September 5th, 2007
Spencer
08-31-07 "The Lessons Continue"
The #5 and #50 set up
their equipment in the early afternoon hoping to
capitalize on last week's gains and give the Spencer
fans some excitement on the track. There was some
excitement, but it was mostly an evening of tough
lessons and challenges.
It was a 75 lap
special for the SST class (not a SST series special)
this evening and Tom and the #50 chose to take their
assigned starting position in the heat for the first
time this year, hoping to "mix it up" with
six of his fellow racers. What Tom received was a
lesson on shifting that left him chasing his peers but
did conclude with a heat race victory for Terry in the
#5. However, Terry was concerned because several
chassis changes were not reacting as anticipated. With
the season winding down, the #5 crew is striving for a
top 3 finish and has been working hard to find
"the missing ingredient".
For this longer
distance event we were allowed two way radio
communications with our "spotters" to give
us an early warning of trouble on the track. Terry
continues to use his Dad Doug and his friend and
fellow Super Six driver Kris Hilligeer. Tom used
veteran crewman Jim "Steimy" Steingrabber
for his help. All the spotters served their drivers
well. When Terry found the new adjustments not to his
liking, an early pit stop was well coordinated and got
him back in action. Tom was able to run competitively
for several laps with the help of Steimy's calming
voice in his ear.
Around the 25 lap
mark, the #50 was experiencing minor motor performance
issues that seemed to be slowly degrading. Before they
became an issue, an old problem resurfaced, the clutch
centers broke sending Tom to the pits, out for the
night. Meanwhile, Terry was slowly making his way back
up through the field, the car still not performing at
it's best. It looked like the #5 was destined for a
mid pack finish when a three wide move put the fans on
their feet and put Terry in the 8th position where he
would finish the evening. As the evening wrapped up,
an air of disappointment was evident in both drivers.
Our weekend was filled
with car maintenance and a team meeting which has our
drivers focused on doing whatever is needed to finish
our year with our best ever finishes. We have the
equipment and the skills to do it. Come watch us rise
to the occasion as its double point's night and you
know our competitors will be trying to do the same.
Once Spencer closes
for the season, we will be focused on two big shows:
the Race of Champions at Oswego September 21 & 22,
and the US Open at Lancaster Motorsports Park
September 29 & 30. Send us an e-mail if you'd like
information on our schedule for those events.
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