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Kyle Shear started the weekly racing season at the Rockford Speedway out with a bang, just not the one he was looking for. Kyle qualified 8th, and quickly went on to win his second heat race of the year! Unfortunately Kyle's good fortunes ended with 29 laps to go in the feature when his motor let go coming off turn four. "I was full throttle, and suddenly I felt it shake, and then let go" was all Kyle could really say about losing his motor after creating a momentary fire-ball as it let go. Kyle Shear was scored in 15th as a DNF.

Shear Racing had all three cars in attendance for the 2010 Spring Classic at the Rockford Speedway. This included both Troy Shear & Kyle Shear's Mid-American Racing Series cars and also Kyle Shear's Late Model. While all three cars ran strong all practice, the track had changed just enough to struggle through qualifying.

Both Shear Racing Mid-American Series cars qualified with close times, having only one car splitting them - Kyle Shear taking the 11th spot, and Troy Shear taking the 13th spot! Kyle Shear qualified in the 17th position in his Big-8 series ride, and was able to secure his feature starting position by winning his heat race!

During the Mid-American Series feature, both Shear Brothers had worked their way through the field well within the top-10 during the race. Unfortunately Troy had sustained some front end damage while avoiding a wreck, making much of the rest of the race difficult for him, while Kyle was able to work his way within the top-5.

Kyle Shear finished the race in 4th, while Troy limped his car home for a 13th place finish.

Kyle Shear then had to quickly jump from his Mid-American Series car directly to his Big-8 Late model to start his second feature of the afternoon. While doing double duty with two cars all weekend, Kyle spent much of the day switching between cars helmet and all - no time to even remove it to cool off! Qualifying and the race were no exception to this! Kyle had a great handling car during the race, and was able to work up to 7th place on the track. After post race inspection, Kyle was later awarded the 6th place finishing position.

(Nov 18, 2009) - Be sure to stay tuned to ShearRacing.com for updates & news regarding plans for the 2010 season!

Due to the close points in the Big-8 series, Kyle had decided to concentrate on his Big-8 points effort in the #36 car, which was the only Shear Racing car running for points in 2009! The Shear Brothers had already decided early in the year to run a limited Mid-American Series schedule, skipping the "northern swing" of the series to save on travel costs. This meant Troy Shear, Jr. would be the only Shear Racing car on hand for the Mid-American series race.

Ironically, neither Shear Racing car qualified well for the weekend - with Troy qualifying 18th in the Mid-American series, and then Kyle qualifying 21st in the Big-8 series. While neither qualifying effort was satisfactory, both cars proved to be quick in their respective features. Kyle was able to work his way through the Big-8 series field, finally finishing in the 10th position. Troy also was able to work his way through the field all race with a quick car, making it up to 9th position near the half way point, but was unfortunately collected in a wreck, and finished 19th.

(Oct 4, 2009) - Rockford Speedway - Short Track Championships Weekend Highlights

The Shear Racing team had yet another busy weekend at National Short Track Championships at Rockford Speedway, again having all three cars at the track. Kyle Shear returned in both the #36 PowerSource Racing Engines Big-8 Series car and the #7 Mid-American series car, while Troy Shear, Jr. was on hand with the #6 Mid-American Series car.

During the Big-8 Race, The #36 car broke a bolt in the rear suspension causing the car to spin coming off turn 4. Unfortunately, this also broke the driveshaft and damaged the transmission - giving Kyle his first DNF in the #36 car of the year.

The Mid-American Series race had a better result for both Shear Brothers. Troy Shear, Jr. was awarded with the "Nason's Landscaping - Faster Than a Speeding Bullet" award for his fast time qualifying effort, while Kyle was 7th quick!

First off, THANK YOU to everyone who helped vote Troy Shear, Jr into the Dash for the Duels race! Troy ended up with 341 votes out of the nearly 600 votes cast.

After rain showers and drizzle all Saturday night, the races were moved to Sunday afternoon. The results are as follows:

Mid-American Overall Results:
Kyle Shear: 2nd
Troy Shear: 13th

Kyle Shear - Late Model Last Chance: 1st
Kyle Shear - Late Model Feature 1: 18th
Kyle Shear - Late Model Feature 2: 18th

(Aug 14, 2009) - With the field already set from qualifying on the race's original date of June 30, Kyle started on the pole for the Rockweiler Insulation 38! Kyle was able to lead the first 25 laps of the 38lap feature, but as the car's push increased, it made the car that much more difficult to drive. Kyle was able to hang on to the third place at the end of the race!

