BRM OFFROAD - WHIPLASH QUAD RACING
WHIPLASH 2009 -
ROUND 3 - MARCH 13-15, 2009
Due to Whiplash races conflicting with our primary quad and buggy schedules, round 3 was the first one we made it out to, but what a fun and exciting weekend it was. I chose to race at round 3 due to the fact that it was going to be a grand prix race and not a typical full blown desert race. I don't have the stamina to race for a few hours, and my husband and daughter want to be able to watch me race, not just see me go by once every hour. So, I was really looking forward to this race and our first time on the new Firebird MX track.
We arrived at Firebird Motocross track, in Chandler, AZ on Friday afternoon. Jeff and Noelani did a great job getting my quad unloaded and gear all set for me to take to tech. I saw a lot of familiar faces, and it was really sweet of Shannon Hernandez in the registration booth to remember our daughter, who she hasn't seen since last fall. Shannon even gave me a special wristband to take back to Noelani and boy was she stoked!
Saturday morning was soon upon us and we enjoyed our traditional race breakfast consisting of oatmeal, a donut, and some hot chocolate. After that, I got ready and headed to the staging area. Jeff and NoMo soon headed out to find some good places around the track to take pictures. There were about 9 or 10 of us in the Novice/Amateur Unclassified race and another 9 or 10 in the Expert/Pro race (we all had transponders and were scored that way). We started on a standard mx gate and once it dropped, we were off. I got my typical slow start, but was soon working on my first pass. The 30 minute race was a lot of fun and the track was tailored perfect for my preference, a lot of motocross and just a little desert. The desert section was probably just as long as the mx section, but the desert was also the best layout and terrain that I have ever raced on. The mx portion consisted of single jumps, doubles, step-ups, tables, and whoops. The track was laid out extremely well and it flowed great... even the doubles I was to chicken to attempt.
About lap 6 or so, I was starting to feel a tired and wouldn't have been disappointed to see the white flag come out. I had a good look at the track, was having fun, and felt ready for Sunday's main. Hoping I would have the stamina for a 50 minute race. A lap later I came around to get the white flag, whew. I was ready. I had no idea where I was at, position wise in the race, but it sure was a lot of fun... especially the mx portion. What a great workout!
Later, after the Pro's and Experts ran, my crew (hubby & daughter) and I headed down to check out the results. We were met by 40+ Expert racer, Marlin Kurtz and he asked if I had seen my lap times. He went on to tell me that I had the fastest overall time on the day. I couldn't believe it!! I usually finish mid pack in the races and the podium is pretty unfamiliar turf, except when I see it on tv. Now I just wanted to make sure that I kept my focus for Sunday's race. The one that actually counted.
Sunday morning came and we broke tradition and had pancakes instead of oatmeal. I don't like to race on a full stomach, but still ate enough to fill me up. Noelani, however, doesn't like to watch and cheer on an empty stomach and she ate more than I did. Little did we know, she was going to need that cheering energy. After breakfast, I got my bundle of nerves crammed into my gear and headed down to staging. It turned out to be a pretty big class, 12-15 on my gate, and 41 overall (Novice and Amateurs). The 1st group off were the class 2's. Thirty seconds after them the class 3's took off. Next were the class 4's (30+ Novice... my class). We had a 1 minute gate instead of a 30 second gate so the first 2 groups were well out in front before we even started. We were all ready and the gate dropped. Surprisingly I got a better start than normal, 3rd to last instead of dead last. I came into turn one and patiently waited to make my first pass. I was about 11th or 12th coming out of turn 2 and setting up to make another pass, just as we're hitting the 1st of the 3 doubles (or 6 singles as it turned out the first time thru with everyone). I was able to make a few passes each lap and found my groove and was just having fun.
I recall some specific passes, one in particular was when I was behind a couple of Kawasaki's on the mx section. There's a nice double that I liked hitting, just after the huge step-up (that I couldn't clear), but as we were approaching the double, one of the kawi riders moved over a little and it wouldn't have been safe for me to hit the double. I singled thru with them and set myself up to take the right-hander at the bottom nice and tight. Coming out of the corner and up the hill, I was now in front of both of them. It was really cool. This was one of my favorite passing areas throughout the day. It's also were I passed Marsha Garcia, #412, on lap 2 or 3, who had an amazing race herself.
