Final ICSCC Race of the season report. Sept 16/23

[bertvorgon]

Stay tuned for report!

[bertvorgon]

My alarm screeched on at 4:30 Am..”Oh God !” I thought to myself….AGAIN.

Why so early you may ask…my son Matt, has been hired by a group calling themselves; WOMEN IN MOTOR SPORT, to document and make a short promotional video of the women racing at Mission, to try to attract more women into the sport.

Matt needed to be out to the track early enough to get gear ready, to shoot the drivers meeting and morning setup.

It was a wonderful drive out ZERO Avenue, into the rising sun over Mnt. Baker. Then, into a thick fog blanket before the Mission bridge.

Arriving at the track, any track or race event for that matter, that early, I have always found pretty cool. From sleepy quiet, to engine mayhem, in 2 hours. It was like that at Knox Mountain, Westwood, Portland, Seattle. Even our years of mountain bike racing had the same feel, as the “pits” became alive.

I did a quiet walk-about as Matt got his gear ready. The light is nice from the east at that time of the morning, even some of the trees turning fall golden in the new light of day.

Soon the whole Specialty crew as there, I got the coffee going, a morning staple. Car covers off, tents lifted to height, tool bench out, food and water table set up.
Tracey was not scheduled to be out for qualifying till 10 Am, so I did another walk to see who was there and snap more pics.

Matt was off with Courtenay, a Formula Ford driver, who was to be his helper and go-between for getting out onto the track with his photo pass and make connection with the other women racers.

Andy, Scott and I initiated the morning start routine for the car,
Tires checked and engine run till the oil was at temp, an absolute rule for Andy. Then, as Tracey suits up, engine started again, so that by the time she is in pre-grid, oil is to temp.
Andy had put a new small battery in the car, which, when the wide band started to read kind of “off”, he adjusted the fuel setting……thinking maybe the slight voltage diff was the problem with the read out…which in some ways made no sense, as the gauge is stand alone.

Tracey blasts off for qualifying but at the end of the straight, the car is burbling quite badly. She comes into the hot pits and Andy reaches in and again adjusts the fuel, to what the wide band should be. Off she goes again, but, comes in again, another adjustment, then again. The session was done with no real qualifying time so she is scheduled to start at the back of the pack.

Into our pit, car is cooled down, wide band reading at 26 -27…..yah right….!!! So, a new O2 sensor is installed and seems to read ok, but, gauge seems erratic.

Race is not till 2:30, so time for more pictures for me and help get the lunch table and barbecues set up. What a feed of ribs and chicken about to happen!

Matt meanwhile has been all over the track, shooting video
and I have tried to document the documenter.

In walking the pits I see Byron’s 510, with a flat tire on the right front, but, Byron is not there till Sunday for the vintage race. I texted him to letting him know, of which he was aware of the leak.

Malcolm was there with his 510, running very strong and staying on the bumper of the #43 Camaro.

Lunch was the usual social meeting; lots of people stop by to say hi. Matt grabbed a quick sandwich and headed out with the safety crew to film from the other side of the track. I wish I could show the video(s), great footage of the back side of the track and through the twisty section.

Tracey had to work her way, again, from the back of the pack, to third place, behind the two V-8 cars. The car worked fine as Andy dialed the fuel back to its original setting, regardless of what the wide band said.

For Sunday, we were not there, but Tracey won the race. V-8 Number 1 blew his differential up, and then V-8 car # 2 started having fuel slosh out of the car, from a fuel cap that had the little chain, catch under it, thus not sealing. Tracey had fuel on her windshield and no sooner had she radioed he was leaking, he caught fire!!!

He was out ( car survived) and Tracey finished the race, thus proving…”It’s not over till it’s over!”

The wide band issue…Gremlin’s???? A lot of wires go into the back of that one he has, so maybe a weird connection?

Matt and I pulled out at 5:30, a long day for us, lots of video shot and lots of pictures that I took.

Now the editing begins for Matt.

Drive home was quiet for a Saturday evening, a nice calm cruise back on Zero Avenue again. We sure slept that night.

One more race for the season, weather co-operating, Oct 7/8.

Keith law
Sept 18, 2023-09-18

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And final.

That's all till the next event, Matt will be out to get some track sounds for the video,
I will be there to help, weather being good.

The yellow sports racer is made by KTM as a track ready car,was not sure if this was the 600 HP model.
It has a 5 cylinder Audi motor in it.

[RONSLYCHUK]

Great write up and pictures Keith. Thanks!

[BEO 510]

Thank you for the report.
"As the pits became alive, from sleepy quiet, to engine mayhem, in two hours".
Yes indeed.