I’m late posting because we have been gone almost a week racing.  So, there will be two blogs to get everyone caught up.  Sorry for the length.  I really tried to keep it short, but it has been a very intense week!

September 4 – First stop of our Labor Day weekend of racing is at RPM Speedway in Hays – if you can call it racing there.  Probably the worst track I have seen yet this year.  The air was just heavy with moisture and it was laying that down on the track.  When Matthew put his neck brace on, he commented to his Dad that it was all wet.  When we went to leave, the windshields were covered as well and thinking about that on the track it was like slick slime.  There was almost no passing and when someone was passing, they were hitting to do it as they would just slide up the track with no control.    Matthew was hit three times and none of the hits were intentional – just guys trying to race when they needed to back off.  One of the hits tore some of our Collision Engineer’s work up front, bent the frame and did a lot of sheet metal damage.  The bumper Steve had welded broke back in half so we had Glenn Woods complete an emergency repair the next morning.  Matthew had went off the track trying to avoid a car that spun in front of him and when he came back on the field was gone, the car that had spun out was getting himself righted and they hadn’t called a yellow.  Matthew was put in the back and he made it up to tenth to finish the race.  Not the way we wanted to start the weekend.

September 5 – While the whole family is at Effie’s ready to celebrate Matthew’s birthday, the boys are trying to put the car back together.  It took them the whole morning so they missed seeing some of the family.  After a feast of food and a quick bite of birthday cake, it was off to Goodland.  Matthew won his heat race and everything is looking great.  We were having fun and I was handing out cupcakes in the pits for Matthew’s birthday.  In the feature, Matthew started 4th row inside and it only took him about two laps to make his way through the pack.  There was some great 3-wide racing before he got in front and then he was gone.  He was a half a lap ahead and flying.  He was so fast and driving so perfectly.  It was fun to watch while it lasted.  Six laps to go and the motor blew. 
Of course, it was so disappointing.  He was obviously going to win the race and the track championship.  That’s racing!  We blew a lot of engines even in the go karts – usually on a full moon like last night.  Boy, it is hard not to get superstitious!  Steve really hates full moons.

Matthew was clearly disappointed but still handling it better than any of the rest of us.  He was ready to go to work to put the backup engine in the car.  The track promoter stopped by to ask Matthew what had happened.  Matthew smiled and thanked him for a great track to race on.  The kid never complained one time.  His character never ceases to amaze me.  I am learning from my son.
We had a flood of offers to help.  As bad as the night was, it sure made it easier to handle with just the thoughtful concern.  Robbie Skillet was ready to stay up all night and build another engine.  He said he’d get us to Boone.  It really was just so great and I hope everyone knows how much we appreciate it. 

Steve wanted Matthew to consult with Randy before putting the engine in.  He was really on the fence on whether we should continue to Boone.  How long does it take three men to replace an engine in a Hobby Stock?  Five hours – technically four hours as they had to move some cars around and make room.  Anyway, it was 6:30 AM when they pulled up at the house.  Dad and I had left at 5:30 AM to put the Model A in his garage so they could just shut down the shop and get a few hours of sleep.  Dad bet me a 30-pack that they wouldn’t just shut down the shop, they would show up loaded and ready to pull out.  I lost the bet.

Slept less than 4 hours and on the road now.  We should arrive about 7 PM, so we’ll miss registration and tech today.  We’ll plan to get a good meal, a good night of sleep and up by 5 AM.  I told Matthew he needed to work on his homework and he told me to type the history of cars – one of his makeup assignments for shop class.  You would think the fact the kid pulled a motor last night would count for that.  Oh, that reminds me, I had to laugh.  When we were driving to LaCrosse and Steve and Matthew were talking about everything, Matthew said, “Boy, I should did love that motor.”  He was so sincere and it sounded like he had just lost a pet.  Once they got it pulled, it looked like it had thrown a rod – maybe two.  The boys all stood over the engine for a moment commenting how fast she was.  I think there was a tear in the corner of their eyes.

Next stop - Boone.  Yes, I did say Boone!