The first corner after we just got back on the track from the desert section was my other favorite passing spot. This particular corner was after a long table, but the corner went pretty deep. Instead of hitting the jump hard, I would throttle back a little, down-shift as I was going down the table and slide thru the left-hander nice and tight. I was able to take advantage of shortening the track a bit and it gave me an edge throughout the day.
After about 35 minutes into it, I was feeling fatigue and thirst. Motivation was soon back upon me when I could see Jeff and Noelani cheering me on every time I came by them. A few laps later, I was starting to 'will' the white flag to come out. I could feel a blister developing on my left hand and the dry taste of dust in my mouth guard wasn't really working for me anymore. As I popped back up onto the track, I kept looking across for the white flag to finally come out. And eventually, it did. With just one lap left, I was determined not to mess anything up. I had no idea what position I was in, and I was just hoping that I didn't have anybody coming up behind me.
The best part of the entire race was going by Noelani and seeing her jumping up and down, cheering on mom, and dad doing the same! Eight corners later I got the checkers and pulled off behind the others in my class. I shut off my 2006 Honda TRX 450ER and listened to the PA announcer. I caught the part that was "Missy Barrett on the 419 taking 5th." I was stoked and waved over to Jeff and Noelani, who by the way did an awesome job running my pit and cheer section. I was excited and cruised up to meet them. I got up to them and they congratulated me and told me that I got 5th overall, and 1st in my class! I was stunned! I thought that when I heard the announcer, I had finished 5th in my class. I have never won a race and didn't think that at the age of 40 I would get one. Actually, I just assumed I would never get one and it was no big deal. But this called for celebrating! We checked out our results after the race and in the 30+ Novice class 2 gals took first and second place. I completed 12 laps in 50 minutes for 1st place and Marsha Garcia completed 11 laps for 2nd place, and 8th overall. I'm not sure if there was another gal in our class or not, but how cool would that have been if it would have been all 3 women on the podium?
Due to Whiplash races conflicting with our primary quad and buggy schedules, round 3 was the first one we made it out to, but what a fun and exciting weekend it was. I chose to race at round 3 due to the fact that it was going to be a grand prix race and not a typical full blown desert race. I don't have the stamina to race for a few hours, and my husband and daughter want to be able to watch me race, not just see me go by once every hour. So, I was really looking forward to this race and our first time on the new Firebird MX track.
We arrived at Firebird Motocross track, in Chandler, AZ on Friday afternoon. Jeff and Noelani did a great job getting my quad unloaded and gear all set for me to take to tech. I saw a lot of familiar faces, and it was really sweet of Shannon Hernandez in the registration booth to remember our daughter, who she hasn't seen since last fall. Shannon even gave me a special wristband to take back to Noelani and boy was she stoked!
Saturday morning was soon upon us and we enjoyed our traditional race breakfast consisting of oatmeal, a donut, and some hot chocolate. After that, I got ready and headed to the staging area. Jeff and NoMo soon headed out to find some good places around the track to take pictures. There were about 9 or 10 of us in the Novice/Amateur Unclassified race and another 9 or 10 in the Expert/Pro race (we all had transponders and were scored that way). We started on a standard mx gate and once it dropped, we were off. I got my typical slow start, but was soon working on my first pass. The 30 minute race was a lot of fun and the track was tailored perfect for my preference, a lot of motocross and just a little desert. The desert section was probably just as long as the mx section, but the desert was also the best layout and terrain that I have ever raced on. The mx portion consisted of single jumps, doubles, step-ups, tables, and whoops. The track was laid out extremely well and it flowed great... even the doubles I was to chicken to attempt.
About lap 6 or so, I was starting to feel a tired and wouldn't have been disappointed to see the white flag come out. I had a good look at the track, was having fun, and felt ready for Sunday's main. Hoping I would have the stamina for a 50 minute race. A lap later I came around to get the white flag, whew. I was ready. I had no idea where I was at, position wise in the race, but it sure was a lot of fun... especially the mx portion. What a great workout!
Later, after the Pro's and Experts ran, my crew (hubby & daughter) and I headed down to check out the results. We were met by 40+ Expert racer, Marlin Kurtz and he asked if I had seen my lap times. He went on to tell me that I had the fastest overall time on the day. I couldn't believe it!! I usually finish mid pack in the races and the podium is pretty unfamiliar turf, except when I see it on tv. Now I just wanted to make sure that I kept my focus for Sunday's race. The one that actually counted.
