HURON — World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series driver Greg Wilson of Benton Ridge, Ohio, spent four hours greeting fans Saturday at Hurd Alignmnet in Huron. And he had a blast doing it.
“I want to thank the people from Hurd Alignment for having us,” said Wilson, who was joined by the top sprint car drivers in the country for the All American Shootout presented by American Bank & Trust/American Trust Insurance on Saturday evening at Dakota State Fair Speedway. “When you pull down the road and they have a sign with w20 and Welcome Greg Wilson on it, that’s pretty darn cool. “And to see the other (race) cars here, obviously this business is very racing oriented and very well known in the City of Huron because there’s been a lot of people in an out of here,” he said. “I’m just so grateful for the opportunities that Hercules Tire and Hurd Alignment give us to be a part of this day and it’s cool to be here.”
Wilson, is in his second season with the World of Outlaws as a full-time follower of the series. He was the series’ 2016 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year winner.
“I’ve raced for a long time, but we’re kind of new to this traveling thing,” said Wilson. “When you race against guys like Donny Schatz, Daryn Pittman, Jason Sides, Brad Sweet and all the guys we race with, you’re racing with the best sprint car drivers in the world and it’s not easy.
“I just feel at this point in my career pretty blessed and pretty fortunate to get these opportunities. At this point, part way through year two, we’re starting to show signs of life and we are getting more competitive. We’re still going to have our struggles, but I’m pretty proud of where we’re at with our team and the time frame we’ve kind of put it all together. I’m just excited to be part of this and doing it.”

Although he missed out on the World of Outlaws first trip to DSFS in 2015, Wilson looked forward to putting his No. w20 sprint on the Huron oval. He said the track was a little bigger than a majority of the tracks the series competes at.
“We race on just about anything. With the World of Outlaws schedule, we’ve been fortunate to get the Hercules Tire car on anything from a small 1/4-mile track up to almost a 3/4-mile track,” Wilson said. “We race on a lot of 1/3-mile  to 3/8-mile tracks, so that is what we are kind of accustome to.
“It’s just cool to come out to different places, meet different people and be welcome,” he said the meet-and-greet held at Hurd Alignment, which is the local Hercules Tire dealer, and racing at DSFS. “I  like the Midwest and being family-oriented, like this business and the people around. It’s pretty cool to be able to do something that I love with my wife and my kids with me, with the great partners we have with Hercules Tires, Ohio Logistics and all the people that are involved with our team.”
Wilson was still searching for his first win of the season entering All American Shootout on Saturday. He was 14th in the standings with three top-5 finishes and nine finishes inside the top 10.
Results from the All American Shootout were not available at press time and will run in Tuesday’s paper.