Day 3
For the final day, our guests got to go with us. We started with breakfast at the track again, then it was photo op time. We got lots of pictures with the group, with our instructors, etc., etc. Finally we got to get back on the track, and go out for another 10 lap run. My instructor warmed up the Aaron’s Dream Machine 00 and decided he had to get me in that car. It was too big for me, but we padded her up and what a ride! We could run a little higher line then the day before and there was so much grip, we could stay in the gas a lot longer in the corners, and then get back in the throttle earlier.
Next was our 2 lap qualifying run. I should mention all the competitions were in an ’08 Fusion. They had 2 of those, so everyone was using the same car, same step, etc., one was just a little longer, since we had contestants from my short little 5’3” up to Dave, who was 6’8”. There was no way we were driving the same car!
So my first lap wasn’t bad, I think Ralph timed it at about a 41.5 (or average speed of 130 mph). I had run some quicker laps in practice, but lap 2 was going to be better. We cheated the corners bad, were back in the throttle earlier and cooking!!! We came into Turn 3 hot, and about the place you wanted to start maintaining speed, we were already getting back in the throttle. The car got a front end chatter, so I had to let off the gas. We turned toward the wall, to try to get the tires to catch, but no luck. We had to yank off the wall, and start headed for the grass/pit road wall. Tires were screaming! We finally caught, fished tailed out of it, and came down the front stretch in the middle of the track, never hitting a thing! We still ran a 42.3 that lap, with all that. If we held it, I think we would have been in the 39’s, easy. Of course, we go back around, to get on pit road, and as I am braking I am shaking like a leaf. My right leg is doing a tap dance on the pedal. We got in, I climbed out sat on the window and pumped my arms. Then I decided that was enough, so I stood up on the door, like the drivers do. (After that everyone started doing it, but I was first!!)
We weren’t done of the track yet. We ran another 10 lap practice, and I was little gun shy at first. Ran up a bit slower (average speed around 123), and I got passed. But as my confidence built back up we got back run 40.5 second laps, and ran that car down, and passed ‘em back! This one we did our practice pit stop, where the guys come over the wall, jack the car up, run the air gun (don’t actually change any tires), but then we are down and away. Our final even on the track, was the competition just like that, 5 laps, pit stop, 5 laps. I stalled her out on pit road, but got it re-fired on my own and didn’t loose too much time. All told, we ran 72 laps. Quite an experience!!
After that, it was back to truck competition. We ran the off-road course again, and this time I kept it a little more under control. I finally made the gate at the top of the first hill (only about 3 or 4 of us ever got through it clean), and it wasn’t as exciting as the first run, but I think we had a better time. We wrapped up with the Precision course, and I ran it my fastest and I ran it clean, no cones touched.
After that, we had out victory lane celebration, champion and all. The winner was a firefighter and late model racer from Mississippi.
Finally, dinner was at a restaurant that was open only to our group. We were there from about 7:30 to almost 11, having a few drinks and saying goodbye to everyone. The whole thing was amazing!
I can’t say enough about the way Ford put this together and the people they had involved. If you ever want to go to a racing school, check out Dale Jarrett’s. The guys there are awesome! Great people, a ton of fun, and very talented!
As for my 2 instructors, they were the best! I’m sure everyone thought that about theirs, but I know I had the 2 greatest guys there. We're going to try to meet up in Kentucky at some point with Joe, my DJ instructor and let Ralph have a turn. Sean, my truck-driving instructor is from our area, and lives pretty close to the track up in Michigan. He is going to be in Toledo in a few weeks, so we are going meet up with him then, but we are also talking about going to the dog park (he has an 11 month old lab, and isn’t too far from the parks in Saline or Lansing), going go-kart racing and hanging out. I now you always say those things, and they don’t always happen, but I do hope we get the chance to keep in touch with both of them.
So, sign up for next year! But make sure you use a phone number that you can always get to. I found out they called once and if you didn’t answer, they called the next person on the list. I was #2 my week, but some people were 5 or 7 or even 11 for their week.
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