Sarge Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 On Aug 28th I ran the #25 Thunder Stock in the heat races at Texas Thunder Speedway, the 1/4 mile semi high banked dirt track in Killeen, Texas. It is the track that I co-announce at on Saturdays. Anyway, the track was pretty “sloppy” as they dumped the normal amount of water on it. By normal we are talking enough to make a tacky track in the sunny 100 plus degree, high humidity weather we usually have in Aug. What we got, weather wise, was cloudy, 80's and threatening rain. So the track was a swamp. My heat was the 3rd of the night on the track. I started 6th out to 7 cars and finished 6th. The car has had a major change to it in the year in between my drives. It now has a big thumping 383 in it. Lots of power. Great big honking gobs of it. Shed loads. Or to put it another way, more power than a no talent hack like me could safely handle in those conditions. I never spun, but I did get into the P6 car driven by Patti Hamlin. Nothing serious, just body slammed her in turn 2. Anyway, I was getting lots of advice from team mate and I-Stock driver “Cruisin” Chris Moore. He said I needed more throttle, less brake. I was left foot braking it and in retro spec that was a big mistake, as it was making the car push like a snow plow. It is a 1966 Chevy Caprice, a huge ole boat. It has to be well over 3500 pounds BEFORE I get into it. Anyway, I didn’t get to run the feature in the car that night as the threatening sky’s delivered on their promise and the features were rained out. So I had to wait and see if they would be able to get the car out to the track for the make up race. They did and I drove it last night. I started 17th out of 19 cars in the feature. Track conditions were good. Tacky and fairly smooth, not bad for the 9th race of the night (regular features first, then make ups). I was on the inside row on the start. One of the knocks against me last year was that I didn’t “suck up” to the car in front of me on the starts or restarts. It looked like to me that I was right on their bumpers, but the pictures showed that I was a car length away. So this time I concentrated on being inches away from the bumper of the #8 car driven by Eric Ordiorne (O-DE-ON). The green came out as I was in turn 3 and I hammered it down! We are racing! I spent the first 6 or so laps trapped on the bottom. The normal fast line at Texas Thunder is at the very top of the track, as there is a lip that develops in the turns. However, I couldn’t get up there, as I had cars to my outside. However, I was making some ground up using the bottom, which I had to myself. So it wasn’t terrible where I was. I was NOT left foot breaking. I was trail braking with my right foot, just using enough brake to set the nose and then once it turned, squeezing back onto the power. About 6 or 7 laps into the race a caution came out for the spun car of #44 Jeff Medlock. He was in the pack in front of me up high. I saw the dust and then the car spinning up high coming out of turn 4. I just juked it a bit lower coming out of 4 myself and got safely by. I restarted in about 11th place. I had been trying to get by the #39 car that was smoking. It was hard to follow him down the straights cause it was hard to see and breath. Anyway, on the restart, I was on the outside. We use double file restarts at TTS. Leader in a row by himself, and the rest two by two behind, with 2nd on the inside, 3rd on the high side. I thought that this was my chance, as I would finally be on the fast high side. The green came back out on the back straight. Once the field gets the one to go, and the pack gets on the back straight the flag man turns out the lights and the leader starts the race whenever he wants to. So you have to be on your toes. I ran it into turn 3 for the first time up high and just about spun it out. It handled nothing like the last time I drove it up top. I managed to save it without piling up anyone behind me, or losing to much ground. In fact I got by the #39 and went roaring into turn one. The car owner told me that I could go into the corners as fast as anyone, just follow them on in and she would stick. Well, he lied. I just about lost it again. Even my son in the tower saw that I just about lost it up there in turn one. So I went back to the bottom. While the top is faster, I didn’t want to risk spinning out. No one had passed me by this point, and I was passing cars on the low side, so I said, “screw the top, I am staying down here” I ran about in the same place for a couple of laps when another caution came out. A bumper came off a car in the pack ahead of me. I saw it sail up into the air and land on the front straight wall just past the flag stand. It then fell off as I was going by it and it landed on the track. But I was well to the inside and there were no problems for me. It did