ProKart Challenge Race 2 - Moran Backwards - Feb 3, 2007
Who Are You?
Introducing the Fastest Stock Honda 125cc Kart Grid in the World
The PKC S3 Stock Honda Grid is a brutally fast and aggressive class

Okay, so I thought I would try something different this time around.  I'll introduce the starting grid for the PKC S3 Stock Honda shifter class, and give everyone their 15 seconds of fame.  Plus I think people might be curious as to what chassis/engine combos that the top 10 drivers are running.  The writeup is shorter than usual, but I want to get it done before the next race, which happens in three days.

The next race was at Moran, going backwards.  Moran doesn't run backwards on their normal open practice days, so we did the only thing we could think of:  We did a private test day, and rented the track so we can run it in reverse.  Rocky Moran says it is about $1100 for 15 people, and we quickly filled out the roster of 15 people.  Actually, we went over it by 5 people in terms of reservations.  But I figure some people will be last minute no shows.  The track backwards is pretty fun. 


Jeff's wife Sunni took some great pictures

Monday, January 22, 2007
Cheating Bastard Practice day at Moran. Our goal was to break into the 1:03's on this backwards configuration day, but we fall short.  Wayne runs a 1:04.1 with new 1999 top end assembly/cylinder/carb from Hi-Tech.  He's experimenting with with the infamous 1999 cylinder vs 2001 cylinder head argument.  Darcy 2001 motors won both Stock Honda Light and Stock Heavy at the Supernats.  The year before, Halen won with a 1999 cylinder.  Connor took pole at Streets of Willow last year in a 2001, but Halen had fast lap in the race with the 1999 cylinder.  Connor switched to a Swedetech motor with a 1999 cylinder this year for PKC.  Seems like the differences between the two is pretty subtle, without a clear winner. 

Jeff runs 1:04.2, and I'm slow guy today at 1:04.5.  I'll get them on race day.....

Thursday night, February 1, 2007
Damn, it's cold out in the Beaumont area.  I drive the rig to the Morongo Indian casino and get there around 11 p.m.  They force me to park in the trucker parking lot, which seems like it is a mile away from the registration desk.  Since it is going to get close to freezing, I can't keep the two laptop computers, camcorders, digital cameras, etc, in the truck, so I fill up a big two wheel cart with luggage, electronics, and an ice chest.  Luckily for me, a shuttle bus pulls up so I don't have to push the damn cart all the way to the entrance.   I'm actually too tired to gamble, so I just crash and plan to wake up early.


The damn Indians make me walk a mile to my truck at 5:15 in the morning

Friday morning, February 2, 2007
Today is the official PKC practice in the backwards direction.  At 5:15 a.m. I'm walking out of the hotel, looking for a shuttle bus.  Unfortunately, they don't run at this hour of the morning.  What?  This is supposed to be a four star hotel, and they are going to make we walk a mile to the truck?  I feel like Custard, cursing the Indians.  It's damn cold out here.  I get to the track, and am about 6th in line at 5:45 a.m.

Friday night
After dinner at the casino, I'm too damn tired to gamble, especially since the blackjack tables have 8 deck shoes.  Screw that. This will be the first time I have ever stayed two nights at a casino and never gambled.

Saturday morning, February 3, 2007
Qualifying goes pretty smoothly.  I was hoping to drop into the 1:03's, but I fall short again.  Alex Barron breaks the sound barrier and gets into the 1:02's, so he becomes the first guy in a stock Honda to break the 1:02 barrier at a race at Moran. (yeah, it's backwards, but I think the track is slower backwards. I could be wrong though).  Let's go through the qualifying grid and introduce the fastest Stock Honda Grid in the World. (Note: I apologize if I didn't get your mug shot, we had Jeff's wife Sunni running around shooting pictures of everyone in the class, and she got 90% of you guys).  It'll be like a mini-reality show introduction.  Thanks to Sunni for the great pictures!    In addition to the S3 Heavy and Light drivers below, there are another 30 Stock Honda drivers running in the S4 Heavy and S4 Light intermediate/beginner classes for a total of 54 Stock Honda drivers.  When those guys graduate up to S3 expert class, we'll make them famous also!

