In an attempt to provide a more detailed race report, Rich snapped images of the screen after each and every heat. Men tend to have more difficulty multi-tasking and Rich was no exception. He failed to hook up his controller in one of the Super Stock heats putting him out of contention. Focus Rich!
Highlights
- Jack unveiled a brand new 49 Ford. In its maiden voyage the car set a new total lap record of 87.5 and a new fast lap record of 5.198 seconds. James 57 Chevy and Richs 55 Chevy were a distant second and third respectively
- James tried and true Chevelle set a new total lap record of 90.6 in Super Stock. Bobs red Chevelle gave James a run for his money but came up short by about a lap. Jack and Rich battled it out for the bottom step of the podium. A critical lapse handed third place to Jack.
The tone of the race was set in first heat. The grid included a former record holder (Richs 55 Chevy), Bobs 57 Chevy and Rons 53 Ford. Jacks Champaign 49 Ford and Richs 55 Chevy ran the first few laps neck and neck but soon Jack pulled away winning the first heat from the red lane with nearly 22 laps. Rich finished about a lap down. Bob had a few offs, possibly due to relatively new tires.
In heat number two, Jack added a bit to his lead although both drivers turned 22 laps, then Jack rotated out. In heat number three, Nick de-slotted in front of the white drivers panel blocking Rich. By the time the smoke cleared both drivers lost about a lap. With a group of experienced drivers, it is nearly impossible to make up for lost time.
James was last to rotate in and turned nearly 21 laps on the blue lane followed by a 22 lap total on yellow and 21 on red. Jack rotated back in for heat number six and turned 22 laps.
Entering the final heat the die was cast. Jack had a two lap lead over James. James had a two lap lead on Rich. A so it was with Jack first, James second and Rich third. In the process Jack set a new total lap record (87.5) and a new fast lap record (5.198 seconds) for the class. Below are details of the finishing order and images of the grid.
Super Stock
Top tier rides were fielded by James, Bob, Jack and Rich. James 71 Chevelle was a bit quicker than the rest tuning a fast lap of 5.127 seconds. Although Jack was in the top tier, his GTO was not his best car for the class (his Ford Torino is about .1 seconds per lap quicker). Ah but I digress.
Jack won the first heat from the white lane with 21+ laps and then sat out. Rich rotated in on blue in heat two and tied Ron for a heat total of 21+ laps. Up to this point it seemed like anyones race.
Bob rotated in on blue in heat number three. As mentioned above, Rich failed to hook up his controller and lost over a lap to Bob. After that, Bob and Rich ran a pretty even race. Again, a lost lap is difficult to make up with experienced drivers at the helm.
Heats four and five were slugfests between Bob and James. It became obvious that these two were the cars to beat. Both turned 22+ laps in heat four and 23+ laps in heat five.
In heat number six, James turned 23+ laps while Bob turned 22+ laps finishing Bobs rotation at 89 laps. The race was now in James hands. All James needed was a 21+ lap finish in the final heat to beat Bob for the win. In the end James turned 22+ laps for the win. In the process, James set a new total lap record for the class of 90.6 laps.
Jack and Rich battled it out for the bottom step of the podium. The cars were evenly matched; however, Richs failure to launch on yellow lane was the determining factor. Jack beat Rich for third place by about a half of a lap.
Below are details of the finishing order and images of the grid.
