Fourth place!*

Zippy's lil bro.

Out of a field of seven TAG karts this weekend, I beat** three of them!

It all went down at Raceway Park's Points Race #10 this weekend.  The clouds were ominous and the feeling foreboding, but since there was no way to know if the course would be closed until we got there, we hit the road at 5 am -- errr, make that a bit past 7 am, trailer in tow.  I checked the website every half hour for updates until about 9, when it was clear that the track would be open.  By the time we got there, practice was nearly half over.

I got dressed and teched in time for the last two practice heats.  Let me step back and say that there are two types of nerves.  There are the type of nerves that make you feel cold and filled with dread, and there are the nerves that make you feel a bit exhilarated and totally ready to rock.  I was feeling the first type of nerves in the worst way.  The track was moist, my tires were cold, and there was a nice wet spot right after the helmet turn where I got quite squirrelly.  And then, going into a turn that I don't normally have trouble with, I spun out and hit the barriers, back end first.  I think the only thing scarier than spinning out of control and hitting something is seeing a line of karts heading right at you as you try to get your bearings.  Luckily, I didn't stall out, so I was able to finish the session, ever more tentative.  (Never a good thing on the track!)  The second practice heat didn't go much better.  I got on the track late and only got a lap and a half in before the session ended.

Singer in her new favorite hang out spot.

The format for the TAGs was timed qualifier for position in the pre-final, followed by pre-final for position in the final.  In any event, the bad nerves just got worse, and the clouds were rolling in.  Every now and then we'd feel a few rain drops.  During the qualifier, I ended up stabbing the brakes at the end of the straight during the second lap and spinning out into a wall of cones.  Unfortunately, I stalled out, which meant even less seat time and a last place start position for the pre-final.

Happily, the skies cleared and the sun came out in time for the pre-final.  I ended up pulling a much better time of 44.89, but still about a second off of my goal for the day.  Two folks crashed out, and one guy broke something.  By this point, the good nerves were in full effect and I was finally ready to rock (relatively speaking).  There were five of us left in the final, and since I'd finished the pre-final in one piece, I was supposed to start in the 4th position.  Thanks, but no thanks!  Despite being waved up to my position, I stuck to the back, and finished with a slightly less painful 44.36 as my fastest lap.  So despite a disappointing performance, I'm glad I stuck to my guns and rallied.  I'm sure I can break into the 42s by the end of the season.  I just need to learn how to shut off the bad nerves!

Mom,  if you die can I eat your lunch?!

*Two other karts crashed out in the pre-final, and one broke down in the final, allowing me to finish ahead of them.

**Because I still can't make weight, finishing ahead of them doesn't mean I finish ahead of them on the points list.