  1. Alex Barron
    On pole today is Alex Barron, being the first person to get into the 1:02’s at Moran in a Stock Honda.  He was the 1997 SuperNationals champ in the main event.  Winner of the 1997 Toyota Atlantic Series.  Also has two Indy Racing League wins, and ten top 5 finishes in 59 Indy Racing League starts.  Has come in 4th and 6th place at the Indianapolis 500.  He’s running a Tony Kart with a Barron/Sanner stock Honda package. (1999 cylinder)
  2. Connor De Phillippi
    Winner of two SuperNationals titles in 2005 in the Junior ICA class and the 80cc shifter class.  At the 2006 SuperNationals, he whipped on everyone in the Spec Honda Light class for this third Supernationals title.  He's the reason a group of Cheating Bastards decided to run Spec Heavy instead of Spec Light at the SuperNats.  And on top of that, Connor is only 14 years old, whupping on all the adults in the Stock Honda Class.  Connor is running a Swedetech Stock Honda on a KRT chassis.

  1. Nick Halen
    On row 2, we have 20 year old Nick Halen, winner of the the 2005 Spec Honda class at the SuperNationals, and is the 2005 ProKart Challenge Stock Honda King.  Has dominated this class by winning 8 out of the last 9 stock Honda Prokart Challenge races he entered.  The one race he lost was due to a highly disputed DQ.  Rumor has it Nick and his Dad have Mike Speed (father/tuner of F1 driver Scott Speed) helping them out in the PCH Motorsports tent this weekend.  Nick is running a CRG chassis, and remarkably, doesn't have an "engine builder" for his stock Honda.
  2. Bobby Legate
    He was the 1997 HPV Jr. Champion in San Diego Karting Assoc., he holds the track records for HPV Jr. at El Cajon Speedway and Amago before taking some time off from karting.  Last year, he was the  ProKart Spec 2 Champion (spec 2 was the old designation for the stock class for beginner/intermediate and RINGERS) and in 2004 he was voted the Most Pimp White Kid at Cal State University Fullerton.   Running a CRG/Darcy package out of the 2Wildkarting tent.

  1. Bonnier Moulton
    Hotshoe G1/Masters driver who has moved into the Stock Honda class. Winner of the 2004 G1 SuperNationals class, The Rock Island Grand Prix, and many other events.  He’s running a PTK chassis with a Stock Honda built by Msquared Karting.
  2. Jeff Littrell
    Winner of the 2006 SuperNationals Spec Honda Heavy class.  Don't remind me. Took 4th in ProKart Challenge Stock Honda series last year.  Currently using zen-like Yoga workouts to focus his concentration to make it to the podium.  Running a Tony Krypton/Darcy setup.  Runs out of the Pulp Racing/2WildKarting camp.

  1. Doug Hayashi
    Always fast in practice, usually something breaks, falls off, or explodes on his kart during race day.  Has unintentionally performed Cirque de Soleil moves in midair with his kart.  Notorious Cheating Bastard, but still can’t quite break into those first three rows in qualifying.  Running a Tony Krypton/Darcy setup.  Runs out of the Pulp Racing/2WildKarting camp.
  2. Randy McKee
    Took 2nd overall in the PKC Stock Honda series last year behind Nick Halen.  Crushed all the Pulp Racing drivers last year, but this year the Pulp guys are duking it out with him mano-a-mano in qualifying and on the grid.  Running a Tony Kart EV and a Hi-Tech motor.

