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Tuesdays with TMAC – Gold Cup Next!
(Bill W) September 2, 2008 – Some consistency is setting in with the Big Game Treestands #24 team as they embark on their western tour with the World of Outlaws. Driver Terry McCarl registered more quick laps and solid finishes that have put him back in the top ten in the WoO standings. TMAC would like to add his name to the list of winners at the 55th Annual Gold Cup this weekend at the Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, California.
Three nights of racing started with a rainout on Friday night at the Skagit Speedway near Burlington, Washington. The program was moved back to Saturday and Sunday, and TMAC continued his quick qualifying ways with a pair of 2nd quick times. "We just can't quite get that quick time," says the Altoona, Iowa driver. "Two seconds this week, and a second and a third last week in Canada. I think (Jason) Meyers got us by .002 of a second. Unreal."
TMAC started tenth and finished eleventh in Saturday's caution filled feature. "We were a seventh or eighth place car to be honest," he says. "The motor wouldn't take off for about a lap and a half on the restarts, we had a lot of them, and we would lose a spot or two on every one. We missed it a bit on fuel…the air was really good and that caught us off guard a bit for the feature. You need to capitalize on the restarts and not lose ground and that's what cost us, but we had a good car."
Another second quick time meant another dash run on Sunday was in reach. TMAC followed suit by finishing fourth in his heat race, but it didn't come without some pains. "The air was different (than Saturday), and we were awesome in qualifying," he says. "I got hit by a clod through the right arm guard during the heat, and I thought I had broken my arm. It put a huge hole in the arm guard, and bent the shifter cable clear to the seat. I couldn't get it out of gear in the pits, my arm was tingling and I thought I had broken my arm. I've done it before and it hurt that bad. I was thinking about Chuck Amati ("The One Arm Bandit" those last few laps."
With some feeling back in his right arm, TMAC finished 10th in the dash and lined up outside row five for the main event, where he would cross 13th after tire troubles. "I think we were good enough to finish several spots forward, but we ended up with a hole in the right rear tire," he explains. "We were lucky that we had an open red flag (for a Jonathan Allard flip) or we would have been dead last. That gave us a chance to plug the hole. We were backing up fast before that. From there, we held onto our spot, and we were somewhat lucky to do that."
The Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Washington was next up for the WoO on Monday. After qualifying 12th quick, TMAC was slated outside the front row of the fourth heat. The track was dry and abrasive from the start, and yielded to rubber-down conditions early on in the heats. "We were hurt being in the fourth heat race," says TMAC, who incidentally won. "The track was a lot harder on our tires than it was for the drivers in the early heats. Our tire was more than half gone after that. We did a good job to hold onto our spot (6th) in the dash."
The dash finish put him outside of row three for the start, and after a brief try at the high side in one, he tucked it in and rode to a seventh place finish. "In the feature, we got a good start, but got up a little high in turn one and Meyers got by me," says TMAC. "That's pretty much how it finished. The track conditions were unfortunate, because the racing there is usually outstanding, and the fans are some of the best you'll see anywhere."
Tonight the WoO will compete at the Cottage Grove Speedway near Medford, Oregon. Then it will be on to Chico, and the prestigious Gold Cup. "A win there would be right up there with the Knoxville Nationals and the King's Royal," says TMAC. "It would mean a lot."
Crazee Combos Continue!
TMAC and Daryn Pittman are continuing their "Crazee Combo" deals at the merchandise trailer! For $25, you can purchase a t-shirt, hat, sticker and coozie from TMAC! Take advantage of the "Crazee Combo" this weekend!
In"Terry"gation
Mike Ewoldsen in Winterset, IA asks:At the nationals your father Lenard was helping in the pits--any chance this may continue in the future?
TMAC Answers: He was a big key to our success in the Nationals A main this year. I just kind of turned him loose setting up the car. I told him what I didn't want him to do, and he handled the rest. He always helps me in the background. He has built our Nationals car the last two years, and we've had two of our best runs. This year, he's helping Austin out with his 360. On a day to day basis, I don't think he and I would make it too far!
Got a question for TMAC? Send it to us at [email protected], and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for TMAC" in your subject line.
Today in TMAC History!
Driving the family #7x, TMAC finished fourth on Knoxville's Season Championship Night in 1989 on this date. Rick Ungar posted the quick time of the night in Guy Forbrook's #5 at 16.350 seconds. TMAC was 8th quick with a lap of 16.812. Jerry Richert Jr., driving the Durst/Smith #1x, passed Jeff Tuttle who was in the Jordan Brothers #1 on lap 15 to take the victory. Ray Lipsey was third and Glenn Berkner from Sleepy Eye, Minnesota was fifth. Dean Chadd won the 360 feature after starting 15th.
Website Updates
Photos from Edmonton and Skagit haven been added to the "Terry McCarl" and "At the Races" gallery compliments of Perry Nelson and Brian Simonseth of H2H Photo.
Keep up to date with McCarl Motorsports at www.TerryMcCarl.com. We keep it fresh for TMAC fans!
"Tuesdays with TMAC"!
"Tuesdays with TMAC" is an up close and personal look at colorful sprint car veteran Terry McCarl. To receive "Tuesdays with TMAC", send an e-mail to [email protected] with "TMAC" in the subject line.
TMAC Motorsports would like to thank sponsors Big Game Treestands, AmeriCashAdvance.com, DeBerg Concrete and Remington Treestands.
TMAC competes at the Skagit Speedway (H2H Photo)
Bill Wright
Bill W Media
Monroe, IAUSA
[email protected]
If this post isn't results, stories or something c
constructive, it isn't me!
@BillWMedia
www.OpenWheel101.com
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