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DRIVER BIO PAGE |
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DRIVER BIO PAGE |
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Curt Michael
FAVORITE TRACK: Williams Grove FAVORITE BEVERAGES: Iced Tea & Diet Coke FAVORITE FOOD: Hot Wings
FAVORITE MUSIC:
Rock
It was May when Curt jumped the wheel of a lapped car and crashed, resulting in a broken back. He was out of competition for nine weeks and during this same time, Pat Palladino had a heart attack. While Curt was hurt, he married his long time girlfriend, Jennifer Weaver, who won the 2002 Ms. Motorsports pageant. When both Curt and Pat healed they went racing again and won in only their second race back in URC action in Canada. They won a total of four races that year. To Curt’s delight, two of those were at Delaware International, the site of his injury. At the end of the season, Curt was let go from the #99.
In 2007, the team will be back together again and vying for their fifth Championship. Curt knows that without the support of all the great people and family, he would not be able to achieve his goals. Racing is a very expensive sport and Curt thanks everyone who has helped him in the past and may contirbute in the future. Curt is an artist and screenprinter who likes to play basketball and spend time with friends and family. He looks forward to meeting many of you at the races. |
When
Curt was born in Allentown, PA, his two
older brothers, Chris and Sean, were already
racing Quarter Midgets. At the age of five,
he started racing his own. His Mom and Dad
took all three racecars and kids to the
races twice a week. Curt’s oldest
brother Chris started racing Modifieds at
Nazareth Speedway. A few years later,
Curt’s other brother, Sean started racing
Micro Sprints. During these years Curt
mainly helped them while they were racing.
In
1990, Sean let Curt run his Micro Sprint at
Lindas Speedway. The following year Curt and
his parents moved to Ocean View,DE. Curt
and his Dad (Al) started their own Micro
Sprint team. They raced Micros from 1991-
1994, winning many races and the 1993 Lindas
Speedway Point Championship. 
Curt
and his Dad sold all of the Micro parts and
bought a 358 Sprint Car, running Seacoast
(Georgetown) Speedway in 1995. The team
won four out of six races. 
The
decision was made during the year to build a
URC 360 motor and run URC in 1996. They won
one URC race that year and met Mike Bostic,
who had Curt and Al join his team for the
1997 URC tour. Together they won three
races and finished third in the final point
standings. Curt and Mike wanted to win the
URC Championship and in 1998 they did just
that. Curt’s Dad,Al, won the Mechanic of
the Year Award also that year. 
1999
saw Mike buy a 410 engine. Curt raced
Lincoln Speedway and some other 410 and URC
shows. In Curt’s sixth 410 start, he was
lucky enough to get a 410 win at Lincoln
Speedway. 
During
the 1999 year, Curt and the Bostics split,
with Curt moving to the Bill and Kay Tanger
owned #07 410 Sprint Car. Curt and the
Tanger’s were together for about a year,
running Williams Grove and Lincoln
Speedways. Their best finish together was a
second place finish at Selingsgrove
Speedway. 
In
mid 2000, Curt and the Tanger’s split. Curt
began running selected 410 shows in the Walt
Dyer owned #461(The Brickmobile) and the Pat
and Kathy Palladino owned #99 360 URC Sprint
Car. Success came quickly in both cars,
with Curt winning four URC races and winning
his first 410 race at Williams Grove in the
#461. In 2001, Curt drove the 461 Friday
nights, winning one race and running fourth
with the World of Outlaws at Williams
Grove. They also achieved many fast time
awards. 
On
Saturday nights, Curt drove multiple URC
cars one of which was the Palladino #99.
This combination won the URC/ESS Shootout on
the Moody Mile of Syracuse,NY durinug Super
Dirt Week. In 2002, Curt and the Palladinos
were chasing the URC Championship when
disaster struck at Delaware International
Speedway. 
With
Curt's talent and impressive resume, he
didn’t have to look far for a new ride.
Curt had a friendship with Frank Davis, who
sponsored the #99, and for the 2003 season,
Frank started his own URC 360 Sprint Car
team. They won four races and finished
third in the final URC points in their first
year together. Wanting to win the 2004 URC
Championship, Frank and Curt asked Curt’s
longtime friend Steve Suchy (AKA. Beazer) to
join the team. Beazer helped Curt in the
past during the 1999 season and brought a
wealth of knowledge and experience to the
team. Things clicked quickly with Curt and
team winning six races and finishing the
year with a URC Championship. The
Championship was Curt’s second and Davis'
first. Beazer also won Mechanic of the Year
. 
In
2005, Curt and Beazer rejoined the Pat and
Kathy Palladino Motorsports team. Together
they won the URC opener and a total of four
races enroute to their 2005 URC
Championship. Pat and Beazer worked well
together, and Beazer collected his second
Mechanic of the Year Award. In 2006, Beazer
took some time off from racing, but Curt and
the Palladinos wanted to win another
championship. Pat and Curt worked well
together in the past, and this year was
business as usual. They won six races,
including a sweep of the URC/UCSC
North-South Shootout, and a win in the Bully
Hill Nationals at Black Rock Speedway. 2006
produced the team's 4th championship, with
Curt getting his 3rd in a row.