May 13, 2002
Fargo & Brainerd

With more soggy weather, our two-day weekend was cut short when Brainerd canceled their Saturday event. A clear, but cool evening enabled a complete Fargo show on Friday. While we continued our struggles, another Blue 2K dominated its events.

Without further suspense, the SUCCESSFUL Blue 2K is a Pinewood Derby car crafted and raced by Preston Kuhn. Thanks to superior preparation (fine hand-sanding for ultra-smooth aerodynamic effects), Preston won 6 events of the 6 he entered. Congratulations to young Preston for a fine showing. Also a hearty thank-you to Preston from Jimmy Kouba Racing for the honor of using our paint scheme and number for his machine.

Back to Fargo, where our intrepid travelers attempt to learn not only a track, but now a new car. Luck of the draw was not with us, as we again started deep in the third of three heats. 22 Wissota sprints were on hand making for very tough competition. We did manage a third place finish in the heat, but the ride was more worthy of the pro-rodeo circuit then a high-end sprint program. The track was very heavy, fast and starting to rut up. The new car hooks up much better then the old one (a great deal, we think, for the dry slick bull-rings coming up). With the differences, we had the car way too tight, which means it was touchy to drive at high speeds.

Our top-4 finish meant we were in the redraw for the front starting spots of the feature. Our luck was worse for this draw as we pulled a high number, giving a 5th row, inside grid spot. A long road ahead. While we read the track conditions right (heavier yet and rougher), we didn't go far enough to loosen the car. This time around it was more than the car and I could handle. After slipping to 11th of the 12 cars remaining, I had to bring her in to keep from wrecking myself or worse, someone else. Again we learned a great deal and we are very excited to try our hand for next week's 2-day show back in Fargo.

Thanks to our local Rochester sponsor, Adair Electric. A surprise visit earlier this week really gave our program a needed shot in the arm. Also on the sponsor front, we are pleased to add Seals-It to our list of product sponsors. Check out their products at: http://www.sealsit.com

Stay tuned, better days are coming.
Jimmy