This weekend at the Winchester 400 was looking o be one of the team’s best performances of the year. After being one of the fastest cars all through practice and qualifying second we all had very high hopes for the race. At the initial start I fell into second behind the pole sitter and was content to follow him until a perfect opportunity came to pass him. The opportunity never came and different pit strategies were the only thing that shuffled me around for the first part of the race.
Just being able to stay on the track and not being involved in a crash was my main focus for about the first 300 laps and then actually starting o race was my plan going into the event. His plan for the most part worked out great and I had almost no damage coming into the final 100 laps. Contact was made coming off turn four with another car about half way through the race which caused minor damage to the right rear quarter panel and bumper, but nothing too serious and I was able to continue with no problems.
Every time the different pit stop strategies had cycled through I was in the top five and had one of the best cars throughout the race. I think the only other two cars that might have given us a run for our money at the end were the 51 and 35 of Kyle Busch and David Stremme. I think we could have been even a little better than they were during the final laps because we had two more left side tires to put on and no one else had fresh tires to use.
For the final restart I was in the third position right behind Busch and thought I had a very good chance to get around him and be in the top two once again. I looked to the inside of the 51 a few times but didn’t feel that I was in a spot to get around him cleanly and moved to his rear bumper. On lap 345 it all fell apart when my left a-frame broke and I hit the wall coming in to turn one, which also caused my right front tire to come off the wheel. I was able to limp around into the pits where the tire was replaced and I went back out trying to keep my position on the lead lap. When I returned to the pits it was discovered that the a-frame was broken right at the weld to the ball joint and our hopes for winning the biggest race of my career were over.
All in all it was a great and very promising run for the number 94 BEDD ford. I think we were the only team that could have given the Sprint Cup stars something to deal with at the end and definitely got their attention! I have to thank Rick Turner for a great car and Bill and Cindy Elliott for giving me the opportunity to be a part of their great program.
CRA Super Series
Clermont, IN
9/20/08
My first visit to ORP (O’Rielly Raceway Park) in Clermont, Indiana will definitely not soon be forgotten. After Friday night practice the whole team was feeling pretty good about the weekend ad thought we had a chance and the podium, but unfortunately his was a false sense of security and we were not as good off as we hoped. We were still fast in the opening rounds of practice on Saturday, coming in sixth in one session, but our speed would not stay with us long. As the other competitors made changes and gains, we were unable to gain any significant time on the track.
When qualifying rolled around we were only several tenths off the pace, but he field was very tight and we ended up starting in the eleventh position. On both laps the car was just way too tight and I was unable to pick up the throttle when I needed to.
As soon as the green flag flew we started falling back and by lap five I was running in the sixteenth or seventeenth position. This was fue to the tire pressures being low and the car was even more tight than in qualifying. As soon as the pressures came up I started moving forward and was actually gaining on the leaders when I was by myself and able to run the line I preferred. But when I got into traffic, the car was once again tight thru the corners and also loose off. I eventually made it back up to tenth when everything went from bad to worse. I was battling with the ninth place car for almost twenty laps but was never able to successfully get around him. A couple times I almost had him but was forced back behind him by lap traffic or my car’s poor handling. Eventually one of us had to give, and unfortunately it was me. Coming off turn too I got loose and barely tapped the car to my outside sending me into a spin and headed for the outside wall. In an effort to keep from backing into the outside wall I gave the car some throttle. This plan would have worked, except another car was right in front of me when I did this and we barely skimmed each other and I was then sent into a spin in the other direction. This caused me to back into the inside wall and then the front end slapped around and also damaged the front of the car. The damage to the rear of the car was significant to require my first rear clip and also most of the front suspension and bodywork was damaged.
Heart Breaker – Last night at Five Flags Speedway was one of the most disappointing races of my late model career. After qualifying on pole, leading the opening laps and then leading again later in the race with by far the best car on the track, I was collected in a wreck caused by another competitor with only five laps to go running third.
