By Dustin Dow
The Cincinnati Enquirer

SPARTA, Ky. - To no one's surprise, Frank Kimmel is starting off first - again.

Norm Benning (#84), Jeremy Clements (#3) and Billy Venturini (#25) roll through turn 2 during practice for the ARCA RE/MAX Channel 5-205 at Kentucky Speedway. (Patrick Reddy photo)

For the fourth time in his career at Kentucky Speedway, Kimmel will start from the pole in tonight's ARCA RE/MAX Channel 5-205. Kimmel, who has won three times at Kentucky, turned in an average speed of 170.336, easily capturing the lead spot for the 8 p.m. race.

"It's home-court advantage," said Kimmel who lives in Jeffersonville, Ind. "We get to test here, and we have a lot of support here. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to run good here."

At 42, Kimmel is running well just about every track he shows up at with his No. 46 car. He has won four straight ARCA points titles (five overall) and is in first place through three events entering tonight's race.

A son of former ARCA driver Bill Kimmel Sr., Kimmel is the public face of ARCA, a driver fans can recognize year after year, knowing he won't be moving on to higher-level series.

It's not that Kimmel can't compete at a NASCAR level; it's just that he enjoys the ARCA life.

Kimmel goes to his kids' sporting events on a regular basis and spends most weekends at home. The entire family - wife, kids, mother and father - attends the races, usually a few hours' drive from home. Those aren't luxuries that exist in the Busch Series or Nextel Cup.

With $2.75 million in career earnings coming into this season, Kimmel has the resources to keep winning in ARCA, even with NASCAR teams developing young drivers in the series.

"We feel like we have a long time to go yet," said Kimmel whose brother Bill is his crew chief. "The team is stronger than it's ever been, and it shows up on the racetrack every week."

Kimmel is third all-time with 51 race wins in 261 starts, including 156 top-five finishes.

"Frank does more than anybody for ARCA," said veteran driver Vern Slagh, who qualified 16th. "He could go on to a different series and run well, but he doesn't and he's the best thing ARCA has going."

Kimmel calls himself a throwback driver, a term that carries more meaning these days in ARCA when young-gun drivers use the series for a year or two before stepping up to NASCAR. Kimmel's success requires a certain amount of racing knowledge and experience when he's going up against high-budget outfits every few weeks. Last year, Kimmel started from the pole at Kentucky and finished second to Kyle Busch, who is now racing in the NASCAR Busch Series.

"We have to outwork everybody," said Kimmel, who won his first race of the season April 25 in Salem, Ind. "We can't outspend those guys, and we know that."

Kimmel's crew has some of the most advanced equipment in ARCA, but it's not in the same league as what Blake Feese's Hendrick Motorsports team brought to Kentucky Speedway. Kimmel has grown to appreciate what the NASCAR teams are doing in developing their drivers and increasing ARCA's competitiveness at the same time, even if it means fewer wins for him.

"It's not Nextel Cup," Kimmel said. "We all know that. We know our place in racing. It's a really comfortable place to come race. Money hasn't ruined our sport - yet."

Today's race

ARCA RE/MAX Channel 5-205, 8 p.m. (Ch. 5, SPEED)

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E-mail ddow@enquirer.com