Back to Double X with OMMS. It was hot and sticky......Like Tarzan Hot. Drew last in my heat race. Beau and I were the only motorcycle motor powered cars there. The rest are full midgets. Right at the start of the heat, two guys get to rubbing wheels and tangle right in front of me. I dodge to the left but one of them seems to be "locked in on my location" and wicks WFO right into me and drills me right into the infield concrete wall. Then I proceed to climb the wall and flip the car. Tore the front end up big time. Rattled my shit pretty good because it appears concrete is harder than dirt when you get to rolling and bouncing on it. Go figure? Did the mad dash to swap parts. Only had a spare winged axle with me. Not the best combination with everything else for non-winged on the car but you do what you got to do. Thrashed and got it done in the sweltering heat. Started dead last in the feature. About three laps in I start getting water up through the hood and all over my visor. Mix that with the dirt and grit flying around and you have a really nice brown sauce. Visibility was becoming an issue rapidly. Kept wiping my visor with the back side of my gloves. Futile. With all this going on, I still found my way up to fourth. The three leaders were running right in front of me or beside me at times. Little did they know they had a basic "blind" guy racing in their midst. Awwww.....What they didn't know didn't hurt them. Finally quit spraying water, which was not a good sign motor wise and settled in on a restart with 4-5 laps to go. Start cruising with the leaders again and everyone is doing a fine job of staying off each other until this one guy behind me decides to try to drive through me, not around me, through me. Nails me right in the ass and spins me. I lined back up in the back but was concerned about the idea of NO WATER in the motor by now and pulled in. No sense staying out now. Besides, I could hear the Miller Lites calling me. Well, maybe not calling...more like screaming for me. And trust me.....I deserved them tonight. Plenty of body fluids to replenish. Stayed on the "replenishing mission" all the way back to KC. Unfortunately, now I have plenty of race car work to do on TWO cars during the hottest week of the year. Great.
After replacing the entire rearend and accessories to the 305, it was time to test the results. Had trouble getting the brakes to pump up properly though. Started third in my heat and finished that way. Pretty uneventful. Car still had a push but figured out a way to drive around that problem somewhat. Started the feature third row outside. Was fighting the "push" problem a little but still had to constantly pump on the brakes to make sure I had them if I needed them. Can't say I don't "multi-task." Floundered around and lucked into a 4th place finish. Absolute moral victory for me.....I finished the 25 lap feature. Time to celebrate. Miller Lite Longnecks for the night and I needed to address this as also a "Miller Lite make up night" since I didn't perform my civic duty at the last race. Before it was over.....I put everything back in equalibrium. The earth is now once again rotating correctly on it's axis. Thank you Miller Lite Longnecks! Oh...and thank you 305 for semi-cooperating.
Finally got to run the OMMS races at Valley Speedway. Got lucky and got to start the heat on the front row outside. That was the good news. The bad news......super tacky track and full midgets all around me. Plus....I didn't have a tire combination that would get me the stagger I needed. Car was not handling like I wanted at all. Anyway, got a good jump on the horsepower guys and could only hold them off for about five laps. Ended up third. Acceptable but he car was entirely too tight. Track got really tacky by feature time so the "lack of stagger" and handling was getting worse. Didn't matter. Seems the guy starting behind me in the feature had other plans for me anyway. A full midget that is one of those guys we have been running with that is probably getting a little "testy" about the little motors showing up their big cubic inch, expensive motors. The guy blasts me in the ass 4 times going into turn one at the start and deliberately spins me/knocks me into the infield. Nice. I go to the back. Struggled back there and the throttle cable breaks. End of misery for the night. Ended up scored seventh. Low car count and attrition. What I found amazing........Evidently there was a "little" bumping going on between the two fastest cars that were leading. Clearly the cars to beat. They didn't hit anyone else or cause a yellow but the officials stop them both on the front stretch and send them both to their trailers. No warning or anything......Boom! You're out. The two leaders and the guys to beat. I think a "warning" would have been in order. Cheated the fans of two fast cars if you ask me. Anyway, guess I better not complain. Even though I DNF'd, it moved all of us up two spots. Not right though. I was so bummed out with the night's racing, didn't even crack a Miller Lite Longneck open. At least now....when I go back to Valley, I will be better prepared on setup. I just flat screwed up thinking the track would not require that much stagger. Sad part....I had the required tire setting in my shop. I can be such an idiot. Coming soon.....The unabridged definition of the word.......RETRIBUTION.