  1. Wayne Mello
    Reminds people of George in the Seinfeld show.  Took 5th at the Supernats last year in Stock Heavy, and took 5th in PKC Stock Honda series last year.  Will go to wacky extremes to find an edge to beat Hayashi, such as pump arounds, installing egt/air fuel sensors, hybrid motors, human growth hormone supplements.  Running a Tony Kart/Darcy kart.  Runs out of the Pulp Racing/2WildKarting camp.
  2. Fernando Diaz
    Took 3rd in PKC Stock Honda class last year.  This year, decided to run Stock Heavy(aka the Fat Bastard class) as he can’t make the 385 lbs weight limit.  Is currently "crushing" the competition in Stock Heavy.  If he went to Jenny Craig, has potential to make it to row 2 or 3, as right now he is running 30 more lbs than the rest of the Stock Light guys on this grid.  Running a GP/Darcy kart, and uses Dave Reine from IDC Kart Shop as his tuner.

  1. Jonathan Wright
    Stars ICC veteran.  2 time podium finisher at the SuperNats.  With his Dad Tom, the new owner of Hi-Tech Racing Engines.
  2. John DeMartino 
    Recent Rotax convertee.  Still trying to figure out what to do with that appendage to the right of the steering wheel, and qualifies pretty good on the 6th row. You other Rotax guys take note of Mr. DeMartino, and should step up from your karts with no-front brakes, no-shifter arm, weenie battery starter, kid-style TaG/Rotax karts and get into a shifter. <grin>

  1. Travis Whitehead 
    Ran a few of the PKC races last year, Travis is too fast for the Spec 4 class, so he is running with the big boys in Spec 3 light.
  2. Clinton Schoombe
    Took 3rd in the Spec2 Honda class last year, now moves up to the Spec 3 class.  Known to commander the loudest, rowdiest table at any awards banquet this side of the AVN awards.

  1. Jim Lewis
    Running his first race in the Stock Honda class.  Welcome to the club!
  2. Paul Russell
    Paul is representing the cone-dodgers.  He was running 2nd at the 2006 Supernats Stock Heavy class before he broke a shifter J-arm.  Paul is a podium finisher at the SCCA National events in the 125cc class, proving he is fast on sprint courses as well as those SCCA supermarket parking lots.

  1. Ron Barcimo
    Is 17th on the grid, but is 2nd on the grid in terms of being in the Stock Heavy class.  Usually blows by Hayashi on the starts. 
  2. Rob Whitley
    Another Rotax convertee.  We'll eventually get them all switched over to Stock Hondas.  I mean, who ever heard of a one speed racing machine?  That's like driving an automatic Dodge Neon in a Speed World Challenge Race.  Rob takes 3rd on the grid in the Stock Heavy class.


 

  1. Grant Westmorland
    Works on a tugboats to fund his need for speed.  Takes 4th on the grid in Stock Heavy class.
  2. Bruce Carlquist
    Took a year off, which is really hard to overcome AT HIS AGE. (caps from Greg Smith!)  Still, one of the hardest guys to pass on the track, as he gets a phenomenal launch out of the turns.  You really have to work hard to get a clean pass on Bruce.

  1. Justin Krueger
    The Kruegers are the only father/son team that I know of that drive in Stock Honda anywhere in the world.  Usually Nick Krueger is on this grid also, making it three Kruegers, but Nick isn't here today.  I bet they argue a lot about which Krueger is the fastest one.  I’d hate to see their combined racing bill for the weekend.  Can you imagine?  Three sets of tires, three entry fees, three karts to prep and fix.  Ouch!
  2. Jeff Krueger
    Papa Krueger.  Used to be the fastest in the family ......... but has passed the torch.

  1. Michael Mihld
    Another driver coming out of retirement and finding the competition has stepped up a notch.  With a little more seat time, he will move forward substantially.
  2. Marty Henderson
    Had mechanical problems, and didn’t get a qualifying lap.  Took 2nd in last PKC race in Stock Heavy, so he'll be moving up as the day goes on.

