Dismore still in the hunt.

Dumped by Kelley Racing because of his age, Mark Dismore certainly isn't finished with the Indy Racing League yet

Mark Dismore, released by Kelley Racing at the end of the 2001 season, is still searching for a competitive 2002 ride with a strong team that he hopes will get him back to victory lane in the IR for the first time since 1999.

"My only goal is, don't get desperate," Dismore said. "It's got to be pretty darn good. I tried to do it the wrong way and darned near killed myself (referring to his devastating 1991 crash at Indianapolis).

"I'm talking to people and keeping my fingers crossed. I want to race."

It seemed Dismore's 2001 season was cursed. He was controlling the Indianapolis 500, leading 29 laps, when a gearbox problem ruined his chances of winning. He won the pole for the Casino Magic 500 at Texas in June and finished second at St. Louis.

He and teammate Scott Sharp were running away from the field at Kentucky when a piece of bodywork jarred loose, cut a tire and sent him into the wall and on several occasions, most notably Phoenix and Nashville, he simply got caught up in other people's accidents.

The net result of what should have been a career year for the 45 year old Indiana native was just three top ten finishes and a gloomy 14th place in the overall standings. The nadir of his season came shortly before round 11 (of 13) at Gateway where some of the team's sponsors said that they would prefer to see a younger driver in the car in 2002. Smarting from the news, Dismore finished second.

Meanwhile as he now searches for a ride, Dismore is keeping busy with his karting business and helping his son, "Little Mark," further his professional driving career.

There are a couple of options available to Mark that would certainly get him onto the 2002 IRL grid although with the current trend heading towards finding the 'next big thing', a driver with more than two decades of experience is often overlooked by the major players. Eddie Cheever has a plum (financed) seat in his two car line up but it is hard to see new sponsors Red Bull having a driver line up pushing 90 while the majority of other seats require a driver with a ready made budget.