Got to go back to Double X and run with the OMMS group. Always a treat on both counts. The "Heavelow" luck has officially returned. Drew dead last in the first heat. Started 7th. Started working forward and got hung up with a rolling road block. Ended up having to pass this guy 3 times due to yellows coming out negating my "moves." Anyhooo....by the time I got to second, the leader, a full midget that started on the pole had almost a straightaway lead. Reeled him in with 3 laps to go on a tacky track that favored the high horsepowered midgets but didn't have enough time to get around him. Oh well....it was fun and I was happy with second. Started the feature second row inside. Interestingly.....Two full midgets on the front row and one starting right beside me. Got to second by the 2nd or 3rd lap. Had a hell of a side by side race with the leader for about 11 more laps until the idiot that started beside me in the full midget decided to blast me with no chance of it working with two laps to go. Long story short.....I had told my son before we even got to the races that this guy was out on a head hunt because he is not liking his megabuck expensive full midget getting beat by 1000cc box stock bike motored cars. I beat him at the last Double X race in the heat and we both beat him in the feature that night. Bingo......He didn't let me down. He mildly got on his head as a reward for his "efforts." Needless to say, I didn't shed a tear for the hosehead. On the restart I figured I would have to go to the tail but the Double X officials determined that those that did not cause the wreck could retain their positions. There is a God. Trouble is, I had shown the leader the faster line too soon and he pulled off the classic blocking move. His track. That's racing and I can't blame him. It was really a fun race and I ended up second. I can live with that. My son, Beau ended up third. Inhaled a couple of Miller Lites Longnecks watching the sprint feature and headed back to KC. Kept inhaling and relaxing. Hoping the OMMS race at Valley this coming week does not get rained out. Looking forward to some more non-winged racing and naturally more "inhaling."
I don't want to talk about it. OK?
Damn...I just love Double X Speedway. Not just because I am lucky there but because they have such a great track, great atmosphere and great people running it. Racing like it ought to be.......really, really fun. And you know what? I have fun there on nights I'm not so lucky. Enough raving. Luck started with the draw. Drew pole of the second heat. Yeah...you read that right......Me drawing the pole of a heat race. Wonders never cease. Had a great battle with a super fast full midget. Got to rubbing wheels down the back stretch at one point and seriously thought old fat Phil was going for a ride. Got me completely sideways and looking directly at the back stretch wall at one point. Luckily saved it and didn't lose a position because I think everyone else thought they were getting ready to watch a hell of a train wreck. Ran the high line and held him off on a tacky, horsepower track. To say I was pumped would be an under statement! Lined up front row outside of the feature. My little 1000cc motor was surrounded by full blown midgets. 1st, 3rd and 4th were all "big" boys. I don't know after that except my son, Beau in another 1000cc car, was starting 6th. Figured I better do my best to get a jump on the start. Problem is with that, Double X watches that like a hawk. Have to be side by side at the white line coming out of four. Timed it perfect and out raced them all to the first corner. Even surprised the shit out of me! Can you imagine what it did to the full midgets with the mega-buck motors? Red flag. Restart. Thought I had shown my cards and was officially screwed now. Nope........Did it again. Got the lead right off the bat, put it up on the cushion and tried to drive the wheels off the damned thing every corner of every lap. The car was absolutely perfect. Even I couldn't screw the deal up. Whistling around the top of the track WFO is so much fun. Win or lose...it's fun. Lucked into another feature win in the process. Needed the moral boost. Serious Miller Lite time heading back to KC. Have to decide if I'm switching the Lightning Sprint to a winged configuration and run with MOLS next week at Valley or give the 305 another effort. I really need for that "luck of the draw" to rub off on that class for me.
Got to go racing with the 305 after last week's rainout. Luck of the draw improved but the driving digressed. Started second row inside. Car was EXTREMELY loose and wouldn't come up off the corners no matter what I tried. Fell back from 3rd to 5th. Real impressive. NOT. Changed the rear bars in shear desperation to find something that would improve the car. Started the feature 12th, sixth row outside. Full moon made for an interesting race......People driving ignorant. Decided to cruise if necessary and simply be there at the end no matter what. Lucky to avoid some "altercations" that were in front of me and worked my way up to 5th before it was over. Passed a few along the way and had some fun. Problem is.......to many spectators said the entire show was not worth the price of admission. Very little passing in any class.....Boring. Seems the more "open motors" that MSCA allows are not living very long. Attrition is getting to high in both the MSCA group and the MOLS group and this is early in the season. What's going to happen as equipment actually gets some time on it? Better get a handle on this now. Anyhooooo......Was pleased with my 5th place finish, the car was not hurt in any fashion and rolled in the trailer. Miller Lite time........And time again if you know what I mean? May park the 305 in favor of the OMMS races scheduled next week. Thinkin' I'm to old and fat to run both classes but I'll think about it.
