July 14th, WKA Ohio Speedway Pavement Divisional Series at Toledo
Results
This week-end we raced with the Ohio Speedway Pavement Divisional Series at
Toledo Speedway. We got some new equipment since the last time we raced, two
weeks ago, and this would be the first time it was on the track. With the help
of Seth and Stan we got in the ball-park with the set-up during our practice
sessions. We made a few more changes for qualifying and it really helped the
handling of the kart. We ended up starting 8th out of 11 for the feature. We
also added a little gear for the feature because the RPM were low in qualifying.
It was just a guess, and we'd have to see if it was too much. At the start of
the feature the kart felt really good. I was involved in some really close and
exciting racing for the first part of the race. We were oftentimes 3 wide, and
I think even 4 wide once. In the middle of the 20 lap feature I was able to
break free of the battle and try to catch the next kart for another position.
With about 6 laps to go, the kart started to get a little loose though. This
allowed the karts I raced with before to catch up, and we were locked in battle
again. When one kart made a move on the outside of me, I noticed my over-limit
light was going off on my helmet. I checked the gauges quick and saw an error
reading on my one display. This particular display toggles between two readings,
the RPM and the head temp. I didn't know which reading was giving the error,
so I tried to toggle between the two. Unfortunately, it wouldn't toggle and
my limit light was still going off, so I just guessed the head temperature was
high. I adjusted the carb to cool off the engine, but it didn't help. By this
time, the karts I was battling with had pulled away a little, and there were
about 2 laps to go. I decided to forget about the tach and try to catch them.
I wasn't able to though, and we ended up 10th I believe. Seth finished right
ahead of us involved in a great battle. We're not sure if he finished 8th or
9th. Once I got back to the pits, we found out we did have too much gear and
it was my RPM causing the overlimit light to flash. The error that I was
getting happened because the head temperature sensor had become disconnected
from the display unit. With all the things that happened in the feature it was
still a fun time, and we learned a lot. Like Seth said afterward, "We weren't
fast, but we sure had fun." Which was very true, since we were both involved
in battles most of the race. I have to give huge thanks to Seth and Stan for
helping us out again, and also Doug Jenkins for giving us some pointers as well.
Also, thanks to Pam Hatfield and her family for coming out and giving us some
moral support in the stands.
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