Heat Race 1
I'm not feeling too bad about being in the 4th row, considering there are some really fast guys in rows 1 through 3.  For some reason, I had to have Jeff Jeppeson push start me about 6 times before the motor would fire up.  Hummm.  The starting procedure is that the starter flag person will signal everyone to get ready.  Red light comes on the starting light, and within 3 to 5 seconds, the light will go off, and then we haul ass into turn 1.  This time, the "ready" signal is given, we are all staring at the lights, and the red light never goes off due to some technical/human error.  However, everyone around me jumps the gun and takes off, but then stops as they realize they jumped the start.  Seems like everyone but me has a "false start".  WTF?  All these guys should be penalized for jumping the start, and I should be moved up to row one.  No wonder I get my ass kicked on starts, everyone around me is jumping the gun by a couple of milliseconds before the red light goes off.  Those Cheating Rat Bastards!

Red light goes off, and I get by Bonnier going into turn 1.  I am able to hold him off for a couple of laps, and then he dives under me going into the hairpin, and gets past.  McKee almost makes a run on me, but I'm able to hold him off.  I finish where I started, in 7th spot.  McKee said my kart was spraying something at him, and it turns out to be gas.  I was thinking it was the stupid carb overflow lines.  I put a new carb in because the housing on the other carb was all chewed up, so I figured I replace it to prevent a DNF.  2Wild looks at the leak, and Rhod notices my fuel line has a cut in it.  Doh!  That's probably where the gas was coming from.


Halen and Jeff duking it out for the racing line

Pos No.
Name		   Laps Total Tm Diff Best Tm In Lap Best Spd (Mph)
Class: S3 Light
1 1c Nick Halen 10 10:52.527   1:03.514 9 57.814
2 00x Connor DePhillippi 10 10:52.671 0.144 1:03.262 8 58.044
3 31 Alex Barron 10 10:53.065 0.538 1:03.530 8 57.799
4 51c Bobby Legate 10 10:58.358 5.831 1:04.085 8 57.299
5 4c Jeff Littrell 10 10:59.039 6.512 1:03.977 3 57.396
6 49x Bonnier Moulton 10 10:59.615 7.088 1:03.772 5 57.580
7 55c Doug Hayashi 10 11:01.743 9.216 1:04.308 7 57.100
8 2c Randy McKee 10 11:03.917 11.390 1:04.273 4 57.131
9 168b DeMartino John 10 11:04.967 12.440 1:04.480 4 56.948
10 77x Travis Whitehead 10 11:10.057 17.530 1:05.100 3 56.406
11 800c Wayne Mello 10 11:12.530 20.003 1:04.650 2 56.798
12 96c Jonathan Wright 10 11:15.945 23.418 1:05.080 7 56.423
13 19c Bruce Carlquist 10 11:23.301 30.774 1:06.057 3 55.588
14 161c Jim Lewis 10 11:23.305 30.778 1:06.004 6 55.633
15 14c Justin Krueger 10 11:23.943 31.416 1:05.413 5 56.136
16 89x Paul Russell 10 11:29.194 36.667 1:05.445 10 56.108
17 77c Jeff Krueger 10 11:34.267 41.740 1:06.678 3 55.071
DNF 111c Clinton Schoombee 1 1:22.056 9 Laps 1:09.676 1 52.701
Class: S3 Heavy
1 45c Fernando Diaz 10 11:05.502   1:04.493 4 56.936
2 91c Ron Barcimo 10 11:23.823 18.321 1:05.758 5 55.841
3 49c Rob Whitley 10 11:31.842 26.340 1:06.351 6 55.342
4 15c Michael Mihld 10 11:40.834 35.332 1:06.871 2 54.912
DNF 31x Marty Henderson 4 4:50.035 6 Laps 1:07.238 3 54.612
DNF 65c Grant Westmorland 3 3:47.699 7 Laps 1:08.580 2 53.543

Heat  Race 2
Going around the track on the warmup lap, there is a slight hesitation/sputter in the motor.  Uh oh.  I take my place on the starting grid, and the motor sounds a little better.  Red light turns off, I floor it, and kart dies.  Nice.  Something is wrong.  I'm a DNF, and now have to start at the back of the grid from the main.  ARRRGH!  turns out the fuel pump died.  Probably from pumping too hard in the last race when there was a cut in the fuel line.  I curse you, Raceaflais.

