Just 16, and quite a Legend

George Cushman had a breakthrough season at Old Dominion Speedway in Legends this season.

The 16-year-old New York driver finished second in points, just six points shy of champion Matt Cannon. Cushman racked up 16 top fives, including 11 top threes. He had an average finish of 3.6.

"It was a good season," Cushman said. "I wish we could've gotten the championship, but we were so close that we're happy with what we got. I just wish we could've gotten that last race in."

The final race of the season was rained out, ruining Cushman's chances to overtake Cannon for the championship. Cushman figures he only had to finish four spots in front of Cannon to win the title.

"We were hoping that the rain would hold off," Cushman said. "It was disappointing not to race."

Cushman also came in fourth nationally in Legends, collecting 19 Semi-Pro wins. He'll travel to North Carolina to receive a trophy at a banquet for the nation's top Legends drivers.

In addition, Cushman won the New York state championship in Semi-Pro Young Lions, capping an excellent season.

He said it was an encouraging year but somewhat disappointing because he didn't win more races. He took home one feature win at Chemung Speedway and came close several times at Old Dominion but didn't manage a win.

"We points raced all season, nationally and at Old Dominion," he said. "So we didn't really go for a lot of wins. We tried if we had a shot. But we wanted consistency and top threes."

From the end of May to the end of August, Cushman collected 11 top threes out of 12 races at ODS, including seven seconds.

"We just fought hard all year for the championship and did the best we could," he said. "We also practiced more this year, dialing the car in. Last season, we didn't hardly practice at all."

Cushman finished seventh in points last season at ODS, with four top fives, including two thirds.

This season, he ran at six different tracks, trying to get more experience and setup ideas.

"I think racing at the other tracks helped because of the different feels of the car I got," he said. "And we took things we learned from those tracks and applied it to our Old Dominion car."

Cushman enjoyed running against the frontrunners at ODS this year, showing that he could compete against the likes of Cannon, Roger Austin Jr., Rette Causey and Ryan Ellis.

"It was fun racing with those guys," he said. "That made me feel good to be able to run with them and sometimes to even beat them."

Cushman ran quarter-midgets for three years, winning 27 races and a championship at Syracuse. This season was his fourth in Legends. He won rookie of the year at Chemung Speedway in 2006 and in 2008 won most improved driver at ODS.

He is working on plans for next season, hoping that he can move up to a stock car division. But if that doesn't work out, he'll be back racing at ODS, battling for another championship and trips to victory lane.

"We'll probably be more dominant if we run at ODS next year and try for more wins," he said.