CalSpeedMagMarch2018

T he 2018 Tri-C Karters season kicked things off this past Saturday in some of the toughest conditions ever for the club. The day would start out dry, but as the morning warm up sessions finished, the track would get too wet for slick tires, and rain tires were adopted for qualifying. The track would dry out as the heat races progressed however, with some drivers gambling on an early switch, and all classes finally on dry tires through about halfway through the mains. The rain would come in earnest about halfway through those main races though, with the latter half drench in a constant downpour, which continued through teardown at the end of the day. CSK racing would have 15 drivers across three 206 classes that would brave the elements for the season opener, and when the checkers finally fell it would be a hat-trick result with wins in each category entered… VLR Spec 206 Over the off season the number of VLR chassis have grown tremendously, and the VLR Spec 206 class is looking to have some serious growth here in 2018. The rain did keep a few people away, but there were still many who took to the track in the one-make class. And the one they were all chasing after qualifying, was none other than the 2017 Spec Champion himself Jake Hood, bringing home the first pole position of the season by nearly a full second over fellow CSK racing teammates Rob Brackett and Jon Kimbrell. Once the racing got underway however it was 2017 title contender Mark Connell that found some extra pace, working up from 4th to take over the top spot in the first heat over Hood in second, and Brackett in third. The skies would start to open up a bit towards the end of heat two, and where it once looked like Connell would again walk away with the win, he would be caught by both Jon Kimbrell and Jake Hood. The trio would fight it out in the final couple of laps, with Kimbrell stealing away the win, and Hood demoting Connell to third. The final race for the VLR Sec Class would see the rain truly come down, soaking the competitors and making full- wet setups the norm. Unfortunately, the sheer amount of water on track would play havoc with several competitor’s engines, with a few waterlogged packages not making it to the end. Not just making it to the end, mark Connell put on a clinic in the full wet, not looking at all like this was his first ever rain race by walking out to a massive 24+ second advantage, bringing home the first Spec class win of the year, with Jake Hood finishing a comfortable second. VLR Spec Top 5 in Points 1. Mark Connell 395 2. Jake Hood 385 3. Myan Spaccarelli 338 4. Jon Kimbrell 336 5. Mike Kellerman 328 206 Masters As was mentioned before, Mike Smith had the most experience in the wet under the team tent coming into the day, but many of his CSK racing teammates showed extremely well for their first foray on the slick stuff. Smith would score the pole position by 2 seconds over teammate and 2017 Masters champ Mark Connell, with 2017 Silver Fox Challenge winner Rob Brackett rounding out the top three. Unfortunately, contact between Connell and Smith at the start of the first heat would see Connell spin and get collect in an incident, inciting a stellar driver from the back the rest of the day. Connell would end up finish 4th when the checkers fell on the final. One driver raising some eyebrows in the class was rookie driver Lukas Dziemidok, qualifying 6th out of the 17 in class, and then backing it up with strong performances in the heat races. Smith would win heat one with Lukas coming home third, even leading at one point. In the second heat race Smith gambled on slicks while nearly the entire field was on wets, and the back and forth at the front was intense. Smith would eventually settle for 2nd, with another new CSK Racing driver making some noise; Michael Middleton. A former TAG racer, Middleton steadily improved on his new VLR 206 package, working up from 12th in the first heat to an impressive 4th in heat two. The Master 206 Main would be the final one of the day, and the one in the worst conditions, with a complete downpour creating standing water all around the track. As engines struggled to stay running under the onslaught of unburnable liquid, drivers negotiated the puddles and rivers as best they could. Smith would return to the front in the early going, maintaining the top spot until the final few laps, where he battled back and forth for the win, eventually capitalizing on an opportunity to bring home the victory. The aforementioned Connell continued his phenomenal recovery drive, backing up his run from 15th to 10 in the second heat, with a run to 4th in the Main. Michael Middleton would back up his heat race pace to round out the top 5, with CSK drivers again looking strong in the Masters point standings. 206 Masters Top 5 in Points 1. Mike Smith 400 2. Bryan Williams 375 3. Steve Jasinski 361 4. Michael Middleton 340 5. Lukas Dziemidok 330 Senior 206 For the first race of the season, three drivers would be entered into the Senior 206 class for CSK Racing; last years champion Mike Smith, 3rd place in 2017 Derek Esquibel, and regular front runner Jake Hood. Hood would not be on a VLR for the Senior class however, restricting his sole Emerald chassis for the Spec category. Photos by Heather Perrin Round 1 March 10