!!!! Apexspeed.com Karting Event !!!!

[Jtovo]

Keith,
Not sure if it matters now or not, but I am at 5 people in my group now. I could add a sixth, can we move to track #3 still?

If it is a small fee to cover track setup, it may be worth it.

Joe

[Keith Carter]

We missed our deadline of January 6th to reserve track 3. I could call and find out, but if thay already took reservations for the smaller track on Sunday then we are out of luck. Too late.

[Keith Carter]

I just called our CIR rep and she left our reservation as the large track (track 3)!!!!!! So we still have it! Joe, bring all your extra people and that should be our 30. Cool!

[Jtovo]

I am at 6 people and will try and get a few more...

[kbee00]

Way to go Joe! and of course, Keith! One day and counting...

Loren

[Keith Carter]

Ready to go race fans? See you at the track!!!

[Keith Carter]

Well, the Apexspeed Karting even has come and gone and it appears to have been a great success. I'd like to thank everyone for coming out (especially Bob & Gail from Pennsylvania and Erik and his girlfriend from New York) and I hope it was what you had expected it to be. Since everything went well enough, we will definitely be making this an annual event. It was a LOT of fun.

2005 APEXSPEED.COM CHICAGO INDOOR RACING A-MAIN RESULTS

[Keith Carter]

[Jtovo]

First off, this was an awesome event. Second off, GOD HELP US ALL should we ever race something with fenders! If 1/2 of this field ever decided to race DSR or something, I am opening a body shop. Thanks for all the effort to the APEXSPEED group.

I was wearing a heart rate monitor during the event to see how much it really took out of you and it is amazing. My heart rate was higher from this than it is while running 8 miles or swimming nearly 2 miles. It also heald at a high rate the entire race. Pretty amazing when you look at the numbers. Not to put too much information here, but the this is the pattern from the role out to the time we got out of the karts.

113
118
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What is interesting is that you can see how it jumped from 170 to 180 and then back to 170 after about a minute, that was when KEITH SLAMMED ME. But the reading was taken at .5 intervals. My normal resting heart rate is 58 and during an triathlon, never really excedes 165 or so.

[Keith Carter]

That was Doug that hit you Joe when you were spun out. He snuck on the inside of both of us when you were trying to drive me off the road. You both made contact on the 180 degree right hander and I was able to drive on by. Then Doug got a penalty and I was home free!

[Jtovo]

I did my share of bumping too! What a great time.

Thanks Doug, Keith and Dale!

[TimW]

Anybody else just a little sore this morning from the bumping? Realizing that I was the bumper as much as the bumpee yesterday...

[Keith Carter]

Primarily my forearms are sore and a little soreness in my neck. Other than that I'm good. Tim, I think I have your results sheet at home. There were a few who left theirs on the front counter that I ended up taking. I can scan the results sheet into a PDF and send it to you if you'd like. I'll have to get the other names off of the sheets at home.

[dc]

I feel like I have been hit by a truck. I just remembered why I don't race karts anymore. Those seats were made for guys a bit wider in the ribs and hips than me, and bouncing around in the seat through every corner took a toll on my ribs, hips and shoulders. I was not feelin' great trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in last night.

It was me that got you, Joe. You and Keith went WAY wide into that hairpin and left a HUGE opening for me to get you both. When you came back into the line, I was there, and evrything started going in different directions. I still don't know why I was the one penalized in that one. Knocked me all the way back to 16th or something.

Strangest thing, though, when I was at my most exhausted point of the afternoon (the last lap of the feature) was when I ran my quickest lap. I guess my arms were so tired that I was not moving the wheel much. I guess I learned something for the next time I go back there.

