Friday, June 20th, 2008: Dixieland Speedway, NC
"Sometimes if it weren't for bad luck, you'd have no luck at all." That was a response I received in regards to my previous newsletter and it seemed to hold true for the North Carolina swing of the ARDC midget tour. Pacing around the track prior to warm ups on Friday night, the motor kept "sputtering" and I pulled into the pits. Even though all the spark plugs were brand new, it was determined that one was not working properly and that the motor was running on only 3 of the 4 cylinders. After replacing all the spark plugs, the track gave us 2 laps to test the car. Problem solved! Or so we thought....During an early heat race caution, I noticed the motor revving high and it felt like my throttle was stuck wide open. Again, I exited the track. This time it was easy to see that the throttle shaft snapped and indeed, I did not have a throttle pedal anymore. Because only 17 midgets were present, I "qualified" for the feature. The crew thrashed to repair the damages, round up the needed parts, change gears, add fuel, etc and had me out there in time. I finished 11th.
Saturday, June 21st, 2008: County Line Speedway, NC
Chasing gearing and car set ups in the warm ups and heat race, we seemed to have nailed everything for the feature in which I started 4th. Like Dixieland, the cushion was only inches from the wall. The top 5 of us were running so close, the crew said you could have thrown a blanket over us. Early in the race while running 5th, I entered the turn real hard, the top 4 drivers bottled up, and as soon as I lifted off the gas, my right rear sucked into the wall and I went for a crazy ride of flips. Dazed after coming to a stop, I climbed out of the car by myself and walked into the ambulance. Once in the ambulance I passed out and after coming to, the EMT's were extra cautious with my head and neck. I was transported to a local hospital where they took CAT scans of my head and neck, along with x-rays of my chest. Fortunately, everything was ok. My safety equipment, especially my head and neck restraint, had done its job. I was still diagnosed with having a concussion and therefore will be taking a short break from racing. BIG Thank you to all those who expressed concern and for your thoughts and prayers. My family and I appreciate your well wishes. Your support means a lot.
Garage Notes: Surprisingly the damages to the car weren't too severe. Dad and Uncle Gary replaced the front axle and its components at the track before loading up the car. Still left to be replaced are the tail tank and rear bumper. Dad will probably pull the motor out tonight so that he can fix a bent tube on the chassis.