| | May 26 ~ This was the first time the car had made it to the track. Seth was extremely excited and in the midst of all that excitement the night didnt start off very well. Seth had forgotten to tell me that he had to register before going out for the practice round. Opps, after that it was smooth sailing, Seth was having a blast and truly seemed to be enjoying himself. We finished 10th that night but it was perfect because Seth didnt want to push the car too hard on the first time out. There were a lot of comments made that first night out about having a pretty car and those comments have stuck thoughout the racing season. June 9 ~ We made it back for round number 2 this week. The car was great and Seth was still excited from the last race. We finished 8th and we are happy to report that we were able to keep up with the leaders and move up through the field. June 16 ~ This was the night of excitement, Missy's grandparents from SC where up visiting and decided to join her parents for a night at the track. Sara, Kris, and Sean also tagged along for the excitement and boy there was a lot of it. It was only the third time the car had been at the track and Seth was ready for anything. During the heat race Seth made it on the scoreboard which shows the top three in the race. He was currently in third and boy were we excited. Yet, Seth was determined to improve his position and passed the second place car, and then to top off the heat race, Seth passed the first place car coming out of turn number 4 on the last lap to take the win.The win was by inches. Everyone who came out to watch him was excited. Seth had not realized that he had won and he was very excited when we told him he had just won his heat race in the third time in the car. It was around this time, that the other racers had noticed Seth and his car and began coming over to talk with him and check the car out, I assume to see if the win was a fluke or if he was something to worry about. I guess time will tell. Anyhow, our luck ended just as quickly as it came, during the feature race, Seth was doing a great job and creating quite an exciting race, when as he was coming off turn four they were racing four wide and Seth rubbed up aganist another car giving Seth a flat tire and ending our night with a 18th finishing position. June 30 ~ It was a slow night to start with and nothing too exciting was happening, we had to take a week off to repair all the damage that was caused by the flat tire but we were back and ready to try again. We had a pretty decent track and Seth went out for the heat race, he completed two laps before the belts came flying off, making Seth lose his power steering. He didnt finish the heat race but already knew what he needed to fix before the feature. So the crew went to work on the belts and before long the car was ready again for some more racing. Seth went out for the feature race starting in 16th place, he made his way through the field and finished in 7th place. However, on the last turn on the last lap, Seth got tangled up with Calvin (a car Seth helped work on over the winter) and had some front end damage but nothing too major. July 7 ~ During the week leading up to this race, Jake and Seth were working on the transmissions as Kevin repaired and strengthened the bumpers. During the race, Seth was doing very well in the heat race moving through the field and passing cars cleanly. However, when feature time rolled around, Seth was starting third. He got passed by a few of the fastest cars such as the points leader but held his position in fifth. However, as he moved up in the field into third place and passing for second, there was a caution with 3 laps to go. Seth slowed down and when he did the car filled up with smoke thus resulting in him getting a black flag and having to come in two laps short of having the best finish of his career. As we looked the car over the following week it was noticed that the transmission lines were not tightened correctly or vibrated losse which led to Seth dumping transmission fluid all over the track. July 21 ~ With another week off for a special event at Trailways, this gave Seth plenty of time to repair and check over the car. Nothing too exciting in the heat race, however the feature was a bit more exciting. Seth went out for the feature race and started midpack and he passed a few cars and got passed by a few cars. All in all Seth moved from the front to back at least 3 times. Seth was involved in a crash which sent him to the back and then he worked his way up to 10th. Then Seth spun himself out in turn 4 thus sending him to the back again. Then it got really exciting, Seth was racing with another car, and Seth had the inside line and he was holding his position and trying to pass on the inside of turns 1 and 2. The other car, which caused a previous accident with Seth, attempted to turn into Seth. Seth was smart enough to slow down and let the other car turn into the infield. The other car was attempting to turn into Seth so hard that when Seth stopped his car, the other car landed on a huge tractor tire sitting in the infield. The tow truck had to remove the car and he was capable of continuing to race, however he was sent to the back of the feild. Instead of driving around the track to see if his car was ok, the driver waited until Seth came around the track and attempted to steer into him as he came back on the track. Seth was smart enough to swerve and miss the hit. Seth was then able to finish in 6th position our best finish so far and he slowed down enough while driving around so that the car involved with attempting to hit us got into the pits. When Seth finally came into the pits he got out of the car with his helmet still on, in case there was someone who wanted to fight, he had been in these situations before in go kart racing. While loading it on the trailer Seth had the crew check the transmission because according to him it was acting funny and had fluid all inside the car and on his feet. What he found out when we got home was the transmission case had cracked all around thus resulting in more