RACE REPORTS
18: JCAR Race Night #9, October 19, 2003.
Our last ever JCAR race was at Flamboro Speedway. It got off to a soggy start when we spent the whole day at the track waiting for it to stop raining. We had to return Sunday, which was cold and damp. It was a long day as track officials tried to cram 2 days of racing into one. The car was tight in (short) Practice, we adjusted and started our Heat at the back of the pack. It was still tight but we were able to work through the field and finish 2nd in a photo finish with #20. We were gridded in 10th place for the (very late in the day) Feature. Once again we worked our way through the field, reaching 3rd place when the race was called. It was a bit tough going home knowing that this might the last time in this race car.
17: JCAR Race Night #8, October 11, 2003.
We headed to Peterborough Speedway, scene of a very frustrating night earlier this year for their "Fall Colours" race weekend. The weather was perfect and there was a huge turnout for all classes. Our car was good in Practice but we made a gear change for racing and that was a good choice. We started at the back of our Heat race and moved to the front by mid-race, winning by a wide margin. That win put us in 10th place for the 25-lap Feature. We carefully worked our way up to 3rd place and moved in on the leaders when suddenly the race was called at the 15-lap point. We were very disappointed because we had a winning car tonight. Ah well, that's Peterborough, where it's always something.
16: JCAR Race Night #6, September 14, 2003.
After a long layoff it was good to get racing again. The car was OK in Practice and Uncle Don made adjustments for racing. We finished 2nd in Heat 1, and we had a flat tire in Heat 2. We were lined up at the back (14th) for the Feature which isn't good because it is hard to pass on this track. The car was really good and we were able to work up to 5th place by the end of the race. We wished the race was a bit longer, but happy the car is in one piece and we didn't get put into the Varney wall for a change.
15: CJR Race Night #13, August 20, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
It was a funny feeling arriving at the track for our final CJR race. The car was a handful in Practice so we made some adjustments. It wasn't much better in our Heat - we started last and had to really press to gain on anyone. Late in the race we entered turn 3 hard on the back of #23, he let up a bit and bang, we hit and spun him out resulting in a black flag (fair enough, and we apologized to him after - he understood). After the Heat Uncle Don discovered shattered bearings in the front left spindle, which he fixed just before the Feature. The black flag put us in last place for the Feature. On the pace lap there was a sudden 'snap' as the new bearings collapsed! We had no choice but to press on. It was a rough night, but we did manage to get to 3rd place late in the race, when we got tapped aside and passed, finishing 4th. It wasn't as good as we wanted for our last ever CJR race, but it wasn't the disaster it could have been either. After the Feature we did one last commemorative lap with good friend Darrell Lake (#77).
14: JCAR Race Night #5, August 16, 2003.
Uncle Don got the front sub-frame and suspension ready for our JCARs trip to Peterborough Speedway. The car was very, very good in Practice, and that carried over to the heat races. In Heat 1 we started 3rd, took the lead on lap 2 and pulled away for the win. In Heat 2 we started at the back. Early on some cars got together in front of us, we went high expecting them to roll down the banking, but one car shot up the track, knocking us HARD into the wall. We continued on somehow, eventually making it to second place.
The car was pretty banged up, with two bent rims and some suspension damage. Uncle Don did lots of work to get ready, and we lined up last (16th) On lap one we knew the car was fixed and fast and we charged to the front. The car hugged the bottom and as cars drifted up off the corners we stayed low and powered underneath. In the final stages we were 3rd behind the #2 and #6. The gap between us was closing fast and, as we approached #6's rear bumper the white flag waved, 5 laps early.
Coming off turn two the #2 drifted way high and #6 went under him. I used my line from the laps before and just stayed low passing the #6 completely. As I entered turn three the #6 was gone from sight and the #2 car was on my outside. He came down and we touched in the apex. We came off the corner side-by-side and crossed the finish line door to door. As we arrived for a picture we were presented with a black flag and asked to leave the track.
