A video clip of Conor taken at the 2006 Commercial Point Grand Prix (report posted in August 2006), is shown below. It corresponds to the picture of Conor in the right-hand column.
Bill
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Video Clips
In the picture of Henry in the right-hand column (taken at the 2007 Commercial Point Grand Prix), you can see a guy in a red hat and white shirt in the background shooting video. That would be me. The video clip is shown below. The picture on the right was snapped at about the half-way point of the clip. The race report for the 2007 Commercial Point Grand Prix was posted in August 2007. It can be accessed using the archive menu in the right-hand column.
A video clip of Conor taken at the 2006 Commercial Point Grand Prix (report posted in August 2006), is shown below. It corresponds to the picture of Conor in the right-hand column.
A video clip of Conor taken at the 2006 Commercial Point Grand Prix (report posted in August 2006), is shown below. It corresponds to the picture of Conor in the right-hand column.
Bruce Brothers Racing - Mid-Winter Update
The 2007 Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club racing season came to a close back in October, but there have been a number of developments since then and we are already beginning to look forward to the 2008 season. The season-ending MSOKC banquet was held on November 16, 2007, where Peter and Henry received their championship trophies – 1st place for Peter in the Junior 
Sportsman 2 class and 3rd place for Henry in the 80cc Shifter class. Peter also received a set of tires and an embroidered sweatshirt for being class champion and a medal for setting the lap record for his class at Circleville Raceway Park in 2007. For his continued improvement throughout the season, Henry was awarded a trophy for Most Improved Senior Driver. An impressive assortment of door prizes was also collected.
Conor had a check-up in Iowa City just before Thanksgiving (November 9, 2007). Prior to that, he had been allowed to do away with the part of his brace that goes around his torso, so he was wearing just the neck brace itself. Dr. Menezes was so impressed by Conor's progress in November that he gave him instruction to wean himself off of the brace over the next few weeks.
He has been brace-free since early December. Dr. Menezes also indicated that there was no reason that he could not begin to return to his normal activities over the next few months, including kart racing(!), provided that this did not cause him discomfort. He has been slowly building up strength in his neck through his normal day-to-day activities. At this point, it appears that the Yamaha Super Can kart that we acquired for him at the end of the 2006 season will see action in 2008.
Henry has been busy with his final year of high school and with college applications. He will
continue in the 80cc Shifter class in 2008, although his participation in the latter part of the season will depend on what college he decides to attend. We have still not decided which class Peter will contend in 2008. If we knew that the Junior Unrestricted class was going to have better participation in 2008 than in 2007, we would go with that. Unfortunately, that is the sort of thing that doesn't become apparent until the first race of the season.
Another development that I am pleased to announce is that we now have a website. There are two ways to access the site. The direct link is http://brucebrothersracing.blogspot.com/. You can also use http://brucebrothersracing.com/, which will redirect you to the site. I would be interested in any comments or suggestions that you have regarding the site.
Bill
Sportsman 2 class and 3rd place for Henry in the 80cc Shifter class. Peter also received a set of tires and an embroidered sweatshirt for being class champion and a medal for setting the lap record for his class at Circleville Raceway Park in 2007. For his continued improvement throughout the season, Henry was awarded a trophy for Most Improved Senior Driver. An impressive assortment of door prizes was also collected.Conor had a check-up in Iowa City just before Thanksgiving (November 9, 2007). Prior to that, he had been allowed to do away with the part of his brace that goes around his torso, so he was wearing just the neck brace itself. Dr. Menezes was so impressed by Conor's progress in November that he gave him instruction to wean himself off of the brace over the next few weeks.
He has been brace-free since early December. Dr. Menezes also indicated that there was no reason that he could not begin to return to his normal activities over the next few months, including kart racing(!), provided that this did not cause him discomfort. He has been slowly building up strength in his neck through his normal day-to-day activities. At this point, it appears that the Yamaha Super Can kart that we acquired for him at the end of the 2006 season will see action in 2008.Henry has been busy with his final year of high school and with college applications. He will
continue in the 80cc Shifter class in 2008, although his participation in the latter part of the season will depend on what college he decides to attend. We have still not decided which class Peter will contend in 2008. If we knew that the Junior Unrestricted class was going to have better participation in 2008 than in 2007, we would go with that. Unfortunately, that is the sort of thing that doesn't become apparent until the first race of the season.Another development that I am pleased to announce is that we now have a website. There are two ways to access the site. The direct link is http://brucebrothersracing.blogspot.com/. You can also use http://brucebrothersracing.com/, which will redirect you to the site. I would be interested in any comments or suggestions that you have regarding the site.
Bill
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
MSOKC Race No. 10 (Rain Make-Up) - October 14, 2007
Originally sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2007 12:18 AM
NEWS – The 2007 Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club racing season came to a close with a make-up for rained-out Race No. 10 a week ago on Sunday. The turn-out was light in some of the classes for which the championship had already been decided, and because of a conflict with the 2007 Mazda RoboPong 200 Presented by Bridgestone, a 200 lap endurance race at Newcastle Motorsports Park near Indianapolis. We played 'musical tires' again to make use of the last bit of rubber we have. We used the fronts off of Peter's kart for Henry's fronts and mixed-and-matched the best left-overs that we could find for Henry's rears and Peter's fronts. The weather was warm again on Sunday for an October race, but not as warm as the previous Sunday.
PRACTICE – Race No. 10 was designated as a 'backwards' race, so the make-up race was run in the opposite direction (clockwise) at Circleville Raceway Park. There was moisture on the track initially, so both Peter and Henry took it easy in their first practice sessions while they re-acclimated to the opposite direction. One of Henry's rears didn't look like it was going to last the entire day, so we replaced it with a spare that we had brought along. We obviously did something right, because Henry recorded a personal best lap time ( 44.08) in his second practice session. We had also elected to leave the gear ratio on that Henry runs in the regular direction for this backwards race, which may have accounted for the majority of this improvement. Peter got down into the mid-52 second range in his second session.
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – One of the karts in the class that Peter ran last year made the transition to Peter's class for the last race of the year. Four other 'regulars' showed up, so there were five in all. He started his first heat from the third position and held it through the first few corners, which are Turns 10, 9, 8, etc., for a backwards race. He was able to run deeper into the turn at the end of the long straightaway than the kart in front of him on Lap 1 and moved up to the second position. He was able to repeat the out-braking maneuver on Lap 3 to move into the lead, which he was able to hold to the end. In Heat 2, starting from outside the front row, Peter didn't waste much time moving to the front. He made an excellent move to the inside on the approach to Turn 9 (the second corner) and motored away to another heat race win. He made an excellent start from pole position in the feature and pulled away initially before backing off a bit. The newcomer in the class, who had started from the rear all day, made his way through the field and began to catch Peter. Peter responded and was able to keep the gap constant from about the midway point on. Peter capped off his season with another perfect 1-1-1 finish, his fourth this year.