Sunday morning came and we broke tradition and had pancakes instead of oatmeal. I don't like to race on a full stomach, but still ate enough to fill me up. Noelani, however, doesn't like to watch and cheer on an empty stomach and she ate more than I did. Little did we know, she was going to need that cheering energy. After breakfast, I got my bundle of nerves crammed into my gear and headed down to staging. It turned out to be a pretty big class, 12-15 on my gate, and 41 overall (Novice and Amateurs). The 1st group off were the class 2's. Thirty seconds after them the class 3's took off. Next were the class 4's (30+ Novice... my class). We had a 1 minute gate instead of a 30 second gate so the first 2 groups were well out in front before we even started. We were all ready and the gate dropped. Surprisingly I got a better start than normal, 3rd to last instead of dead last. I came into turn one and patiently waited to make my first pass. I was about 11th or 12th coming out of turn 2 and setting up to make another pass, just as we're hitting the 1st of the 3 doubles (or 6 singles as it turned out the first time thru with everyone). I was able to make a few passes each lap and found my groove and was just having fun.
I recall some specific passes, one in particular was when I was behind a couple of Kawasaki's on the mx section. There's a nice double that I liked hitting, just after the huge step-up (that I couldn't clear), but as we were approaching the double, one of the kawi riders moved over a little and it wouldn't have been safe for me to hit the double. I singled thru with them and set myself up to take the right-hander at the bottom nice and tight. Coming out of the corner and up the hill, I was now in front of both of them. It was really cool. This was one of my favorite passing areas throughout the day. It's also were I passed Marsha Garcia, #412, on lap 2 or 3, who had an amazing race herself.
The first corner after we just got back on the track from the desert section was my other favorite passing spot. This particular corner was after a long table, but the corner went pretty deep. Instead of hitting the jump hard, I would throttle back a little, down-shift as I was going down the table and slide thru the left-hander nice and tight. I was able to take advantage of shortening the track a bit and it gave me an edge throughout the day.
After about 35 minutes into it, I was feeling fatigue and thirst. Motivation was soon back upon me when I could see Jeff and Noelani cheering me on every time I came by them. A few laps later, I was starting to 'will' the white flag to come out. I could feel a blister developing on my left hand and the dry taste of dust in my mouth guard wasn't really working for me anymore. As I popped back up onto the track, I kept looking across for the white flag to finally come out. And eventually, it did. With just one lap left, I was determined not to mess anything up. I had no idea what position I was in, and I was just hoping that I didn't have anybody coming up behind me.
The best part of the entire race was going by Noelani and seeing her jumping up and down, cheering on mom, and dad doing the same! Eight corners later I got the checkers and pulled off behind the others in my class. I shut off my 2006 Honda TRX 450ER and listened to the PA announcer. I caught the part that was "Missy Barrett on the 419 taking 5th." I was stoked and waved over to Jeff and Noelani, who by the way did an awesome job running my pit and cheer section. I was excited and cruised up to meet them. I got up to them and they congratulated me and told me that I got 5th overall, and 1st in my class! I was stunned! I thought that when I heard the announcer, I had finished 5th in my class. I have never won a race and didn't think that at the age of 40 I would get one. Actually, I just assumed I would never get one and it was no big deal. But this called for celebrating! We checked out our results after the race and in the 30+ Novice class 2 gals took first and second place. I completed 12 laps in 50 minutes for 1st place and Marsha Garcia completed 11 laps for 2nd place, and 8th overall. I'm not sure if there was another gal in our class or not, but how cool would that have been if it would have been all 3 women on the podium?
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Qualifying: I'm the 3rd one in this clip, not sure I wanted to make a pass on the double but passed both KFX450R racers in the right hand corner and started pulling away.
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I'm in the blue gear battling against another TRX 450R (red), finally passing him on the inside before heading out into the desert.
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Behind 2 Suzuki LTR450s and a CanAm DS450 going into the whoops, reeling them in again on a tight left hander, passing 2 of the 2 going up the hill before hitting the desert again. Definitely one of my fave passing areas during the race.
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Using the inside of the corners to make a few passes. It was a lot of fun.
