Heat - BOOOOOOOM!!!

I once heard it said that heat makes a coward out of everyone. I don't know who said it but they were right. Friday evening at Lee County was all about the heat. Drivers and team did not battle one another so much but rather the ninety five plus degree temperatures.

As we headed up the road it was exceptionally quiet. Timmy and Ron were tired. The heat had caught up to them from a day of working in it. We all were pounding water down before we even arrived at the track. Once we arrived, it was noticeably lean in terms of cars. The drivers must have shied away from the track because of the heat.

The night was rather uneventful. I finished fifth in my heat race which put me in the third row for the feature. I ran as well as I have ever run on a dry slick track. I finished 8th and didn't tear anything up. We loaded the car on the trailer and turned to watch the other classes.

That is where the story really begins. One of my racing mentors is Joe "boom" Blevin. He received this noble title by blowing up many engines through the years. He races in the sport mod class or b-mods for all of you racing people.

He is very good at what he does and on this night it was no exception. Joe started the race in the middle of the pack yet quickly worked his way to the front of the field. It was one of the most exciting races I've seen in any class. I will let the offical press release do the talking.

"After starting outside the front row, Cossel took the lead early in the event and survived pressure from Bliven, then Gillenwater and Jeff Mueller as the laps wound down. Bliven was long side Cossel on the front stretch with two to go when the two made contact. Cossel got sideways, but kept it going to straight.
As the field entered the final two turns on the last lap, Cossel went very high and Bliven dove to the inside. The two were even in the middle of three and four, before coming off turn four. Bliven’s car hit a slick spot and snapped around as they came to the front stretch. He was backwards which allowed Cossel and Gillenwater to get by. Mueller finished fourth, while Rodger Dresden had a strong run in fifth."

Yes, you read it correctly. He came across the finish line backwards. He did not hit a thing. When he was interviewed after the race he said, "I hope Randy (car owner) is not too mad, I was goin for the win."
Every Friday night something is unique and exciting.  Tonight was no exception.