80cc SHIFTER – I always prefer when Henry starts one heat race towards the rear and the other towards the front (as opposed to both from mid-pack). Such was the case on Sunday where Henry lined up for his first heat in the seventh position (of eight). He got a great start and moved up one position in Turn 9 and another in Turn 6 on the first lap. On lap 3, he was right on the tail of the kart in fourth place going into Turn 10. He was able to get underneath going into Turn 9 and made the pass stick. He had to downshift mid corner to maintain his momentum, and this turned out to be a key to quicker lap times throughout the rest of the day. He caught up with the leaders at the end, further improving his personal best to a 44.04 along the way. Henry made another great start from the pole position in Heat 2. With clear track in front of him, Henry reeled off a series of laps in the low 44 second range while those behind him scrapped for position. Henry amassed enough of a lead, further improving his personal best to a 43.97 in the process, to hold on for his first 80cc Shifter class heat race win. A fourth and a first were good enough for the second starting position for the feature. He made another great start while the pole-sitter hesitated momentarily, and once again found clear track in front of him. The pole-sitter recovered quickly, but he and the next few karts had nothing on Henry, who continued to lower his personal best lap times, the best of which was a 43.89. On Lap 7, the third place kart (the eventual season champion in this class) passed the second place kart and set out after Henry. Henry seemed to be able to hold him off everywhere except the braking zone at the end of the long straightway, where the lack of front disk brakes (everyone except Henry and one other kart in his class has them) was a detriment. Henry would pull away slightly through Turn 9, but get reeled back in at the end of the straightaway. On the last lap, the eventual class champion got a good run through the turn leading up to the long straightway and was able to muscle his way inside at the end. Henry could have taken a defensive line and held him off, but chose not to do so. Ten laps on a ten turn circuit is a total of 100 turns. Henry led through 96 of them. A second place feature race finish was another personal best for Henry in this class, however.
NEXT RACE – That's it for the 2007 MSOKC season. Peter is the 2007 MSOKC Junior Sportsman 2 class champion and Henry finished a solid third place in the highly competitive 80cc Shifter class, improving one position from last year. The MSOKC season-ending banquet is November 16, where trophies and prizes will be awarded. Henry will continue in the 80cc Shifter class next year, although his participation in the latter part of the season will depend on what college he decides to attend. Laura and I are still trying to come to grips with that and other similar realizations. Peter can contest the same class next year, but we are considering some alternative classes for him. And then there's Conor. He has been incredibly patient with having to sit out this season. While he has enjoyed his timing and scoring responsibilities, I'm sure he's chomping at the bit to back into action. With the help of a generous benefactor, we purchased a highly competitive Yamaha Super Can kart for him at the end of the 2006 season. It has been waiting patiently in our basement since then. Conor's return to action will depend on what the doctors have to say, however. Conor has a check-up in Iowa City scheduled for November 9, after which we hope to know more.
Bill
p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found at http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=260167
NEWS – The 2007 Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club racing season came to a close with a make-up for rained-out Race No. 10 a week ago on Sunday. The turn-out was light in some of the classes for which the championship had already been decided, and because of a conflict with the 2007 Mazda RoboPong 200 Presented by Bridgestone, a 200 lap endurance race at Newcastle Motorsports Park near Indianapolis. We played 'musical tires' again to make use of the last bit of rubber we have. We used the fronts off of Peter's kart for Henry's fronts and mixed-and-matched the best left-overs that we could find for Henry's rears and Peter's fronts. The weather was warm again on Sunday for an October race, but not as warm as the previous Sunday.
PRACTICE – Race No. 10 was designated as a 'backwards' race, so the make-up race was run in the opposite direction (clockwise) at Circleville Raceway Park. There was moisture on the track initially, so both Peter and Henry took it easy in their first practice sessions while they re-acclimated to the opposite direction. One of Henry's rears didn't look like it was going to last the entire day, so we replaced it with a spare that we had brought along. We obviously did something right, because Henry recorded a personal best lap time ( 44.08) in his second practice session. We had also elected to leave the gear ratio on that Henry runs in the regular direction for this backwards race, which may have accounted for the majority of this improvement. Peter got down into the mid-52 second range in his second session.
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – One of the karts in the class that Peter ran last year made the transition to Peter's class for the last race of the year. Four other 'regulars' showed up, so there were five in all. He started his first heat from the third position and held it through the first few corners, which are Turns 10, 9, 8, etc., for a backwards race. He was able to run deeper into the turn at the end of the long straightaway than the kart in front of him on Lap 1 and moved up to the second position. He was able to repeat the out-braking maneuver on Lap 3 to move into the lead, which he was able to hold to the end. In Heat 2, starting from outside the front row, Peter didn't waste much time moving to the front. He made an excellent move to the inside on the approach to Turn 9 (the second corner) and motored away to another heat race win. He made an excellent start from pole position in the feature and pulled away initially before backing off a bit. The newcomer in the class, who had started from the rear all day, made his way through the field and began to catch Peter. Peter responded and was able to keep the gap constant from about the midway point on. Peter capped off his season with another perfect 1-1-1 finish, his fourth this year.
80cc SHIFTER – I always prefer when Henry starts one heat race towards the rear and the other towards the front (as opposed to both from mid-pack). Such was the case on Sunday where Henry lined up for his first heat in the seventh position (of eight). He got a great start and moved up one position in Turn 9 and another in Turn 6 on the first lap. On lap 3, he was right on the tail of the kart in fourth place going into Turn 10. He was able to get underneath going into Turn 9 and made the pass stick. He had to downshift mid corner to maintain his momentum, and this turned out to be a key to quicker lap times throughout the rest of the day. He caught up with the leaders at the end, further improving his personal best to a 44.04 along the way. Henry made another great start from the pole position in Heat 2. With clear track in front of him, Henry reeled off a series of laps in the low 44 second range while those behind him scrapped for position. Henry amassed enough of a lead, further improving his personal best to a 43.97 in the process, to hold on for his first 80cc Shifter class heat race win. A fourth and a first were good enough for the second starting position for the feature. He made another great start while the pole-sitter hesitated momentarily, and once again found clear track in front of him. The pole-sitter recovered quickly, but he and the next few karts had nothing on Henry, who continued to lower his personal best lap times, the best of which was a 43.89. On Lap 7, the third place kart (the eventual season champion in this class) passed the second place kart and set out after Henry. Henry seemed to be able to hold him off everywhere except the braking zone at the end of the long straightway, where the lack of front disk brakes (everyone except Henry and one other kart in his class has them) was a detriment. Henry would pull away slightly through Turn 9, but get reeled back in at the end of the straightaway. On the last lap, the eventual class champion got a good run through the turn leading up to the long straightway and was able to muscle his way inside at the end. Henry could have taken a defensive line and held him off, but chose not to do so. Ten laps on a ten turn circuit is a total of 100 turns. Henry led through 96 of them. A second place feature race finish was another personal best for Henry in this class, however.
