Current championship point standings

It's just past mid Season and thought I'd go ahead and post the top ten in the chase for the championship. We have had a total of 30 different cars take the green flag this year and with the big 5/8s race and the always highly attended fair race yet to come, that number should grow!

Car# Name             Total Points    Behind Leader

99 Scott LaCross         654                     0

12 Kris Harriss             504                   -150

10 Steve Green            461                   -193

64 Jon Roberts            448                   -206

00 Chuck Richard       338                   -316

07 Andrew Schukar      327                  -327

21 Dale Creager           323                  -331

65 Bobby DeYoung      282                   -372

2 Michael Fritz              258                   -396

16 Travis Woodward    192                   -462

With 6 races to go, it's still anyone's game. Stay tuned for more updates and don't forget that we are racing on the big 5/8 mile oval this weekend! 

A night of Firsts, but not the most important one...

Saturday night was interesting on a few levels...

First off, the track had all the mini stocks pit together in hopes that it would be easier to pack in all the cars that would be there...

Please note the fine artwork of Carmel, letting you know where we are!

This shot was taken from up high and you can see us all parked in one little spot. This actually had a pretty positive result. Everyone who was there racing kind of hung out, shared food, helped on each other's cars and pretty much had a great time. It was a pretty happy day in the pits!

On to the racing, which featured a couple of firsts this year for us... We Qualified on the pole for the first time this year!! It's been a goal to get that done and finally we can check it off the list.

Saturday featured a trophy dash, which we ended up finishing 2nd in. The car was not handling very well and we just couldn't find a way around the winner and 2nd fast qualifier, the 65 of Bobby DeYoung. Mikey Fritz finished 3rd and Mark Creager was 4th.

In our heat race, we started in the back row as the fast qualifier. Coming out of turn 2 on the first lap, Scott saw an opening between Mikey and Bobby and took a run between them. Unfortunately, the hole closed up and Scott locked up the brakes trying to get out of the spot, but it just wasn't enough as he and Mikey made slight contact, which spun him into Bobby and resulted in both of them unable to continue. Fortunately both were able to make quick repairs and return for the main event. After the restart, the car still wasn't very good and we again finished 2nd, with John "Fozzy" Roberts taking the win and Mark Creager finishing 3rd.

The Main event saw us again starting in the back and at the drop of the green, it was apparent that everyone was feeling pretty racy. We had made a few changes to the car and she was handling much better and eventually we found ourselves duking it out with Fozzy for 3rd place by mid race. Mikey and Andrew Schukar and broken away from the pack and were having a heck of a battle for the #1 spot about a straightaway ahead of Scott and Fozzy's race. After about 7 laps of spirited racing, Scott was able to get past Fozzy and set sail after the leaders. He was running them down and as they crossed the line with 2 laps to go, he was within about 6 car lengths as Andrew and Mikey battled side by side for the lead. Coming out of turn 2, they made a little contact and Mikey went into a sideways slide across the track. (We learned after the race that his steering rack had come loose and he had been battling it all race. It finally broke when the contact was made.) Scott was able to slip past (just barely!) and the caution came out.

The caution set things up for a green/white/checker finish and when the restart cone came out Andrew had the pole, Scott was on the outside of him, Fozzy and Chuck Richard made up the 2nd row. When they came out of turn 4 to take the green, Fozzy made a banzai move to the bottom and they went into turn 1 three wide. Scott slid back a little as he was on the outside and we all know how badly that can turn out! When they got the white flag, they were again 3 wide and again, Scott had to back out as he was the outside car. Fozzy and Andrew were trading paint and pushing hard, each wanting the win in the worst way. When the checkers flew, it was Andrew who was able to come out on top, Fozzy 2nd, Scott 3rd, Chuck 4th and Molly Helmuth in 5th.

This brings us to the 2nd first of the night... our 3rd place finish was the first time all season we have finished outside the top 2. But, we did feel that we had a car capable of winning, the changes we made were the right ones and the car went back in the trailer in once piece, which is always a good thing!

One more thing I'd like to bring up before the end of today's blog update. We, all the men who drive and work on these cars, would like to give a fantastic and enthusiastic THANK YOU to the lovely ladies of SH. Britt, Carmel, Fatima, Kim, Lisa, Wendi... You feed us, cheer for us, bandage us up, kick us in the butt when we need it, make us laugh when we are getting stressed out, keep us focused when we lose it. You all kick butt!!!