Finally got the race season officially going. Decided to run the 305 with the MSCA guys. Figured I might as well see if my Lamonte legal motor would be competitive with the MSCA motors. Jury is still out on that one. If I didn't have bad luck, I wouldn't have any luck at all. Drew next to last in the final heat. Lovely. Jumped up to 5th and was following the 4th place guy and got stupid trying to run around the top of the track trying to make something happen. Dropped the right rear over the edge and lost momentum big time. Fell back to 7th. In the last four laps I worked my way back up to 5th. Considered myself lucky. Started 10th in the feature. Slowly worked my way up to 6th and fell back to 7th once again trying to make something happen. Maybe I need to quit trying to "make something happen" since it usually isn't to my benefit? The last three yellows the guy in front of me started puking oil and spewing some smoke. Motor was letting go. Didn't seem to bother him though. I tried to stay out from directly behind him and with two laps to go......It let go. I was committed to go down under him in turn one when it blew which would have worked out had he not decided to pinch me into the infield implement tires. Ended up running into one and climbing his left rear tire with my right rear a the same time. Bounced all around and ended up on my side. Can't believe the kid didn't leave some racing room instead of cutting down into me to block. Oh well. Ended up 9th in the standing. A lot of carnage and not much passing in any of the races for some reason. First race jitters for some? Worst thing about the "tommy tip-over" I did........hot oil running out of the motor through the breathers into the cockpit with old fat boy while I was on my side. Like cooking a big hot plump fried chicken in there. Hmmm Hmmm good. Didn't make me hungry.......Made me thirsty.........Hello Miller Light Longnecks. Beer and fried fat boy. Can't beat it. KFC ain't got shit on old Phil. Hope to have better luck next race.
Racing season is starting with a rainout from last fall. Weather was supposed to cooperate but the she left a little to be desired. Drizzly shit all day on and off Saturday. The good old "Phil Heavelow Luck" reared it's head already. Drew dead last in the first heat. That was the good part believe it our not. Drew 3 of the 4 fastest full midgets there in the same heat. Got a lucky break and jumped from my starting position to second by the first corner. Brad Loyet (National Midget Star) started on the pole. I stayed within 3-4 lengths of him for the first 2 laps. After a quick yellow, he started checking out. I stayed on the same straight away with him the final 8 laps and got second. That in itself was a moral victory for me. Beau won the second heat when the full midget leading broke with 2 laps to go. That put him on the pole and me outside front row due to passing points. Rocketship Loyet was starting inside the second row. We pulled out for our feature and it starts drizzling. Then heavier drizzle. They left us out there trying to keep the track "run-in." It was beginning to get stupid. Lost cause. Finally called the race for us, the modifieds and the sprints until Sunday. Came back Sunday to watch more drizzle until 12:30. More of what they predicted 10% shit. They graded the track, quick practices and ran the sprints, modifieds and THEN us. Being a "day" race, you can imagine what happened to the track by the time we got there. Low and slow......right on the bottom only. Tried to jump around Beau at the start, but just couldn't keep in the up against the inside berm. My right rear was in the super slick shit. He motored on by hugging the berm and Loyet freight trained with him before I could get tucked in behind them. Loyet got under Beau coming off of four and took the lead. We motored around single file for a while until I got frustrated and decided to try something other than following. Tried swinging out to mositure (I thought) in the middle of the front straight to get more momentum into turn one. Ignorant mistake. Let a full midget, who stayed on the bottom, get under me. He motored by Beau the next corner. Everyone started spreading out by then and nothing happened. Single file....right on the bottom. Pretty boring. At the least the heats and both practice sessions were an absolute blast running the same speeds with the full blown "super" midgets. Encouraging. Beau and I are proud of out 3rd and 4th place. Bullshitted with the Loyets for two days since they pitted next to us and found these guys to be really cool people even with their "celebrity status." No shame in losing to the likes of these people. Celebration time on the way home....That's right........Miller Lite Longnecks. With that.......It's officially racing season again!