NEXT RACE – That's it for the 2007 MSOKC season. Peter is the 2007 MSOKC Junior Sportsman 2 class champion and Henry finished a solid third place in the highly competitive 80cc Shifter class, improving one position from last year. The MSOKC season-ending banquet is November 16, where trophies and prizes will be awarded. Henry will continue in the 80cc Shifter class next year, although his participation in the latter part of the season will depend on what college he decides to attend. Laura and I are still trying to come to grips with that and other similar realizations. Peter can contest the same class next year, but we are considering some alternative classes for him. And then there's Conor. He has been incredibly patient with having to sit out this season. While he has enjoyed his timing and scoring responsibilities, I'm sure he's chomping at the bit to back into action. With the help of a generous benefactor, we purchased a highly competitive Yamaha Super Can kart for him at the end of the 2006 season. It has been waiting patiently in our basement since then. Conor's return to action will depend on what the doctors have to say, however. Conor has a check-up in Iowa City scheduled for November 9, after which we hope to know more.
Bill
p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found at http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=260167
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Subject: MSOKC Race No. 12 - October 7, 2007
Originally sent: Saturday, October 13, 2007 5:07 PM
NEWS – Tomorrow is the final race of the 2007 MSOKC season – a make-up for Race No. 10 which was rained out. Race No. 12, the last regularly-scheduled race of the season, was last Sunday, October 7. The only special preparation kart-wise was playing 'musical tires' to make use of what we have as opposed to buying new ones. The other special preparation for Race No. 12 was packing an unusually large quantity of Gatorade for an October race, as temperatures were predicted to be in the 90s.
PRACTICE – Henry continues to turn some of his fastest laps of the day during practice. He was obviously pushing hard however, as he spun in Turn 6 in both of his sessions. 'Borrowing' two of Peter's tires to use on the front of Henry's kart didn't seem to have too much of an adverse effect on Peter's performance, as his lap time were as good as ever.
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – Peter's class had a season-high of seven karts, including two from other local clubs whose seasons have concluded and the former club member who has joined us for several races late in the season. The two from other clubs were on non-spec tires for our club and would be disqualified at the end of the day. Peter lined up last for the start of his first heat. He went from seventh to fifth at the start and then from fifth to fourth to third in the first three laps. He dropped position on Lap 4 but made it back up on Lap 6 to finish third. Peter started from pole position in the second heat and pulled out a lead over the next few laps. The faster karts that started towards the rear made their way forward, but could not catch Peter, who went on to record another heat race win. A third and a first was good enough for the pole position for the feature. Peter made a good start and went side by side with the former club member through Turns 1 and 2. Peter's engine is in bad need of a rebuild, and he didn't have enough to hold on to the lead going into Turn 3. He settled into second but pushed the leader hard throughout the first lap. It became apparent that the former club member was in need of a new set of tires as badly as Peter is in need of an engine rebuild. He went wide in Turn 10 and Peter dove to the inside for the pass. But so did the kart behind Peter. These two got together and the other kart actually rode up on the side of Peter's kart, pushing him into the infield. Peter dropped all the way to last place. Only minor damage was sustained and Peter was able to regroup and continue, however. He made his way past one kart on Lap 2 and two karts on Lap 3. He then reeled off several laps in the 51 second range, which brought him to the tail of the leading group. The leader was still struggling with tire trouble and was holding up the three karts behind him. Turn 10 of the last lap was a repeat of the first lap. The leader went wide and the second place kart dove underneath. Peter crossed the line fourth but was promoted to second when the former club member elected not to go to post-race tech inspection and one of the other karts in front of him was disqualified for tires.
80cc SHIFTER – There was some confusion during the grid formation for Henry's first heat, in which he was supposed to start fifth (of 10). Another kart had lined up in Henry's position, and Henry was directed to the sixth grid position. He got away well and ran in sixth for the first few laps. He was being held up by a group in front of him when a kart behind made an aggressive move in Turn 4, which put Henry in the grass. He fell to ninth. He made up one position and finished eighth. Henry was supposed to start Heat 2 in sixth, but tried to return the favor by lining up fifth. The starter was a bit more diligent this time and made Henry go around again and line up sixth. He must have been seething, because he made an aggressive start and muscled his way to fourth in the first few turns. He ran in fourth, in sight of the leaders, to the finish. We were hoping that an eighth and a fourth might be good enough for a better starting position than sixth, but that is where Henry started the feature. He got away well, making up one position at the start. He ran in fifth for seven laps in close contact with the group in front of him. Sunday must have been the day for returning the favor, because the kart in front of Henry did just that to the kart that had pushed Henry off in Heat 1. Henry was able to get by, too, and finished fourth.
NEXT RACE – Peter had enough points to claim the Junior Sportsman 2 championship as of the previous race. Henry's results last Sunday were good enough for him to claim third place in the highly competitive 80cc Shifter class. With only the best nine of 12 races counting towards the championship, we don't even need to show up tomorrow. The weather is finally starting to feel like fall, it's supposed to be nice tomorrow, and we have just enough rubber left, so that's what we're going to do.
Bill
p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found at http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=258023
NEWS – Tomorrow is the final race of the 2007 MSOKC season – a make-up for Race No. 10 which was rained out. Race No. 12, the last regularly-scheduled race of the season, was last Sunday, October 7. The only special preparation kart-wise was playing 'musical tires' to make use of what we have as opposed to buying new ones. The other special preparation for Race No. 12 was packing an unusually large quantity of Gatorade for an October race, as temperatures were predicted to be in the 90s.
PRACTICE – Henry continues to turn some of his fastest laps of the day during practice. He was obviously pushing hard however, as he spun in Turn 6 in both of his sessions. 'Borrowing' two of Peter's tires to use on the front of Henry's kart didn't seem to have too much of an adverse effect on Peter's performance, as his lap time were as good as ever.