The manly men of Evergreen enjoying another great spread!

Next race is July 9th and we will be racing on the big 5/8 mile track! You're not going to want to miss it! Also,  coming next week will be the mid-season update blog post.

See you at the track!

Wow... An amazing end to a very odd night

What a strange night...

The day started out pretty much how most race days do. We got to the track and unloaded, teched the car in and were able to actually make both practice sessions! We were in the 3rd qualifying group and as we readied to hit the track, a car in the 2nd group lost an oil line (or something of that nature) and dropped a significant amount of fluid on the track. After a lengthy cleanup, our group was able to do our session, but the surface just wasn't very good and we ended up with the 3rd fast time. Another result of this was the track having to cut the heat races from the program, which was disappointing as we had a few changes we wanted to try out for the main event. One good thing to come from it though, was I got to have some of Carmel Creager's dynamite enchilada casserole! Mmm, mmm good!

Oh, back to racing... lol

So the night started off with a bang when during the Super Figure 8 race, a fight broke out on the track!

Ahhh, old time F8 racing makes a comeback!

After that, who would think things could get any crazier? The Mini Stock main was 30 laps this week and for the first time in a few weeks, we got the whole race in. At the drop of the green, it was obvious that everyone was feeling racy and for 15 laps, we scratched out way forward with Steve Green right behind us. The 12 car was able to break free of traffic and made it to the front and by the time the 99-10 train made it to open track in 2nd and 3rd, he had stretched out to a decent lead. But that was short lived as by lap 20, Scott and Steve had caught up to him and for the next 8 laps, the 3 points leaders ran nose to tail, all three cars battling for the top spot.

With 3 to go, Steve got a good run out of 4 and tapped Scott's rear bumper, getting him a little loose, but Scott was able to save it and continued on battling for the 2nd spot side by side until Steve got a better run out of turn 2 and we slipped in behind him. The 3 cars kept battling for the number one spot, 12 still holding onto the lead, but Steve and Scott pressuring him every inch of the 3/8 mile track. Scott had a great run out of turn 4 coming to take the white flag and was able to get under Steve going into turn one. The 12 slid up just a touch entering turn 2 and Scott attempted to get under him, but he slammed the door and Scott had to hit the brakes to avoid contact. Steve was able to get to the outside of the 12 coming out of the turn and they traded paint all the way down the backstretch as Scott laid back a little, trying to pick a spot to make a run. In turn 4, the 12 and Steve got together once again, sending Steve hard into the outside wall . Scott saw this and made his move, darting low and charging past the 12 car to take the win.

On victory stage, Scott was quick to point out that patience was what enabled us to get the victory this night. Sometimes in racing, it's all about being in the right spot at the right time. We didn't have the best car, but Saturday night, we were able to be in that spot at the right time.

Eddie, Scott and Bill enjoying the win

On a good note, Steve is pretty sore, but thankfully was not seriously injured in the crash. Kudos go out to the EMT crew at Evergreen Speedway for making sure he was ok immediately after the crash.

The Mini Stocks are off this weekend, but Team LaCross isn't as we prepare to make a run at Hornet enduro and possibly Chumpcar glory Saturday afternoon at the speedway with our JZ Motorsports teammates. We also want to thank our sponsors, TNT Mechanical, JZ Motorsports, Monroe MotorWerkes, Millennium Motors, Joes Racing Products, Deyoung Inc., and a special thanks this week to Jeff Kessler of Foss Motorsports for the rockin red paint work on the new quarter panel, door skin and side skirt and of course, you, our fans. It was great to hear all of your cheers and congratulations as I walked down from the spotters area on Saturday night. We love you guys!

Next race is June 25th, which is the night of the Rory Price Memorial race, with the NSRA winged sprint cars and Super Late models on the 5/8s, Mini Stocks on the 3/8s and Cub Scouts of America Hornets.

See you at the races!

Another night, another crazy finish!

Wow... This season has been something else. This week we were scheduled for a 50 lap main event, so we were pretty jazzed up as these long races are always pretty good to us. The car was all set and ready to go Saturday morning, but we stayed up a little late Friday night standing around the shop and chatting with friends that had stopped by, so we got to the track about 1/2 hour later than we anticipated. Normally, this would not be a big deal as we have an assigned pit stall, but for the next few weeks, the 5/8 track is in use and our pit stalls are not accessible.