With a couple of laps to go, Wayne's radiator bracket bolt snaps off.  He gets black flagged before he loses his radiator going around a high speed turn, which would be really ugly.  He ain't gonna be happy about that.  He DNFs, so he'll be joining me at the back of the grid for the main.  Unbelievable.  We are gridded together for yet another main race.  Unfortunately, this time we are at the back of the pack.  Jeff is holding down 5th spot on the grid, so at least one of the Pulp drivers has a shot at the podium.

Pos No.
Name		   Laps Total Tm Diff Best Tm In Lap Best Spd (Mph)
Class: S3 Light
1 00x Connor DePhillippi 10 10:41.235   1:03.634 7 57.705
2 31 Alex Barron   10 10:41.892 0.657 1:03.654 10 57.687
3 1c Nick Halen   10 10:43.949 2.714 1:03.668 6 57.674
4 51c Bobby Legate   10 10:49.630 8.395 1:04.192 6 57.203
5 4c Jeff Littrell 10 10:52.311 11.076 1:04.020 4 57.357
6 2c Randy McKee 10 10:52.842 11.607 1:04.508 4 56.923
7 96c Jonathan Wright 10 10:57.548 16.313 1:04.719 6 56.738
8 77x Travis Whitehead   10 11:00.747 19.512 1:05.158 4 56.355
9 168b DeMartino John 10 11:01.257 20.022 1:05.144 5 56.367
10 89x Paul Russell 10 11:05.957 24.722 1:05.222 5 56.300
11 111c Clinton Schoombee 10 11:08.185 26.950 1:05.163 9 56.351
12 19c Bruce Carlquist 10 11:15.421 34.186 1:06.856 2 54.924
13 14c Justin Krueger   10 11:15.463 34.228 1:06.124 5 55.532
14 161c Jim Lewis 10 11:16.643 35.408 1:05.860 9 55.755
15 77c Jeff Krueger   10 11:18.937 37.702 1:06.524 4 55.198
DNF 800c Wayne Mello 7 7:39.041 3 Laps 1:04.584 5 56.856
Not classified
DNS 49x Bonnier Moulton 0 --:--:--.---   --:--:--.--- 0 -
DNS 55c Doug Hayashi 0 --:--:--.---   --:--:--.--- 0 -
Class: S3 Heavy
1 45c Fernando Diaz   10 10:53.210   1:04.470 5 56.957
2 49c Rob Whitley 10 11:16.181 22.971 1:06.467 5 55.245
3 91c Ron Barcimo   10 11:19.913 26.703 1:05.901 7 55.720
4 15c Michael Mihld   10 11:33.732 40.522 1:07.450 2 54.440
5 65c Grant Westmorland 10 12:18.264 1:25.054 1:06.140 7 55.519

Main Race
Okay, here we go for all the marbles.  Red light comes off, and I get a good start, getting by maybe five or six guys into turn 1.  Wayne has a tremendous start, and blows by eight or nine guys in to turn 1.  I think that Cheating Bastard Wayne jumped the start though.  Bonnier Moulton was in the back of the pack with us, and my plan was to just follow him to the front part of the pack, but he's moving pretty quick.  Halfway through the 20 lap race, my kart doesn't feel like it is handling right, which is unfortunate, as it was handling great during all the practice sessions.   Perhaps I should have anticipated track conditions/tire wear better?  I drop off the pace, and finish around 10th or so.  Damn!  Even if the kart was handling good, I don't think I could have gotten higher than 8th.  Jeff was running 4th, but he started getting tired due to a cold he can't seem to shake, so he fell back to 6th.  Not bad, but he ain't happy about falling back two spots.