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – Peter's class had a season-high of seven karts, including two from other local clubs whose seasons have concluded and the former club member who has joined us for several races late in the season. The two from other clubs were on non-spec tires for our club and would be disqualified at the end of the day. Peter lined up last for the start of his first heat. He went from seventh to fifth at the start and then from fifth to fourth to third in the first three laps. He dropped position on Lap 4 but made it back up on Lap 6 to finish third. Peter started from pole position in the second heat and pulled out a lead over the next few laps. The faster karts that started towards the rear made their way forward, but could not catch Peter, who went on to record another heat race win. A third and a first was good enough for the pole position for the feature. Peter made a good start and went side by side with the former club member through Turns 1 and 2. Peter's engine is in bad need of a rebuild, and he didn't have enough to hold on to the lead going into Turn 3. He settled into second but pushed the leader hard throughout the first lap. It became apparent that the former club member was in need of a new set of tires as badly as Peter is in need of an engine rebuild. He went wide in Turn 10 and Peter dove to the inside for the pass. But so did the kart behind Peter. These two got together and the other kart actually rode up on the side of Peter's kart, pushing him into the infield. Peter dropped all the way to last place. Only minor damage was sustained and Peter was able to regroup and continue, however. He made his way past one kart on Lap 2 and two karts on Lap 3. He then reeled off several laps in the 51 second range, which brought him to the tail of the leading group. The leader was still struggling with tire trouble and was holding up the three karts behind him. Turn 10 of the last lap was a repeat of the first lap. The leader went wide and the second place kart dove underneath. Peter crossed the line fourth but was promoted to second when the former club member elected not to go to post-race tech inspection and one of the other karts in front of him was disqualified for tires.
80cc SHIFTER – There was some confusion during the grid formation for Henry's first heat, in which he was supposed to start fifth (of 10). Another kart had lined up in Henry's position, and Henry was directed to the sixth grid position. He got away well and ran in sixth for the first few laps. He was being held up by a group in front of him when a kart behind made an aggressive move in Turn 4, which put Henry in the grass. He fell to ninth. He made up one position and finished eighth. Henry was supposed to start Heat 2 in sixth, but tried to return the favor by lining up fifth. The starter was a bit more diligent this time and made Henry go around again and line up sixth. He must have been seething, because he made an aggressive start and muscled his way to fourth in the first few turns. He ran in fourth, in sight of the leaders, to the finish. We were hoping that an eighth and a fourth might be good enough for a better starting position than sixth, but that is where Henry started the feature. He got away well, making up one position at the start. He ran in fifth for seven laps in close contact with the group in front of him. Sunday must have been the day for returning the favor, because the kart in front of Henry did just that to the kart that had pushed Henry off in Heat 1. Henry was able to get by, too, and finished fourth.
NEXT RACE – Peter had enough points to claim the Junior Sportsman 2 championship as of the previous race. Henry's results last Sunday were good enough for him to claim third place in the highly competitive 80cc Shifter class. With only the best nine of 12 races counting towards the championship, we don't even need to show up tomorrow. The weather is finally starting to feel like fall, it's supposed to be nice tomorrow, and we have just enough rubber left, so that's what we're going to do.
Bill
p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found at http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=258023
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
MSOKC Race No. 11 - September 23, 2007
Originally sent: Tuesday, October 02, 2007 12:36 AM
NEWS – Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 10, which had been scheduled for September 9, 2007, was rained out, so Race No. 11 on Sunday, September 23, was our first event in almost a month. The club only scheduled one 'rain date' for the 2007 season, so we were glad to be greeted by sunny skies on Sunday. All of the preparation work had been done prior to the race that was rained out, so the 'getting ready' part for Race No. 11 was fairly simple for once. The regular head of timing and scoring had a commitment at a Great Lakes Sprint Series race in Newcastle, Indiana, so Conor was asked to assume those duties for Race No. 11.
PRACTICE – Practice was fairly uneventful. We made a minor gear change for Peter, which seemed to help. In his second practice session, he improved his personal best lap time from a 51.48 set on June 9 to a 51.30. Unless my stopwatch finger is letting me down, Henry actually set a faster lap time on year-old practice tires in his first session (44.30) than he did on one-race-old tires in his second (44.91). He had found a video clip on YouTube the night before of Gilles Villeneuve and René Arnoux battling it out at the French Grand Prix in 1979. Maybe whatever he got from that was only good for one session…
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – Peter's class had six karts, including one newcomer and the former club member who had joined us for Race No. 8. Peter lined up in third for the start of both of his heat races. He maintained his position at the start of the first and ran in third to the finish. The former club member ran away from the field, as he had done in Race No. 8, and one of the regulars in Peter's class ran better than he has all season to a well-deserved second place finish. Peter even lowered his personal best lap time to a 51.23 on Lap 4 but could do nothing more than keep up. The inverted order in Heat 2 resulted in much more action than in Heat 1. On the first lap, Peter made his way past one kart and then was passed by the eventual winner. He was then being held up by a slower kart in front of him for several laps. While trying to find a way around, he left the door open and was passed on Lap 4. The two in front of him battled hard for the next two laps. On the last turn of the last lap, an aggressive move resulted in these two tangling just long enough for Peter to slip by both on the inside to take second place. An action-packed heat indeed! A third and a second earned Peter the second starting position for the feature. Peter made a good start and followed the pole sitter through Turn 1. He was able to keep the leader in his sights for the first half of the race while pulling away from the rest. His lap time crept up a bit after that as he consigned himself to a second place finish.
80cc SHIFTER – Henry's class had 10 karts for Race No. 11 – eight regulars and two newcomers. Henry drew the eighth and third starting positions for his heat races. His standing starts have been getting better and better throughout the season, and he made a great one in Heat 1, passing two karts in the process. He made another pass in Turn 9 on Lap 2 and ran in fifth, while nipping at the heels of the kart in front of him, to the finish. He made another great start in Heat 2 and ran in third, with lap times consistently in the low 44 second range, to the finish. A fifth and a third place finish earned him the fourth starting position for the feature. Oops! I spoke too soon about his great starts, because when the green flag flew, he sat there for what seemed like an eternity (which I'm sure was milliseconds). He lost three places but made one up on the first lap and settled in to seventh for several laps. At the beginning of Lap 4, there was a scary accident involving two karts in front of Henry. The fourth place kart spun in the very fast Turn 1 and found himself pointing the wrong way on the track, rolling backwards slightly, at the exit point. Indecision on the part of the fifth place kart resulted in him going to the inside, and then the outside, of the backwards kart. The backwards kart was still moving towards the outside, however, and was clipped in the left rear wheel by the left front wheel of the fifth place kart. A kart with a deranged front wheel does not stop quickly on the grass, and he made his way all the way to the fence before coming to a stop. The impact with the fence was not hard, but the driver sat there for what seemed like a long time before getting out – shaken up but not hurt. Henry and the kart in front of him made it through the mess okay. Henry was able to make a pass later in that lap and ran in fourth to the finish.