The lower pit area was a madhouse as there were darn near 100 cars competing in the various classes. We ended up pitted almost exactly where we had spent the previous 2 years, right by the pit entrance on the backstretch, which is a heck of a walk, especially when you are pushing a 2500lb car... but more on that later.

We ran a decent practice and felt like the car was pretty good for qualifying. Unfortunately, we had our worst qualifying run of the season and found ourselves managing the 4th spot. Once we found this out, Scott decided he needed to have a little talk with the car...

The Racecar whisperer

The Racecar whispers back!

Since there were quite a few events, we did not have heat races. The first late model main event went out and our JZ Motorpsorts Teammate Jeff Knight was moving forward quickly when he was tapped going into turn 3 and backed the car into the fence pretty hard. He drove the car back to the pits and we all sprang into action, JZ directing the combined 70 and 99 teams to make repairs. We almost had it fixed when the race ended, but it was close enough so that Scott and I could head back to our pits and get lined up for our main event while the 70 crew finished repairs to the car so they could run the 2nd of their 2 scheduled races that night.

As we hit the track for our race, the officials notified me that our transponder was not working. The transponder is a little yellow box that, when passing over a buried wire in the track, counts your laps and the lap times. They sent us back to the pits and replaced it with a fresh one and sent us back out to our grid position, which was about 14th position. When the green dropped, Scott took off towards the front but a problem  was brewing deep within the car's electrical system. You see, they always stop us on the front stretch for driver introductions. When Scott went to fire the car up, he noticed that it was very lazy, which as many of you can figure, means the battery is low. Now, in your street car, this is a minor inconvenience, as once the car is running, the alternator charges the battery and runs the computer, fans, lights, etc. In our racecar, we do not run an alternator because it robs horsepower from the motor.

As the race went on, there were several lengthy cautions, during which the car started to get hot. Scott had to turn on the cooling fan, which used more battery power. making the car weaker and weaker. We had worked  our way up to 2nd place and it looked like we might have something for the leader dangit! With 10 laps to go, we got our final restart of the night and by this time, we were thinking there was no way we were going to be able to hang on till the end. Scott was able to get a good restart though and we were able to challenge for the lead for a few laps before he had to start running about half throttle to nurse the remaining electricity. 4 laps to go and Scott came on the radio to tell me that he wasn't sure there was anything left in them to give. I told him to rub the car, kiss it, talk dirty to it, whatever it took to will that old girl to finish this race.

Well, whatever he said, it worked, because we held onto a 5 car length lead over the 3rd place car until 1 lap to go, when traffic slowed us enough and make it REALLY close as Steve Green was able to close right up to our bumper, but we were able to cross the finish line just ahead of him to take 2nd place. 1 more lap and I think we might have looked just like Dale Jr. at Charlotte the next day, running out of gas (or electricity in our case) in the last corner and getting passed by a half dozen cars! The top 3 in the end had Jon "Fozzy" Roberts taking the victory, we were second and Steve Green in third.

As I arrived in Tech, Scott was sitting in the car smiling as he knew that we had dodged a HUGE bullet. However, I think he was smiling for another reason, which I will now show you a picture to explain...

Where in the world is a push truck when you need one???

Yup... that is Me and Bill, pushing the car back to our pits, about oh, a 1/8th of a mile. The car wouldn't even turn over! We finally got it back and put it on the battery charger so Scott could go out later and receive his trophy. So, on the agenda for this week: Replace 2 batteries, possibly add alternator! Next race is June 11th, so make sure you plan on being there as we continue our season!

What can I say... I've always been a sucker for redheads! :-)

See ya at the track!

A race for the ages

Wow... every once in a while, you get to witness something pretty special happen at a race track. Saturday night was one of those times.

Eddie and JZ pushing the car to tech before Qualifying

So we arrive at the track fashionably late as usual (lol) and get the car out for a quick practice session. The skies threatened all day long, so we kept a close eye out for raindrops as we made adjustments during the course of the day. As qualifying approached, it looked as though the rain would stay away, so we put our heads together and adjusted a few items on the car, finishing up just as the officials swung by to tell us to hit the scales before qualifying.

Our qualifying group featured a number of the weekly top qualifying cars. We were able to run a 19.292 second lap, which landed us the 2nd position. We were somewhat disappointed until we saw that the pole lap time was 19.282 seconds. 1 hundredth of a second... to put that in perspective, the blink of the human eye takes 3 to 4 TENTHS of a second... This marks the 3rd week in a row that we qualified 2nd in time measured in hundredths of a second.

