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LAST NIGHT I DID MY FIRST KART RACE EVER IN BLUE EARTH MINNESOTA. MIND YOU, I HAVE RUN MAY BE 15 LAPS TOTAL WITH THIS KART AT OUR LOCAL TRACK HERE IN FOREST CITY, WHEN IT WAS COMPLETELY EMPTY. FAST FORWARD TO LAST NITE, A NEW AND COMPLETELY DIFFERENT TRACK AND THE FIRST TIME IN RACE CONDITIONS WITH EVERYONE ELSE RUNNING FOR SEASON ENDING POINTS (GULP). WENT OUT FOR HOT LAPS AND MY KART FELT LIKE NOTHING I HAVE EVER DRIVEN, HERBIE THE LOVE BUG HAS POSSESSED MY LITTLE RACE CAR. I HAD ABSOLUTELY NO FEED OR FEEL FROM THIS THING WHAT SO EVER, NOT TO MENTION HAVING NO CLUE WHERE THE BRAKING ZONE WAS, OR THE PREFERRED LINE. THIS TRACK WAS MORE OR LESS AN OVER SIZED CEREAL BOWL. ON THE STRAIGHT AWAYS, I WAS STRAIGHT FOR ABOUT .5 TO 1 SECOND BEFORE SETTING UP FOR EITHER TURN 1 OR TURN THREE. DURING MY RUN IN HOT LAPS, DROVE DEEP INTO THREE, PUSHED UP THRU 4 AND RIGHT OFF THE TRACK COMING DOWN THE FRONT STRETCH, ENTERED THE TRACK AT THE FLAG STAND BUT I FINISHED UNSCATHED, RATHER PUZZLED AS TO WHY I WAS ATTEMPTING TO DO THIS, OH YEAH, MY FAMILY TRAVELED TO WATCH THIS FIASCO AS WELL. THE TRACK OFFICIAL SAID I LOOKED "OK" OUT THERE, BUT WARNED ME OF THE ROOKIE LINE, AKA THE BLOCKING LINE. THAT IS WHEN YOU RIDE THE BOTTOM AND HOLD UP TRAFFIC. I LAUGHED, AND REASSURED HIM THAT RIDING THE BOTTOM LINE WAS NOT A PROBLEM FOR ME, WISHING I COULD JUST HOLD THE ROOKIE LINE FOR ONE LAP, WHILE I WAS WIPING GRASS CLIPPINGS OFF MY VISOR FROM MY OFF ROAD EXCURSION.
ONCE I GOT BACK TO THE PITS, I WAS THRILLED TO SEE A FRIEND WHO HAD LOTS OF EXPERIENCE AND MY BEST INTERESTED IN MIND, AL DIVANE. HIS SON, JEFF, HAS BEEN TRACK CHAMP IN FOREST CITY FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS IN THE CLASS I WAS RUNNING. HE JUMPED IN, PUT ME ON SCALES AND RESET MY CROSS WEIGHT AND TIRE PRESSURES. MY KART HAD BEEN SITTING IN MY TRUCK BED ALL FRIDAY AND MY TIRE PRESSURES WHERE WAY OUT OF WHACK. AFTER SOME TWEAKING I SET OUT TO DO MY FIRST EVER HEAT RACE. IN THIS RACING FORMAT YOU RUN TWO HEAT RACES, INVERTED STARTING ORDER BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND HEAT RACE, AND A FEATURE (OR MAIN) RACE. I STARTED LAST IN THE FIRST HEAT RACE AND AFTER RECEIVING THE GREEN FLAG I IMMEDIATELY NOTICED A DIFFERENCE IN MY KART. I COULD FEEL THE PUSH COMING ON OR THE LOOSE COMING ON IN A RATHER PREDICTABLE WAY, I'M LIKING THIS!! AFTER TWO LAPS OF HANGING ON TO THE LEAD PACK THINGS GO SOUTH. GOING INTO TURN THREE, I JUST BARELY GLIMPSE A SCUFFLE GOING ON ABOUT FIVE KARTS UP, THINKING THAT THEY WILL SETTLE THIS BEFORE I GET THERE, I FAIL TO SLOW DOWN ......... BAD CHOICE. COMING OUT OF TURN FOUR, THIS DIRT OVAL RACE HAS