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WHIPLASH RACING 2008 - FIREBIRD 1
What a weekend! We hit our first WHIPLASH race this weekend and had a blast!! The Whiplash series is for quads, dirt bikes, buggies, trucks, trophy karts, & UTV's. They normally run desert races, but this weekend was a grandprix race, held out at Firebird Raceway in Phoenix, AZ. The track was laid out over 2 miles with elevation changes, single jumps, whoops, asphalt crossings and 2 asphalt straight aways. Our 19" mx tires hurt us on the straights, but was an advantage in the corners. The adult quad and bike motos were 45 minutes and very exciting. The Desert Buggy race (consisting of a mix of Pro Buggy's, Desert Buggy's, Pro-Lite Trucks, Class 1 Buggy's, and Class 9 & 10 Buggy's) was exciting but probably should have been split to separate the clearly faster, unlimited, classes from the other classes that have limited motor/suspension etc.
On Saturday there was a practice session for all the classes followed by qualifier races. Team Riders Missy Barrett was racing in the ATV 30+ Novice class (#419) and Jeff Barrett was racing in the 1600 Single Buggy class (#334). The quad racing was exciting and a ton of fun. This was Missy's first race in over 14 months and she had fun battling with the others in her class. The 6-lap Qualifier race was extremely exciting as the top 4 racers put on a great show swapping positions from start to finish. Missy and Les Hutchison (#472) were battling for 4th most of the way and Missy finally made the pass stick on lap 4. She then had her sites set on 3rd and was once again having fun switching up her lines and making another late pass. When the checkers came out, Missy was relieved. She was getting pretty tired and didn't have much left in her tank. To her and her families surprise though, she ended up finishing in 2nd place. The funny part is, they didn't even realize it until Sunday morning. Although just a little sore, but a lot tired, she had a great time racing again!
The practice session for Jeff in the Pro 1600 Buggy class was also fun, but the rough desert course proved to play into the hands of the desert racers, over the short-course racers. Jeff had a great time in practice and during the Qualifier race he was quickly working his way thru the field. He passed a class 1 Buggy, a Pro Truck, and several 1600 Desert Buggy's early in the race. The some-what smooth track was very favorable to us until late in the race. Jeff came out of turn 6 and nailed a rock that bent and twisted the steering box bracket. We brought it in with hopes of making any necessary repairs for the main race on Sunday. The repairs were made, it wasn't pretty, but our buggy was ready to go for Sunday.
Sunday morning came and the 30+ Novice class was the first class to run the 30 minute race. It was nice having a freshly groomed track after the brutal conditions Saturday afternoon. The best part of the main race on Sunday was listening to a Whiplash official (as he was lining them up for the start) compliment racers Michael Mallory (#432), Kevin Arco (#441), Missy Barrett (#419), Eric Bunton (#443), & Les Hutchison (#472) for their racing action on Saturday. He told them they put on the best race of the day, and gave the top 4 qualifiers the first row for the start. Missy was stoked, but it didn't really seem to matter because once the flag waved, her tires just spun on the wet asphalt. By the end of the asphalt straight, dropping onto the packed dirt and rock on the way to turn 2, she had dropped back to about 8th or 9th. Coming around to the end of lap 1 she had worked her way up to 6th. The first 5 laps were extremely exciting as the Les, Missy, and Kevin were all over each other (see 1st link below). Les and Missy started pulling a little on Kevin and had a few lead changes (for 4th & 5th). Missy's 450R was once again getting killed on the long straights (mx tires), but was making her suspension count in the whoops, corners, and jumps. On lap 5 Missy was reeling in Les exiting turn 6 and they were both coming up on a racer from another class, making it 3-wide as they went into the left-hander of turn 7. Missy made a move to go wide and it paid off as Les and the other racer got tangled up mid-turn. From the video, it looked like Les missed a shift and stalled it and the other guy got crossed up with him. That gave Missy the break she needed. Les was only tied up for a moment and was soon barreling down on Missy again. Missy made things easy for Les after she made a bad decision and attempted to pass for 4th right before the transponder station. As the 2 came off the table and across the wet asphalt, Missy locked up her fronts and high-centered on the berm. That was a short-lived view of 4th... and Les quickly went by as well. Once back on the track, Missy reminded herself that at the age of 39, she's just out there to have fun. But that's pretty tough for any racer to settle with. For the next lap or so Missy was making her way thru racers from the other classes out there and looking for the top racers in her class. As the track conditions started taking it's toll on the stamina levels, Missy was able to squeeze the grips a little harder (here and there) and on lap 11 she had moved back up to 2nd place. Les was no where in site, he had a commanding lead. The final 2 laps were pretty uneventful other than Missy almost pitching herself in the whoops. And as the checkers waved, Les took 1st with an average lap time of 2.56 minutes, Missy took 2nd place honors with an average lap time of 2.65 minutes, and Ryan Sloan grabbed the final podium position with an average lap time of 2.68 minutes. It was a fun race, full of exciting passing, and another great finish. Missy had a great time out there and enjoyed the friendly competition and attitudes of the others in her class. She would also like to thank Ken George (#427) for his compliments at the end of the race, it was a great group of racers all the way around.
