Mike Marlar
Press Release:
Lexington, North Carolina – November 21, 2018: With a desire to return to car ownership, and the opportunity with a free agent, K&L Rumley Enterprises has decided to bring the well-known number 6 back into competition in 2019 with driver Mike Marlar. A plan that was materialized in a matter of days is now expected to be a major factor in dirt late model competition this coming season.
The conclusion of the 2018 season meant two things for Mike Marlar – he was the Craftsman World of Outlaw Late Model Series Champion, but also didn’t know where or if he would race in 2019. His longtime car owner and friend, Ronnie Delk, decided to step away from owning a team at the end of 2018. Meanwhile, it was also a successful year for Kevin Rumley, as he was the engineer on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship team.
Like most good ideas, they come when least expected. Through friendly conversation Marlar had informed Rumley that he no longer wanted to run a full-time series, as he wanted to pursue other interests outside of racing. While Rumley admittedly referenced the desire to cut back his travel schedule and have the opportunity to work out of the David Fritts D&E Marine shop close to his Lexington, NC home.
Mike Marlar will drive a No. 6 K&L Rumley Longhorn in 2019
The two soon realized they had the same desire; to have fun, and to win races. That’s all it took for them to decide to team up; under the K&L Rumley #6. Rumley believes both fun and success are attainable, and racing a limited schedule is how he thinks that can be achieved; “Racing a series, which is what I’ve done the past three out of four years, is really hard on everyone. It’s not only hard on your equipment, but on your crew, your personal life, and just stressful as a whole. Racing becomes not that fun anymore”.
Someone else who is excited about this new endeavor is Lee Roy Rumley, Kevin’s 82-year-old father. He is looking forward to being a team owner again, and still has the same desire to win as he did 60+ years ago. One can expect to see him in the pit area a lot more in the coming year. Additionally, Kevin will consult as needed for the Double L Motorsports team with Jonathan Davenport for the 2019 season.