Upon arrival to the pits we found out that on the last lap, as the #2 and I battled, behind us #6 somehow spun out and caused a pile up behind us. The verdict from the tower was that I made it three wide going into turn three and spun the #6 car out. Brad Clarke supported the decision and my black flag was upheld. Afterwards we talked with #2 who, to his credit, admitted that he had cut down towards me, tapped #6 who was sticking his nose between us, setting off the crash. Many others in the pits agreed that we did NOT cause this situation. Still later Brad Clarke said that we got a "bad break" but he couldn't change things at that point. The racing had been fun, the outcome was very disappointing.
13: CJR Race Night #12, August 13, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
The car was good in Practice and better in our Heat Race - we started on the outside pole, jumped into the lead and led the rest of the way. However, a heat win puts you back in traffic for the Feature. On the pace lap we got hit hard from behind, tapping the car in front and messing up the front suspension. Still, the car was fairly good as we tried to work through traffic. Unfortunately we got banged and chopped at every opportunity and the handling of the car got worse and worse. (Adding to our frustration, about 2/3 of the way through the race there was an incident in Turn 1. Several cars got into the gravel trying to avoid the mess. On the restart they were not placed at the back of the field - like we were twice on July 16th.) We tried our best but ended up with 8th place. Back at the shop we found a crack in the front left sub-frame and a damaged right front hub.
12: CJR Race Night #11, August 6, 2003. [FULL RACE RESULTS]
Back from Barrie we wanted to keep running well and things looked good in Practice. We started on the pole in our Heat race, fell back to second, and then re-gained the lead for the checkered flag. We started the Feature in 8th place. On lap one several cars got together right in front of us in Turn 3. We tapped #6 and hit the brakes too hard, spinning out. Expecting a caution we turned the car around and rejoined the race only to find that no caution had been waved. Suddenly we were 3/4 of a lap behind and we played catch-up the rest of the way. While we clicked off some quick laps we really needed a caution to get back into contention and that didn't happen. Frustrating for a night when the car was really good.
11: JCAR Race Night #04, August 3, 2003. [PHOTOS]
Our second JCAR event this year was at Barrie Speedway and we decided to run our car in the 9 HP and 13 HP classes. The car was quick in Practice but for some reason it was suddenly tight in the Heats. Uncle Don discovered some front end damage from a tap (in the front right) that we had received; he also made a gear change. It worked - the car was great in the Feature. We started 16th and worked our way right through the field to win going away. We didn't have time to put a 13 HP carb on our car but we did OK in the 13 HP Feature, working from the back of the field up to 3rd place. A fun night.
10: CJR Race Night #10, July 30, 2003. [FULL RACE RESULTS]
 Uncle Don did a lot of work on the front suspension and it paid off tonight. We started our Heat race in last place, worked our way through the field and finished first. That put us in 12th place for the Feature. There was some rough (nutty) driving early on so we tried to take it easy and stay out of trouble. The car was good and we raced our way to second place with a couple of laps to go. We couldn't pass #2 clean, so we didn't pass him but we made it close. A couple of more laps and who knows, we might have gotten by. Now its off to Barrie for the next JCAR event on the long weekend.
9: CJR Race Night #09, July 23, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
We worked hard to piece our car back together. The handling was pretty good in Practice, a bit tight but OK. We started our Heat on the pole and led the race from flag to flag. That put us in 12th place for the Feature, on the outside row. We got shuffled right to the back on the opening lap but started to work our way carefully (cars were 3 wide going into Turn 3 at one point) back up through the pack. We got to 5th place when, with 2 laps to go, #55 hit us in the rear in Turn 1, letting 2 cars get by. We fought back for 6th place at the finish line.
8: CJR Race Night #08, July 16, 2003. [FULL RACE RESULTS]
Uncle Don worked hard to make the car even better this week and it showed in Practice. We started the Heat race in third, got caught outside and fell back to 5th, then climbed back to 3rd by the end of the race. That put us in mid-pack in the Feature, which turned into a demo derby. We got hit front, side, and so hard from the rear that we got airborne (and chipped a tooth). We restarted at the back a couple of times and ended 9th. After the race the car was a mess, with every body panel banged up - so we have lots of work ahead.
