| Place |
Time Points |
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|---|---|---|
| Qual Time: | 13 | 24.004 |
| "B" Trophy Dash: | 1 | N/A |
| "B" Heat Race: | 2 | 1 |
| Main Event: | 8 | 36 |
| Season Points: | 2 | 141 |
Tom and I used a porta-power hydraulic device to bend the right quarter panel back as pest as we could. Ryan used some body hammers and dollies to smooth out the rough edges on the body panels. The right rear axle is bent. I need to go out to the salvage yards and get another axle. That will make 3 replaced axles so far this season.
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The car must have some broken rings in the engine. The power was just not there. The rings may have broken during the impact of the last race. I qualified very poorly. The Trophy Dash race was scary. I started in 3rd position and watched the first two cars almost wreck in front of me. The 18 car drove very well to avoid the 55 car which was out of control in almost every corner. I only had 4 laps in the whole race so I had to move quickly if I was going to try and win. There is always the temptation to not care about the Trophy Dash because it is not for points and if you wreck you might not be able to race in the Heat race or Main event which are for points. I decided that I should put my best effort out and try to win the race. I knew where the 55 car was weak on the track so I set up my car and speed to pass him at the safest place. The 55 car did just what I predicted but worse and I barely made it by him without having him wreck me. I was able to pass him on lap 3 and hold on to win the Trophy Dash.
The heat race was more of a challenge. My car was not going very fast. After several laps of working through the other cars I was not gaining on the 55 car. He was several car lengths in front of me and there were several car lengths behind me to the 3rd place car. I decided to shift from 3rd gear to 4th gear. The car is faster in 4th gear but does not have as much power. I quickly gained on the 55 car but I lost the race by about 3 feet. I learned what I needed to know for the Main event though.
The Main event was very frustrating. The car just did not have the power to be a contender. Because of the invert of the field and my poor qualifying time I found myself on the outside pole position. The fastest cars (64/99/98/21) were back towards the end of the 18 car field. I was able to get past the leader on the first lap and get into 4th gear and break away from the pack. The car has speed in 4th gear BUT you have to drive extremely smooth and consistently. Unfortunately for me there were several wrecks in the race and the faster cars moved up through the pack. The best part of the whole evening was driving in front of and then behind my friend Brian Lambert (64 car and the Points Leader) and Dave Booth (99 car). We went 10-15 laps where we just drove fast, smooth, and clean. No bumps, no scraps, and no noise (except for a little tire squeal which is normal for racing). Then there was a wreck and the restart found me in a very bad position. Remember that my car was fast in 4th as long as I was smooth. A car dove under me in the west turn and would have hit me if I did not move up the track. I lost speed and power.
For the next 4 laps I got passed by cars with more power who could get in the groove and kept me from being able to drive smoothly. I was passing the 55 car in the straight away between turn 1 and 2 and he must not have seen me because he rammed me clear down into the infield and pushed me back up into the track going backwards. Luckily all the cars following were able to slow down and avoid hitting us. My car started and I took off for the yellow flag. After taking the yellow I had to pit to have Tom Hangartner to kick my fender away from the front right tire. I got back on the lead lap but in last place. A lap or two later the 82 car blew up his engine and dumped five quarts of oil and two gallons of water on the track in turn 2. It was too late, I hit the mixture of oil and water and when I tapped my brakes all four wheels locked up and I was sliding right at the 82 car at about 80 mph and not slowing down AT ALL! I let off the brakes and turned off the track out into the desert while holding in the clutch and the gas. When your car goes through the dirt or spins to a stop after you let off the gas, the car usually dies and is hard to start. By staying on the gas, I was able to turn the car around in the dirt fairly well. Working the gears and the gas I was able to get back on the track within seconds and stay on the lead lap. Unfortunately, there was only two laps left in the race and I ended up finishing in 8th place.
Now it is time to start putting together the 22R motor for the June race. Wish me luck.
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QUOTE: | Shoes left lying on the floor could become your dog's favorite chew toy. |
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