NEXT RACE – The next two races are on back-to-back weekends and will conclude the season. Race No. 12 is Sunday, October 7, 2007, and the make-up for Race No. 10 is the following Sunday (October 14). Baring some unforeseen circumstance, Peter now has enough points to claim the championship in his class, equaling the feat that Conor accomplished in 2005. Henry's consistency has earned him a fairly solid third place standing in the championship in his class, but he will need to maintain that consistency to stay there.
We were joined at Race No. 11 by the newest member of the Bruce Brothers Racing team – Weston – who is a four-month-old chocolate Lab/Pointer mix.
Bill
p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found at http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=253679
p.p.s., Gilles Villeneuve and René Arnoux video can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3tXJm9tYGM
NEWS – Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 10, which had been scheduled for September 9, 2007, was rained out, so Race No. 11 on Sunday, September 23, was our first event in almost a month. The club only scheduled one 'rain date' for the 2007 season, so we were glad to be greeted by sunny skies on Sunday. All of the preparation work had been done prior to the race that was rained out, so the 'getting ready' part for Race No. 11 was fairly simple for once. The regular head of timing and scoring had a commitment at a Great Lakes Sprint Series race in Newcastle, Indiana, so Conor was asked to assume those duties for Race No. 11.
PRACTICE – Practice was fairly uneventful. We made a minor gear change for Peter, which seemed to help. In his second practice session, he improved his personal best lap time from a 51.48 set on June 9 to a 51.30. Unless my stopwatch finger is letting me down, Henry actually set a faster lap time on year-old practice tires in his first session (44.30) than he did on one-race-old tires in his second (44.91). He had found a video clip on YouTube the night before of Gilles Villeneuve and René Arnoux battling it out at the French Grand Prix in 1979. Maybe whatever he got from that was only good for one session…
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – Peter's class had six karts, including one newcomer and the former club member who had joined us for Race No. 8. Peter lined up in third for the start of both of his heat races. He maintained his position at the start of the first and ran in third to the finish. The former club member ran away from the field, as he had done in Race No. 8, and one of the regulars in Peter's class ran better than he has all season to a well-deserved second place finish. Peter even lowered his personal best lap time to a 51.23 on Lap 4 but could do nothing more than keep up. The inverted order in Heat 2 resulted in much more action than in Heat 1. On the first lap, Peter made his way past one kart and then was passed by the eventual winner. He was then being held up by a slower kart in front of him for several laps. While trying to find a way around, he left the door open and was passed on Lap 4. The two in front of him battled hard for the next two laps. On the last turn of the last lap, an aggressive move resulted in these two tangling just long enough for Peter to slip by both on the inside to take second place. An action-packed heat indeed! A third and a second earned Peter the second starting position for the feature. Peter made a good start and followed the pole sitter through Turn 1. He was able to keep the leader in his sights for the first half of the race while pulling away from the rest. His lap time crept up a bit after that as he consigned himself to a second place finish.
80cc SHIFTER – Henry's class had 10 karts for Race No. 11 – eight regulars and two newcomers. Henry drew the eighth and third starting positions for his heat races. His standing starts have been getting better and better throughout the season, and he made a great one in Heat 1, passing two karts in the process. He made another pass in Turn 9 on Lap 2 and ran in fifth, while nipping at the heels of the kart in front of him, to the finish. He made another great start in Heat 2 and ran in third, with lap times consistently in the low 44 second range, to the finish. A fifth and a third place finish earned him the fourth starting position for the feature. Oops! I spoke too soon about his great starts, because when the green flag flew, he sat there for what seemed like an eternity (which I'm sure was milliseconds). He lost three places but made one up on the first lap and settled in to seventh for several laps. At the beginning of Lap 4, there was a scary accident involving two karts in front of Henry. The fourth place kart spun in the very fast Turn 1 and found himself pointing the wrong way on the track, rolling backwards slightly, at the exit point. Indecision on the part of the fifth place kart resulted in him going to the inside, and then the outside, of the backwards kart. The backwards kart was still moving towards the outside, however, and was clipped in the left rear wheel by the left front wheel of the fifth place kart. A kart with a deranged front wheel does not stop quickly on the grass, and he made his way all the way to the fence before coming to a stop. The impact with the fence was not hard, but the driver sat there for what seemed like a long time before getting out – shaken up but not hurt. Henry and the kart in front of him made it through the mess okay. Henry was able to make a pass later in that lap and ran in fourth to the finish.
NEXT RACE – The next two races are on back-to-back weekends and will conclude the season. Race No. 12 is Sunday, October 7, 2007, and the make-up for Race No. 10 is the following Sunday (October 14). Baring some unforeseen circumstance, Peter now has enough points to claim the championship in his class, equaling the feat that Conor accomplished in 2005. Henry's consistency has earned him a fairly solid third place standing in the championship in his class, but he will need to maintain that consistency to stay there.
We were joined at Race No. 11 by the newest member of the Bruce Brothers Racing team – Weston – who is a four-month-old chocolate Lab/Pointer mix.
Bill
p.s., Lap times, lap charts, and results can be found at http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=253679
p.p.s., Gilles Villeneuve and René Arnoux video can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3tXJm9tYGM
Sunday, September 2, 2007
MSOKC Race No. 9 - August 26, 2007
Originally sent: Sunday, September 02, 2007 11:35 AM
NEWS – Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 9 was a qualifying format event in the regular direction this past Sunday at Circleville Raceway Park . Preparations for this event included new bodywork and tires for Henry and a clutch rebuild and new tires for Peter. The race itself was followed by the annual MSOKC 'Hog Roast', which involved plenty of food and a variety of games. It had been stormy in Central Ohio during the preceding week, so we were glad to be greeted by sunny skies, moderate temperatures, and a rising barometer on Sunday morning. Conor assumed his usual duties in the scoring tower.
PRACTICE – Peter spent his first practice session breaking in his clutch and his new tires. We did some fine tuning between sessions, and in his second session, Peter got down into the mid 51 second range. Henry also spent his first practice session breaking in new tires. He got into the 44 second range toward the end, but reported that his kart felt 'twitchy'. This twitchiness seemed to fully manifest itself in his second practice session, where he could only manage laps in the 45 second range. Back at our pit area, we discovered that his left front tire was nearly flat. It turned out that the front tires we had be given for Henry were 'seconds' – each of them had a blister in the sidewall which was the apparent cause of the leak. We traded these for two new tires, which we were able to mount up in plenty of time, but Henry would have to start his qualifying session on front tires that had not been broken in.
