So You Want to be a CART Racer?

Turn 2 All the crazy weather in California has caused so much turmoil. Would we be spared from the rain, or would we have to take our licks like everyone else? The practice days were mostly dry, so that was a pretty good sign. On Friday, the morning was wet, but drying rapidly. By the end of my first practice, the track was about 60% dry and only the corkscrew still needed a wet driving line. The second session was totally dry, but I wasn't very happy with my lap times. The car I was in just didn't feel quite right handling wise - it had a slight push to it which I felt was hurting me in turn 6 primarily, but also in T3, 4, and 10. So, I opted to do an extra practice session in a different car that I could switch to for the race. This car I liked! I was in love with the car from the first lap. It handled like a dream - just a slight bit of oversteer so I could slide the car at turn in and help point it through the turn. I was loving it, and I knew I had to be going fast. If I wasn't fast then I would have to concede that I plain sucked, because the car felt fantastic. After the session, I got my lap times back and was very stoked - mostly 1:44s with a few 1:44.5s. Whew, glad I didn't have to concede ;-). The start Thankfully, the weekend was dry, and that made for some good racing. In the first race on Saturday, I was on pole and brought the field to a crawl at the start. The man on the outside, Matt Smith, was a little anxious and had to slow a bit for me. At that opportunity, I gunned it and had a good jump on him. Ron Burger was starting 3rd and happily took over P2 on the front straight followed by Grant Ryley in P3. Up to the corkscrew, Ron and I pulled a couple seconds from the rest of the crowd. But, to everyone's surprise, Ron took T10 a little too hot and ended up swapping ends on the exit. Luckily, he wasn't in anyone's way and was able to continue unscathed. From then on, I had a big lead and checked out to the tune of a 14.3-second margin of victory and set the fastest lap of the race. The second place finisher and Formula Ford 2000 driver, T.J. Bell, worked his way up from 10th and would be starting outside of me for Sunday's race.

The Pack Sunday morning, things were looking good, I was happy with my car, ready to rock-n-roll. I was in group 2, so I went and watched group 1's race from the top of T1. A couple laps into the race, there was a bit of mayhem that occurred. There was an incident in T9 where one car went off and did a major bounce/endo on the rain gutter and dirt at the exit. This caused a couple other cars to spin - it was pretty scary looking, especially in turn 9. Turns out, one of the cars was leaking oil too...a lot of it! So they black flagged the race and sent out crews to pick up the damaged car and clean all the oil. I went back to the pits, was looking at the damaged car when it finally hit me...that was MY car!!! Then it clicked, the car that got wasted in T9 was blue...my car was blue! So, I went to look at it, and it was pretty ugly. Damage on each corner of the car, not to mention that the inside was saturated with dirt. I was not a happy camper about now. I really liked that car. Everyone except the mechanics said to look for another car. But, those guys worked their butts off at light speed to get the car up and running before my group started. And, YES, those guys are miracle workers - they got it up and going (thanks guys!!) and tested right as my group was going out for the warm up. Talk about a close call! I went out a lap late getting strapped in, but got my warm up laps and was ready to rock! The Pack Sunday's race started evenly, with just about everyone falling in line where they started. Bell was behind me, but not close enough to mount a challenge on the first lap. This time, it took awhile to get a substantial lead, as Bell and Grant Ryley were both visibly in my mirrors for quite awhile. When all was said and done, I took the checkers with a comfortable 15.4-second margin of victory! I got ribbed quite a bit in the pits for being boring. One of the instructors joked about throwing the double-yellow (pace car) flags just for fun. From what I heard, in both races, the battle for 2-5 was awesome though. That's okay, I'll take the comfy first.

