Well it wasn't quite like a monster truck rally.
After all the cold and wet practice of Saturday, Sunday is where the rubber meets the road. (Booo).
Sunday was slightly warmer and sunny, but very windy. Got to Miller PArk around 7:30. Registered, work assignments, car inspection, walk the course, tape numbers, grid placing, drivers meeting.
This was a huge event. First Auto Cross for the Milwaukee SCCA Chapter for 2011. There were over 150 cars and over 200 drivers. It was part car show part road rally. Grandma's Camry to race prepped Corvettes and Porsches.
9:30ish The heat 1 cars start staging. Thats me.
First run I completed pooched it. So amped up I missed a turn. 82 seconds and DNF. Second Run, almost the same damn thing and the same damn result. 78 seconds DNF. Last run of heat 1. I finally hit it. 70.585 and no cones and no DNF.
Back to grid. Heat two was off (different car groupings and classes). They finished about 1:30 in the afternoon. Was not looking good to get in 3 more runs. Heat 3 got off and I put down a blistering 66.2 but took a wrong angle on a cone before finish and DNF. ARRRRRRRGH. What is wrong with me? Never was good with directions. Mind you there are only cones were there needs to be and there are no lines or other aids to keep you on course. This is why the let you walk the course before you run. Still it did not help me at all.
Final run of the day for me. Just got to do it. I nailed it! 65.6. I was so giddy. Three tenths off the leader in my class. Until the radio informed me of my late DNF. I did the same thing as the last time. I was so pissed off. I knew we were not going to get another run either. Way too many entrants and running too late to make a 6th run.
I took the course for my work assignment. Working cones and flagging cars. This gave me over an hour to mull my day and mistakes. The day ended, Mike and I hung around for some award presentations and headed out. What a long drive home. My face was a sunburned and windburned as you can get. I went over the course in my head a million times. So close yet so frustrating. Two days later I am almost over it, chalk it up to being a newbie.
Can't wait till the next session in May. I know May 8th. Mothers day....
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