Okay, I’m officially behind on my blog and I don’t really have a good reason. Whoops! So much has happened in the past month and they are all very exciting events. So, lets back up and start from the beginning.

Chris and I only had a few weeks before I had to be back in Pullman for school, so we wanted to get in as much racing as possible. We were searching the track websites for any chances to race when we happened to stumbled across the Pacific Northwest Super Comp Association’s race at Bremerton the weekend of August 9-10. After Jack Beckman got on our case about not having entered a race yet, we decided to go for it. So, we headed out to Bremerton and spent Friday night testing to make sure we were reading for the race on Saturday! We had a great night with strong times right around 8.90 and we felt like we really had a handle on the track and car.

Saturday morning we were a the track early and met the group of racers in the Super Comp Association. They are all very nice people who passionately love racing in the Super Comp class. They are casual and really out there to race. I was welcomed with open arms and they all offered as much advice as possible. I honestly could not have asked for a better group of people to help me get into the racing scene. They had a race scheduled for Saturday and Sunday in order to get the most racing in as possible. We had two qualifying runs in Saturday and were getting ready to race when it began raining. It ended up raining out the entire day, but we spent a lot of time in the pits getting to know all of the association members and making some great friends.

Sunday we decided to see if we could get in both races, depending on time. We had one qualifying run and I managed to qualify 2nd! Pretty impressive for our first race. We were paired against Mo (a pretty tough competitor) in the first round. I left the line with a .033 light and had a 8.91, which on any day would be a great run. However, Mo is quite a great racer and cut an even better light with a 8.907. Although I lost my first race, the experience was such a great learning situation.

We were able to get the rained out race in on Sunday. We were paired up with Rick Dearinger, the winner of the previous race, on our first round of this race. I knew it was going to be a tough race, so I really focused in my light. I managed to cut a .013 light (my best light of the weekend) and even beat Rick on the tree (by .001)! Yet, once again, we were paired up against a tough competitor. Rick has been racing for many years and was able to play some games on the track (like lifting on the accelerator toward the finish line or being able to ‘feel’ an 8.90 run) and ran a perfect 8.903. However, our 8.896 was not far off! I was disappointed that we lost both races, but my dad pointed out just how well we had done for our first time out there. And honestly, I haven’t had that much fun in a LONG time!

We plan to head to Woodburn on September 13-14 for another Super Comp Association race. Hopefully I will come back with at least a round win!

Today has been a day from hell. Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong and even things that I didn’t know had the ability to go wrong, went wrong. I guess it was due to happen sooner or later and sooner it was.

Alright, let’s start from the beginning. Today was an extremely hot day, upwards of 90 degrees with some nasty humidity. Chris and I debated going out because we knew it was going to be hot, but we both had the drag racing bug and wanted to get out on the track. Plus, we had a couple of spectators heading out to the track, so we decided we could stand a little heat. We made it out to Pacific Raceways at 3:30pm for a 4pm gate time. Instead they decided to open at 4:30; you know, just for good measure. We pitted where we always do, and got ready to pull the car out. I go to back out the car and it bottoms out on the chassis. Chris and I are totally boggled, because the trailer is completely raised and we loaded the car fine. We finally had to jack up the front of the car and roll it out of the trailer, which quickly produced an on-the-loose dragster. We managed to get it into place and proceeded to warm it up.

The warm up was quite frustrating because about halfway through the water began to boil over when the engine was only 160 degrees. Chris and I were, again, confused. After some head scratching Chris figured out that the water was leaking out of a broken seal along the water filler neck and it was only set off by the intense heat that day. Realizing that this was not something we could fix at the track, we decided to call it a day. I headed to the registration booth to get the money back for the tech card on the quad. I managed to get the money back, but as I went to head out the quad wouldn’t start; par for the course. It took an embarrassing five minutes to get the thing started and suddenly it started. And just to top off the day with a fabulous ending, Chris and I go to put the car away and what did we forget? Anyone? The nose! We managed to skate away with only a small scrape on the bottom, but seriously… could this day get any worse? Silly me for asking. Chris pulls into the driveway and realizes that none of the side lights are working on the trailer, only the brake lights. Perrrrfect.