Best Lap Tm 1:03.270 In Lap 18
Best Speed 58.037 by Nick Halen
Pos No.
Name		   Laps Total Tm Diff Best Tm In Lap Best Spd (Mph)
Class: S3 Light
1 00x Connor DePhillippi 20 21:15.720   1:03.307 13 58.003
2 1c Nick Halen   20 21:16.893 1.173 1:03.270 18 58.037
3 31 Alex Barron   20 21:18.700 2.980 1:03.457 14 57.866
4 49x Bonnier Moulton 20 21:33.573 17.853 1:03.649 13 57.691
5 51c Bobby Legate   20 21:37.802 22.082 1:04.083 10 57.301
6 4c Jeff Littrell 20 21:39.674 23.954 1:04.162 3 57.230
7 2c Randy McKee 20 21:51.825 36.105 1:04.415 18 57.005
8 800c Wayne Mello 20 21:53.351 37.631 1:04.325 15 57.085
9 111c Clinton Schoombee 20 21:57.676 41.956 1:04.813 7 56.655
10 55c Doug Hayashi 20 22:00.177 44.457 1:04.878 13 56.599
11 77x Travis Whitehead 20 22:05.071 49.351 1:05.201 6 56.318
12 89x Paul Russell 20 22:07.343 51.623 1:04.875 6 56.601
13 161c Jim Lewis 20 22:11.860 56.140 1:05.558 8 56.011
14 14c Justin Krueger 20 22:14.939 59.219 1:05.251 3 56.275
15 77c Jeff Krueger 19 21:47.665 1 Lap 1:07.183 11 54.657
DNF 19c Bruce Carlquist 1 1:11.173 19 Laps 1:09.174 1 53.084
Not classified
DNS 168b DeMartino John 0 --:--:--.---   --:--:--.--- 0 -
DQ
96c Jonathan Wright 20 21:47.933   1:04.544 15 56.891
Class: S3 Heavy
1 45c Fernando Diaz   20 21:45.630   1:04.541 3 56.894
2 65c Grant Westmorland 20 22:16.476 30.846 1:05.592 17 55.982
3 91c Ron Barcimo 20 22:17.590 31.960 1:05.827 16 55.783
4 49c Rob Whitley 20 22:17.952 32.322 1:05.720 16 55.873
DNF 15c Michael Mihld   9 10:24.834 11 Laps 1:07.632 3 54.294

Helmet Camera Video Footage:
Announcing is much tougher than it seems like it should be.  We suck as announcers.  Mike G, thanks for announcing the PKC races, as the Pulp TV announcers would really suck if they did the PKC events.  You readers will also suck also if you videotape yourself reading a script.  I think Brent Musburger was one of the worst announcers for NBA games (compared to say Chick Hearn), but the hired announcers in the video are worse than Musburger, which is hard to believe.  Options are below, best to do a "right-click-save-target-as".

1.  Best Quality - 220 meg Windows Media file.  Takes about 2 minutes to download on my 15 mbps Verizon FIOS connection

2.  Okay Quality - 100 Meg Windows Media File.  Half the size, doesn't look as good.  But for you folks with a slow internet connection will download in half the time as the Best Qualify video.

 
Nick Halen, Connor DePhillippi, and Alex Barron dominated the day

Two days later, while cleaning my kart, I notice that the bolts that hold the rims onto the rear hubs were a little loose, and had some play in them.  Doh!  Probably explains why my kart was feeling a little loose and wiggly on some of the turns.

