Texas High Def video of TSRS Late Model feature at THR, 5/21/2011
May 24, 2011
For your viewing entertainment, Duke O’Connor of Texas High Def has posted the Texas Super Racing Series Late Model feature at Thunderhill Raceway on May 21, 2011.
Austin Self doubles up with twin wins at Thunderhill Raceway
May 24, 2011
Austin Wayne Self came from the back to win Saturday night at Thunderhill Raceway - not once but twice. The 15 year-old claimed a piece of NASCAR history when he took the checkered flag in front of a rowdy Texas crowd in both the NASCAR A-Line Modified and the Texas Super Racing Series Late Model Divisions at the 3/8-mile, D-shaped oval in Kyle, Texas.
Austin Self in the TSRS Late Model Winner's Circle. Jeff Garvin photo.
Austin Self in the NASCAR A-Line Modified Winner's Circle. Jeff Garvin photo.
“The past four races have been very frustrating for our team and fans, and it feels so good to finally get that next big win and it’s almost unreal to think we just pulled off a double. My crew, family and fans deserve this win more than anything. The guys always work their butts off, to give me great cars, we qualify pole, lead a bunch of laps, our fans get excited and then we get taken out on a restart. That kind of thing just kills us all. But this week, by the grace of God, we came up big, really big. You can’t imagine how cool it feels to deliver a huge night for my fans, family and team,” said Self.
“Terry James (Crew Chief) and I had a little chat about the last four races and then he told the team that we were going to race hard but we had to stay away from some of the more aggressive drivers. So that’s what we tried to do and it worked out real well in the Modified race. But we had some problems in the Late Model Race.”
Self qualified off pole in the Pro Modified race after being edged out by Heath Stewart by 0.030 seconds with HE Naumann, Zac Hausler and Ryan Englehardt rounding out the top five. But a full inversion of the qualifying order put Self and Stewart at the rear of the field for the race start. Self and Stewart eventually made their way to the front by taking advantage of the double file restarts and the developing outside groove that just got better as the night went on. Self made it to the front first and the two drivers proceeded to check out on the field. Self kept his car on the bottom to protect the inside and forced Stewart to use the high line. Stewart could not make it work good enough to get a run on Self out of the turns. It was a dash for the finish with Self holding his position for the win.
“Heath (Stewart) is a great driver and he races clean so I wasn’t worried about getting clipped. But he has a great motor so I was a little worried that he might be able to drag race me out of 2 or 4 if he could get the upper groove working for him and keep me pinned down on exit. I give a lot of credit to Heath for keeping the race clean,” says Self.
Less than 10 minutes later, Self was climbing into the 07 TSRS Late Model and starting 3rd row outside. Self had to dive to the bottom of the track and lock it up to avoid contact when the front two cars on the front row collided on lap 1. Because he left the racing surface during the maneuver, race control would send him to the back.
Unfortunately, Self suffered damage to the front of his Late Model when he could not avoid another spin that involved the two cars in front of him. Self would eventually head to the pits to fix some of the damage and start in the back again.
Brian Moczygemba (79), Mike Reininger (03) and Austin Self (07) get tangled up as Jeff O'Neill (28) scoots by. Jeff Garvin photo.
With no hood, a damaged front end and a set of Goodyear Tires that had been locked up twice, Self began his amazing march to the front. He brought the crowd to a roar by choosing the outside line on every subsequent restart. That strategy paid off when he got by the 96 (Robert Barker) and then passed the 92 (Taylor Brandes) car for the lead. Self would go on to lead the balance of the race and take his second win of the night the hard way.
“The crew made all the right calls in this race. We knew our car had lost a little speed with the crash damage and we had some fast cars in front of us running the low line. We figured we couldn’t get under them so we would try to go around them. This has pretty much been a one groove track so I don’t think the 96 and the 92 thought we could get by on the outside,” says Self
Evidently neither did the crowd that went crazy when Austin pinned the 92 car down coming out of 4 and won the drag race down the front stretch.
Self would go on to thank all the right people and give all the glory to God in the ensuing post race interviews. He spent the rest of the night hanging out with his fans and giving out autographs.
NASCAR recently lowered the age limit for drivers in the Whelen All-American Series to fifteen. Austin’s fifteenth birthday was on March 5, which was opening day for the racing series. As a result of that change, Austin joined the Pro Modified class and earned his first win on May 21. By winning both the Pro Modified and Late Model class, Self becomes the first 15-year-old NASCAR driver to win two premiere Divisions on the same night.