(Aug 9, 2009) - Troy and Kyle both took their Mid-American series cars out to Hawkeye Downs Speedway this Saturday, which was the rain date from earlier this spring. While there were light sprinkles during the early morning, which cut practice time down to only one practice session - the rain was quickly traded for extreme heat.

Qualifying put both Shear Racing cars into the top 10, with Troy qualifying 6th and Kyle qualifying 8th.

As race time rolled around, and the heat had reached levels of nearly 105*F with the heat index! Early in the race, Troy was involved in a race incident where another car had turned down and ended up spinning. This meant that Troy and the #6 car would have to work through traffic from the tail of the field, while Kyle would battle near the front all race.

Troy was able to work his way through the field, getting back to 5th place, while Kyle finished 4th!

After the race several drivers were treated for heat exhaustion, but all drivers were fine after cooling down and receiving fluids. Huge thanks to Hawkeye Downs Speedway for bringing water bottles out to the drivers during the last caution.

(Aug 4, 2009) - Kyle is racing at Wisconsin International Raceway for the Big-8 series race!

(July 25, 2009) - Weekend Results:
Kyle - Plover Big-8 Race: 9th
Kyle - Mid-American Series Dells Raceway Park: 14th
Troy - Mid-American Series Dells Raceway Park: 10th

(July 24, 2009) - Shear Racing this weekend:
Golden Sands Speedway - Friday, July 24 - Kyle #36 Late Model - 7:30pm
Dells Raceway Park - Saturday, July 25 - Troy #6 and Kyle #7 Mid-American - 6:30pm

(July 18, 2009) - By Jordan Kuehne – Kyle Shear has been fast all year long at the Rockford Speedway, running up front and collecting top fives in the Stanley Steemer NASCAR Late Models almost every time he's raced, but he had yet to breakthrough and take home the top prize. That all changed tonight though as Shear started up front and ended there, going wire-to-wire to top the 17 car field and grab his first career feature victory.

Kyle Shear darted to the top spot when the green flag flew in the 30-lap Stanley Steemer NASCAR Late Model headliner and dodged a late caution to collect his first career feature win at the Rockford Speedway, going wire-to-wire for a satisfying victory.

Shear was out front by a comfortable margin when the caution flew for an unassisted spin by Jake Gille with 14 laps remaining. The caution allowed defending champion Jerry Gille and seven-time track champion Ricky Bilderback to close back up to Shear’s rear bumper.

Shear jumped out front again on the restart while the battle for second between Gille and Bilderback intensified with ten laps to go. Gille managed to hold off some veteran maneuvers by the hungry Bilderback to claim second.

“It feels so good to finally pick up the first one,” an ecstatic Shear said in victory lane. “We’ve been fast all year and we just haven’t had the luck turn our way until now. It was nice starting out front too, that helped a bit, and the car was just hooked up. Bilderback and Gille were there but we managed to bring it home.”

(July 15, 2009) - Breaking News! While it has been fairly well known that the race at the Milwaukee Mile on Aug. 29, 2009 had been cancelled due to the Milwaukee Mile's financial troubles - this has not cancelled the event itself. The latest news has the race being moved to Madison International Speedway on the same date, Aug 29, 2009 featuring Twin 50-lap races for the Limited Late Models, and a 50lap feature for the Mid-American series!

Shear Racing expects to have all three cars at MIS - including the #36 Limited Late Model and both the #6 and #7 Mid-American Series cars.

After spending all day and nearly all night between friday and monday putting a new front stub on the #36 chassis and getting it ready for the Big-8 Series race at the All Star Challenge, rain proved to be an even bigger challenge. Kyle was able to qualify in the 13th position after the car ahead of him in the qualifying line spun, causing Kyle's first timed lap to be his second lap ( most first laps were the quick lap ). While bummed to have lost his first lap, it ended up working out for the best - putting Kyle on the pole for the race!

Unfortunately, rain started to fall right at the end of the superlate race - and the track was lost to moisture. The race will be ran on Aug 14!

Huge thanks to everyone who helped get the #36 car ready to run!! There were a lot of long hours spent at the shop, and it truly means a lot to have the help that we received!

In yet another return to the Rockford Speedway, Kyle was able to qualify the #36 Late Model in the 3rd position. This put him into the trophy dash again, where Kyle went on to win his first Rockford Speedway Trophy dash!

