19 days after wrapping up a dominating season in the ARCA Series and winning the driver championship, Fort Kent's Austin Theriault is back in the #52 Kenny Schrader Racing Team car doing some testing for the 2018 season at Talladegea Superspeedway in Alabama.

ARCA is using new composite bodies on race cars for 2018 races at Talladega and Daytona. Teams and drivers want to know how the changes will affect the cars in the restrictor place races.

“This test will provide a format for us as Series officials to work with the race teams and our key supplier partners at General Tire, Ilmor Engineering, Five Star Bodies, Eibach Springs and JRI Shocks to be as prepared as possible when our product hits the track in 2018 at Daytona and Talladega,” said ARCA Director of Competition & Race Car Technology Grayling Call. “For the teams, it’s an opportunity to begin to gather data to improve their on-track performance and get track time with the new rules package both in single car runs and in the draft.”
- ARCA Press Release

ARCA teams are testing over two days. Theriault's speed of 171.943 MPH was 11th fastest in day one.

Theriault and the #52 team will be honored at the ARCA Series championship banquet in Indianapolis next month.

Theriault's plans for the 2018 season are still up in the air. He is hoping to race at some level of the NASCAR series but also says he is not ruling out another season in ARCA.

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