transmission fluid to be leaking. Yet, it is still fun, exciting and raceable according to Seth. July 28 ~ With all of our hopes of something going wrong this evening we thought we had all bugs and problems worked out. We were excited and ready to get racing. Seth was doing a wonderful job of holding his position in the heat race. During the feature race, it appears that things were working out beautifully until a caution came out. Seth was lined up in position for the restart, from the stands it looked like things worked during the restart until Seth came out of the second corner and pulled into the infield. As we stood there and watched him sitting in the infield, noone knew what had happened. It wasn't until the race was over and he was being pushed in that we realize the transmission had broken again. Once we got the car home and had taken apart the transmission we realized that the transmission main shaft had broken which resulted in Seth not having any gears. So we left the track with a 14th place finish and the second transmission in two weeks broken. This was not looking good. August 18 ~ We took some races off since the transmission problems in July. Seth replaced the main shaft in the trans with a new hardened piece and we took a little vacation to Myrtle Beach. We returned to the track ready to run well again. In the heat race the first 3 laps were good then the car was very loose getting into the corners suddenly, trying different lines had no effect. Once the car was back in the pits after a 6 finishing spot in the heat race we decided to make some major changes. A rear spring change before the feature, usually considered a drastic change at the track. While changing springs we found the real problem, the right rear shock had broken off. So off to Miller Racing Product's trailer for a new shock. The crew repaired the broken mount and still did the spring change to help even more. Ready for the feature we started 14 out of 18, a long way to the front again. After a few cautions and very close calls Seth found his way to the best finish this year, our first top 5. If he would have had 2 more laps 4th or maybe a 3rd place wouldn't have been out of reach. Finally a race were nothing broke to keep us from finishing. August 25 ~ Seth redesigned the rear shock mounting to lessen the abuse the shocks take. We were ready for a good night. We somehow got put in the heat race with all the front runners, makes it hard to qualify well against veteran drivers. Nothing too exciting in the heat race just a solid 5th place finish. Before the feature I borrowed a tire groover to help the tires get a better grip off the corners, too much tire spin and not enough forward motion was a bit of a problem in the heat race. Well grooving did the trick, starting 12th and making it to the top 7 in 5 laps. Everything was going well and gaining distance on the leaders when going into turn 3 something flew off the car. Seth was the only one to know that the air cleaner lid had come off. A caution was flown for the debris and he stopped at the official and got the piece. Still in one piece Seth rushed into the pits for the crew to put it back on. Unfortunatley the air cleaner lid did'nt come loose, the stud broke off in the carb. That was the end to a good night real quick. Without clean air to the motor on a dirt track it would be ruined quickly. So we loaded up and headed home with a 16th finish, the worst so far. September 17 ~ What a night. First, the races got moved from Friday night to Sunday night because the track was too wet. So we get all ready and rested on Sunday for a long night ahead of us. We get to the track and it looked like a nice night. We started second in the second heat race and we were a good straightway in front of the second place driver who was battling with the rest of the field. Smooth finish for another heat win. Then came feature time, we started fourth out of a 18 car field. We were ready to go when the green flag dropped. Seth quickly made it into the top three and then coming out of turn four on lap 2 he was in the lead. However, the lead didnt last long when Seth, by himself, made a mistake and looped it off turn 2. He was put to the rear of the field, and again we started the race. By lap 9 or 10 there was another caution and Seth had already moved up to 9th place. As the race wound down, we had another caution at lap 12 where the second and third place got tangled up. At this point Seth was in 6th and it was looked like another strong finish. Seth realized that he would have to make the car fit wherever it would to advance any positions and he did. When the checkered flag was dropped Seth was battled for third place and missed it only by a half of a car length. Now, you would think that with all that good driving and battling for position it would make for an interesting racing night, well this is not the case. After the race before Seth had even gotten out of the car there was another member of another team in our pits asking about brakes or something of that nature. Colt, who was at the track for all the excitement, attempted to have the man leave so that Seth could at least get out of the car, when it became a battle of these two men. The man finally left our pits and went to tech where his driver and car were (finishing ahead of us) and we thought the excitement was over. Seth had no idea what the man was talked about and blew it off. So we began to clean up, we were just about ready to put the car on the trailor when yet another different driver came up to Seth cusing and yelling. Seth was in the car, had it started and was attempting to put it on the trailor when this driver threw his head into the car and started screaming at Seth. Seth shut the car off to listen to his complains and soon realized that this driver had taken himself out of the race and was blaming it on him. This agrument was a little more heated then the previous one. Seth was yelling, the driver was yelling, his girl was yelling, and Colt was right there. Once the childish fit was over and the driver left the pits we put the car on the trailor and went