scare the heck out of my son, who lost sight of it just as I was going by and thought I had hit it. I restarted 10th, on the inside. I had my team mate, the #20 of Trevor Sparkman, who was restarting 6th, with a car in between us, both of us on the low side. On the green flag on the back straight I managed to get around the car in front of me by the front straight. I had my team mate about a car length ahead of me as we barreled into turn one on the low side. I was thinking, “come on Trevor, show me how hard we can toss it into the turn down low”. I was the only car in my field of view that was running the bottom consistently. Well Trevor goes into turn one with me following a car length back.. I drove it in there as hard as I had been all night, expecting the much more experienced (defending Thunder Stock champion) to pull away. Well, he didn’t. He all but parked it in turn one! Oh #%$^, please Lord, don’t let me take him out. I was all sorts of busy trying to stay off his car. I don’t know how I did in the end, but I didn’t touch him. The car owner, Mike Lowery said even he closed his eyes and had started cursing me. With that move into turn one, I had to been in 6th place. But I lost a bunch of momentum trying not to clobber my team mate. In the end, I finished 8th. I had to back off one more time to keep from hitting Trevor, as he got turned by another. Though he gathered it back and went on, I got a bit sideways and had to slow down and gather it up That let the points leader get back by me, and then I just got nipped at the line by the #85 car. Wow, what an experience. I had to drive my ass off last night. I couldn’t handle it up high so I took it to the bottom. Had to really concentrate to hit the turns just right, especially with a car to the high side. Plus with all that power on the hard skinny tires it was tricky to put the power down. I was completely whipped getting out of the car. Only 15 laps, 3.75 miles of racing and I was worn completely out. I am absolutely totally proud of what I did in that car. Only time I got passed all night was when I was trying not to run over my team mate. I passed 9 cars and had 11 behind me at the finish. 9 cars in 15 laps with only 2 cautions After the race I talked with Trevor and told him I almost ran him over in turn one the restart. He said “I took it as fast as possible”. I told him that I could get into there way harder and he just about payed the price. My son said that after I passed guys they were going to the bottom. I, of course, could not see them as there is not mirrors allowed. But he said just about every car I passed then moved to the bottom. I asked him if anyone was catching me back there and he said “nope, they couldn’t hang down there”. I now have a grand total of 46 laps of racing experience in a real race car. I have a 6th and a 8th place feature finishes. I am more proud of the 8th, as I passed more cars and beat more cars. Our infield steward drove the car on Aug 21st, and finished 7th in it. And he has many many laps in race cars at that track.. In fact he was the Super Stock champion back in the early 90's. So I will take my 8th all day long and twice on Sunday! I would like to thank the following people. Gary E. He loaned me his brand new three layer simpson fire suit, gloves and neck brace. Thanks man, I felt completely safe in your gear. Mike Lowery. He builds a great car, and like an idiot, lets me drive it once a year. Man he is the greatest! “Crusing” Chris Moore and Trevor Sparkman, for all the advice and tips. The crew guys. I didn’t get all of their names, but thanks for all the help getting me in and out of the car. Pat Wilson, promotor and Big Joe Lombardi, announcer of Texas Thunder Speedway for letting play while I was supposed to be working. Sponsors are Solis Trucking. If I had anything that needed hauling, Solis Trucking is who I would be calling! Lee’s Paint and Body Mr. Cool Radiator Computer Age Automotive I can’t wait to do it again next year! Bill “Sarge” Masom Hardest working and fastest race announcer in Texas! Have microphone and three layer driving suit, will travel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAPA Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Way to go SARGE !!!!!!!! I bet you had a BLAST !!! Did you have your microphone in the car with you? PAPA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Well I hope he didn't take that mic with him. He might have been saying some words that we should'nt hear over the PA. LOL Sounds like you had a blast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebelracewriter Posted September 14, 2004 Report Share Posted September 14, 2004 One of these days.......you and me bud Most fun you can have with your clothes on, huh!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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