Lampman's #97R Riley Raynard is a familiar face down at the Estevan Motor Speedway, and this year he's been working to prove he's 'Tougher Than Dirt', as he participates in the so-named tour that will make it's stop in the Energy City this Saturday.

The first race of the second annual event took place at the McLean County Speedway in Underwood, North Dakota, where Raynard placed 7th out of 23 in the Hobby Stock A feature.

"It wasn't too bad at all, I guess. I was getting a little frustrated, starting on the inside each time off the restart, but it was just a matter of where I was. Other than that, it was pretty good," he said.

The 97R car then proceeded to Dickinson, ND to the Southwest Speedway on Thursday, and Raynard mentioned that he would make a few small adjustments before hitting the track.

"We're just putting a couple different things in for my fan motor, my car was getting pretty hot. Doing a couple different things to try and help that."

However, despite the tweaks, position is a big factor in a race and the spots and cautions just didn't go the young driver's way in race number two. He took second in his heat, then passed the green flag in sixth in his feature, but a spin out held him back before battling into a 6th place finish.

Due to some family commitments, Raynard said that he doesn't plan on carrying the tour all the way to completion. He'll cap it all off when everything comes to his home town.

Raynard added that the pressure will be on when he starts his engine on familiar dirt on the weekend.

"Last year, I was saying in my head, 'this is my hometown track, I gotta make it count here,' and I pretty much did that. I'm going to have to try and do that again this year.

The action gets underway in Estevan at 7:00 PM and will feature the IMCA Sport Mods and Hobby Stocks in the TTDT, and races from the Slingshots, IMCA Stocks and IMCA Modifieds as well.