Well, as normal, I am a little behind on this, but no excuses here we go! Last time we talked I had to leave Brookville, Indiana’s Big Money race in July due to lack of parts on site. I got home that weekend and ordered the jets that I needed to get the “old faithfull” motor back to its original form.
Getting Back on Track at Green’s Dragstrip
First time back out with the old setup and it ran as it should have. Maybe now that this is all good we can get on with the season, start gathering parts for another new motor to put in at the end of the season. I was able to go to a different track than I’m used to going to Green’s Dragstrip just north of Lansing, Michigan in Henderson. If you haven’t been there, it’s a cool little track. I was able to go some rounds and had a good time, met some amazing people, and will have to go back again.
Dash for the Cash at Silverback Offroad Speedway: Rain Delays the Action
Next on the list, Dash for the Cash, which I have the pleasure of working with the crew at Silverback Offroad Speedway again to put on an amazing event. We started out Thursday night with a meet and greet and even had a D.J. provided by Jim Bailey of Blue Thunder Motorsports! We got Friday night’s program in and were on to a great Saturday until mother nature had other plans as shortly after the race came the rain. With that said I, along with the track, had to make the early call to cancel the event and postpone it to September 26th.
Local Sand Drag Racing Wins and a Tough Decision on Gravelrama
Due to fuel being super expensive, I had to make the hard decision not to go to Gravelrama this year. On that note Gravelrama, stop racing for just trophies and let us race for some cash!!! I decided to race more locally and went back to Green’s again to race again since you all know I can’t stay away from a race! Finally things were looking up, until I had to face Mark Mosher who has dominated there since he started driving for Ken Jackson. If anyone knows who Mark is, well that dude knows how to race! I was able to barely squeeze by him and go on to the finals and get the win!
Silverback Offroad Speedway Labor Day Weekend: Old Faithful Goes on Strike
Now we are back to Silverback Offroad Speedway and the Labor Day weekend. It unfortunately ended quickly with the letting go of “old faithful”. And no I didn’t fire her, she went on strike! Luckily, Pat Euriga put me in the driver seat of his white dragster, but I made an early exit to the new pro series champion Jeff Miller. Congratulations to Jeff in pro class and Sean Stoner in the Sportsman series…This was the first year since Silverback introduced the series championship belts, that I wasn’t taking one home…well we aren’t quite done yet!
Winning BIG at Dash for the Cash: Comp Class and Quick 8 Racing
Now for what we were all waiting for, Dash for the Cash at Silverback Offroad Speedway…round two! Even though it was a rainout rescheduled event, it did not disappoint! With $10,000 total up for grabs in the Dash for the Cash, you all are probably wondering with old faithful out, and my first motor of the season junk, and new one on the way and not done, what do you do? Well you wait for your great friend Jim Bailey to call me and say “Drive my racecar!” Without hesitation I said yes and we were off to the races.
Friday for me went fairly well. I ended up second place in the Quick 8, to nobody’s fault but my own, when I accidentally hit the kill switch at half track which ended my night. Now onto Saturday time trials for the big money class and what do I do? The same exact thing again! I completely threw the pass away, except for one thing, the reaction time. I felt terrible to have that happen and when I make a mistake I can be my own worst critic. Trust me, with that going on, I entered two classes to get more data and try to piece something together. It worked! Thank God Jim was patient, didn’t get on my case, and let me battle through it, because with his patience and my perseverance that night and with neither of us throwing in the towel, we did it! First we won the Comp class, then we won the Dash for the Cash! The money was great, but at the end of the day, I won an amazing belt that I can keep forever!
New 496 Engine from 616 Motorsports and Upcoming Sand Drag Racing Events
On that note, I finally received my new 496 built by Travis Oakes of 616 Motorsports and with the help of Travis and Dylan at Lemke Fabrication we got it in. Now it looks like I will be attending three more events if things go well. This weekend you will find me at the Sparta 300 in Michigan, then onto Cleves, Ohio October 23-24th Last Blast, and finally one last outing at the Bluegrass Shootout at Shelton’s Dirt Drags in Kentucky November 4th-6th. Hope to see you all there!
