The First Race

My career has taken off, as I fielded my STUDS Racing, Inc. entry, the #66 Sony Vaio Dodge Charger for a 140-lap running at Richmond International Speedway late Thursday night.

No matter how much testing I did, nothing could prepare me more for what I was in store for. These guys, the other competitors, know exactly what they're doing. They've been doing this for years. I'm just the rookie.

Out of 15 racers that started that night, I started 12th. All of us were on the same TeamSpeak channel, so we could at least talk to one another through the race, including the administrator (who was observing, not racing).

For the first few laps, the racing was tight. The tires were cold, but grippy -- maybe too grippy. On Lap 8, I brought out my first career yellow flag, a caution, by running up on the apron off Turn 2 and into another car. I really did not see the replay -- whether or not if the other car came down on me, or I got loose from hitting the apron, but he hit on the passenger side of the car and I saw him peel out behind me. Shit.

The admin saw it right away. He called me on it, but it was no big deal. After a few quick apologies, we were back racing again.

Talk about a mind-draining experience. These virtual cars that we drive are so near the real thing, it's simply unreal. You have to remember, this is a 140-lap event, complete with pit stops and the whole works. I had to constantly keep concentrating on my brake points, where to let the car roll through the corners, where to get back on the throttle. One slight slip up, the car's down on the apron or into the wall coming off the corners. At a place like Richmond, the turns are different (D-shaped oval), so making sure you hit the corners right was a chore.

But the most important aspect of racing is TIRE MANAGEMENT. Tires were great for the first 10 laps, but then after that -- it was a struggle. My car pushed something fierce, no grip in the front wheels. I burned them off completely. I had to slow down big time in the corners, losing time to the leaders on every lap. A good driver could get through the corners at 105-110 mph, I was more like 95-100 mph.

In the end, I finished the race in 11th, 4 laps down. I got out of everybody's way who were going to pass me -- the gentleman-ly thing to do -- just to earn a little respect on the track.

"Thanks, 66."

"10-4."

Heard that plently of times.

I'm just getting the experience needed to be successful later on the future. With more testing and more racing experience, I'll soon find those points on the racetrack to make those important decisions.

Next week is off for Easter, but after that, it's to Darlington -- the track too tough to tame. I tested a little bit there today, but what should that matter, since we're all on fixed set-ups for league anyways? But, it's always important to get the feel for the track, especially at a place like Darlington!