About Austin Wayne Self
Austin Wayne Self is a 15-year-old NASCAR driver racing in both the Pro Modified and Late Model Divisions of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series at Thunderhill Raceway in Kyle, Texas. Self is also an international Karting champion, having competed since age 4, and is currently KartSport teammates with Sprint Cup driver A.J. Allmendinger. Self’s career goal is to race NASCAR Sprint Cup and do one-off IndyCar races at the Indianapolis 500. Learn more at http://www.austinwayneself.com
by Terri Hartley
Photos by Jeff Garvin
Texas High Def video of the NASCAR A-Line Super Stock feature at THR, 5/21/2011
May 23, 2011
Duke O’Connor video-taped the NASCAR A-Line Super Stock event at Thunderhill Raceway this past Saturday, May 21, 2011.
Tracy Tschoerner took the win, but she had to work for it.
Umscheid Race Services Live, Interactive Updates from Thunderhill Raceway, 5/21/2011
May 18, 2011
Thanks to Umscheid Race Services, I will be at Thunderhill Raceway this Saturday, May 21, to bring you lap-by-lap coverage of all the NASCAR sanctioned stock car racing action from the famed, 3/8-mile, d-shaped oval in Kyle, Texas.
The new “second grove” was just beginning to come in when it got “oiled down” when an engine blew right on top of the top lane in turn one and through the middle of that turn. Wouldn’t surprise me if more teams try the upper groove this weekend.
I invite your comments and questions, but there will be a delay in seeing your post because I have to approve all posts before they become visible to our viewers.
I should be firing up the CoverItLive blogging software around 5:00 p.m. To part of the Umscheid Race Services updates, click the icon below.
Nick
Texas HighDef video of the Thunder Stock main event at THR, 5/7/2011
May 16, 2011
Texas HighDef’s Duke O’Connor videoed the Thunder Stock main event at Thunderhill Raceway on Saturday, May 7, 2011, and we present it here in it’s entirety.
Joey Tschoerner (#14) won the race after a textbook pass of Nick Cole (#5). Aaron Brungot (#50) finished a strong third running with an engine that was having internal oiling problems and “iffy” to say the least. Although Duke was filming another portion of the track when Hunter Montgomery (#15) hung a throttle and slammed the concrete, the aftermath is clearly visible.
Enjoy.
New Thunderhill Raceway promo video by Texas High Def
May 12, 2011
Duke O’Connor does some mighty fine work. Here is his latest racing video which I am sure you will enjoy.
Nick
Umscheid Race Services Live Interactive Updates from Thunderhill Raceway, 5/7/2011
May 6, 2011
Umscheid Race Services will be bringing you live, interactive updates from Thunderhill Raceway this Saturday, May 7, 2011.
THR has coated the high groove with VP Lane Choice 7 Track Adhesive which should make for some very competitive racing on a track surface that has traditionally been viewed as a “one groove track.”
The only folks who should be joining me as I bring you lap-by-lap coverage are those who absolutely can not make it out to THR. If you are in the Middle East, in the hospital, going to your prom, etc., well, OK. But the rest will not want to miss this one in person.
Your comments and questions are always welcome, but remember that I have to approve all posts, so there may be a delay in seeing your post since I might be pretty busy at the time.
I will be firing up the CoverItLive interactive software around 5:00 P.M. To get started, just click on the icon below.
“Umscheid Race Services Live Interactive Updates” from Thunderhill Raceway, 4/23/2011
April 23, 2011
First, we welcome Umscheid Race Services as the sponsor for this and future Live Interactive Updates. JC Umschied and his team of professionals are well respected in Texas and well beyond our borders.
Second, I had a hard drive failure this past week and just got the laptop up and running early this morning. If all goes well I will be bringing you the Umscheid Race Services Live Interactive Updates from Thunderhill Raceway this evening, 4/23/2011, starting around 5:30 PM.
As usual, you are welcome to ask questions and make comments during the evening, but there will be a delay before your post is actually posted for all to see since I have to approve all posts - sometimes I’m just too busy reporting the races to get to the list of comments, so please be patient if they don’t show up right away.
To get started, click the icon below.
Live Interactive Updates from Thunderhill Raceway, 4/2/2011
April 1, 2011
Nick Holt will be bringing you live, interactive updates from Thunderhill Raceway with a launch time projected for 6 PM on Saturday, 4/2/2011.
I will try my best to describe the lap-by-lap racing action as we go through the entire NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racing program at the 3/8-mile, paved, D-shaped oval located in Kyle, Texas.
You will be able to ask questions and make comments during the podcast, but there will be a delay between the time you post and the time it actually shows up in the dialogue box.
Nothing ever takes the place of being at the track in person, but if you absolutely can’t make it out, join me for the updates. To get started, click below.
Nick
Thunderhill Raceway Thunder Stock feature event, 3/5/2011
March 10, 2011
Duke O’Connor and Texas High Def were at Thunderhill Raceway last weekend and caught all the action in the Thunder Stock feature. Some good action in this one.
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