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Tuesdays with TMAC – Rumbling Through the Upper Midwest!
(Bill W) July 3, 2007 – Three good finishes at three distinct racetracks highlighted the week for World of Outlaws sprint car driver, Terry McCarl. The Altoona, Iowa native finished no worse than 15th this week as the WoO season kicks into another gear entering July and August.
The River Cities Speedway bullring near Grand Forks, North Dakota awaited the WoO last Friday night. The extremely high-banked 4/10 mile oval saw Terry time in 10th quick in the 45+ car field. Second place runs in the heat and dash set him in row one outside of eventual race winner, Joey Saldana for the feature. "I knew it would be more difficult starting on the outside, and difficult to beat Joey on the start," says TMAC. "He and Steve (Kinser) both got by me, but I wasn't worried and was biding my time until we got to traffic. The three of us were having a great race, and I hooked a rut about six laps into it. The rut was in (turns) three and four, and we almost tipped over. I don't know what happened with the car, but my car just wasn't good after that. From that point on, I was hanging on for dear life!"
TMAC would fade to twelfth after 'holding on' in the top ten until the last couple laps. Despite the disappointment, he knew the fans saw a great race, with Saldana holding Jac Haudenschild off by .05 of a second. "The racing was exciting for every lap, so it was pretty exciting for the fans. They had a sold out crowd that was the biggest in the history of the racetrack, so that was great!"
The sun beat down on the Red River Valley Speedway near West Fargo, North Dakota on Saturday. The weather took its toll on the racetrack as qualifications wore on. "In qualifying, the track started laying rubber of off turn two, I guess. We kept it on the top, and I swear I thought we had just set fast time. That's how good I thought my lap was. That shows you the driver doesn't always know what's going on!" It turns out that Terry was way wrong, registering the 22nd fastest lap.
Playing a game of catch up all night long, TMAC did make his way through the B main to start the feature inside row 12. "They redid the track, which was great because it needed it," he explains. "It was such a fast track that everyone was right on the cushion. We had a good car and I was content, because every time we went out we were faster. The feature was the best the car felt all night long, so I kind of like that. When your car is running best come feature time, that's what you want." TMAC managed to move from his 23rd starting spot into a 15th place finish. That was acceptable on a fast and tacky ½ mile that did not lend to much passing.
The Altoona, Iowa driver holds the track record at the Cedar Lake Speedway near New Richmond, Wisconsin, so a visit to the high-banked 3/8 mile to cap off the weekend looked to be what the doctor ordered. Timing in fourth quick, TMAC transferred through his heat to start ninth in the dash.
What began as a great charge for the Biggame Treestands #24 ended with a bit of disappointment. "We started ninth and I was coming through there big time!" says Terry. "The car was awesome, and I was trying to pass Haud (for fourth), when he spun in front of me. I tried to turn it right, but then he saved it, and that totally did us in. That killed us, and cost us at least three spots. It was really disappointing, because we had a great car. Fourth is where (Paul) McMahan (the race winner) started, so that was tough. I'm not saying we would have won, but we had a great car in the feature." When Haudenschild got back on the throttle after spinning, it was TMAC who was left behind. An eighth place finish set him up outside row four for the main event.
The track crew turned the track over in about 20 minutes before the big show. The result was a fast track. "We had a great start, and we were actually all over (Jason) Meyers for awhile," says TMAC. "It was a real cat and mouse game. It was fun and tricky to see what was happening with the track. At the beginning, the bottom sort of went away, so I moved up to the top, and after awhile that slicked off, so we went back to the bottom. It was a respectable sixth place finish. I think Kerry (Madsen) beat me by about six inches at the line, so we were coming forward and had a good car again. I like the way we feel when we have done our best every night. I feel like we did a good job with the mechanics and the driving, so we were content."
One more lap would have gotten Terry a top five, but another solid finish was in the books and confidence is building in the TMAC Motorsports team as they head for the big races coming up. Stop by and say "Hi!" to the team!