===== Start of Real Estate Editorial Rant ========

Putting my Tin Foil Hat on.
On another note, it looks like the real estate market is cooling off (crashing violently?).  Check out these links for some interesting reading.  I have to check them a couple of times a day to get the latest gossip.  I'm betting we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg, and once the big investment firms fess up to what type of loans/collateral they are actually holding, things should get worse.  Follow the housing implosion at the grassroots blogger-type sites:

www.mortgageimplode.com  where the larger subprime lenders go belly up every 3 days or so.  10 of them went out of business in February.  They track it daily, and post with glee everytime another goes bankrupt or gets "acquired" like a ten dollar whore.

http://bubbletracking.blogspot.com/2006/12/tracking-foreclosures-and-pre.html Watch the rate of foreclosure/preforeclosure properties rapidly increase.  Figuring that the houses that are being foreclosed on now won't hit the markets for another 5-7 months, things should cycle downward rapidly.  I'm betting that the banks/realtors selling these foreclosed houses are trying to figure out how to keep the low sales prices out of the MLS/sales data, so it won't appear that the housing market is crashing violently. 

http://www.ocfliptrack.blogspot.com/ - Orange County flippers losing cash rapidly.

www.housebubble.com late breaking news on housing bubble.

http://sandiegomarketmonitor.blogspot.com/ San Diego is crashing also.

NY Times Article Finally, the mainstream press is starting to do some investigation.  My theory is that the mainstream press has a lot of editors/writers that own houses, so they don't want to signal panic on the housing market, or they will lose their equity in their house.  They have a huge vested interest in making sure the housing market doesn't crash.  Bloggers, on the other hand, seem to be ruthless renter-types searching for facts supporting their arguments not to buy, and to me, it seems like they have way more facts than the pro-housing dorks.

Finally, read the 2nd paragraph of this excerpt.  Here is the whole technical paper.  There is no one watching what is in those big ass portfolios in terms of collateral/financial instruments.  Kinda reminds me of that asshole Jack Grubman, with all these "real estate analysts" and "real estate economists" employed by the National Association of Realtors saying that the "housing market is fine", "we are the bottom", "now is a good time to buy", etc.  Ha ha.  Someone is holding some really bad paper loans, and my tinfoil hat says that they are trying to cover their tracks before the shit hits the fan.

Who knows, maybe I'll be able to stop renting and purchase a house at 35% off in the next year or two.  The money I save will go towards a new Tony Kart Chassis!  I'm now officially a bottom feeder.  Kinda sucks to be a bottom feeder and preying on other people's misfortune, but if it will save me money so I can race, I'll do it!  Try this: pick a house out of your local real estate section, write down the location and price.  I'm betting that by the end of September, sales of similar houses will be 15% lower.  Remember, you heard it first here on The NSX-Files!  Stop buying those houses today!  Send me 1% of the cash that you saved in a year from not buying a house today so I can fire up the Flamemobile again!

====End of Rant on Real Estate ===========

Epilogue:
I realize that I haven't had a race day where I qualified, ran the two heats, and ran the main without a DNFing since May of last year when I made it to the podium at Grange.  I might have use my minister credentials and exorcise Raceaflais like I did many years ago with the NSX. 

 
Connor DePhillippi picks up his first win in the main in 5 tries in the PKC  S3 class

Our next race is at the Buttonwillow karting track on March 3rd.  This looks like a real tough track to pass on, with a 90 mph long straight and a bunch of slow, technical, 2nd gear-type of turns that I suck at.  I like tracks where I can floor it and close my eyes and scream my way into a turn.

We keep trying to pull cards out of our sleeves to get a Cheating Bastard Advantage, but the other drivers in our class are damn good.  Gotta figure out how to fight our way into Row 3 for qualifying, and then try to make it to the podium.  It is like cage fighting against Ali, Tyson, and Hagler in their prime all at the same time to get to the podium in this class.  We'll just try harder, and hope we can somehow land a rainbow punch.  Hell, if Buster Douglas can knockout Mike Tyson, maybe we can get on the PKC podium.   But we might need a miracle punch to do it!

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