For the feature, Kyle had started outside of the second row. Off the start, Kyle was able to quickly put himself into the lead, but unfortunately the caution waved before the lap could be completed putting him back in 2nd during the yellow. Kyle would spend much of the race in second place, and very late it appeared as if the car was starting to go away from him, as he would later be passed and finally finish in the 3rd position. After the race, it was discovered that the right rear tire had actually come loose!

Through both practice sessions early on in the day, Kyle was posted at the top of the practice time sheets for each session, with Troy posting 2nd and 3rd respectively. Qualifying after the ASA Midwest Tour, both Shear brothers complained of picking up a major "push" in qualifying compared to practice, putting Troy in 7th and Kyle in 9th.

For the race, Troy and Kyle ran together on the track nose to tail for much of the race, with Troy following Kyle through traffic and racing around the same group of cars. Unfortunately, late in the race Kyle's distributor fried and he lost power off turn 2. This completely an electrical issue, and the car had not overheated. Regardless, this brought Kyle's day to an end finishing 18th. Troy ended up finishing 10th.

Following his night at Golden Sands Speedway - Kyle brought the #36 Late Model back to Rockford Speedway the next afternoon! Kyle Qualified in the fifth position, putting him in the trophy dash. Kyle finished 2nd in the trophy dash!

When the feature rolled around, Kyle was lined up on the inside row. With the outside on the move forward, Kyle was pretty desperate waiting to hear "Clear High" call from Troy Jr over the radio. Kyle finally found his hole, getting to the top groove. Unfortunately no more than a lap later Kyle would would find himself door-slapping the front stretch wall. The car never took a set going into the corner, and Kyle spun out going into turn 1. This brought out the yellow, broke the in car camera, and sent Kyle to the tail end of the field.

Kyle was able to work his way through traffic for the remainder of the race, and finished in the 4th position! See below for the video:

This is in car video from the #36 Late Model driven by Kyle Shear at Rockford Speedway. Kyle qualified 5th this night, and finished 4th in the feature - but only after he slapped the wall hard on the front stretch, and then spun in turn 1 right after the hard hit. Kyle then had to start in the back, and worked his way through traffic up to 4th spot.

Kyle did manage to break the in car camera when he hit the wall, and unfortunately it only recorded audio for the rest of the race.

Finally being able to escape the clutches of the early season rain, the Mid-American series finally got an entire event in friday night. Both Troy and Kyle proved to be fast during practice and qualifying - Troy actually tied for Fast Time ( which was given to Matt Pyburn, being the first person to set the time ), and Kyle qualified 2nd!

Unfortunately this speed did not translate over to the race. Troy and Kyle's cars did not handle well after a short number of laps. This problem became worse as the event ran flag to flag, having no caution flag laps. Kyle finished 16th and Troy 17th.

(May 5, 2009) - The first annual Joe Shear Classic came to a conclusion sunday night at Madison International speedway. Kyle Shear was definitely one of the crowd favorites for the event, with many of Joe Shear's friends, family and fans in the stands at the speedway. During the practice sessions, Kyle looked to be one of the top contenders for the event, posting times consistently within the top 5. While Kyle's qualifying effort was good enough to get him into the show on time, it was only good enough for the 12th position.

Regardless, the team was hoping to improve on this for the feature - but a combination on on track events and unlucky timing proved to make the race difficult for Kyle. During the race, Kyle's tires did not hit their "prime" until several laps into the event, making the first 10 laps of the race a handful to drive, while losing several positions due to an ill handling car. Once the car came to life, Kyle recovered several of his positions and began to move towards the front. Then the race took a rather unexpected, entertaining, and yet embarrassing turn for the worse.

As a caution had come out for a blown motor, Zach Riddle, the race leader had his two-way communications radio come unplugged. During what we have been told was an apparent attempt to plug his radio back in, Zach ended up collecting a garbage can from the infield grass. The trash can became lodged under Zach's car, and in an attempt to shake the can loose, garbage spilled out of the can all over the track! This created a red-flag condition for the track workers to spend quite some time walking the track and collecting the trash.

During this time, tires cooled - and this brought Kyle's handling conditions back to the way they were during the first 10 laps of the race. This made the rest of the race a struggle for Kyle to recover the best position he could - where he ended up finishing 12th.