Our qualifying effort garnered us the 6th starting position in the "A" heat race which had the top 7 qualifiers, starting inverted. We were unable to improve upon the starting spot however, as for the majority of the race, positions 2, 3, 4 & 5 were running side by side in front of us battling for those spots. Scott put forth a valiant effort to gain positions but in the end, we settled for the 6th spot, knowing that we had a very fast car and the main was coming soon.

Pre-race strategy session

The main event found us starting deep in the field due to the 2 second invert. Only 4 cars of the 20 who started the main were outside this time, so we lined up on the inside of row 8, 15th on the grid. Scott's years of experience came into play almost immediately as he started making moves towards the front. He also skillfully avoided 2 major pile ups that happened directly in front of him in the opening laps with quick reactions that veteran drivers just know how to instinctively make. Little did we all know that this was nothing compared to what was to happen next. We had gone back to racing with only 2 official laps in the books when the third and final caution of the night came out. Mikey Fritz and Scott were dueling for position tearing down the back stretch, Mike on the high side, Scott on the low. As they began to set up for entry into turn 3, another car tried to stick his nose in between them to make it three wide, hitting Scott's right rear tire and then blasting into Mike's left rear. Mike spun as his tire was instantly cut down and in the melee the 65 car of Bobby DeYoung was unable to avoid contact and unfortunately got mixed up in the caution. In the stands we all were trying to make sense of what happened when we saw flames coming from the bottom of Bobby's engine bay. One of the track officials ran out with an extinguisher and was able to put it out, but it took quite a bit of time to get everything cleaned up. 

At this point, it was decided that our race was to be shortened to 15 laps. We all knew it was going to happen, so strategies changed. What happened next was something that is still eating at me... When they lined up the cars for the restart, we were held on the front stretch and they placed 2 cars in front of us that had not been there before the caution. As I argued to have it changed to the proper line up, they went ahead and moved 1 car back but left the other in place, which was a HUGE deal as this was the car that eventually would factor into the finish of the race. When the one to go signal was shown, there were 15 laps to go and we were in 7th place. The green flew and the car placed incorrectly made a couple of bold moves and was able to get out front within 2 laps, while Scott fought his way through the pack. The leader was able to run away and by the time Scott was able to break out into 2nd place, he had built what would normally considered to be an insurmountable lead of just over a straightaway with only 9 laps remaining and this is where the title of this post comes from... A race for the ages. 

I immediately switched gears in the spotters stand from information messages to cheerleader. I told Scott that he was going to win this race, it didn't matter how much of a gap we had to make up. He didn't say a word, but I know he was thinking the same thing as he took off like a bat out of hell and drove the car like a man possessed. Lap after lap, he chopped into the lead, catching and passing lapped cars at what seemed like the perfect time each time and in 5 laps, he had cut the lead to less than 2 car lengths. As they came off of turn 4 and crossed the stripe on the next to last lap, Scott drove to the outside going into turn one and they raced around the track, door to door. Coming out of turn four to take the white flag, Scott crossed the stripe with the lead by about a fender and they went through 1 and 2 side by side again. The crowd was going absolutely bonkers, people standing up and cheering and the track announcer's voice must have jumped 2 octaves as he did the play by play of the action. 

As they came onto the back stretch, there were lapped cars ahead. Scott was again about a fender in front as they approached a lapped car heading into turn three. As they got to the car, Scott was faced with a split second decision. Try to pinch the inside car he was battling for the lead, bash the lapped cars rear bumper or hit the brakes and drop low... He knew his only option was to slow down and drop in, as the guy on the inside would not have given an inch, which would have most likely wrecked us both and he was not going to run into the lapped car because he did not want to take the chance of wrecking that driver too. Scott made one last effort to get in front, diving low, 2 tires in the dirt through the corner, but in the end we finished 2nd. 