After a fairly frustrating practice on Friday no one on the team, or even anywhere in the pits, thought we were going to get the pole. We weren’t going to be that bad off; we just weren’t he fastest car on the track. But everyone was surprised when the time showed up and we were six tenths faster than I ran in practice! The time was almost not good enough when the next car went out and ran just one one-hundredth slower than I did. This was only my second pole position, but the first that I got to keep, as my first was ruined when the race got canceled because of rain.
The second the race started I knew it was going to be good. The car was way better than it ever was in practice and I was able to set the car on cruise control and save my tires while still holding my position. The second place qualifier got around me on lap nine, which was fine with me since I knew he was already running a lot harder than me and I would be able to reel him back in as the race went on. Sure enough by lap fifty I was already back on his bumper and soon after that I easily went around him and re-took the lead. The lead was short lived when the caution came out only five laps after I took it and everyone came in the pits for tires. Our pit stop was a little slow because as soon as both tires were put on, all the lug nuts fell off and the tire changers were left with no way to put the tires on and had to find all of the loose lug nuts. This caused us to loose seven spots in the pits and we restarted eighth. Still with thirty five laps to go I knew I would be able to race my way back up to the front and was not all that worried about the loss of track position. I quickly moved back into the top five and when the leader spun with nine laps to go I inherited the third spot for my final restart of the race. Three laps after the race restarted the guy running second tried to take the lead and as soon as he looked under the leader he got loose and lost it getting into the corner. When he came around he got into the leader which caused him to start spinning the other way and get into me. In his efforts to save his car he ended up driving me into the wall with the right front and my car was too damaged to finish the race. After one of the best races I’ve ever had, it was all over just short of the finish due to another competitor losing control of his car and crashing into me.
We started this weekend just like every other at South Alabama Speedway, taking the trip down a day early so we could get in a few extra hours of practice Friday night before the race. Luckily we did this because every car that raced on Saturday was also there Friday night practicing. Practice was definitely frustrating because just like every other time we have been to Opp, we just cannot figure out how to get the car hooked up on sticker tires! As soon as everyone else starts to fall off a little bit were fine, but it’s just during qualifying and the opening laps of the race that we get killed. Due to this problem we once again had a rather disappointing qualifying run and ended up eight out of eleven cars. Even though we started at the back of he pack, it not quite as bad as it sounds, as every car there is a front-runner wherever they go. As soon as the race was underway, it was obvious to me that his was going to be a long race. Since I was starting in the back, but had a good car on longer runs I knew I had to put into practice everything I have been taught about short track racing. I think this was one of the most diverse races of the season. I would have to go from driving defensively to pushing as hard as I could to pass someone to just making laps and everything in between in the course of five laps.
The whole night we were slowly moving forward even though I made contact with some other competitors a few times and was moved to the back of the field once by the officials. I ended up finishing fourth which was kind of a bitter sweet finish because I feel like if I had been able to get around all of my competitors that I was trying to pass cleanly with no contact I could have finished second.
All in all I think this race was very beneficial to me and I learned as much as I ever have during one race. I once again have to thank everyone on the team at the track and at the shop, without all of them there is no way that any of this would be possible.
