from his icy winter home near Milwaukee, WI Dan Schlieper had hopes of picking up where he had left off prior to suffering a broken neck at the end of last summer. Schlieper, who had displayed phenomenal success as an independent driver/owner in the 1998 season when he claimed the (HAT) Series rookie of the year award, had hurdled his dirt late model into the spotlight when suddenly the road to success met an abrupt halt. Call it a sophomore jinx or a period of growth in the talented young driver's life, but the off-track injury proved to provide some scary moments in what had proven to be a rapidly escalating career.

The remarkable road to recovery and trips back to victory lane for Dan Schlieper have seen the hard charging driver score three big wins in the first week of the new season. Schlieper picked up where he left off prior to a severe broken neck by winning in only his third race back in action. The Pewaukee, WI driver picked up over $5,000 in a winning run at Jax Raceway in Jacksonville, FL last Sunday, then roared through the pack on Tuesday night to pick up his first career win on the STARS Series at East Bay Raceway in Tampa, FL. Two nights later,Dan the Man' was back in victory lane at East Bay Raceway by winning his fourth career win on the HAT tour.
"We had only one chance to win this race as far back as we started and I just made up my mind that were going with the attitude of do or die," said the elated Schlieper.
"Everybody on this team earned this. I'm just thrilled."

In just his first week back in his 700 horsepower dirt late model Schlieper has earned over $25,000 and has served notice to his competition that he will be a force to be reckoned with on America's dirt ovals. "I didn't know what was going to happen, whether I was going to be able to do it again or not," noted Schlieper. "You never know. You don't know until you try it and that's what I was banking on, my own instinct to be able to do it."

Dan Schlieper's rise to the top of the dirt late model ranks has also seen success on asphalt tracks in his native Wisconsin. The well-rounded background of this racer coupled with his revitalized success on dirt may very well pave the way for a long road of success in Schlieper's life in auto racing. Schlieper, a tall and tenacious dirt daredevil who honed his sense of victory as an all-state quarterback in his high school years hit the road in 1998 to pursue the lucrative (HAT) tour. He loaded up his one racecar into an enclosed small trailer towed by a revamped bread truck and persuaded longtime friend and crew chief Rich Golembewski to join his efforts. The result became a literal ‘outhouse to penthouse' tale of perseverance and determination. The Milwaukee area driver was awarded the ‘Alan Kulwicki Achievement Award' by the Wisconsin Fans of Auto Racing. The year prior Schlieper had competed regularly at several upper Midwest bullrings and had tagged onto the (HAT) circuit when the series visited LaSalle Speedway in Illinois and a pair of Wisconsin events at Beaver Dam Raceway and Cedar Lake Speedway. The chassis used by Schlieper at that time in 1997 was an Outhouse Chassis manufactured on a limited basis for a few midwestern drivers.

During the 1997 action, Schlieper was noticed by several of dirt late model racing's most noted authorities as a potential star for the future. With his performance on the track, which included a lot of raw talent and a right foot that threatened to kick the firewall down, Schlieper geared up for the 1998 season with a C. J. Rayburn prepared Chevrolet Monte Carlo. With Rayburn's assistance and horsepower provided by Schlieper's brother Bill who owns Pro-Power Engines of Franklin, WI, Dan Schlieper's name began to become noticed with more frequency in weekly dirt late model finishing orders and results. Schlieper, who also receives support from associate sponsor Performance Roofing Systems of Milwaukee, is avidly seeking added sponsorship for his year 2000 efforts.

By mid-summer of 1998 Schlieper's number s9 Chevrolet Monte Carlo had mounted several serious challenges to score a career first win. That goal was secured with a dramatic run for Schlieper and company at the high speed half-mile oval in Davenport, IA when Dan brought the packed house to their feet in his run to his first win on the cigar sponsored tour. Later that season Schlieper would return to the HAT winners circle with a victory in the Iron Man 100 at Florence Speedway near Cincinnati, OH. Schlieper continued to turn heads throughout the 1998 season and again through the early portion of the 1999 campaign scoring a third career HAT triumph with a win at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, IN. Shortly thereafter the dream of this young racer came crashing down as he suffered a broken neck in a freak all-terrain vehicle accident. Schlieper held onto his quest for success as a racer through rehabilitation and treatment with renowned race physician Dr. Terry Trammelof Indiananpolis, IN.

The disappointment of the injury and the fact that he might never race again only served as added inspiration for Dan Schlieper's speedy start to the new season. Schlieper's pursuit will continue throughout the year 2000 season with a full run on the HAT Series plus additional big events at other tracks across America. The young charger is scheduled to unveil his new web site on the Internet within the next few weeks and added information on Schlieper is currently posted at the official HAT web site at havatamparacing.com and at TheSpeedzone.com.

-Ozzie Altman
victory.lane@prodigy.net


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