7: CJR Race Night #07, July 9, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
Uncle Don repaired the front suspension but the car was still tight in Practice, our lap times were not good. After more adjustments we started the Heat race in 3rd but fell back to finish 5th. That placed us at the back (17th) of the pack for the Feature. The car was better in the Feature and it got better as the race went on. We were able to work our way to 4th place by the end. The car really started to feel good near the end of this race, hopefully that will carry over to next week.
6: CJR Race Night #06, July 2, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
The car was tight in Practice so we experimented a bit trying to get things better, but it remained tight. We started our Heat on the outside pole, managed to get into first early and hang on for the win. That placed us in eigth place in the Feature. We were able to work our way to third early on, but the car got tighter and tighter as the race wore on. We got tapped in the rear in turn 4 on nearly every lap, and on the last lap we got hit hard, then passed on the grass by 2 cars, finishing 5th. Frustrating. Later we discovered damage to the front right spindle, kingpin, and bearings (they were destroyed).
5: CJR Race Night #05, June 25, 2003. [FULL RACE RESULTS]
We did a lot of work to get ready after hitting the wall at Varney. On a very hot, humid night the car was very tight in practice. After adjustments we started our Heat in 3rd place. Half-way through we made a mistake trying to pass on the outside in turn 4, got caught outside, and fell to 5th. That put us at the back (15th) for the Feature, not good because the track had one groove tonight (the heat and dirt on the track from an enduro race contributed to this). Uncle Don had the car working a bit better but it was still tight. We were able to work our way to 7th place by race end.
4: JCAR Race #02, June 21, 2003. [PHOTOS]
The weather was perfect for our first JCAR Series race. We got lots of laps in practice and ran our best times ever at Varney Motorspeedway. We started on the outside pole in our 1st Heat, grabbed the lead early and won the race. On the first lap of our 2nd Heat we got squeezed up high in turn 3, caught the marbles, and spun into the wall. After a quick pit stop we finished the race in 12th. We started 12th in the Feature, soon moved into 5th place and were tracking down the leaders. Then chaos occured when track officials lost track of the scoring after a caution. The race was called early and no points will be awarded. We've got lots of work to do on the car thanks to our smack into the wall.
3: CJR Race Night #04, June 18, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
Uncle Don worked hard to get the car ready after last week's damage. We started our Heat in last (5th) place, moved into 2nd and then used an outside pass on a quick #23 to take the win. We started the Feature in 8th. It was a rough race. On lap 4 #39 cut down on us in turn 3. Somehow we ended up with a puncture in the left front tire and #2 ended up on his roof. An awesome NASCAR style pitstop by Uncle Don and Brian Cohoon (#25) got us back on the track before the green flag dropped. Starting last, we moved up through the field and ended up 4th, a good finish considering the flat tire and banging that we took. Track Officials were not pleased with the rough driving tonight.
2: CJR Race Night #03, June 11, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
After a rainout last week we were anxious to get racing again. In Practice the car just wasn't right and that continued into Heat 1, we went nowhere. Uncle Don discovered a problem fuel filter but we had to start the Feature in 17th place. We started to move up as the car felt better, but on lap 3 we got tapped and spun into the infield, getting airborne a couple of times. After that the car handled very poorly and we seemed to have lost power again. We struggled the rest of the way, finishing 12th. Frustrating. Later Uncle Don discovered that our lap 3 collision had damaged a tie rod, front bearing, and the position of the rear axle (putting the brake on in corners).
1: CJR Race Night #01, May 28, 2003. [PHOTOS] [FULL RACE RESULTS]
Well, race one in a new season. The car was good during last week's orientation, but we made major changes since then - how would it react? It was good in practice, but not great. Uncle Don discovered a bent spindle and made a quick fix. We started 2nd in our Heat and finished there. We started 7th in the Feature. Some good passes got us into first early, then we had to hang on as the tires and the competition heated up. Brandon Thurlby (#2) was right on our bumper all the way, racing clean but waiting for a mistake. Later he was joined by Darrell Lake (#77) who charged to his back bumper. We took the checkered flag 1-2-3. Afterwards lots of folks commented on how exciting the race was tonight.
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