Blizzard Series Round 3
As soon as we showed up at Five Flags Speedway on Thursday afternoon it was obvious that this was going to be a pretty big race with many good cars. Even though it was just a Thursday practice session, there was already about fifteen or twenty cars present. We were good through Thursday practice, but not great and continually made minor changes to improve the car and by the end of the night I thought we had a pretty good chance at winning the race on Friday. By the time the start of practice on Friday rolled around, it was as hot as it has been all year and the track was slick! I think this helped even out the field and really show what cars were going to be fast in the race and what cars just were relying on fresh tires and good track conditions to post a good time. Knowing how quickly most of the cars there would fall off, even just after a handful of laps gave me even more confidence and I really thought we had a chance for the first win of the season! By the time I had to go out to qualify I knew that there were already some fast times on the board and it would not be easy to start up front. With the pole time set at 17.43, faster than I had ever run at five flags before, I knew it would be tough, but I also knew I could get the pole! Unfortunately after my two timed qualifying laps I was just shy of the fast time by only one one hundredth of a second. Although this was a great lap, it was frustrating being so close to getting my first pole but still not achieving that milestone. As soon as we rolled through tech the whole mood of the night changed when the officials found the right rear quarter panel to be one quarter inch too high and made us start in the rear of the field for the feature race. After posting the second fastest time of the night, its pretty frustrating to have to start dead last, to say the least! I wanted to save my tires as much as I could during the race, so during the first green flag run I just took it easy and only passed cars when the opportunity arose and didn’t force anything. This proved to be a very good decision when after twenty or thirty laps everyone was going way slower and I was still able to hold a fairly steady pace. On lap forty nine we pitted and took on two new right side tires. About five laps after this though a wreck happened right in front of me and as the caution flew another competitor got into the back of me and caused me to have to restart towards the back of the field in fourteenth. With only about forty laps to go it was going to be hard to move back up front, but the #94 ford fusion was definitely capable of getting there! At the end of the race I was running ninth right behind 2005 Snowball Derby Champion, Eddie Mercer and felt after all that had happened to the team so far that weekend, it was a solid finish which helped with the overall goal of winning the Blizzard Series Championship.
Round three of the Thursday Thunder Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway definitely had its ups and downs. After hot laps it was obvious the number 91 semi pro car needed some improvements to be competitive and a front running car. In between hot laps and the heat race we made some changes that were going to hopefully fix the loose condition coming off the corners. Once we had made the changes to the car I had to draw for my starting position in the heat races and got a number eight! This put me starting outside pole for the second heat. As soon as the race began I knew that the changes we made were not what was needed and I steadily moved backwards. At the end of the eight lap race I was in the eighth position and had to start the main in nineteenth. I knew I was not in a position to win the race so when the green flag dropped I just hung back and let everyone else damage their cars while I got some great track time and learned a lot about how the legends cars race and drive around the tight ovals. I once again have to thank everyone that helped me have another successful night at the race track; Randy Poole, Bill and Cindy Elliott and Jim Barfield all made it possible for me to be able to keep the car at the track and without them none of this would have been possible!
After a week away from the racetrack I was ready to get back in the drivers seat! Even though it wasn’t my super late model car I would be strapping into this week, I was just as eager to get to the racetrack. My first experience in a legends car was definitely one to remember. The night started off with a five lap practice session where I just wanted to get comfortable in the car and familiar with the track, which was like nothing I had driven before. I wasn’t too slow and actually passed some cars during these first laps which helped me gain confidence for the heat race. I drew a thirty out-of forty for my starting position in the second heat race. After a few laps in the race I was running third right behind the leaders. When the first and second place racers spun I was able to take advantage of their mistakes and moved into the pole position. With just a few laps remaining in this race, I was really excited about my position and thought I had a chance to win my first ever legends race! Unfortunately luck was not on my side and right as the green flag flew, so did my steering wheel! Apparently I hadn’t securely fastened the wheel to the steering column and right as I hit the gas, the steering wheel came off and I had no control of where the car would go. As the car veered to the left all the other drivers had to scatter in order to avoid me. Unfortunately another competitor had no where to go as I cut in front of him and made contact with my rear bumper spinning me out and making me restart in the rear of the field. I was pretty disappointed with my mistakes and ended up finishing sixth in my heat, which put me in the eighteenth starting position for the main event. Once the green flag flew for the A-main it was twenty green flag laps for my first legends cars race where I finished nineteenth. As soon as I pulled off the track from the feature race I had to line right back up for the promoters choice race that I was selected to race in. I started third and quickly took the lead coming off of turn two. After this I ran away with the lead and recorded my first win of the 2008 season and my first ever legends car win in only my second day to sit in a legends car! I have to thank everyone who helped me with these accomplishments especially Bill and Cindy Elliott for providing me with the number 91 semi-pro legends car and a great night!