Shear Racing wants to thank everyone for coming out for such a special event this weekend to honor the memory of Joe Shear! An even greater thanks to all the fans in the stands who wore their Joe Shear racing apparel.

(April 29, 2009) - Kyle Shear will be racing the #36 Joe Shear Tribute car at Madison International Speedway for the 38-lap Big-8 Late Model Series race on May 3, 2009 for the Joe Shear Classic weekend! Not only will there be a #36 car with the "SHEAR" name on the windshield on the race track, but one of Joe Shear's cars will also be on display at the track on race day. Practice starts at 11:30am, Qualifying at 2pm, and racing will begin at 4:00pm!

(April 26, 2009) - The make up date for the 2009 Spring Classic has also been rained out again!

(April 25, 2009) - The event at Hawkeye Downs has been rained out and postponed until Aug 8th, 2009. The Rockford Speedway Spring Classic rain date is still scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday Aug. 26!

(April 22, 2009) - The unfortunate rain that post-poned last weekend's Rockford Speedway Spring Classic will make this coming weekend a long weekend for the Shear Racing team! This created a double-header situation for the Mid-American Series. Troy and Kyle will be racing at Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, IA Saturday afternoon, only to return to Rockford to race at Rockford Speedway Sunday afternoon! Kyle has an added challenge to the weekend, jumping into the #36 Big-8 Late Model at Rockford Speedway in addition to his Mid-American duties.

Following the long weekend, Shear Racing will be preparing the #36 late model for Madison International Speedway's Joe Shear Classic for the Big-8 Series race on May 3rd. Definitely be sure to come see Kyle in the #36 Joe Shear Tribute car at the race that will be so special to the entire Shear family, and all of Joe's fans!

(April 16, 2009) - Kyle is going to be on the radio with Rockford, IL's 104.9 WXRX this afternoon! Be sure to listen in! Shear Racing wants to welcome ReTool, Chubby Bubba's back, and then them for their continuing support. The team also wants to welcome new support from Powersouce Racing engines for the 2009 season! There are still many sponsorship opportunities available with our team!

Kyle was the winner of the 2009 Bristol Motor Speedway trip from Boring Bob Tours ( http://www.boringbobtours.com/ ), taking Troy as his guest. The trip was definitely an enjoyable way to make the trip down to Bristol, TN and both Troy and Kyle had a blast all weekend! The entire trip was planned out, starting with the bus ride to and from Wisconsin, the hotel room, and the race tickets! It made the hardest part of the trip being the packing and unpacking of the suitcases! Not only that, but both Troy and Kyle also enjoyed the company of the other race fan tourists on the bus, and hope to see the fellow Bristol tourists at the local tracks this summer!

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National Short Track Championships weekend - Finally being able to race close to home, the weekend at the Rockford Speedway still proved to be a challenging one for the entire Shear Racing team.

The full weekend of racing started out Friday night, with Kyle racing in the Weekly Warrior Late Model race in the #36 Limited Late Model. The focus for Kyle and the entire team was to use this race to help prepare for the Big-8 Late model race the next day. With that "bigger picture" in mind, the team was playing around with setups to try and learn something for the next day's race. Unfortunately, in trying new things, sometimes it does not always go as planned, and Kyle did not qualify well enough to make the show. Instead, Kyle was left to make his way in through the last chance race, which he did. Once Kyle got into one of the transfer spots for the last chance race, he got comfortable and just finished out the race, making his way into the show. Starting from the tail of the field, Kyle was able to setup and pass much of the field, working his way up to his 7th finishing spot!

Saturday night was Kyle's second race night in the #36 Limited Late model for the Big-8 series 108 lap race. Kyle qualified in the 22nd spot, which was not good enough to make it into the show by time. Knowing that the car's setup was very good, and consistent over the long run, and that it just wasn't a good qualifying "bonzia" setup, Kyle was looking forward to making the show through the heat races. Kyle did make the show in his heat race, finishing second to Ryan Miles. This put Kyle towards the rear of the starting lineup of the 108lap feature. Kyle took off like a rocket, and was picking off the field one at a time, making his way up to the top 10 with about 30 laps to go. Kyle was able to make his way up into the 7th position, when his car was starting to experience trouble. As Kyle was trying to make the move for the 6th spot, something in the motor broke and Kyle shut it down to avoid further damaging anything. Kyle had come from the rear of the field, up to looking for a top 5 finish when motor troubles ended his night. It also looks as if the #36 Limited Late Model will have to miss out on Oktoberfest in LaCrosse.