The only saving grace for this jinxed day was the ability to get it all out of the way at once. Chris and I are planning to head to Bremerton for the Super Comp divisional race this weekend and we would have been livid had this happened there. We are very excited for this race, as it will be our first race in the car. We will head out on Friday night for the test and tune and race in the #3 divisional race on Saturday and the #4 divisional race on Sunday. Hopefully our jinxed days are over with and this weekend will be a blast. Stay tuned for an update from our first race!

EMDUB

Pacific Raceways has proved to be quite a trying experience this year. Chris and I have been there many times, both with the car and as spectators. Each time we have been there we have been greeted by disgruntled workers and unorganized events. It is frustrating to travel the hour long drive to a nationally known track to find nothing more than an absolute mess.

A couple weeks ago, Chris and I went to Pacific Raceways for the Schuck’s Auto Supply Nationals. I have been going to this race for the past couple of years, but Chris has been in attendance for at least a decade. When we arrived on Friday for qualifying we were at least an hour early. Yet, the track decided it would be too much of a hassle to hire police officers to direct traffic. It took close to an hour an half to get off the exit for the track. Chris and I missed the first round of Pro Stock on Friday, and Saturday and Sunday were the same experience. The parking lots were an absolute mess. We arrived so early, and the lots were so crowded already, that it was impossible to fathom where they were going to put all of the cars that were lined up behind us on the freeway. As much as I love the national races, it is the little aspects of the race, such as parking, paved pits and event organization that make those races fun. When everything is in shambles, the drags lose some of their appeal.

On Wednesday, we took the car out to Pacific for a test and tune. Again, the track was a mess. The crew members were at each other’s throats all night long, yelling and screaming as they worked the starting line. The track was prepped horribly and could hardly hold our car. We attempted to get a handle on the track, changing our throttle stop multiple times. However, each time we changed the throttle stop the response from the car was in no way related to the changes we had made. We were completely baffled by the track and it ultimately was very frustrating. The one saving grace was that we were able to get out five passes. Even though the times were not what we were looking for and the track was impossible, we still got the experience of running on the track, which is the most important part.

We figured that maybe it was just the Wednesday test and tunes and that things would be better on a Friday, where there would be more people. So, Chris and I pack up again (which can be quite an ordeal) and make the hour trek to Pacific Raceways. When we arrive we find a lonely sign saying “Sorry, we are rained out.” Although it had rain earlier that day, the currently weather was sunny and 75 degrees. After a conversation with a few fellow disgruntled racers, it was suggested that there was conflict between the crew and track employees and they would rather just cancel the test and tune. Although there is no way to prove this, it was very frustrating for everyone that made the trip out to the track, no matter what the reason was for the cancellation. The one good thing that came out of the track closure, was our ability to find some appropriate racing fuel. We currently run Rockett racing gas (at 118), however, it is only sold in California/Oregon. Pacific Raceways sell Sonoco, but they only go up to 112 octane fuel. We managed to find some Trick fuel in the area at 119 octane. We bought a couple gallons, only to find out later that Trick uses a different calculation for their octane levels and our 119 is actually 114. The couple gallons we purchased will suffice, but we are still on the lookout for some true 118 fuel. We may end up purchasing Rockett and having them deliver it.

These experiences with Pacific Raceways were something that Chris and I never expected. We had always believed the track to be a nationally recognized track and expected that the pro teams wouldn’t accept anything less. However, we have come to find that Bremerton is a track used for classes much like ours. It is a true bummer that Bremerton doesn’t have more test and tunes. But like I said to Chris the other day, “A pass is a pass, no matter what the ET is.” It’s the experience of drag racing that keeps us coming back for more and I will be out there every chance I get.

EMDUB