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – Peter's class consisted of five karts. He lined up first for the qualifying session, which involved a warm up lap plus three timed laps. I had told Peter to get a good lap 'in the bag' on his first timed lap and then to go for it on the last two. His first lap was good. On his second, Peter chose an excellent time to nearly equal his personal best (51.33 compared to a 51.30), which earned him the pole position for the heat race by about half a second. Some people call qualifying format races boring because there is not a lot of passing action. This was indeed the case for Peter's class on Sunday, which was fine by me. Following a pair of great starts, Peter led every lap of both his heat race and his feature. The feature was a bit closer than the heat race, however, and towards the end it got uncomfortably close. Peter later reported that a drop of sweat had gotten into his eye early in the race and that he had run most of the laps with one eye closed! Peter recorded his third perfect 1-1-1 finish of the season and his fifth feature race win overall. He also extended his lead in the championship standings.
80cc SHIFTER – Henry's class, which had 10 karts on Sunday, was split into two groups for qualifying. The replacement front tires, and the few chassis adjustments we made, must have done the trick as his first timed lap was a new personal best for Henry (44.51). His second lap was even better (44.42). He might have improved again on Lap 3, but overcooked it a bit going into Turn 3. His best time was third quickest in his session, and no one in the second session could better that time, so third is where he would start his heat race. The 'boring' nature of qualifying format races comes to mind again, which is again fine with me. Henry got great starts in both his heat race and his feature and ran in third to the finish. In both, he was pulling away from those behind him, some of whom Henry has seldom beaten, while drawing closer the leaders at the finish. In his heat race, Henry recorded the second fastest lap time, which also further lowered his personal best to 44.20. Henry's 3-3-3 finish resulted in the most championship points he has ever earned in this class. It also brought him from fifth (where he finished last year) to third in the championship standings. He'll have to maintain this momentum if he expects to keep this position, however.
NEXT RACE – There are three races remaining in the MSOKC season, all of which involve bonus points for participation. The next race is a reverse direction event on Sunday, September 9, 2007. Conor will have sole responsibilities for timing and scoring at this event.
It is with a heavy, heavy heart that I must report that Leo, our beloved English Bull Terrier and faithful companion, passed away unexpectedly yesterday afternoon at the young age of seven years. About two months ago, he began having 'episodes' that were later diagnosed to be the result of a heart problem. In spite of the medication that he was on, he succumbed peacefully on a beautiful day beneath the pine trees in our back yard. Fortunately, everyone was home so that we could grieve together. We are all still overwhelmed with sadness – he was such a good and loving dog. Godspeed Leo…
Bill
NEWS – Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 9 was a qualifying format event in the regular direction this past Sunday at Circleville Raceway Park . Preparations for this event included new bodywork and tires for Henry and a clutch rebuild and new tires for Peter. The race itself was followed by the annual MSOKC 'Hog Roast', which involved plenty of food and a variety of games. It had been stormy in Central Ohio during the preceding week, so we were glad to be greeted by sunny skies, moderate temperatures, and a rising barometer on Sunday morning. Conor assumed his usual duties in the scoring tower.
PRACTICE – Peter spent his first practice session breaking in his clutch and his new tires. We did some fine tuning between sessions, and in his second session, Peter got down into the mid 51 second range. Henry also spent his first practice session breaking in new tires. He got into the 44 second range toward the end, but reported that his kart felt 'twitchy'. This twitchiness seemed to fully manifest itself in his second practice session, where he could only manage laps in the 45 second range. Back at our pit area, we discovered that his left front tire was nearly flat. It turned out that the front tires we had be given for Henry were 'seconds' – each of them had a blister in the sidewall which was the apparent cause of the leak. We traded these for two new tires, which we were able to mount up in plenty of time, but Henry would have to start his qualifying session on front tires that had not been broken in.
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN 2 – Peter's class consisted of five karts. He lined up first for the qualifying session, which involved a warm up lap plus three timed laps. I had told Peter to get a good lap 'in the bag' on his first timed lap and then to go for it on the last two. His first lap was good. On his second, Peter chose an excellent time to nearly equal his personal best (51.33 compared to a 51.30), which earned him the pole position for the heat race by about half a second. Some people call qualifying format races boring because there is not a lot of passing action. This was indeed the case for Peter's class on Sunday, which was fine by me. Following a pair of great starts, Peter led every lap of both his heat race and his feature. The feature was a bit closer than the heat race, however, and towards the end it got uncomfortably close. Peter later reported that a drop of sweat had gotten into his eye early in the race and that he had run most of the laps with one eye closed! Peter recorded his third perfect 1-1-1 finish of the season and his fifth feature race win overall. He also extended his lead in the championship standings.
80cc SHIFTER – Henry's class, which had 10 karts on Sunday, was split into two groups for qualifying. The replacement front tires, and the few chassis adjustments we made, must have done the trick as his first timed lap was a new personal best for Henry (44.51). His second lap was even better (44.42). He might have improved again on Lap 3, but overcooked it a bit going into Turn 3. His best time was third quickest in his session, and no one in the second session could better that time, so third is where he would start his heat race. The 'boring' nature of qualifying format races comes to mind again, which is again fine with me. Henry got great starts in both his heat race and his feature and ran in third to the finish. In both, he was pulling away from those behind him, some of whom Henry has seldom beaten, while drawing closer the leaders at the finish. In his heat race, Henry recorded the second fastest lap time, which also further lowered his personal best to 44.20. Henry's 3-3-3 finish resulted in the most championship points he has ever earned in this class. It also brought him from fifth (where he finished last year) to third in the championship standings. He'll have to maintain this momentum if he expects to keep this position, however.
NEXT RACE – There are three races remaining in the MSOKC season, all of which involve bonus points for participation. The next race is a reverse direction event on Sunday, September 9, 2007. Conor will have sole responsibilities for timing and scoring at this event.
It is with a heavy, heavy heart that I must report that Leo, our beloved English Bull Terrier and faithful companion, passed away unexpectedly yesterday afternoon at the young age of seven years. About two months ago, he began having 'episodes' that were later diagnosed to be the result of a heart problem. In spite of the medication that he was on, he succumbed peacefully on a beautiful day beneath the pine trees in our back yard. Fortunately, everyone was home so that we could grieve together. We are all still overwhelmed with sadness – he was such a good and loving dog. Godspeed Leo…
Bill
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Commercial Point Grand Prix and MSOKC Race No. 8 (2007)
Originally sent: Saturday, August 18, 2007 2:32 PM
NEWS – Bruce Brothers Racing has had two race weekends in a row but only one participant in each. Henry participated in the Commercial Point Grand Prix on August 4 and 5. There was no class for Peter, so Henry was our lone participant. Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 8 was last Saturday (August 11), but Henry had decided to attend a camping/kayaking trip with his high school cross country team instead, so Peter was our lone participant. Conor had the weekend of the CPGP off, but was back in the timing and scoring tower for MSOKC Race No. 8, where he helped commission a new laptop computer for the system.
