Another fine day of racing at The Doghouse. Besides, it was raining outside, and the heck if I planned to spend it on my honey-do list at home.
We had a great gathering of guys, as always. For this month's race, we had seven participants:
(Front row: Dr. Bob Feller, Dr. Marty Cwiakala, Eric Prevost, Jim Beasley
Back row: Richard Sylvester, Dan Parker, Bob Arneson)
For the May 2023 race, we chose Retro F1 cars. For those of us who race retro, this might be our overall favorite. They run fast and can be a real blast to race. The lineup:
(Front row: Eric, Dan, Bob A.
Back row: Dr. Bob, Jim, Marty, Richard)
During our weekly practice on Thursday evening, it was our first time running the track after cleaning the previous weekend. No one, except for Eric, had any luck. No other cars would hookup and handle the curves, leaving us to expect Eric to run away with Saturday's race.
To our surprise, however, it was almost as if the Glue Fairy visited the track during the night and made the track much more agreeable and forgiving. Fast times were recorded, and tons of laps were earned.
Since some of us had only limited time to play on this day, we chose a format of two races with five-minute heats. We chose the "best one" total from the two races to determine the final standings. But here's the rub...
Richard turned in the highest lap total (319) in the first race, with yours truly running a distant second, nine laps back.
As we began our second round, one of the racers suffered a serious injury to his vehicle. Rather than spend time making the necessary repairs, Richard surrendered his winning car to his friend, to enable that fellow racer to remain in the competition. Richard sat on the sidelines and marshaled turns for the entire second race.
That singular act is a testament to the friendship that exists at The Doghouse. And it is for that reason the final results are slightly skewed. Although the final "winning total" exceeded Richard's total from the first race, I know (for certain) Richard would have won this one. His car was hooked up, and he had driven it beautifully in the first round. All in all, his name should sit at the top of the results if, for no other reason, the generosity and friendship he offers each of us.
Using the "best one" total from the two rounds, here are the final standings in no particular order:
You'll notice the asterisk beside Richard's total, since he only ran half the race.
But it was another fun Saturday of racing at The Doghouse. We missed a regular or two, but still enjoyed a day of fellowship. We expect to do it again in June, racing Flexis with stock car bodies. Keep your eyes open for that one.
Enjoy your Memorial Day, and don't forget the reason behind it.