The Buggy class didn't run until late in the day, and by then the track conditions were miserable. Dust, huge ruts, and more rocks exposed, definitely played a factor in our class. There were 4 1600 Single Buggy's out there with the Pro's and it was obvious who we were. At the start of the 11 lap race, Eric Greener in the #357 buggy had the lead with Jeff Knupp in the #354 right behind him, followed by Greg Parker in the #391 and Jeff Barrett in the #334. Going into turn 5, right after the whoops Greener had the lead on Knupp but coming out of the corner Greener was slowly rolling down the next straight. Don't know if the 2 mixed it up in the turn, but Greener was out with a broken axle and Knupp was alone in 1st. The track was really starting to take its toll and hand out the punishment because within just a few laps, Parker was pitting with a flat tire. Jeff Barrett in the #334 was up to 2nd but was experiencing carb-related issues and choking in most of the corners. Barrett was doing great out there as he had to battle with the Pro trucks and buggy's while staying focused on his competition. On lap 5 Barrett closed the gap on a 1600 Desert Buggy and had a great battle. Barrett would stick his wheel in on the corners but would give up top-end speed on the straights. They were exciting to watch. Barrett soon found himself with a great line and passed on the outside going down the straight on the far end of the track. When the 2 racers came back into view, Barrett was coming out of the corner first. He soon started to pull away, but within a few jumps and corners, his carb stalled and the desert buggy was re-passing. Barrett got things going and was gaining once again only to get a flat tire on lap 7. He continued to make a charge on the desert buggy, but wasn't much he could do with out traction to the rear right and had to pull off the track near the end of lap 8. Some of the corners were so brutal that it was anyone's guess as to who the track would devour next. Later, after watching the video tape, Jeff had a flat for over a lap and a half and was doing a great job pushing the desert buggy. Jeff was disappointed with the flat, but more disappointed with the carb problem. Knupp finished 1st with an average lap time of 2.41 minutes, Parker took 2nd place honors with average lap times of 2.49 minutes, and Barrett rounded out the final podium position, averaging 2.46 minutes per lap. It's frustrating knowing that you have a great chance at the 'W', but your machine doesn't perform as well as you know it can. Maybe next time.
What a weekend! We hit our first WHIPLASH race this weekend and had a blast!! The Whiplash series is for quads, dirt bikes, buggies, trucks, trophy karts, & UTV's. They normally run desert races, but this weekend was a grandprix race, held out at Firebird Raceway in Phoenix, AZ. The track was laid out over 2 miles with elevation changes, single jumps, whoops, asphalt crossings and 2 asphalt straight aways. Our 19" mx tires hurt us on the straights, but was an advantage in the corners. The adult quad and bike motos were 45 minutes and very exciting. The Desert Buggy race (consisting of a mix of Pro Buggy's, Desert Buggy's, Pro-Lite Trucks, Class 1 Buggy's, and Class 9 & 10 Buggy's) was exciting but probably should have been split to separate the clearly faster, unlimited, classes from the other classes that have limited motor/suspension etc.