		After all the races are done, they have a "free-for-all" no-points race that anyone can enter called a memorial race. There are always a few instructors joining in this race. Usually, I never run memorial races because I don't want to assume any unnecessary risks and chance car damage. But, in last months article I said at the very end how I really took a look at and scrutinized my racing program, and how I was going to make some changes. Well, one of these changes is running memorial races. I want to get as much experience dicing and swapping positions as I can, and since the instructors race in memorials, it's a great opportunity. The start of the race was inverted, meaning the fastest guys start in back. I had to start this race in a different unfamiliar car because the clutch master cylinder blew up on the car I won in, and the mechanics took it back for repairs. This was going to be interesting. Along with me sticking out in the memorial race was Roger Yasukawa (the fast guy I raced at Phoenix, who's been racing in England and is over here during the "off-season") and Mike Morris (another top competitor). Both, along with me, haven't done any memorial races this season. From the instructor side, Tom Woods (who's racing the Barber Dodge Pro series this year) and Mark Hamilton Peters (one of the head instructors and former Vauxhall winner) were going to put their hat into the ring. MHP does most the memorials, and was probably favored to win since he has won the last two. Unknown to us at the time, the other instructors and staff were making wagers on who would win! On the start, it was mayhem! A good mayhem though - everyone was clean, but we were going 3 wide over the front straight and into turn 2. Wow, this was wild! I had to back off the gas quite a bit, but I made a couple positions going around the outside of turn 2. After the field straightened out, we were cooking, and I was probably in something like 5th. A lap later, I see Roger in my mirrors right on my tail. The next lap he tried to make a pass under me in the corkscrew, but I wouldn't have any of that. We went down the corkscrew side by side, but I had a better drive and kept my position. Then, he took a look in T9, but I held the outside line solid and won that battle. However, on the next lap, I didn't drive a defensive enough line and Roger got right under me going into T9. We went side by side and going into T10, he had the advantage, and I tucked in behind him. "That's cool," I thought, "I'll follow Roger around a bit and play." On the next lap though, Roger was able to put a slower car between us (from the inverted start) at the corkscrew. Darn, this gave him a comfy second gap between us. Just when I think I can go into "hot pursuit" mode, I look in my mirror to see MHP very close. One guy passed me, I'd be damned if I were going to let another one by :-)! This was the start of the best dicing and racing I have ever had! MHP was on my tail for the next few laps, and we were going side by side at every possibility! He was a little better than I was off turn 4, so I'd protect the inside line, and he'd take the outside. We'd go through turn 5 side by side and then up to turn 6. We were side by side on the entry of T6, neither of us backing off until the very end - a serious game of chicken. Since I had the inside line, MHP would back out at the last possible second, and we would both slam on the brakes and go sideways through T6, a little slower than normal. That scenario happened just about ever lap. He also tried to make a move in T9 a couple times, and we went side by side both times, tires screaming in protest, cars sideways, but I held the outside line and had the advantage going into T10. Turn 5 Entering T2, I would protect the inside, and MHP would go for the outside just about every lap. He would push me, then when I faded a little wide in the middle (from going in hot), he would try to sneak under me. A couple times, MHP wasn't able to get beside me and I slammed the door on him. But, one time, he played it right and got right next to me. Now, it was my turn to inflict some mirror watching! I was right on MHP's gearbox going through the infield, and off of T6. I had a good shot off T6, and was coming up on him. I popped and got a wheel on the inside of him close to the top of the corkscrew. I knew I had a chance to get back by here. We come to the top of the hill, and I'm on the inside of MHP, braking hard. And, I make the pass going in! I was totally stoked! MHP was on my gearbox again for another couple laps putting the same usual pressure on me. This late into the race, our brakes started to fade a bit because we had sound-shields over the tranny that restricted airflow. MHP was going to take another poke at me in T2, but not having full brake power, and trying to go in deep underneath me, he ended up sliding out, just putting four wheels off the track. At that point there were about 3 or 4 laps to go, and I took a lonely 3rd place. While MHP and I were having our battle royal, Woods and Yasukawa were having one of their own in front of us. At the very end, it was super close, but Yasukawa took a 0.1 second win with Woods right on his gearbox. I have to say this was my best weekend yet! Two decisive wins by 15-seconds, and a memorial race that I spent more time side by side in the turns than nose to tail! Definitely my favorite weekend so far. Not quite the emotion of my first win at Phoenix, but this weekend brought a lot of clarity and unshakable confidence to my racing. Even thought I've done well all year, there was still a small question mark in my mind as to how good I really was. Now, there is no question whatsoever in my mind, I have my sights set on making a career change from software engineer to professional racecar driver. A sobering thought that frequently goes through my head is, "If I don't find a sponsor by the end of this season in May, I don't race anymore." How's that for motivation! This year has taught me quite a bit, and I have been a sponge, soaking up as much racing knowledge as possible. I have really been blessed with an exponential learning curve at racing - having a great feel for a racecar and being able to post some of the top times at every track we've been to. My goals now are well defined. I will definitely run more Formula Dodge races across the country to learn a lot of the tracks like Mid-Ohio, Sebring, Road America, etc. I am also going to try and run as much Pro racing as possible in 1998 to learn car setup and get used to cars with wings and slicks. For this, I'm mainly looking at the Barber Dodge Pro series and the Formula Mazda series. Next year, in 1999, I plan to race the entire Barber Dodge Pro series - that is the main focus for my team. Any and all racing in 1998 is purely for preparation. The more practice I can get before the 1999 season, the better my 1999 results will be. With these plans and goals in place, now begins the great sponsor search. As we speak, I'm sending out sponsor proposals to prospective companies. I'm first starting with the "big ones". My hope is that they will welcome the opportunity to sponsor a rising talent to complement their current racing sponsorships. But, of course, I don't want to leave any stone unturned, so I will be sending proposals to just about every company I can think of that advertises nationally. Sponsorship is going to be the key in my competing further. As much as my family would love to help me, it isn't financially feasible for them. I've been racing off credit cards, and those need to get paid off in the not so distant future. I will just keep contacting companies, hoping for at least one "yes". I truly feel sponsorship is a good marketing/advertising investment for companies since every Barber Dodge Pro race is ran with CART, Trans-Am, Sports Car, etc. and is televised on ESPN2 with good time slots. Why fork out a few hundred thousand for a 30 second commercial that will air when I'm going to the fridge for a snack, when that same amount can run a car in the Barber Dodge Pro series for a year and a half! That's what I think is so great about motorsports sponsorship - the sponsors ARE the show, not a "bathroom break". With the rising popularity of motorsports, more and more sponsors are catching on. I hope one catches on with my racing so I can continue to write for you all and kick some butt at the next level of racing! Thanks everyone for the encouraging email (sorry I'm sometimes slow to respond, life's kinda hectic) - it makes all the time spent writing worth it to know you enjoy the articles :-)! Next on "You Want to be a CART Racer?": The Willow Springs race, where being a half a second slower really doesn't matter as long as you're behind someone to draft.
		Special To SpeedCenter © 1998 Darrel Cherry and SpeedCenter

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