SUDDENLY TURNED INTO A ROAD COURSE RACE AS KARTS ARE FACING EAST, WEST, AND NORTH AND I'M HEADING SOUTH AT FULL SONG. "I THINK I CAN GET UNDER THIS ......excrement!!" I FIND THE ONE KART THAT IS SITTING ABSOLUTELY STILL AT A 90 DEGREE ANGLE AND PROCEED TO REMOVE THE FRONT OF MY KART, USING HIS AS A SAWZ-ALL. AIRBORN, THIS ISN'T GOOD. AFTER THE DUST AND FLYING PLASTIC BODY PANELS CLEAR, I'M STILL RUNNING OK, AND I GAINED A SPOT. HELL OF WAY TO GAIN POSITION, BUT I'LL TAKE IT. RUNNING UNDER CAUTION, I PASS THE TURN THREE OFFICIAL AND POINT TO MY FRONT END AND GIVE THE THUMBS UP OR THUMBS DOWN AND HE SHRUGS AND GIVES ME THE THUMBS UP, SORTA. THE RIGHT SIDE OF MY KART IS A MESS AND FLOPPING ALL OVER THE PLACE AFTER THE COLLISION THAT OCCURRED AT ABOUT 45 MPH. HAVING FAITH IN MY FELLOW MAN, I SOLDIERED ON, AND FINISHED ONE AHEAD OF LAST PLACE. SCURRYING TO MAKE WITH REPAIRS, I HAD A LOT OF HELP TO GET MY KART, REPAIRED. ONTO HEAT RACE NUMBER TWO. INVERTED ORDER, MEANING REVERSE ORDER OF FINISHING ORDER FROM HEAT NUMBER ONE. I'M OUTSIDE FRONT ROW FOR HEAT TWO, GOD HELP ME. THINKING IF I STAY HIGH GOING INTO TURN ONE, EVERYONE WILL GO LOW AND I WILL DROP IN COMING OUT OF TURN TWO. THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED, NOW STAY WITH THEM. AL (DIVANE) TOLD ME THAT BRAKES WERE NOT TO BE TOUCHED, BURP THE THROTTLE, GET BACK INTO IT AND LET THE REAR DRIFT THRU THE TURNS, IN OTHER WORDS, DRIVE IT LIKE KYLE BUSCH. I AIN'T NO KYLE BUSCH, BUT DID DO MOST OF MY LAPS IN THE SECOND HEAT WITH OUT TOUCHING THE BRAKES, KART FELT GOOD, I WAS GAINING CONFIDENCE. NOW ONTO THE MAIN FEATURE. I WAS LAST ROW, OUTSIDE, AND I WAS OK WITH THAT, LOL. MY GOAL HERE WAS TO STAY ON THE LEAD LAP, AND HOPING FOR A CAUTION HALF WAY THROUGH TO BUNCH US UP AGAIN, HAHA. IT WAS A CAUTION FREE RACE (DAMN IT) AND WHILE FIGHTING FOR THE COVETED SECOND TO LAST PLACE I SAW THE DREADED MOVE OVER FLAG WITH TWO LAPS TO GO, BUT PLEASED THAT I REMEMBERED TO KEEP AN EYE ON THE FLAG STAND. I MOVED UP TO GIVE THE LEAD PACK ROOM AND THEY PASSED ME COMFORTABLY (HAD THE SENSATION THAT THEY WERE PLEASED WITH ME GIVING WAY, GOOD ROOKIE) AND RESIGNED MYSELF WITH LAST PLACE, BUT KART AND DRIVER WERE STILL GOING, MORE OR LESS. HAD A BLAST, AND LEARNED ALOT. WOKE UP THIS MORNING WITH BRUISED RIBS AND A SORE LEFT KNEE FROM MY HEAT ONE "INCIDENT" BUT FEELS BETTER AFTER A BACADI AND COKE TONIGHT. I JUST WANTED TO SHARE MY EXPERIENCE, HOPE YOU FOUND IT ENTERTAINING, I SURE DID. I ATTACHED PICS OF BEFORE KART RACE AND AFTER.
PS. THE GUYS I WAS WITH THOUGHT THE YELLOW ROOKIE STRIPE ON MY NOSE (AND REAR BUMPER) WAS NEEDED,LOL. THEY WERE RIGHT!
BEFORE
AFTER
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