[TimW]

Thanks Keith. I do have the sheets, as the woman printed out additional copies when I went to get them

For anyone who is interested in running there more often, I got this email from a guy who my friend who ran with us yesterday (Mike Anderson) runs with on a fairly frequent basis there:

> Our teams are full the enduro that is coming
> up this Sunday, but you are welcome to join us for
> either of the upcoming enduros on February 27 or March
> 20. For the enduros you need to arrive at the track
> by 5:15pm for check-in and the drivers meeting. A 20
> minute practice/qualfying session starts at 6pm
> followed by race start at 6:30pm. We are normally are
> done by 8:45pm. If you race as part of a 2-man team
> the cost is $150 and you will run 115 to 120 laps of
> Track 3 on the night. If you race as part of a 3-man
> team the cost is $100 and you will run 75 to 80 laps
> on the night.
>
> I also mentioned a series of Grand Prix events I am
> trying to organize that would run on Track 3 the third
> Tuesday of each month.
>
> The format would be three 10-lap
> qualifying heats (with a start at the front, middle
> and rear of the pack) followed by a 20-lap final with
> starting position based on the average finishing
> position in the qualifiers. The cost would be $95 per
> driver.
>
> My plan is to run 5 races on the following dates:
> February 15, March 15, April 19, May 17 and June 21.
>
> Please let me know if you are interested in running at
> least three of the events and please pass this along
> to anyone in your group that might be interested. I
> need 16 drivers to make this happen and so far I only
> have 6.

I'm reluctant to post the guys email address here, as it may get scanned by a bot & then spammed, so if you are interested, email me and I'll hook you guys together.

[dc]

So THAT'S who that guy was! Tim brought a RINGER!

[TimW]

If he wasn't so damn tall and my car wasn't so difficult to move the pedals back and forth, I should be putting him in my DB6 for nationals while I run regionals...and I honestly didn't think he was a ringer...he said he only runs mid pack there usually...

Mike's wife used to work at Newman Haas.

[Dale Carter]

Feels like I have the worst hangover . I think I'll be the official photographer next time. I'm getting too old for this. Brain says yes ,body says no. It also confirms that I really am slow. It was fun watching Keith and Doug dicing. Loved watching Brian Tomasi. Smooth = Fast. Good time by all!

[JHaydon]

My right arm ran out of strength about halfway into the last race, so I tried steering almost entirely with my left arm -- THAT was some fun. Both arms feel like wet linguine today, but the bruises between my knees from the steering support and on my calves from the tie rods are the only real pain I have. Even my neck feels better than I expected.

Tim, do you know what time the Tuesday night league runs?

[Bob Lutz DB-1 #54]

Thanks to all for a great afternoon and especially to the Carters for organizing it -- it was well worth the trip from Pittsburgh. Count me in for next year already.

[Shep]

That was a hoot!!

Thanks to the Carters for pulling the event together. It was a blast! Drive home was painful, but I hear we escaped before the weather got really bad. Good to put some of the names together with faces. Glad I had the opportunity to chat for awhile with Dave Cox, John Haydon, Joe Tovo, Keith, Doug, Kim, and Dale Carter, Jim Roemer, Paul Reineck, and Ian and Tad Lenhardt. (As well as my northeastern friends the Lutz's) Somehow Dave Harris, Brian Tomasi, TimW, and Loren Tieman slipped away before I could introduce myself.

If he wasn't so damn tall and my car wasn't so difficult to move the pedals back and forth, I should be putting him in my DB6 for nationals while I run regionals...and I honestly didn't think he was a ringer...he said he only runs mid pack there usually...

Now, that's just downright depressing... Mike and Brian had us consistently by 0.4+ seconds a lap. Suppose that means we should run the event next year and try again...

Carolyn should have her pictures developed within a week and I'll send them on to Keith for posting.

- Erik

Oh, and you folks must have taken it easy on me! I wasn't bruised at all! How brutal were you guys out there?? Open a body shop indeed!

[kbee00]

I also want to thank Keith for arranging the outing. It was a blast - my guest, Bruce Denney (crew guy extrordinaire) also had a blast. His first comment after leaving was "you can tell the racer guys - they are totally into it" - I guess that sums it up for me too.

Thanks again - hope to do it next year.

Loren J. Tieman
#00 Reynard 83F

[Keith Carter]

Not a problem guys. I don't mind setting it up at all if it gets a bunch of us together to go racing in the middle of winter! Hey Shep, I hope Carolyn's pictures come out better than mine did. My little baby flash didn't provide enough light to get good action shots. Maybe I should read the manual for my camera. I've got he leftover timing and scoring sheets in front of me. I've got Bruce Denney, Tim Wise, Loren Tieman, and Rob Fox. Tim already has duplicate copies, but I can create PDFs for those of you who still want them. Shoot me an e-mail or something...