We had a blast! This was my first race weekend and since I'm quickly learning that this sport will drain my bank account my wife and I decided to camp at the track and save some cash. Camping together was also a first...but we survived. We were very pleased to learn that most everyone was super friendly at the track and enjoyed hanging out with Jim R and Jay and their ladies, and of course Jim H is always a hoot (I just hope his car is OK).
Qualifying on Saturday was held during perfect conditions and I managed to shave a little over a second off my previous best time at that track - while also qualifying only .06 seconds behind Jim. Whoo hoo!
Unfortunately the heavens opened up about a half hour before the start of our race and it really poured. While on the grid I learned that only my passenger wiper worked...thankfully the track is primarily right handers. I kept it together pretty well during our race despite the lack of visibility, lack of rain tires, lack of experience (my first race remember) and still not being good at adjusting my line to a "rain line." I had a pretty good start, picked the right cars to follow, and the right places to pass and passed quite a few cars during the first couple of laps. But then in the fourth lap I spun on the inside of the Carousel.
Watching the video it looks like I carried a bit too much speed into the corner and after that there was nothing I could do but hold on and pray that I could keep it on the inside and not go across and off the outside. Of course the spin cost me all the places I had picked up so I backed off after that and decided to just try to figure out how to race in the wet. I can't say that I really figured it out because I spun one more time that race (this time in turn two) but I'm going to count having only two spins as marked improvement over the numerous spins I had at Putnam Park a month ago. Oh yeah...half way through the race my other wiper decided to work - once. It flung across the windshield and lodged itself under the driver's door mirror. So then I had to shut the wipers off altogether. Lesson # 371: visibility is important. I started 17th and finished about the same I think.
Sunday was gorgeous but the car gave me all kinds of fits during qualifying. First it wouldn't start when it was time to grid. Finally I got it started and after three or four additional starts I made it to the grid where it died four or five more times while waiting to go out on the track. Then it died between pit exit and turn 1, and four more times that first lap. I brought it into the pits and hopped out and looked over everything and it all looked fine. So I kicked, tapped and spit on it and went back out and while it didn't run well, it did stop dying every turn. Now it was only stumbling coming out of the Carousel and dying while flat out in the kink and while under threshold braking going into 12. Fun.
I'm not sure what my lap times or final qualifying time were like but I'm guessing not good. However everyone else must have been having trouble too because I again qualified 17th.
I came in after qualifying and changed the fuel filter (which ended up looking fine), and after talking to Steve Colletti also swapped out the distributor. After installing the distributor the car wouldn't start so after some trouble shooting we figured out that I somehow installed the distributor 180º off, (even though it should be impossible because the teeth are offset...?) but without time to take it off and re-install Steve had the bright idea to just switch the plug wire order on the cap. Duh! So then it fired right up and off I went to the grid. My start wasn't as good today thanks to the Pinto in front of me but after a few laps I passed him and a few others. The car still bogged down exiting the Carousel but otherwise felt pretty good and resisted dying while I had my right foot planted. I didn't realize it but I made it up to 2nd in my class (unfortunately a few of those spots were because Jim and Jim dropped out) and decent way up in the overall pack. But... with a lap and a half to go I spun in the carousel and went into the tire wall.
I'm still unsure what I did wrong but I started to turn down to hit the apex and the car decided it didn't want to turn and instead started understeering up the track. I nearly made it but the driver's rear dropped off into the grass and took me on a magical mystery tour backwards and all the way around and up onto the tire wall. Banged up the front bumper and driver's side front fender and cut a brake line but otherwise I think it's OK. The tow truck pulled me off the wall and I managed to drive it in under its own power. I had enough laps in to be counted as an official finisher though, so now with these two races under my belt I have enough to trade in my novice permit for a regional license.
Afterwards I did more damage to the car though; thanks to a large dip where the trailer was parked I managed to the bottom the car out on the tie-down eyelet on the trailer and ripped a 8" gash in the passenger floor. Oh, and then damaged myself while strapping the car down by striking my head on the license plate holder that the wrecker had bent when dislodging me from the wall. Ugh. We did make it home without further incident though.
So it was a weekend full of ups and downs, some that could of been prevented, some that come with inexperience, and some that are just part of racing. Overall it was a good education though and I'm looking forward to Mid-Ohio in a few weeks.
I have a decent amount of video from both days up on YouTube, you can find them here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/placidchaos
