Steve Spiess is a man who thrives on the challenges of life, as well as those behind the wheel of his Billet Specialties-sponsored Chevrolet Cobalt Pro Stocker.

Armed with major sponsorship from the custom wheel manufacturer, Spiess decided to upgrade to a full-time pursuit of the NHRA Full Throttle championship.

Five races into the 23-race schedule, Spiess has two first round losses and two DNQs. A year after producing a strong part-time effort, the former IHRA mountain motor Pro Stock champion has experienced one shortcoming after another, yet he remains confident better days are ahead of him this season.

“We’re having our times right now,” Spiess admitted. “This is Pro Stock racing. We are gaining on it. I think we should be fine from this point forward.”

Steve Spiess is a man who thrives on the challenges of life, as well as those behind the wheel of his Billet Specialties-sponsored Chevrolet Cobalt Pro Stocker.

Armed with major sponsorship from the custom wheel manufacturer, Spiess decided to upgrade to a full-time pursuit of the NHRA Full Throttle championship.

Five races into the 23-race schedule, Spiess has two first round losses and two DNQs. A year after producing a strong part-time effort, the former IHRA mountain motor Pro Stock champion has experienced one shortcoming after another, yet he remains confident better days are ahead of him this season.

“We’re having our times right now,” Spiess admitted. “This is Pro Stock racing. We are gaining on it. I think we should be fine from this point forward.”

Last season Spiess competed in a partial schedule and while last year might have been considered his learning season, those were important lessons which have carried over into 2010.

“Last season was our transition year,” said Spiess. “Every outing for us presents a new lesson. Each run teaches you something new and for us, we still have a lot to learn.”

Many predicted this season would be one of transition for the Pro Stock division and even though Spiess gained what some would consider a measure of a head start from 2009, he didn’t hold any thoughts the races from last season would put him ahead of the competition.

“I knew we had our work cut out for us,” said Spiess. “It’s tougher this year … there’s a lot more competitive cars here this year. There’s no gimmies this year. Besides, there are probably more cars here this year.”

Spiess is quick to point out the slower pace of the 500 inch Pro Stocker doesn’t necessarily constitute less of a challenge than the 800-inch mountain motor cars he piloted for over a decade.

“I really believe the cars are harder to handle over here in 500-inch Pro Stock racing,” Spiess explained. “You have to be really precise on your shift points. The mountain motor stuff was actually more fun. I have no regrets in making the move over to 500-inch Pro Stock racing. I love competition and believe me, we have it here.”

Maybe this season’s full tour is a trial for the future but for now Spiess isn’t quick to determine his future at this point.

“I don’t know what our future is beyond this season,” Spiess said. “I’m going through money more than I should plus business isn’t all that great. We are just going to make our decisions on a year to year basis.”

“There’s no way I can say we're within budget. The last race we were in was Charlotte – we went testing in Bradenton and I dropped a valve. That’s a $20,000-plus hit. It did some damage. How do you budget for that?”