COMMERCIAL POINT GRAND PRIX – The CPGP – a street race through the town of Commercial Point, Ohio, that benefits the Jackson Township Fireman's Association – was the highlight of the season for us last year. Qualifying and merchandise races were on Saturday and trophy and 'pro' races were on Sunday. The track layout was shortened from last year to avoid a very narrow, bumpy section known as the 'bowling alley'. The track went from a 0.6 mile nine turn circuit to a very fast 0.5 mile six-turn circuit. To make up for the loss of the bowling alley, the front straightaway was extended to 900 ft (from 600 ft). Before we even arrived, we had decided that a big gear change was in order. In practice under sunny skies on Saturday, Henry was pushing 75 mph before breaking for Turn 1.
CPGP Qualifying – Lap times from the second timed practice would set the grid for the 15 lap merchandise races on Saturday. Henry adapted quickly to the new course layout and ended up fourth fastest of the 12 karts in his class.
CPGP Merchandise Race – Henry got away well from the standing start in his lone Saturday race and ran in fourth place for the first 10 laps or so. He was nipping at heels at the kart in front of him while the kart behind was nipping at his heels. On Lap 11 (of 15), he tried to gain an advantage by taking a different line through the final corner leading onto the front straightaway. Unfortunately, he clipped a hay bale on the exit and did a quick spin. He ended up pointed in the right direction and was able to continue while only loosing one position. He went on to finish fifth, but there were repairs to do (bent tie rod) overnight.
CPGP Trophy Race – Sunday dawned mostly cloudy with a distinct chance of rain. The repairs must have been effective, because Henrys practice times on Sunday were impressive. Finishing positions from Saturday set the grid for the 15 lap Trophy races on Sunday. Before those got underway, the skies opened up. Our normal club races are postponed in the event of rain, but that is not the case with the CPGP. Fortunately, we have an older set of rain tires that I had thought to mount on spare rims in the event of rain. We bolted these on and made what we thought were the necessary chassis adjustments. Henry had never raced in the rain before, so we were all a bit apprehensive as we headed for the grid. Henry's class was the last out, and there had been plenty of action in the preceding races. Many of the competitors had elected not to start in the rain. Eight showed up on the grid for Henry's race. He got away well again and gained a position on lap one when a kart in front of him went into the hay bales. He settled into fourth position and began to get the hang of the wet weather business. Even so, lap times were about seven seconds slower than in dry conditions (38 second laps as opposed to 31). He was obviously being held up by two karts in front of him. On lap 7, he pushed too hard going into Turn 2, twitched, tried to catch it, and ended up hard into the hay bales. From where we were positioned, our only indication of this was that he did not come around for Lap 8. As worry began to settle in, Laura's cell phone rang. Henry had borrowed a spectator's cell phone so that he could let us know he was all right!
CPGP Pro Race – Henry's pro race was third in the order on Sunday afternoon. This gave us little time for repairs. We scrambled to replace a bent tie rod (again!), realign the front end, repair body work, and clean up an incredible amount of hay. To make things worse, the rain had subsided, so there was some doubt that rain tires and the rain setup were the right choice. The first two pro races were run under what were declared 'wet conditions', but just before Henry was called to the grid, the conditions were declared 'dry' again. The entire Bruce Brothers Racing team sprung into action – the rain tires came off and the chassis adjustments were made in plenty of time. Finishing positions from the Trophy races set the grid for the 20 lap Pro races. Henry was running sixth when he had his incident in the rain, so that's where he started. He made a great start and went around the outside of two karts on the approach to Turn 1. He made his way around another kart on Lap 2 and ran in third before being passed on Lap 4 by a faster kart that had not done well in the rain. Henry again found himself between a kart he could not get around and a kart that wanted to get around him. On Lap 7, the kart behind ran out of patience and tried a bold move up the inside in Turn 1. Both Henry and the kart ahead let him go, but the move was too aggressive and the overtaking kart ended up in the hay bales. Henry received a glancing blow from the rebound but was able to continue without delay. On Lap 13, the faster kart that had passed on Lap 4 came to a stop, which promoted Henry back to third. Henry continued to pressure the second place kart to the end, even pulling along side several times, but could not find a way around. His third place finish earned him a cool $125 in prize money.
MSOKC RACE NO. 8 – MSOKC Race No. 8 last Saturday was the second night race of the season. Preparations were fairly straightforward with only one kart to worry about again. The gap between Peter and the second fastest kart in his class has grown smaller over the last few races, so we did decide to make some chassis adjustments. In Peter's second practice session, he nearly equaled his personal best lap time at Circleville Raceway Park (51.50 seconds compared to a personal best of 51.30). His lap times usually improve throughout the day, so we were encouraged by the changes. The Junior Sportsman 2 class had a season-high of six karts, including a former club member who has been running regional and national events for the past year or so, and would be disqualified at the end of the day for running on non-club-spec tires. Peter drew mid-field starting positions for both of his heat races (fourth in the first heat and third in the second). When the green flag dropped in the first heat, Peter was held up by the kart in front of him and dropped to last. He made up two positions on the first lap, another one on the third, and then made a well timed pass in Turn 5 on the last lap. He finished second behind the kart who would be disqualified, but with no clear laps, he was unable to improve on his personal best lap time. The second heat and the feature were frustrating for Peter. In the second heat race, he started in third and ran there to the finish. If he could have gotten around the regular club member in front of him, I'm sure he could have given the former club member a run for his money. His finishing positions in the heat races put him on the outside of the front row for the feature 'under the lights'. The regular club member was able to follow the pole sitter through to second at the start. Peter spent 10 long laps trying to find a way past while running lap times over a second slower that his practice times. He finished third in the feature and was promoted to second after the disqualification, so the day wasn't a disaster by any means, but it was certainly frustrating to have no clear laps following the practice sessions. We have decided on a clutch rebuild for Peter prior to the next race to help him with his starts and we will also replace the set of tires he has been running on since the beginning of the season. Peter has a healthy lead in the championship, but these improvements should allow him to show what he's capable of. Peter has his eye on Conor's fastest lap at CRP in this class, which is a 49.62 set on September 18, 2005. This is a lofty goal, but it's nice to have something to shoot for.
NEXT RACE – MSOKC Race No. 9 – a qualifying format race in the regular direction – is August 26, 2006. In the mean time the boys will start back to school – Henry in his last year at high school, and Conor and Peter in their first years of high school and middle school, respectively.
Bill
NEWS – Bruce Brothers Racing has had two race weekends in a row but only one participant in each. Henry participated in the Commercial Point Grand Prix on August 4 and 5. There was no class for Peter, so Henry was our lone participant. Mid-State of Ohio Kart Club Race No. 8 was last Saturday (August 11), but Henry had decided to attend a camping/kayaking trip with his high school cross country team instead, so Peter was our lone participant. Conor had the weekend of the CPGP off, but was back in the timing and scoring tower for MSOKC Race No. 8, where he helped commission a new laptop computer for the system.