On Saturday there was a practice session for all the classes followed by qualifier races. Team Riders Missy Barrett was racing in the ATV 30+ Novice class (#419) and Jeff Barrett was racing in the 1600 Single Buggy class (#334). The quad racing was exciting and a ton of fun. This was Missy's first race in over 14 months and she had fun battling with the others in her class. The 6-lap Qualifier race was extremely exciting as the top 4 racers put on a great show swapping positions from start to finish. Missy and Les Hutchison (#472) were battling for 4th most of the way and Missy finally made the pass stick on lap 4. She then had her sites set on 3rd and was once again having fun switching up her lines and making another late pass. When the checkers came out, Missy was relieved. She was getting pretty tired and didn't have much left in her tank. To her and her families surprise though, she ended up finishing in 2nd place. The funny part is, they didn't even realize it until Sunday morning. Although just a little sore, but a lot tired, she had a great time racing again!
The practice session for Jeff in the Pro 1600 Buggy class was also fun, but the rough desert course proved to play into the hands of the desert racers, over the short-course racers. Jeff had a great time in practice and during the Qualifier race he was quickly working his way thru the field. He passed a class 1 Buggy, a Pro Truck, and several 1600 Desert Buggy's early in the race. The some-what smooth track was very favorable to us until late in the race. Jeff came out of turn 6 and nailed a rock that bent and twisted the steering box bracket. We brought it in with hopes of making any necessary repairs for the main race on Sunday. The repairs were made, it wasn't pretty, but our buggy was ready to go for Sunday.
Sunday morning came and the 30+ Novice class was the first class to run the 30 minute race. It was nice having a freshly groomed track after the brutal conditions Saturday afternoon. The best part of the main race on Sunday was listening to a Whiplash official (as he was lining them up for the start) compliment racers Michael Mallory (#432), Kevin Arco (#441), Missy Barrett (#419), Eric Bunton (#443), & Les Hutchison (#472) for their racing action on Saturday. He told them they put on the best race of the day, and gave the top 4 qualifiers the first row for the start. Missy was stoked, but it didn't really seem to matter because once the flag waved, her tires just spun on the wet asphalt. By the end of the asphalt straight, dropping onto the packed dirt and rock on the way to turn 2, she had dropped back to about 8th or 9th. Coming around to the end of lap 1 she had worked her way up to 6th. The first 5 laps were extremely exciting as the Les, Missy, and Kevin were all over each other (see 1st link below). Les and Missy started pulling a little on Kevin and had a few lead changes (for 4th & 5th). Missy's 450R was once again getting killed on the long straights (mx tires), but was making her suspension count in the whoops, corners, and jumps. On lap 5 Missy was reeling in Les exiting turn 6 and they were both coming up on a racer from another class, making it 3-wide as they went into the left-hander of turn 7. Missy made a move to go wide and it paid off as Les and the other racer got tangled up mid-turn. From the video, it looked like Les missed a shift and stalled it and the other guy got crossed up with him. That gave Missy the break she needed. Les was only tied up for a moment and was soon barreling down on Missy again. Missy made things easy for Les after she made a bad decision and attempted to pass for 4th right before the transponder station. As the 2 came off the table and across the wet asphalt, Missy locked up her fronts and high-centered on the berm. That was a short-lived view of 4th... and Les quickly went by as well. Once back on the track, Missy reminded herself that at the age of 39, she's just out there to have fun. But that's pretty tough for any racer to settle with. For the next lap or so Missy was making her way thru racers from the other classes out there and looking for the top racers in her class. As the track conditions started taking it's toll on the stamina levels, Missy was able to squeeze the grips a little harder (here and there) and on lap 11 she had moved back up to 2nd place. Les was no where in site, he had a commanding lead. The final 2 laps were pretty uneventful other than Missy almost pitching herself in the whoops. And as the checkers waved, Les took 1st with an average lap time of 2.56 minutes, Missy took 2nd place honors with an average lap time of 2.65 minutes, and Ryan Sloan grabbed the final podium position with an average lap time of 2.68 minutes. It was a fun race, full of exciting passing, and another great finish. Missy had a great time out there and enjoyed the friendly competition and attitudes of the others in her class. She would also like to thank Ken George (#427) for his compliments at the end of the race, it was a great group of racers all the way around.
