With a free weekend from her duties in the Midget ranks for Keith Kunz Motorsports, Taylor Reimer made her pavement Late Model debut Saturday in North Carolina.  The Oklahoma native joined Lee Faulk Racing to compete at Tri-County Motor Speedway in the track’s Limited Late Model division.

It was overall a strong debut for Reimer on the pavement, finishing ninth in the 50-lap feature that included a strong 24-car field.  The top-10 finish came after going to the tail during the race and driving her way back through the field.

“It was a lot of fun getting to work with Lee Faulk Racing and everyone there.  It went decent, I think we ended up ninth out of 24 cars,” Reimer said.  “It’s a whole different world than dirt racing and that’s all I grew up doing.  Switching over to pavement was a big adjustment and having a spotter was a lot different too.  I definitely learned a lot and I’m looking forward to the next one.”

Reimer recently completed the POWRi National Midget and Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series seasons with KKM, finishing fourth and sixth in the standings while earning a combined 20 top-five finishes between the two series’.  She currently sits 11th in the USAC National Midget standings with three top-five finishes, including a runner-up finish during a BC39 preliminary feature at The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 

VIDEO: Taylor Reimer breaks down her runner-up finish at the BC39.

Reimer did have previous experience on pavement, that coming in the form of a test session with Lee Faulk Racing back in December.  That test session, coupled with the preparation from the team helped her with getting prepared for her first race on pavement last Saturday.

“(The test session) definitely helped.  I felt comfortable going into Saturday, my team did everything they could to prepare me to get experience.  We had all day to practice so going into Saturday I felt good.  We didn’t qualify as well as we hoped, but just the nerves running high and everything got to me there.”

Reimer became the latest driver to make a transition from dirt to pavement, joining the likes of NASCAR Cup Series championship competitors Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell; and more recently the likes of Logan Seavey, Gio Scelzi, Buddy Kofoid and Kaylee Bryson. 

She cited the size of the cars as being the biggest difference between racing a Midget and a full-sized pavement Late Model. 

“I think just the weight of the car and how big it is.  In a Midget, you’re in the center of the car and in a stock car, you’re way to the left.  It’s three times the size of a Midget, so spatial awareness and having a car next to me in the corners and giving them room.”

While unsure of what the 2024 season holds, Reimer knows of one thing – she doesn’t want to make last weekend’s start on asphalt a one-off deal.

“I’m not 100% sure on our plans for our 2024 season just yet.  But I’m hoping to do some more pavement stuff moving forward.”