Girl gets bit at Tillsonburg Track
Now before your imagination gets the best of you as sometimes happens at the track, take a breath and listen.
Yes, despite there being an unclaimed stuffed dog running around prior to the races, there were no animals involved in the biting.
New racer, Gabby Darling entered her first race ever this week. After a false start last week, Gabby hit the track with the Beginners to get her career started. Did I mention there are some pretty fast beginners? Things went well and she did a great job of fitting in and drove great. By the third race though, she was ready to try passing. The spectators were silent watching to see what was going to happen. When Gabby pulled off a clean pass, her first ever, there was a collective cheer from the crowd. It made me smile as I knew what I had just witnessed. The feeling one (both the driver and the crew) gets from passing another racer is very exhilarating indeed and this was surely the first of many. The racing bug had just "bit" another individual.
Paige Smith was a force to be reckoned with this week with a pair of last lap passes for the win. Paige is starting to excel in the Beginner traffic and it is making the difference between 1st and 2nd. Logan Lapierre-Cassie has the rest of the field covered and finished 2nd this week.
In the Juniors I was wondering if I was at the X - Games. Rayse Meyer was running tight with Kyle McGlone in the middle race when the two touched wheels and up went Rayse. In a true skateboarder move, Rayse pulled off a 360 spin and landed wheels down ready to go. Shaken but not stirred, Rayse was driving away from it when the caution came as we were thinking the crash was going to be much worse while the kart was mid air. Aiden Maynard from Blenheim won the sprint while Nick Sheridan won the middle race. The final main was taken by Scott Hall. Three races and three different winners. I like it. Averaged out it was Sheridan taking to overall followed by Hall. Tom Pellizzari was able to take third even without a win.
The story is much the same in the Seniors. Three races and three different winners. Brad Perrott of Strathroy took the 15 lap sprint. Katherine Summers was able to take the 25 lap feature and it was Bea Courtnage taking the win in the 35 lap final. This group is so thick with potential winners that there is always something going on. Surprisingly, the first two races went smoothly but by the time the 35 lap feature rolled around, teams were wound up to get their turn at the front. With every racer fighting for the same few inches on the track, spectators can get a little excited over what happens on the track to "their" driver. To the unidentified and "unknown to me" individual that felt the need to yell at me suggesting that we were supposed to be able to "control" the emotions and actions of every driver on the track, indeed, even before "anything" happens, I laugh as this individual did not have even the slightest control of his own emotions and actions. Good Sportsmanship starts at home Sir.
Sportsmanship, both poor and good, will be a topic at next weeks drivers meeting.
The dynamics of the Senior class are different with the introduction of 4 additional drivers in the Summer Series. New personalities mean there are some "behaviours" to be modified by the officials as the season goes on. I am sure it will work out just fine, as it always does. I view it as a good sign that we have "real" racing with "real" racers who come to the track to "really" race.
So how did the Seniors end up? Bea Courtnage narrowly edged out Katherine Summers as the pair took first and second. Tye Freeman squeaked by Jacob Sheridan for 3rd. Colby Bennett looked to have the fastest lap of the night until Eric McGlone pulled off one 25/1000 th of a second faster. Hmmmm.
This week the big news in the Expert class was not so much who won overall, (Scott Chesterman got front row starts after last weeks mechanical disasters) but rather who got 2nd.
Austin Giles from Aylmer kept his kart stuck to the track and finished second in both the Sprint and the Main. Austin has been working his way faster each week but usually a spin during the race takes him out of contention. Possibly this is the start of some good results if he has a handle on how much power he can get to the ground. That left Holly Porter in Third when the points were tallied.
That's all for this week. Remember...... Stop, think, listen. Talking should be last.
Next race in Tillsonburg Aug 27. Clean up those karts, it's picture day too.
Dave Chesterman.
Chesterman Power Products
Tillsonburg Indoor MX
Tillsonburg Outlaw Kart Club
www.chesterman.ca519-842-5977
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