The Buggy class didn't run until late in the day, and by then the track conditions were miserable. Dust, huge ruts, and more rocks exposed, definitely played a factor in our class. There were 4 1600 Single Buggy's out there with the Pro's and it was obvious who we were. At the start of the 11 lap race, Eric Greener in the #357 buggy had the lead with Jeff Knupp in the #354 right behind him, followed by Greg Parker in the #391 and Jeff Barrett in the #334. Going into turn 5, right after the whoops Greener had the lead on Knupp but coming out of the corner Greener was slowly rolling down the next straight. Don't know if the 2 mixed it up in the turn, but Greener was out with a broken axle and Knupp was alone in 1st. The track was really starting to take its toll and hand out the punishment because within just a few laps, Parker was pitting with a flat tire. Jeff Barrett in the #334 was up to 2nd but was experiencing carb-related issues and choking in most of the corners. Barrett was doing great out there as he had to battle with the Pro trucks and buggy's while staying focused on his competition. On lap 5 Barrett closed the gap on a 1600 Desert Buggy and had a great battle. Barrett would stick his wheel in on the corners but would give up top-end speed on the straights. They were exciting to watch. Barrett soon found himself with a great line and passed on the outside going down the straight on the far end of the track. When the 2 racers came back into view, Barrett was coming out of the corner first. He soon started to pull away, but within a few jumps and corners, his carb stalled and the desert buggy was re-passing. Barrett got things going and was gaining once again only to get a flat tire on lap 7. He continued to make a charge on the desert buggy, but wasn't much he could do with out traction to the rear right and had to pull off the track near the end of lap 8. Some of the corners were so brutal that it was anyone's guess as to who the track would devour next. Later, after watching the video tape, Jeff had a flat for over a lap and a half and was doing a great job pushing the desert buggy. Jeff was disappointed with the flat, but more disappointed with the carb problem. Knupp finished 1st with an average lap time of 2.41 minutes, Parker took 2nd place honors with average lap times of 2.49 minutes, and Barrett rounded out the final podium position, averaging 2.46 minutes per lap. It's frustrating knowing that you have a great chance at the 'W', but your machine doesn't perform as well as you know it can. Maybe next time.
WHIPLASH RACING 2008 - FIREBIRD 2 - CHANDLER, ARIZONA
We were excited going into this weekend, knowing we would be getting an extra race in with our 1600 Buggy. What we didn't know was that meant they were having one less quad race. The track was much improved from a scenic point of view with palm trees being added around the track, as well as not being so tight for the trucks and buggy's. Once again, that effected the quad racing quite a bit... for us anyway.
The track followed the same layout from April for the most part with the exception of removing a stretch that was full of jumps and other technical features. The October layout was a high speed track, similar to a groomed logging road or trail with 6 jumps, 1 table, and 1 corner that had a kicker at the bottom and a roller at the top right at the apex... over the entire 1½ mile track. It was a great layout for all the newbies that might have come out. We're hoping Whiplash adds a few more jumps and tables for the quads... and not the boulders and logs that the dirt bikes have to contend with. Those babies do some pretty expensive damage to the machines and body.
For our quad time on the track, we had one 20 minute practice session on Saturday and a 45 minute race on Sunday. Once again there was an exceptional quad turnout in all the classes. The 30+ Open group was first off the line with the 30+ & 40+ Novice, & Utility classes starting shortly behind them. Coming out of the transponder/scoring area we had our 450R in 5th thru the majority of the track. That's great for all those desert racers out there that enjoy the speed and not the jumps, but with our 19" tires and gearing, our style is the exact opposite J. Other than having fun in the 2 technical corners making a few passes, we were pretty much giving some of those positions back on the wide-open areas of the track. Late in the race we started suffering the ill effects of a dirty filter and lost a little power, giving up a few spots. At the end, Missy finished 9th out of 13 in the class.