Sunday afternoon was "Round 3" for Shear Racing, with the Mid-American Series show for both Troy and Kyle. Both cars were quick all practice session, looking for a good afternoon of racing. Kyle was able to repeat this for qualifying putting him in the 6th position, but unfortunately Troy had troubles in qualifying. Troy had to attempt to race his way in through either the heat race, or the last chance race. Things were looking good for the heat race until contact was made down the middle of the front stretch sending Troy nose first towards the wall. "I didn't know what happened, all of a sudden someone hit my right rear and I was going for a ride..." is all Troy could say after the heat race. This left Troy's only hope on being the last chance race. Troy raced his way up to the final transfer spot, and then just put the car on cruise control. Troy saw that he had no pressure from behind, so there was no reason to abuse the tires and try to gain any more positions. This put Troy at the tail of the show.

9/19 & 9/20 - Madison International Speedway - The weekend at Madison International Speedway was a busy weekend full of track time for Shear Racing. Troy and Kyle both were scheduled to race the Mid-American Series race on Saturday night, but in addition to the Mid-American race, Kyle was also racing the #36 Limited Late Model on both Friday & Saturday. This meant Kyle was racing Friday night, and also pulling double duty on Saturday!

Friday night, Kyle was fast all throughout practice and qualified within the top 5. After the invert, Kyle had a little work to do. Kyle was able to work his way up to the 4th position early in the race until a growing handling problem continued to worsen. A slight off corner push finally pushed like a "dump truck" off the corner, and Kyle finished in the 10th position. Friday was a learning lesson for Saturday, and the crew knew the car would be much better the following day.

Saturday Night, all three Shear Racing cars were fast all throughout practice. The two Mid-American Series cars qualified right with each other. Troy qualified 2nd quick on the charts, barely edging ahead of Kyle who qualified 3rd! Kyle's Limited late model entry also took one of the top spots, qualifying into the 5th position.

First up was Kyle's Limited Late model race. Kyle started the race from the fourth row, and looked to be one of the early favorites. Kyle worked his way through traffic quickly, and soon found himself in the second position, and chasing down the leader. Once Kyle caught the race leader, it only took a short time to start setting him up for the pass. The two raced side by side, until slight contact was made through the middle of turns 1 & 2. While the contact was door to door, Kyle's #36 car ended up spinning around, ending his chances for the win. With the "big picture" in sight, having the Mid-American race up in a few short minutes, and being at the rear of the field, Kyle pulled into the pits with 10 laps to go in order to prepare for the Mid-American feature.

Finally both Troy and Kyle had their Mid-American series 40 lap feature. Having qualified so well, the invert of 14 did not treat either brother well, starting mid way through the field. Both cars were running well through the first few laps of the race, until Troy received contact, and ended up getting spun through turns 1 & 2. As other cars spun to avoid, light contact was made with Troy's car, and he also received a flat tire. Troy was able to make it into the pits, where Troy Sr., Tanner, Ross Kenseth, Don and Jerry all helped get the tire changed and get Troy back on the track on the lead lap ( Thanks guys! ). Unfortunately, due to the contact made, the car had become a handful to drive and Troy was only able to hang on for a 19th place finish on the lead lap. Kyle on the other hand had to deal with another car's constant oil leak for several laps, and one of the cautions did not play into his favor. While Kyle felt as if he had a car capable of a better finish, was stuck finishing in the 6th position.

9/13/08 - Marshfield Super Speedway - With lingering rain all morning and early afternoon, the race was cancelled with no rain date.

9/5/08 - Madison International Speedway - Kyle made his second visit to Madison in the #36 Limited Late model for Twin 40 lap features. Kyle was fast all day in practice, making only minor adjustments to the car between sessions making his way to the top of the practice charts. For qualifying, Kyle was 5th quick in what was only his second qualifying attempt in a Limited Late model at Madison. Kyle finished 6th in both twin 40 lap features!

8/23/08 - Milwaukee Mile - The Milwaukee Mile's Governors cup race is always one of the series favorites. Troy qualified 5th, just ahead of Kyle who timed into the 6th position. The first few laps for Kyle showed an ill handling car, so he made a pit stop under caution to try and make an adjustment. He returned to the track in last place, and was able to work his way up to the 15th position. Troy's was also a little off on handling for most of the race, but the car actually improved after the last caution, where he gained two spots in the last 5 laps making a 10th place finish.