to collect our fourth place money. What an eventful night. Seth and I would just like to thank everyone who was at the track for this exciting night and hope that it was eventful for everyone. September 22 ~ This was the last points race and we were excited to be back at the track for another fun filled evening. We finished a close fourth in the heat race. During the feature, Seth was focused on not making any mistakes in the feature and have the best finish possible. Well, that was the case for this particular evening, because Seth had his game face on and brought home our best finish yet. When we had 2 laps to go Seth was right on the back bumper of the leader and the third place car was at least half of a straightaway behind. Yippeee!!!! This was great a night!! September 29 ~ Thunder of the Farm is a yearly event when the thundercars race for 50 laps, and the Street Stock race for 40 laps, double the normal amount. In addition, to the doubling of the number of laps the money is also doubled. Our sponsor, Quality Tire gave us new tires. Our next stop was Carleo's where Missy was able to make a stombolli, and finally Missy and I headed to the track, crewless. In the heat race, Seth was battling with the racecar who was currently in second for the entire 8 laps but could not find a way to get around him so we finished in second. During the intermission, Seth went to the stands to visit his supporters, parents, while Missy went and spend some time with some students from her school who had chosen to come watch. As intermission came to a close, Seth had to pull a pill for starting position, unfortanuately Seth pulled a fifth starting position. During the first few laps Seth commented that it was very crowded. On Lap 4, Seth was coming out of turn 4 when a car in front of him got loose and spun right into Seth's passenger door. After Seth realized that nothing was wrong with his car, we realized that he was in the third position. At the time of the restate Seth was passing second place going into turn 1. Seth followed the first place car for a few laps with an intense battle between the both of them. By lap 8 Seth had taken the lead and left the competition behind. From that point on, Seth was the leader with 18 green flag laps. Once Seth had completed lap 30, caution flags were no longer counted. On lap 34 there was a caution and the second place car got a good jump on Seth however, Seth held them off. By lap 36 there was another caution and Seth had a perfect restart. He was able to finish the race in first place with the second place car racing behind him. Once in victory lane, Seth was able to celebrate the long evening. I believe the celebration began with Seth jumping on the drivers' side door and waving a checkered flag in the air. Once he climbed down from the door, he began his speech. Seth began by thanking his sponsors, and explaining that he works in the shop every night trying to make his car better then the week before. We had pictures taken with all those that where there to support us. Once the pictures were taken, Seth got back in the car and drove off to tech. During tech, they checked everything on the car from the front bumper to the back bumper, under the hood, under the trunk, and even got a jack and checked under the car. Once we had passed tech, Seth went to go get his money and trophy for the evening. After that Seth attempted to fit in his truck and head home, however his head was a tad bit too big for the truck. It was well worth having the right side of car destroyed for a well deserved victory. October 7 ~ Seth has coverted the car into a thundercar to continue to develop his skills at a new track. We made our way to Lincoln for the first time out however, there were some clouds in the sky so the race was canceled and rescheduled for the 21st. Yet looking around the pits there were 41 410 sprint cars, and 37 thundercars October 14 ~ Since we did so well at the end of the season at Trailway, Seth decided to try a new track to improve his driving skills even more. So we headed for the Lincoln yet again with no clouds in the sky and a lovely night of racing ahead of us. Seth was inducted into the Lincoln Speedway style of racing, where they take drivers out of the race to improve their own finishing position. Seth was taken out of the heat race on the last lap. The caution flew and Seth who was in fifth before the wreck was moved to seventh. However, it was nice to see that the driver who took Seth out was black flagged. Yet, when the race was restarted Seth was unable to get into a qualifing position so he was entered into the consi race. Seth started on the pole in the consi and ended up finishing fourth and making the feature event. The finish from the consi race, was able to secure a last place starting position for the feature event. During the feature event, Seth was able to move around the track at his own speed, which was slower then the leaders yet he was able to stay out of trouble. Seth finished 13th for the evening, not bad for a first time out on the track competing at a higher level. October 21 ~ The last race of the year, YIPPPPEEEEEEEEE As we looked around the pits we noticed that 40 cars had shown up for 24 spots in the feature event, and right away we knew this was going to be a long event. We had to beat 15 cars just to make the feature event. So, we started 5th in our heat race and finished 8th, two spots short of qualifying for the big event. So we were placed in the consi race yet again. In the consi race, we started 4th and were able to hold on to that position for a few laps however, we finished 6th and were two spots away from making the big event. But Seth learned some important lessons from his time at Lincoln Speedway. First, that the air coming through the car caused his head to move around a lot, second, the next level up has much more competition and a big jump in the motor department. Seth also realized that to be competitive in the next level he needs to be much more prepared and have more money to increase his engine performance to meet the demands of the class and competition. |