Awe, now to the real fun that we had out there, the Short Course 1600 class. There were only 4 in our class and we ran off the same gate as the 5 Pro Buggy's. Everyone got a good start, the Pro's were lined up 2-by-2 in the front followed by the 1600's. It took longer than expected for the 220+hp of the Pro's to make their way around to the 80hp 1600's, but when they did, it made things a little messy, especially during the main on Sunday. In Saturday's race we were swapping 1st place honors with Jeff Knupp in the #354. Knupp finally got by Jeff Barrett in the #334, and once Barrett rolled it in turn one late in the race, Knupp had first place in the bag. After we rolled it and later were t-boned by another 1600 buggy, we had a few adjustments to make for Sunday. We re-bent our nerfbar and lowered our ride-height since the track was a much smoother layout than the April race. Sunday's action was really good. We managed to keep the rubber side down and had a lot of good battles throughout the entire race. There was an unfortunate incident within just the last couple of laps when 2 of the Pro Buggy's were coming up on us during our battle for 2nd place. Barrett, in our BRM buggy and Justin Davis in the Army buggy were entertaining the crowd with lap after lap of side-by-side racing when on of the Pro's, who was in a battle of his own, came into the final turn way to hot and t-boned Barrett into the side of the other Pro buggy, who than hit the Army buggy. The corners aren't wide enough to go 4-wide, and it's pretty obvious. But that didn't stop this one guy from coming in and clearing house. And as you might expect, the BRM buggy, the Army buggy, and the Pro leader were all taken out, giving the instigator a clear track ahead of him. And, no, he was not given a black flag, just the 1st place checkers a couple laps later. As for the tangle up, BRM and the Pro were both locked together but everyone managed to find reverse, find the track, and get the hammer down. We ended up settling for 3rd, and other than the mess at the end, we had a great time.
We were excited going into this weekend, knowing we would be getting an extra race in with our 1600 Buggy. What we didn't know was that meant they were having one less quad race. The track was much improved from a scenic point of view with palm trees being added around the track, as well as not being so tight for the trucks and buggy's. Once again, that effected the quad racing quite a bit... for us anyway.
The track followed the same layout from April for the most part with the exception of removing a stretch that was full of jumps and other technical features. The October layout was a high speed track, similar to a groomed logging road or trail with 6 jumps, 1 table, and 1 corner that had a kicker at the bottom and a roller at the top right at the apex... over the entire 1½ mile track. It was a great layout for all the newbies that might have come out. We're hoping Whiplash adds a few more jumps and tables for the quads... and not the boulders and logs that the dirt bikes have to contend with. Those babies do some pretty expensive damage to the machines and body.
For our quad time on the track, we had one 20 minute practice session on Saturday and a 45 minute race on Sunday. Once again there was an exceptional quad turnout in all the classes. The 30+ Open group was first off the line with the 30+ & 40+ Novice, & Utility classes starting shortly behind them. Coming out of the transponder/scoring area we had our 450R in 5th thru the majority of the track. That's great for all those desert racers out there that enjoy the speed and not the jumps, but with our 19" tires and gearing, our style is the exact opposite J. Other than having fun in the 2 technical corners making a few passes, we were pretty much giving some of those positions back on the wide-open areas of the track. Late in the race we started suffering the ill effects of a dirty filter and lost a little power, giving up a few spots. At the end, Missy finished 9th out of 13 in the class.
Awe, now to the real fun that we had out there, the Short Course 1600 class. There were only 4 in our class and we ran off the same gate as the 5 Pro Buggy's. Everyone got a good start, the Pro's were lined up 2-by-2 in the front followed by the 1600's. It took longer than expected for the 220+hp of the Pro's to make their way around to the 80hp 1600's, but when they did, it made things a little messy, especially during the main on Sunday. In Saturday's race we were swapping 1st place honors with Jeff Knupp in the #354. Knupp finally got by Jeff Barrett in the #334, and once Barrett rolled it in turn one late in the race, Knupp had first place in the bag. After we rolled it and later were t-boned by another 1600 buggy, we had a few adjustments to make for Sunday. We re-bent our nerfbar and lowered our ride-height since the track was a much smoother layout than the April race. Sunday's action was really good. We managed to keep the rubber side down and had a lot of good battles throughout the entire race. There was an unfortunate incident within just the last couple of laps when 2 of the Pro Buggy's were coming up on us during our battle for 2nd place. Barrett, in our BRM buggy and Justin Davis in the Army buggy were entertaining the crowd with lap after lap of side-by-side racing when on of the Pro's, who was in a battle of his own, came into the final turn way to hot and t-boned Barrett into the side of the other Pro buggy, who than hit the Army buggy. The corners aren't wide enough to go 4-wide, and it's pretty obvious. But that didn't stop this one guy from coming in and clearing house. And as you might expect, the BRM buggy, the Army buggy, and the Pro leader were all taken out, giving the instigator a clear track ahead of him. And, no, he was not given a black flag, just the 1st place checkers a couple laps later. As for the tangle up, BRM and the Pro were both locked together but everyone managed to find reverse, find the track, and get the hammer down. We ended up settling for 3rd, and other than the mess at the end, we had a great time.