7/19/08 - Wisconsin International Raceway - Troy and Kyle were both looking forward to their return to WIR, having both had a strong performance in the "Red Race" earlier in the summer. This held true through qualifying with Troy putting himself in the 5th position, and Kyle just slightly behind in the 7th position.

After the invert, this put both the brothers nose to tail on the outside line in the 2nd and 3rd rows. At the drop of the green, they both made the outside line work, and then Kyle made the pass for the lead on only the second lap of the race. Troy followed suit, settling into the 3rd position, where he stayed up until a flat tire put an early end to his good run. Troy made a quick pit stop right before the race's only caution came out, and returned to the track at the rear of the field. Meanwhile, Kyle brought the field down for the green flag, and a quick sprint to the finish. Kyle ended up leading all but one lap of the race, winning his second Mid-American feature. Troy recovered two positions by returning to the track after his flat tire, finishing 18th.

6/28/08 - 141 Speedway - Francis Creek, Wi - Being the smallest track on the Mid-American schedule, 141 Speedway always seems to bring it's own set of challenges to the Mid-American series. Troy ran strong all practice, putting himself in the top 10 of transponder scoring all afternoon, while Kyle was slightly outside the top 10 looking in. This flip-flopped for qualifying while Troy admitted to making some mistakes during qualifying, while Kyle edged himself into the 9th spot, Troy had to settle for 16th, and a trip to the last chance race - where he finished third.

Both Troy & Kyle seemed to be on the move during the feature event, having both brothers working through the field together nose to tail on the inside line for part of the race. The good run for Kyle unfortunately came to an early end due to a part failure in the rear end of his car. While it should have been a quick fix, and he should have been able to return to the track - his car was damaged further by the track's safety crew. The additional damage caused by the track crew brought Kyle's night to an early end. Troy would finish the race in the 12th position.

Results:
Troy: 12th
Kyle: 16th

6/24/08 - Madison International Speedway - Kyle made his first Big 8 series attempt, and second ever Limited Late Model attempt at Madison International Speedway on Tuesday. "Everyone was happy with the results at Rockford last weekend" said Kyle, "so we thought we would give madison a shot." Kyle was in the top ten in lap times by the transponder scoring for the last two practice sessions (7th in session 2, 10th in session 3). Kyle's qualifying lap didn't go as well though, where he said he messed up on both laps. While his time put him in the late teens, it wasn't good enough to be in the top 14 to make the show by time. Instead, Kyle made the show through the last chance race, where he finished 3rd. Unfortunately, during the last chance race, Kyle's spindle ended up getting bent after being doored on the backstretch. The car was inconsistent after that, making it a handful to drive during the feature. Kyle ended up finishing in the 18th position.

6/21/08 - Rockford Speedway - Limited Late Model - Kyle made his first ever Limited Late Model race at the Rockford Speedway Saturday night. Kyle was driving the RaceCarHelp / Spectrum Coatings #36 car. After having only two short practice sessions to make adjustments on the car, Kyle was able to qualify in the fourth position, putting him in the trophy dash! Kyle was then able to finish fifth in the feature.

6/14/08 - Wisconsin International Raceway - Making their first of three total visits to WIR this summer, Troy and Kyle both wanted to be able to perform well at this track this summer being that it's the track they visit the most. Kyle qualified in the 7th position, while Troy qualified 12th. Even though Troy was disappointed in his qualifying run, it put him on the pole after the invert. During the race, Troy was able to jump into the lead while Kyle was running a few cars behind working through traffic. Troy would have benefited from a longer green flag run, but a caution early on ended that run. Kyle was able to work his way up to the fourth position, while Troy held on to the final top 5 spot.

5/31/08 - Dells Raceway Park - The Dells Raceway Park first brought the Mid-American series into their facility last year, where Kyle achieved his first feature win. Returning to the track for their second time, both Troy and Kyle felt pretty confident about their chances. This confidence was validated through the two practice sessions, where both cars only needed minor changes, and were running nearly identical times on the watch. For qualifying, Kyle had put down a lap good enough to tie the track record, and gain him his first fast time award. Troy qualified 8th, but knew he had more in the car, claiming to have slightly messed up on his second lap.