I've lost count of how many people have come up to me and mentioned that they hadn't seen anything like that in a long time and that it was the best show they had seen all year. I can't help but get the vibe that this is one of those races that won't be remembered by who won, but by the show put on by the red and black 99 car that proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that heart, desire and a never say never attitude can make anything possible. I know I've said many times that our car isn't the fastest, best built or anywhere close to the most technologically advanced car out there. It's cage isn't built as stiff as it should be, is a handful in the corners and smokes like a chimney when we start her up. But something magical happens when Scott drops into her seat and buckles in.  It's like she knows it's him and wants to prove that she's worth every dime we paid for her and much, much more. Yes, we've got a heck of a piece sitting in the shop waiting to be finished, but Scott and I agreed as we unloaded her from the trailer today... We've become really fond of this car! Whodathunk it?? :-)

Next up this weekend, May 28th it's Memorial day and Whelen NASCAR Night. Twin 50 lap Super Late Model shootout and Street Stocks on the 5/8's, Mini Stocks and Midgets on the 3/8's and Stinger 8's. We are running a 50 lap race so there will be plenty of time to cheer for your favorite race team!

See ya at the races! 

Photo of the week

Good times at the Buzz Inn after a rainy night last race...

Saturday night Double Dripper

Nope, that isn't a typo you see there. It was indeed a double dipper night (2 main events in the same evening), but it was raining so much, it was certainly a dripper! How wet was it? Perhaps this picture of rookie contender Eric Gimmaka and his crew can explain it best...

It actually started out as an overcast NW day and we arrived at the track fashionably late. After getting all teched in, Scott headed out for practice and the car looked OK, but needed a little tweak. While we made adjustments a few light sprinkles appeared which turned quickly into a steady light drizzle. Scott went ahead and went back out to scuff in our new tire. I of course, spent the next few minutes doing my "Please stop raining dance" It actually worked for a short time, as the rain stopped long enough for the track to dry slightly for qualifying. For the 2nd straight week, we qualified 2nd fast, 4 hundredths of a second off the pole time set by... you guessed it, Steve Green! (we gotta figure out a way to out qualify that cat some day :-) )

As soon as we finished qualifying, the skies opened up. It felt like somebody opened up a fire hydrant and aimed it directly at the track. When it became clear that the rain was there to stay we put our rain set-up in (super secret info) and I finally gave in...I installed the windshield wiper. Scott climbed in and moved the car to his starting grid position.

17 cars took the green flag in the 1st main event and Scott weaved his way through traffic that was at points 4 wide(!) until we found ourselves in the lead with a comfortable margin over the 2nd and 3rd place cars. A couple of cautions closed up the gap and on the final restart of the race, we got nudged a bit going into turn one, which resulted in us dropping back to the 2nd spot. But we had 5 laps to go and we caught the leader on the last lap going into turn three. He overcooked it a bit in the middle and slid up the track, Scott was able to get a nose under him, but slid up a bit himself. He gave it another stab coming out of turn four, running wide but the leader moved up to block the spot and we ended up crossing the line in 2nd place. Finish was Harriss, Scott, Chuck Richard, Andrew Schukar and Jon "Fozzy" Roberts.

Between mains we basically had time to put the car on the battery charger for a few minutes, fill it full of fuel and have a quick discussion with Scott about a few changes. We made a few (more super secret info) taped up a little spot that was leaking rain water in on Scott and lined back up.

All 17 cars were able to make it back out for the 2nd main and the starting grid was set based on the finishing order (inverted) of the first race, so we started pretty far back. Again, Scott picked his way through the field and soon found himself in a 4 way dogfight for 1st with Fozzy, Chuck, and Andrew, 3 of the top 5 cars from the 1st race. Fozzy is always a strong contender and when it's raining, well we all watch in amazement as he makes the RWD Rx-7 ride around the top like it's on rails. The battle was fierce as the 4 swapped positions and Scott was able to find his way to the front. The lead never got to more than a few car lengths as the rain came and went. with about 5 to go, a caution bunched up the field and on the restart, Chuck was able to gain the advantage and take the lead going into turn one. Scott made a bold move to the bottom of the wet track and coming out of two, was able to regain the lead. As Chuck and Fozzy battled it out, Scott was able to pull out to a 3 car length lead. Fozzy was able to get by Chuck and when the checkers flew, we were the winners of the main, Fozzy, Chuck, Andrew and Harriss rounding out the top 5.

On the young season, we have 3 runner ups and a win in 4 races. It's a long season and with a two week break, we will continue to work on the car to make it better. Next race is May 21st, Armed Forces Night. All active Military and their Dependents get in free!

One last thing, here is the traditional Steve/Scott photo in the pits after the races. It is slightly inaccurate as Steve finished better than 10th, but it does show how much fun we are all having racing together!

See you at the races!