SUMMER HEAT... so much going on (Part 161v)

SUMMER HEAT… so much going on (Part 161v)

No matter what I did on Saturday, the poor branch performance was right there like a weight on my shoulders. I got my usual chores done and then went into the den and sat in my recliner with a pad in hand. My intention was to think of all the things that concerned me about the branch right from the time I knew the Board decided to move ahead on it. I’ll not burden you with all that but suffice it to say I was able to put enough down on paper to show where some critical decisions that had been made were possibly flawed. All I wanted was to show Bert that it wasn’t just one thing like the advertising or any other obvious scapegoat subject that could or would be tossed out as reasons. It wasn’t my intention to be the one to present this hypothesis to the branch committee but I hoped that Bert seeing all these things condensed on one piece of paper might be enough to buy me some time to do more research where I’d have resources to back me up.

I had a monstrous headache by the time the truck hauling the race car stopped at the house to pick me up. Even though I very much wanted to know if the repairs to the cylinder heads worked I would’ve preferred to stay home and sleep. Being the fourth of July show, with fireworks and extra laps to the main event as added treats, the stands were almost filled when we got there. Jay, my former co-worker from back when I worked at the County Center, had promised to be there. With all I had going on at work during the week I’d failed to contact him for confirmation so was on the lookout for him. My wanderings took me up to the fence that separated the pit area from the grandstands. It was also where C J, who had won two main events since switching over from Ford to Chevrolet power, was pitted. Any time I was in that area I was looking to see CJ’s girlfriend, Karen… she of the white pants with a very obvious VPL. Upon seeing her I had the feeling it was going to be a very good night.

The warm up session went fairly well. Cliffy, trying to preserve the tires, didn’t take many laps. The water temp gauge was reasonable, especially for a hot Summer night, so we were fairly confident. When the starting lineups for the qualifying heats were posted we were listed to start at the very back. Normally those in the back were cars that hadn’t raced in a while (more than three weeks) or were racing at the track for the first time. It was Alan who noticed it and told Cliffy and then the rest of us. The races were controlled by the Chief Steward who had almost dictatorial control over every aspect of the pits and races. The most important was the ‘handicapping’ which is what determined the starting positions. The man’s nickname was “Bruiser” because he owned a bar and served as his own bouncer. Like my friend “Big B”, he was well over 300 pounds. Because of his size he could/would try to intimidate people. Cliffy was one driver he couldn’t intimidate.

When Cliffy went up to complain he was told we hadn’t raced for three consecutive weeks and had to start at the back. I remember Cliffy’s head going from side to side in total disagreement. Cliffy’s position was that we had been at the track, paid our entry fees and actual been out on the track when, on the first lap of that practice, C J’s motor exploded and we ended up crashing into the retaining barrier. The car was rendered undriveable after the crash so we didn’t actually “race” but it wasn’t like we hadn’t tried. “Bruiser” was unmoved. "Go to the back or go home". We (the crew) were quite animated in supporting Cliffy and that drew added attention to the situation. Long story short, some of the drivers who were considered to be fan favorites at the track decide to support Cliffy and told “Bruiser” that Cliffy be given a regular staring place or they would not race themselves. It still didn’t change “Bruiser’s position. Cliffy then called the crew together and told us what he was then going to do.

The entryway onto the race track was very narrow. Cars could only go one direction… either in or out. He got in the car, started it up and then drove it into the entryway managing, with difficulty, to get it almost sideways thus blocking passage. When “Bruiser" heard about it he came down from his office and ordered Cliffy to move the car. Cliffy was out of it by then and was removing the coil wire which would prevent anyone from starting the engine. “Bruiser" then threatened to have a tow truck remove it but when he called for one he found that both were in the infield. The way the car was wedged in, and with the tow trucks only having access to it from the infield, if one did connect to it it would only wedge the car in more. By then “Bruiser’ was yelling for somebody to call the police.

We, the crew, were standing about ten feet away. There were probably 100 or so people gathered around by then. A chant started… “ Bruiser must go! Bruiser must go! Bruiser must go!” All of a sudden it stopped. I thought it might have been the police but it was Larry who appeared. Larry was the promoter (and owner) of the track. He was seldom seen in public so it was shock for many who were there to see him. I saw the reigning track champion get to him before he got to “Bruiser” and watched as they talked for a few minutes. Then they walked over to “Bruiser” and another conversation took place before the three of them walked to “Bruiser’s” office. Almost all those that had gathered to see what was going on stayed to see what would happen. The starting line-ups were posted in chalk on a blackboard outside “Bruisers” office. When “Bruiser” reappeared he had a rag in his hand and he proceeded to wipe off the car numbers for the first qualifying heat. Then he started writing again and the second number listed was #21, our number.

I heard a number of different stories about what happened after Larry appeared so I don’t know for sure what really went down. All I do know was that Cliffy was an immediate ‘hero’ in the pits for standing up to “Bruiser”. By the time we got the car out of the way the show was about 15 minutes late in starting but it was certainly worth the wait. We finished where we were finally placed to start… second. We were feeling pretty cocky after that. When Cliffy pulled into our pit area Alan checked the temperature gauge and it was a bit high but sloughed it off reasoning it was still quite warm out even though it was almost 8pm. The feature event was to be 50 laps and the wear on the tires were more of concern than the motor. They turned out not to be a problem.

We started on the ‘pole’, or in first place. Cliffy was comfortably out front when there was a wreck behind him. When that happens the cars continue to slowly circle the track while the mess  is cleaned up. Just before they were to throw the green flag to continue the race Cliffy pulled into the infield with the now too familiar sight of steam pulsing out of the expansion tank. We were pretty much stunned and tremendously disappointed. I remember sitting in the pit grandstand and remembering Cliffy’s father’s comment as he left the shop the night before… “fifteen laps… “. I did a quick tally and the qualifying race was for 10 laps and we’d completed five laps of the main event… it was fifteen laps.

To be continued…