COMMERCIAL POINT GRAND PRIX – The CPGP – a street race through the town of Commercial Point, Ohio, that benefits the Jackson Township Fireman's Association – was the highlight of the season for us last year. Qualifying and merchandise races were on Saturday and trophy and 'pro' races were on Sunday. The track layout was shortened from last year to avoid a very narrow, bumpy section known as the 'bowling alley'. The track went from a 0.6 mile nine turn circuit to a very fast 0.5 mile six-turn circuit. To make up for the loss of the bowling alley, the front straightaway was extended to 900 ft (from 600 ft). Before we even arrived, we had decided that a big gear change was in order. In practice under sunny skies on Saturday, Henry was pushing 75 mph before breaking for Turn 1.
CPGP Qualifying – Lap times from the second timed practice would set the grid for the 15 lap merchandise races on Saturday. Henry adapted quickly to the new course layout and ended up fourth fastest of the 12 karts in his class.
CPGP Merchandise Race – Henry got away well from the standing start in his lone Saturday race and ran in fourth place for the first 10 laps or so. He was nipping at heels at the kart in front of him while the kart behind was nipping at his heels. On Lap 11 (of 15), he tried to gain an advantage by taking a different line through the final corner leading onto the front straightaway. Unfortunately, he clipped a hay bale on the exit and did a quick spin. He ended up pointed in the right direction and was able to continue while only loosing one position. He went on to finish fifth, but there were repairs to do (bent tie rod) overnight.
CPGP Trophy Race – Sunday dawned mostly cloudy with a distinct chance of rain. The repairs must have been effective, because Henrys practice times on Sunday were impressive. Finishing positions from Saturday set the grid for the 15 lap Trophy races on Sunday. Before those got underway, the skies opened up. Our normal club races are postponed in the event of rain, but that is not the case with the CPGP. Fortunately, we have an older set of rain tires that I had thought to mount on spare rims in the event of rain. We bolted these on and made what we thought were the necessary chassis adjustments. Henry had never raced in the rain before, so we were all a bit apprehensive as we headed for the grid. Henry's class was the last out, and there had been plenty of action in the preceding races. Many of the competitors had elected not to start in the rain. Eight showed up on the grid for Henry's race. He got away well again and gained a position on lap one when a kart in front of him went into the hay bales. He settled into fourth position and began to get the hang of the wet weather business. Even so, lap times were about seven seconds slower than in dry conditions (38 second laps as opposed to 31). He was obviously being held up by two karts in front of him. On lap 7, he pushed too hard going into Turn 2, twitched, tried to catch it, and ended up hard into the hay bales. From where we were positioned, our only indication of this was that he did not come around for Lap 8. As worry began to settle in, Laura's cell phone rang. Henry had borrowed a spectator's cell phone so that he could let us know he was all right!
CPGP Pro Race – Henry's pro race was third in the order on Sunday afternoon. This gave us little time for repairs. We scrambled to replace a bent tie rod (again!), realign the front end, repair body work, and clean up an incredible amount of hay. To make things worse, the rain had subsided, so there was some doubt that rain tires and the rain setup were the right choice. The first two pro races were run under what were declared 'wet conditions', but just before Henry was called to the grid, the conditions were declared 'dry' again. The entire Bruce Brothers Racing team sprung into action – the rain tires came off and the chassis adjustments were made in plenty of time. Finishing positions from the Trophy races set the grid for the 20 lap Pro races. Henry was running sixth when he had his incident in the rain, so that's where he started. He made a great start and went around the outside of two karts on the approach to Turn 1. He made his way around another kart on Lap 2 and ran in third before being passed on Lap 4 by a faster kart that had not done well in the rain. Henry again found himself between a kart he could not get around and a kart that wanted to get around him. On Lap 7, the kart behind ran out of patience and tried a bold move up the inside in Turn 1. Both Henry and the kart ahead let him go, but the move was too aggressive and the overtaking kart ended up in the hay bales. Henry received a glancing blow from the rebound but was able to continue without delay. On Lap 13, the faster kart that had passed on Lap 4 came to a stop, which promoted Henry back to third. Henry continued to pressure the second place kart to the end, even pulling along side several times, but could not find a way around. His third place finish earned him a cool $125 in prize money.
MSOKC RACE NO. 8 – MSOKC Race No. 8 last Saturday was the second night race of the season. Preparations were fairly straightforward with only one kart to worry about again. The gap between Peter and the second fastest kart in his class has grown smaller over the last few races, so we did decide to make some chassis adjustments. In Peter's second practice session, he nearly equaled his personal best lap time at Circleville Raceway Park (51.50 seconds compared to a personal best of 51.30). His lap times usually improve throughout the day, so we were encouraged by the changes. The Junior Sportsman 2 class had a season-high of six karts, including a former club member who has been running regional and national events for the past year or so, and would be disqualified at the end of the day for running on non-club-spec tires. Peter drew mid-field starting positions for both of his heat races (fourth in the first heat and third in the second). When the green flag dropped in the first heat, Peter was held up by the kart in front of him and dropped to last. He made up two positions on the first lap, another one on the third, and then made a well timed pass in Turn 5 on the last lap. He finished second behind the kart who would be disqualified, but with no clear laps, he was unable to improve on his personal best lap time. The second heat and the feature were frustrating for Peter. In the second heat race, he started in third and ran there to the finish. If he could have gotten around the regular club member in front of him, I'm sure he could have given the former club member a run for his money. His finishing positions in the heat races put him on the outside of the front row for the feature 'under the lights'. The regular club member was able to follow the pole sitter through to second at the start. Peter spent 10 long laps trying to find a way past while running lap times over a second slower that his practice times. He finished third in the feature and was promoted to second after the disqualification, so the day wasn't a disaster by any means, but it was certainly frustrating to have no clear laps following the practice sessions. We have decided on a clutch rebuild for Peter prior to the next race to help him with his starts and we will also replace the set of tires he has been running on since the beginning of the season. Peter has a healthy lead in the championship, but these improvements should allow him to show what he's capable of. Peter has his eye on Conor's fastest lap at CRP in this class, which is a 49.62 set on September 18, 2005. This is a lofty goal, but it's nice to have something to shoot for.
NEXT RACE – MSOKC Race No. 9 – a qualifying format race in the regular direction – is August 26, 2006. In the mean time the boys will start back to school – Henry in his last year at high school, and Conor and Peter in their first years of high school and middle school, respectively.
Bill
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