OXFORD — It was a little like going back in time.

But when you’re only 21, returning to your roots isn’t a very long trip. For Trevor Bayne Sunday was a chance to race in his element. Though running Late Models was a bit new for the 2011 Daytona 500 champion, racing on a short track was anything but.

“I love it,” said Bayne. “That’s what I grew up on — short tracks.  That’s kind of my specialty in racing. When we go to places like ORP in Indy or Bristol, that’s where we kind of show a little bit more. So anytime I get to come back (to short tracks), it’s fun.”

It was still a day of constant adjustments for the Knoxville, Tenn., native. Bayne finished 31st overall. That’s after he needed some extra effort in qualifying to earn the 33rd start spot.

Though Bayne’s car had some competitive lap times during practice, he struggled to make much happen with it the rest of the day. Bayne had to work to find the right feel for the car and the track. Though he practiced hard Saturday and Sunday morning, he didn’t feel any more confident in it by Sunday night.

“I felt pretty good at the end of the day Saturday,” Bayne said. “I felt about the same today. I felt pretty comfortable.”

Bayne drew No.54, putting him fourth in the fifth qualifying heat. It meant he’ d have to duel old friend Eddie MacDonald, a two-time 250 winner.

“Eddie ran out of gas one year at Loudon when leading,” Bayne said. “He won that race. In another, we were leading and a caution came out with three laps to go. I had a pretty good lead. He ran me down and beat me. I was pretty bummed out. So he’s beat me at both Loudon races.”

MacDonald was third in the same heat and went on to win. Bayne fell back as far as seventh but moved up to fifth on the final lap.

Bayne started on the pole in the third consolation heat. He dropped back to second early but held off a late charge to secure third and the 33rd starting spot. He dropped back early and was one of the first drivers lapped in the frantic early pace. He never made much progress the rest of the night, finishing four laps back.

Bayne arrived in Maine early Saturday morning with plenty of advice from other Sprint Cup drivers. Both Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski raced in the 250. Busch won in his third try last year and also won the 150-lap Pro Stock PASS race.

“I was kind of trusting them and going off that a little bit,” said Bayne. “Busch said you’ve really got to get your car working good on the bottom and you’ve got to have some drive. So that’s what we were working on.”

It took a great deal of adjustment for Bayne. His only Late Model race was when he ran as a teenager. He was driving a new car provided by Kendall Roberts of Barre, Vermont. Keselowski drove a Roberts car when he ran the 250 in 2010. This new ride had never been on the track before.

“To me there’s a lot of driving adjustments you have to do,” said Bayne. “How much horsepower you have? How hard you can hit the throttle and how hard you can arch it in the corner? The biggest thing for me is getting used to the adjustments on the car. What you can and can’t change because it’s completely different. I can say we need to have this kind of adjustment. I’d know what kind of feel I’d be looking for. Here, I don’t know what kind of feel I’m looking for. I’m just trying to get better lap times and feel a little more comfortable.”

Prior to Sunday’s race, much of Bayne’s testing of his car revolved around getting that feel and learning what it can do on the OPS track.

“There’s so many things going on with this racetrack,” said Bayne. “First you’re loose a little on the outside and then your tight. It’s just changes a lot.”

He said the advice from Busch and Keselowski gave him an approach to focus on, but it still took time between Saturday and Sunday to find comfort with his car and his knowledge of the track.

“It’s pretty similar to (Saturday),” said Bayne. “You can’t really change too much after you change everything in the care.The track was going to change a lot from tight to loose and back to tight again.”

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