In a message dated 10/11/1999 3:23:33 PM Central Daylight Time,
jwheeler@robus.com writes:
<< Having had the opportunity to watch Bill accomplish this feat last weekend
at IRP, I'd like to second this salute. Now Bill, about that concrete wall
at the side of the track where one enters the front straightaway......
well, never mind! >>
Jack (et al):
Yeah!
On Saturday afternoon, in the rain, I spun the T-Bolt on the front straight,
smacking the concrete wall HARD, and messing up the left rear fender. I
finished the session. Then I ran a warm up and two race sessions on Sunday.
In retrospect, I should not have been out there at all. The car had a
'shudder' that concerned me, but IRP is such a rough track, I was not sure.
As the result, I decided to be conservative, and I eased up and took it very
easy through the corners. But if you got to see me accelerate up the front
straight, if not for that shudder, if I had pushed it hard through the
corners, we could have beat a lot more people.
Now we have the car home, and have looked at it. I have a bent wheel, AND a
badly cracked hub and rotor. The damage to the fiberglass fender was not all
that bad. This was because the wheel, hub, and rotor took the hit. GOD
LOVES ME! I SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN RACING SUNDAY. IF I WOULD HAVE BROKE
ANOTHER HUB AT SPEED, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THREE IN 1999.
I am constantly reminded, that while this is just a hobby, and we do it for
fun...not prizes or trophies, this is serious business, and we flirt with
disaster!
Bill Dentinger
PS
You got to love the TRIUMPH group though. After hitting the concrete wall on
Saturday afternoon, I went back to the Speedway Motel to change my underwear,
and when I came back to the track on Sunday morning, Fireball Dan Buxner, and
his crew had installed 'Chrome Curb Feelers' on all four corners of the
Thunder Bolt.
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