Huset's and Pevely Next
Tonight (Tuesday), Terry will compete at one of his favorite venues, the Huset's Speedway with the WoO. On June 17, he was able to win the weekly show there after starting at the rear in a back-up car.
After a couple of grueling weeks, this weekend only holds one race, but it should be a good one! The WoO heads to the I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Missouri to tackle the high-banked 1/3 mile oval. The race will be televised on ESPN2 Sunday at 11:30 a.m. EST. Terry is currently running third in the ESPN2 "Month of Money" point standings.
The race at Pevely will mark the halfway point in the season, and TMAC reflected on the first half. "If we could take out about five weeks, it would look pretty good, and we may be in the top five! We had an incredibly bad run there, and that really knocked us down. We're doing well now and slowly crawling back up! We hope to do well in the big races coming up, and building a solid foundation for next year!"
Austin Wins
Austin McCarl was victorious in Micro-Sprint action last Friday night at the English Creek Speedway south of Knoxville. He finished ahead of Knoxville 410 regular Tony Shilling in the feature, and registered the quickest qualification of the night.
In"Terry"gation
Terry Green asks: Terry, when the races get over late because of cautions and track conditions, how do you and your crew find time to get some decent sleep? Seems like it would be scary driving one of those things out on the track dead tired, and knowing the other drivers were in the same shape. How do you guys do it?
TMAC answers: First of all, we're sponsored by Red Bull (energy drink), so that helps! This is an area where the fans don't realize how tough it is on the drivers, but especially the crew guys. I travel in a motor home, so that works pretty well for me. I can drive an hour or two at least towards the next show. The crew guys have to go wash the cars and get something to eat. You try to have a couple guys that can drive, so one can drive all night and sleep in while the others work. That's where this year's schedule seems a little ridiculous. Whoever put it together wasn't really paying attention and that's unfortunate. It's real tough on the crew guys. It's a double-edged sword. Anybody that comes and works with me knows that we're never going to leave right after the races. I always stay late for the fans. I'm always one of the last guys to leave. I know it makes my crew guys mad sometimes, but we agree to stay at least an hour after the checkered flag. I won't mention any names, but the last few races, I've been hardly out of my car and some of the other trailers are pulling out. I know the schedule is tough, but you have to stay awhile for the fans. The crew guys use that time wisely, doing maintenance, getting the car ready to wash, or getting tires ready. It is pretty brutal this time of year, pretty much until after the Nationals. It's hot and you're living with a bunch of stinky, smelly guys. That makes good finishes and wins important this time of year. That's why it's the World of Outlaws, it's tough out here and not for everybody!
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.
Did you know?
TMAC is the only six-time track champion at Huset's Speedway. No one else has registered more than three track championships. Those with three are Arnie Nimmerfroh, Harry Torgerson, Gerald Bruggeman, John Stevenson and Danny Lasoski.
Website
Photos from Cedar Lake have been added to the "At the Races" gallery in "Photos". Look for updates this week from Huset's and Doug Johnson.
Keep up to date with McCarl Motorsports at www.TerryMcCarl.com. We keep it fresh for TMAC fans!
Front Row/Ultimate Challenge Update
Order your tickets for the Musco Lighting Front Row Challenge and Searsboro Telephone Ultimate Challenge today! Call McTwo Promotions Tuesday-Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 515 957-0020 to order!
Infield Party Passes are $20 in advance or $25 the day of the race!
For more information on the Challenges or on TMAC Motorsports, visit www.TerryMcCarl.com.
"Tuesdays with TMAC"
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TMAC Motorsports would like to thank sponsors Big Game Treestands, Bosma Poultry, Inc., AmeriCash Advance, and Ground Max Hunting Blinds.
TMAC at Cedar Lake
Bill Wright
Bill W Media
Monroe, IA USA
[email protected]
If this post isn't results, stories or something c
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@BillWMedia
www.OpenWheel101.com
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