MSOKC Race No. 10 - August 20, 2005 - Three on the Podium

Originally sent: Thursday, August 25, 2005 4:18 PM

NEWS - This past Saturday, Circleville Raceway Park hosted another Mid State of Ohio Kart Club night race. During the two week break since the previous race, we acquired some wider rims and tested a reserve engine for Henry, tested a reserve engine for Conor while his race engine was being rebuilt, and made plans for some additional testing of a new generation Rookie Box class engine for Peter. During a mid-week practice session with Henry and Conor, the wider rims for Henry seemed to have the desired effect and the reserve engine proved to be stronger than his race engine. We decided that the reserve engine for Conor would do in a pinch, but were holding out hope for better results with his rebuilt race engine. We also installed a different restrictor plate in the Briggs and Stratton Intek engine which Peter has been asked to test. The weather forecast, which called for a 70% chance of thunder storms ("some severe"), seemed to have affected the turnout on Saturday, as there were quite a few regulars missing. We again had visitors on Saturday - Laura's brother Mathew and his family from California, who scheduled their visit so that they could see Bruce Brothers Racing in action.

PRACTICE - Conor's race engine arrived on Friday, so we set out for the track early on Saturday to break it in and for Peter to test the Intek engine. After a few warm up laps, it became apparent that our engine builder, SRD Racing, had once again done a great job with Conor's engine. The smaller restrictor plate that we were given for Peter to try in the Intek engine resulted in lap times that were about 3 to 4 seconds off of his regular pace. We had some extra time, so we decided to try the larger restrictor plate one more time. When we did, his lap times were right on pace with his regular lap times. During the first of his regular class practices, the other karts were getting away from Peter on the long straight away, so we made a gear change which had the desired effect. I had the other Rookie Box dads watch Peter during their regular class practices, and everyone agreed that it would be okay to let him run the Intek engine in the race. During Conor's regular class practices, his lap times were about half a second faster than the best in his class. Henry struggled a bit during practice with an engine that was bogging in the left hand corners. We overcame this with a carburetor jet change, but that did not leave much time for fine tuning his chassis.

ROOKIE BOX - Peter's class was the first one out on Saturday. He started his first heat race from the fourth position (of 5). He was able to get by one kart at the start and settled into third place. He ran there comfortably until the end. Just after the checkered flag flew, the wind picked up and then the rain came. It only lasted for 20 minutes or so, but the proceedings were interrupted for about an hour while the track was dried (more on that later). Starting from outside the front row in his second heat, Peter made a great start and took the lead in Turn 3. He led for nearly two laps, but it was apparent that he was holding up two of the faster karts. As has been the case in the past, when they did get around him, Peter's lap times improved by about a second a lap. He again finished a comfortable third. In the feature, starting from third, he held his position at the start and ran there to the finish. For his effort, Peter collected his first podium finish and earned his first kart racing trophy. Way to go Peter!

JUNIOR SPORTSMAN II - Conor's first heat race was not long after the proceedings resumed following the rain. The track was still quite damp, so the starter allowed them to run an entire warm up lap as opposed to their usual warm-up around the small oval between Turns 10 and 1. Conor lined up on the outside of the front row (of 5). He held his position at the start and went through Turn 3 in second. The leader went wide on the damp track at the exit of Turn 4, which allowed Conor to pass. Over the course of the next four turns, he pulled out about a six kart-length lead. This did not last, however, as he spun on the exit of Turn 8. Everyone got by and Conor lost about half a lap getting going again. Over the next few laps, on a drying track, he caught and passed one kart. On the white flag lap, he caught the three leaders who were still bunched up in a pack. He tried to make a pass on the outside of Turn 10 but was not given enough room and finished fourth. He started his second heat from the fourth position. He made three well executed passes during Laps 2 and 3 and cruised to an easy win. In the feature, starting again from outside the front row, Conor went side-by-side with the pole sitter through Turns 1 and 2, which put him on the inside for the tight Turn 3 and allowed him to take the lead. Over the next two laps, he pulled out about a 10 kart-length lead. His primary competition made her way into second by about this time and began to close the gap. Conor picked up the pace a bit and his lead stabilized and then began to grow again. His last lap was his fastest of the day. Conor was able to collect his seventh feature race win of eight starts this season.

JUNIOR UNRESTRICTED - By the time Henry's first heat race got underway, the track was almost completely dry. He started both of his heat races from the third position (of 5). In both heats, he made good starts and ran with the leaders initially, but then faded. He also had a spin in his second heat and had to come from the rear. He finished both heats in third. Between heats, we discovered that one of his disc brake pads was sticking. With the help of our good friends Ed and Adam Roberts, we were able to partially correct this problem, but this certainly contributed to his inability to keep up with the leaders. He started his feature race in third and again ran with the leaders initially. He had another small spin but did not loose a position and finished third. As an indication of how competitive Henry's class is, Adam, who is the runaway points leader in the class, won the World Karting Association Gold Cup Grand National race at Badger Raceway in Wisconsin the weekend before, and Zakk, Henry's other main rival in the class actually beat Adam in the second heat. We made some progress on Henry's chassis setup during the course of the day (he is no longer getting up on two wheels) and we have decided to have his race engine rebuilt for the remaining four races of the season. We will also replace his unevenly worn brake pads with new ones, which seems to be the source of his brake problem. We hope to have Henry running with Adam and Zakk again soon.

NEXT RACE - Saturday was the first time for us to have all three boys on the podium. It was nice to have this happen while family was visiting. The rain also made for an interesting day of racing. Conor enjoyed the experience of racing on a damp track, even though he did have a spin while leading. My favorite part was when there was an invitation for anyone with a spare vehicle to run some laps to help dry the track out. I borrowed my mom's Honda Civic and did about 20 laps. We have the next two weekends off, after which we have four races in a row - two regularly scheduled and two weather-related make ups. The next race is Sunday, September 11.

Bill