In the feature, both Troy and Kyle had fast cars. Unfortunately the race was slowed many times due to the yellow flag, including one caution where water was laid down on the track from a blown radiator hose. Right after the yellow flag flew, Scott Null was spun around in front of the field, and Troy had nowhere to go. “I thought I’d get it whoa’ed down in time to not hit him, but once I got into the water with the tires locked up, there was no way for me to stop for Scott” said Troy. Neither car was harmed much beyond cosmetic damage and both were able to continue on.

The rest of the race continued without problem for either Shear Racing car. Troy worked his way back up to the 6th position after losing a couple spots. Kyle had worked his way up to 2nd place, and was reeling in race leader Bill Prietzel until the race was ended due to the track curfew. Kyle said “knew I would be able to catch Bill, as my car was improving throughout the race, but getting around him would have been a different story. He’s a great racer, but I hope we would have at least put on a good show had the race gone the entire length.”

5/16/08 - Lacrosse Fairgrounds Speedway - Joining the USAC Midget Sprint cars for the day, the Mid-American series made the trip up to La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway on friday. It proved to be a busy and tough afternoon for all the racers having a single practice session to tune their cars to the track conditions. During the single practice session, both Troy and Kyle made minor adjustments between short runs to try dial in their cars.

Qualifying was shortened to one single lap, where Kyle turned a lap good for 5th position, and Troy placing himself into the 8th position.

The rest of the night was a race to beat the rain storm brewing off in the distance. The first caution of the race came on lap 9 for a racing incident between James Swan and Kyle who were both racing hard. Kyle spun out, but no damage was done to the car, and he was able to restart from the rear of the field.

Shortly after the green flag dropped, light sprinkles started to fall down on the track for a short period of time, but nothing significant. Then around lap 30 the storm dumped on the track. It rained pretty hard for the final laps of the race. The track started getting slick, and Troy nearly spun coming off turn 2. He kept going, but lost several positions while saving the sideways car. The race was given the checkered flag on the next lap due to the heavy rain, completing the race at lap 31.

4/13/08 - Rockford Speedway - There was a lot of beating and banging this weekend at the Rockford Speedway, very few cars left the track without at least body damage, and both Troy & Kyle were no exception to this. Both brothers qualified in on time with nearly identical times. Troy qualified 9th, while Kyle qualified 10th. After the invert, it made the race a "Shear" third row with Kyle on the inside, and Troy on the outside.

Both cars were running well in the top 10 until Kyle was tagged from behind, spinning him around. Troy was also hit hard in the door by the same driver in this incident, but continued on. Kyle then had to work his way from the tail of the field, picking his way back to the front. Throughout the race, Troy & Kyle had a number of exciting side-by-side laps, fighting for the same position.

Troy and Kyle would both later be collected in Don Wood's wreck while trying to avoid Don, causing body damage to both cars. Kyle was able to continue on, but unfortunately Troy had to make a trip to the pits during that caution to have some hanging fiberglass body parts pulled off the car. Troy returned to the track just barely outside the top 10. While Kyle was fighting his way into a top 5 finish, Troy would be trying to make his way back into the top 10.

Troy wants to thank Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream of Rockford, IL for helping support him for the Spring Classic. Kyle thanks RETOOL of Rockford, IL and Chubby Bubba's Pizza of Janesville for their continuing support.

4/8/08 - Making their second appearance on the Rockford area TV stations, Troy and Kyle also appeared on WREX 13 today. The video is available here ( link opens in a new window).

4/5/08 - Troy and Kyle were interviewed by Rockford area TV stations during Rockford Speedway's open practice date on April 5. The video from My Stateline Fox 39 is available here. ( link opens in a new window).

3/14/08 - Troy & Kyle were a part of the "Hometown Heroes" edition of Hawkeye Racing News. Here is the article by Matt Panure:

Shear Name Still Going Strong in Mid-American

Second Cousins. That is the relationship between Midwest racing legend Joe Shear and the two Mid-American standouts who share the last name, Kyle and Troy Jr. “Every track we go to I've had at least one person come up and ask me what our relation was to Joe so I definitely think there is a lot of added pressure to that,” said Kyle. “A lot of people see the name and expect us to be good because of it,” he added.

The brothers from Roscoe, Illinois differed on their opinions. “A lot of people know that this was pretty much our first year in any race car. They were really surprised that we did as well as we did. Maybe will expect a little more out of us with the Shear name this year,” stated Troy.

