Newbie News: Austin Langenstein is Prodigy in Training No More

Austin Langenstein, nicknamed "Prodigy in Training" for following in the footsteps of racing legend and father Charlie Langenstein, is in training no more. 

The young driver found Victory Lane for the first time ever in the Young Guns/Outlaw Division of the 2009 Summer Shoot Out Series.

In only his 20th start in a Bandolero car, Langenstein drove his No. 7 FIREFOLD.com race car to a first place finish at Lowe's Motor Speedway this past week. The Shoot Out Series, in its 16th year, runs every Tuesday evening from mid-June to mid-August at the Speedway.

This race win for Langenstein was hard fought from the time the young driver and his team arrived at the track. Langenstein started in the 12th position in the preliminary heat, which meant he had to race hard to even get himself into the feature event.

"There were a lot of really good cars starting ahead of us," said Langenstein. "With only the first five transferring into the feature, I knew I had to race hard to get into the show."

Langenstein did just that, picking his way carefully through the race traffic. After passing current points-leader Evan Bell and two-time "Shoot Out" winner Matt Linker, Langenstein continued to make his way forward.

By Lap Five of the eight-lap heat race, Langenstein had secured the second position.  He was able to pull along side the race leader Justin Carroll, but did not have the time or the track to make the pass.

"Justin raced me hard," said Langenstein, "I could not pull the move off for the pass without taking a foolish chance of taking us both out."

Langenstein, satisfied with racing his way into the show, headed off to compete in the feature event. Seven of the top ten racers in the Summer Shoot Out Series were set to start in the front of the 28-car pack.

Starting himself in the fourth spot, Langenstein made his move to the front early in the race. As he headed into the second turn of the race, Langenstein swung into the lead by diving to the bottom of the track.

"I saw an opening and I went for it," stated the young racer. The young racer then set sail, with a six car lead early in the race.

But this lead came to an end when one of the other young guns, Dillon Spain, spun out. This brought out the first caution for the race.

After sorting out the cars for the restart, the racers lined up single file behind Langenstein. In spite of the pressure from behind, Langenstein got a great jump and again stretched out his lead.

On Lap 12, another caution came out for Austin McKee, who spun out in Turn Two. The pack came back together again for yet another single-file restart.

Langenstein again got a great restart when the green flag flew. He was able to stretch out the lead by four car lengths over Justin Carroll.

With little pressure from behind, Langenstein flew across the finish line to take the checkered flag. This marked Langenstein's first win in the Shoot Out Series.

"It feels great to win," shared Langenstein breathlessly. "I am speechless actually."

Langenstein continued, "We have been knocking on the door for a couple of races this season, but we finally pulled it off tonight."

As any good racer should, Langenstein thanked his family and his sponsors for getting him to his first Victory Lane celebration. 

The top five finishers in the Young Gun/Outlaw Division were as follows:

1.  Austin Langenstein

2.  Justin Carroll

3.  Matt Linker

4.  Luke Demis

5.  Reid Wilson

While Austin and his team celebrated their win, both the driver and his team realized that another race in the Shoot Out Series was waiting for them just around the corner.

"Next week, we're back here again on Tuesday night to race," said Langenstein of returning to Lowe's Motor Speedway for the upcoming race week. "Then the team and I are headed off to Atlanta to run the Bandolero Nationals at the end of the week."

"I am excited and ready for the challenge," said Langenstein.

Fueled by his victory, there is no doubt that young Langenstein will indeed be ready for the upcoming competition. After all, he is now a legitimate prodigy, in training no more.

Photo Credit:  Russ Calabrese Photo (Austin and father Charlie Langenstein in Victory Lane)