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Glenn, Gina, and I raced at Gingerman Raceway last weekend with the help of George, a friend of Glenn’s from a camping club. We went to the track on Friday to practice (and learn the track), but Glenn’s Spec Ford was hit by a Formula car trying to recover from an off-course incident. Although we managed to repair the external damage (broken suspension, some body work, new wheel and tire), the crash must have done some internal damage to Glenn’s transmission. During qualifying on Saturday, Glenn lost third gear. He qualified third, bit was unable to race the rest of the weekend.

My luck was a little better. Thanks to some tips from Glenn, Chris “Cat-Killer” Childs, and Dan Waleke, I was able to develop a pretty good line through the course. Even though I was running a Spec Neon against ITA cars, it seemed to be a good match for the track. It rotated well through the corners and drifted out predictably when exiting corners at high speed. I got 5th in ITA and 7th overall on Saturday and 4th in both ITA and overall on Sunday. I had some great battles, and these were, by far, the longest races I’ve participated in (20 2 mile laps each day). My best time of the weekend was 1’44.7″. I liked the track a lot (although I still think Grattan is more fun), but I still think there’s a lot more to learn at Gingerman.

- Duane

Last weekend, I participated in race weekend 3 at Waterford Hills. I can consistent 1’23″s, with a low time of 1’23.432″ after finding a slightly better approach to swamp turn, turn 1, and the entrance to the esses. I got clipped by a rookie driver which knocked off my driver’s side, dented my door, and left a nice tire doughnut on the side. Oh well, it’s time to replace the factory mirrors with tiny rollcage mirrors anyway.

Gina and I saw The Transformers on the 4th. First off, I must recommend morning movies. They’re only $4! There are also far fewer people in the theater. I’ve been waiting for this movie since the earliest rumor reports. For a long time, the 1986 animated film was my favorite movie… I was, indeed, a Transformers geek. The movie is over 2 hours long… and all action… loud action. It didn’t help that Gina and I attended a Tool concert the night before: our midrange hearing was all but trashed. The effects are awesome, the story is fair, considering the subject matter. The bumbling personalities of the Autobots fit their “run-away-from-danger” reputation. Check it out on the big screen, it’s definitely worth it.

- Duane

Last weekend 7 of us got together for a S.W.A.T. style airsoft skirmish in our polebarn/shop. This time everyone helped set up the tarp walls and obstacles, so it only took 2 hours to configure the barn (instead of a whole day when I did it myself… woot!). Overall, the action was excellent. Our neighbors had a few stragglers from a graduation party they hosted earlier in the day that stayed around to spectate. We’re all using upgraded rifles so, things were pretty fast-paced (and darn painful)! But, it was a ton of fun. My favorite skirmishes were pistol-only battles. Since pistols had smaller-capacity magazines, everyone had to think about each shot instead of laying down a constant stream of fire. More airsoft events will be coming soon.

Next weekend I’ll be returning to Waterford Hills for the 3rd race of the season. I’m going to push a bit harder and see how my setup changes will affect me. See you at the track!

- Duane

Over the past week or so, Sebastian (our pseudo-siamese cat) has awakened us with coughing fits. We though he was getting a cold, so Gina took him to the local vet. Their first concern was that he had contracted heart worm or that it was possibly asthma. Although serious, heartworm is rare in cats… in fact they usually self-cure. However, there are cases that don’t work out that well. The vet did some blood tests and we found out today that Sebastian just has kitty asthma. He gets some meds on occasion to control the coughing fits. He’s the best cat I’ve ever had and everyone that meets him falls in love right away. He insists on being with us as much as possible and sleeps in (not on… IN) the bed with us (which actually complicated his asthma symptoms). We’re glad he’s going to be fine.

- Duane

Last Saturday I attended a “ropes” course as part of a leadership training program. It was the most frightening thing I’ve ever done. I’m a little afraid of heights and the top level of the course was 25 feet in the air. The 11 of us that participated had to work together to negotiate cables, beams and ropes. Additionally, there were a few more logistically challenging activities like being locked in a box with loud sound and fake smoke while trying to organize a list and a blindfolded obstacle course. Even though it scared the crap out of me, I’d qualify it as fun and fulfilling.

- Duane