The Shear boys’ story is unique to most race car drivers. “Racing was something I always pushed for as a kid,” said Troy, “it just didn’t materialize.” However, the dream for the Shear boys to race came true after Troy returned from an internship at “the place where dreams come true.”

“I returned from an internship at Disney World and there were two cars in the shop,” said Troy. One of the cars was purchased from Mid-American front runner Jamey Dorsey and the other was a Shear house car. Troy took Troy Sr.’s number six and Kyle slapped a seven on the side of his new ride.

Of course, that urge to race had to materialize from somewhere. The Shear kids followed their dad to the track as he chased the Mid-American Stock Car Series in the mid to late 1990s as a driver and then later as a car owner.

In those days, it was not rare for Mid-American to be a support class for ARTGO. So when the Shear boys went to see their dad in the pits after an event, they would normally find him talking to Joe. “We were pretty young, we would be there when my dad was talking to him and we would get to talk to him too a little bit,” recalled Troy. Kyle recalled the visuals of the black and red number 36. “I remember watching him at Rockford and watching all the things he used to do on the track.”

The Mid-American Stock Car Series seemed to be a perfect fit for the brothers to begin their career. “I remember watching the Mid-Am Series when my dad used to race. We watched it grow and now that we're driving in the series, its like re-living our childhood,” stated Kyle.

Although 2007 was only their first full year in any kind of race car, the Shears proved that racing is in their blood. Troy Jr. started ten of twelve features finishing in the top five once and top ten twice. He also had several top ten qualifying runs. Kyle started all twelve events finishing in the top five three times, the top ten six times and collected a win at Dells Raceway Park on his way to being named Rookie of the Year.

Kyle’s win at Dells Raceway Park ranks high on both lists of the Shears’ favorite memories of their rookie season. Troy was the last car to fall a lap to Kyle and was not far behind when the checkered flag waved. He was out of his own ride and waiting in victory lane for Kyle when he exited his mount.

Of course Kyle’s win was big in his mind. “Your first win is something you remember for the rest of your life,” stated Kyle. “and to beat out James Swan, who is one of the best drivers in the series… the win will just stand out in my mind for the rest of my life.”

The two had many more enjoyable experiences during the year, but Troy specifically mentioned another main event that stuck out in his mind. “The Milwaukee Mile weekend was such a blast knowing that we put all three cars in the tope ten in qualifying,” he said. Shear Racing fielded an entry for Jimmy Becker that Saturday morning as well. The three cars, numbered six, seven, and eight, qualified eighth, seventh, and sixth respectively.

The second most frequent question the Shear brothers receive regards a sibling rivalry. “I want to beat him,” said Troy, “it’s really cool to beat him and I'm sure for him, it’s really cool to beat me too.” Kyle tries not to identify his brother as a rival. “I just look at him as another competitor. I think I gave him less room than I gave anyone else at Rockford,” said Kyle.

While the brothers may enjoy racing each other hard, they keep things in perspective. “We know that we can't touch each other because that’s the car that we'll be fixing at the shop. We know that when we get back to the shop that we have to answer to dad,” added Troy. Kyle expressed the same feelings. “I knew if he wrecked I'd be the one fixing it. We share everything and work together. We both watch each other and try to help each other get better,” said Kyle.

The Shear team certainly is a family operation. The team is sponsored by Troy Sr.’s concrete business, Troy Shear Cement, and is owned and operated by mom and dad Shear. Troy and Kyle also credit their crew, Don, Chris and Jerry.

The two brothers will be back in 2008 in hopes to improve their positioning in series standings. Kyle, who finished seventh in points is aiming for a championship in only his second season. “That may be a little farfetched. If I can finish in the top five I'll feel pretty successful, hopefully we'll bring home a win or two.”

The Shears and the rest of a very strong Mid-American contingent will begin the race to the 2008 championship on Sunday, April 13th at the Rockford Speedway in Love’s Park, Illinois. For more information regarding the Mid-American Stock Car Series including the 2008 schedule, past results, the final 2007 standings and driver information, please visit www.midamericanracing.com.

3/08/08 - Be sure to check out Hawkeye Racing News, Troy & Kyle are a part of the "Hometown Heros" edition with an article by Matt Panure. For information about Hawkeye Racing News, check their site at Hawkeyeracingnews.com

8/23/08 - ShearRacing.com is going through some updates for your enjoyment. Check back soon, and be sure to check out the new Shear Racing online store!