“We’re back in the game.”
That’s what I heard as my dad jumped out of the motorhome at 6:30 AM Friday morning in Brainerd. He had just got a call back from our friend George Meyer.
George had called with a pretty simple message: “Come get it.”
Less than an hour later I was adjusting the seat belts, dusting the car off, and warming up George’s Malibu for round 1 with no time trials.
Desperate times call for desperate measures.. Right?
After a giant, smoky burnout (sorry George) I was .020 on the tree, went 9.91, and somehow managed to turn on the win light in R1.
That was the extent of my SG success in Brainerd, but that sole winlight might as well have been a final round. It felt like our effort was worth it, and brought confidence I’d later borrow in my dragster.
Picking Up Where I Left Off
In my last ELITE Member Spotlight blog, I previewed two events I was especially looking forward to this summer.
The first was the double divisional in Great Bend, Kansas. The second was the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.
As I write this, Great Bend is more than a month behind me, and I’m currently on the property here in Indy.
A lot has happened in between.
The race schedule this season has been a bit untraditional- I didn’t race a single weekend during the month of June. And with the Spring Earlville event getting rained out, we really hadn’t had many opportunities to go down the race track. Needless to say, it felt strange going into such a big event in the middle of July with less than 20 runs on the season.
Somehow that didn’t stop me from having one of the most successful weekends of my career! After a few rusty time runs and some good fortune early in the race, I went on a run and cleanly swept the weekend in Jesse Smith’s Corvette roadster- earning two NHRA 75th Anniversary Diamond Wallys in Super Gas. It was a dream-weekend come true.
Great Bend was a needle-mover. It validated Jesse and I’s shared goal of competing at a high level in Super Gas… And I’d say we’re well on our way!
On paper, Great Bend probably looked like the perfect weekend.
Brainerd was almost the complete opposite.
Yet, in a strange way, it might have taught me even more.
When the Plan Falls Apart
We rolled into Brainerd with a high-supply of confidence and optimism. With a double divisional and national back-to-back, we get 3 races over 11 days at my home track in Brainerd, MN.
Well, we had a slight “set back” on Day #1 of the stretch.
We hurt the engine in Jesse’s roadster.
That was obviously disappointing for both of us. Beyond losing the engine, I still had a legitimate opportunity in the JEGS Allstars points, and with Brainerd as my last opportunity to earn JEGS points, we suddenly had to figure out whether there was any way for me to finish the event.
After my first phone call with Jesse, he could have easily focused on the bad news. It was his race car and his engine, after all.
Instead, he finished the conversation by saying something along the lines of:
“We’ve got to find a way to keep you racing.”
And well… Not only were we focused on finishing the rest of the season, but the weekend as well. First round was in about 14 hours… Could I make it?!
Over the course of the next few hours we discussed:
- Going home to put our ‘68 Camaro back together
- Finding a legal street car to stage R1 to at least get the show-up points
- Borrowing someone’s car that I never met to at least stage (thanks Theobalds!)
- And a few other crazy ideas that will not be mentioned
Eventually, George caught wind and borrowed me his car. I’m incredibly thankful for his trust and willingness to help us.
There was some uncertainty on my end. I normally wouldn’t ask for a favor like this. But I was more uncomfortable with the idea of giving up, and later having to live with the question “what if?”
Operating on Adrenaline
That entire Friday is a bit of a blur.
Along with everything happening at the racetrack, we were in the middle of a ThisIsBracketRacing ELITE open enrollment period. That’s a significant part of my job with TIBR, so I had gotten up at about 4:00 that morning to finish up some last-minute work before racing started.
By the time we got the call from George, I was already operating on limited sleep.
Then came the scramble to get into the new car.
At the same time, I was still racing my dragster in Super Comp.
Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, I managed to win the divisional in Super Comp and leave Brainerd with a Wally.
It’s funny. Winning a divisional race is a big deal. Winning any race is a big deal.
But there was so much happening around that win that it almost felt overshadowed.
I don’t remember feeling especially nervous or overwhelmed. I was locked in. I was operating on adrenaline, focusing almost entirely on the next thing in front of me.
Maybe the lack of sleep and constant activity forced me into something resembling a flow state. There wasn’t enough time or mental space to worry about the entire picture.
There’s got to be a lesson in there somewhere!
The People Who Keep You in the Game
The other thing I was reminded of in Brainerd is how fortunate I am to have so many good people around me.
My dad never hesitated. George trusted me with his car. Corey Bentley offered me his. Jesse’s reaction to losing an engine wasn’t to dwell on what had happened. It was to find a way for us to continue the season.
And my lovely fiancé, Maggie was by my side through the entire thing!
(Did ya catch that? “Fiancé”… That’s right! I finally smartened up and made it official with my beautiful, loving, and supportive girlfriend Maggie. None of this would happen without her!)
There were probably half a dozen other people who came by to help, check on us, or offer a potential solution.
That says a lot about drag racing and the community within it. We compete against one another, but when someone needs help, people tend to show up.
But our story didn’t end when we left Brainerd.
Finding Plan B
Our first plan was to get the damaged engine out of the roadster and into the hands of our friend Tony Pontillo.
Tony was already at the track and helped us pull it. He got home around Midnight on Sunday, and roughly ten hours later, he already had the engine apart and diagnosed.
Anyone familiar with this industry knows how busy good engine builders are. Everyone is being pulled in several directions, especially in the middle of racing season. For Tony to make this engine a priority, particularly when it was his first time working on it, meant a lot to us.
Unfortunately, the damage was considerably worse than we had hoped. The engine needs an entirely new rotating assembly, amongst other damage.
Tony is still going to repair it, but with only six or seven days before Indy, there simply wasn’t enough time.
We needed another plan.
As luck (and generosity) would have it, Jesse had another engine. It was actually for his dragster, so we didn’t think it’d fit in the roadster given the taller deck height and custom headers…
Well there was only one way to find out!
Jesse’s response was once again simple:
“Come get it.”
That was Monday.
Tuesday was already occupied with engagement photos for Maggie and I. Because apparently an engine swap, a full work schedule, a friend’s wedding, and preparation for the biggest race of the year weren’t enough to fit into one week.
Tuesday night, Dad and I climbed into his truck and drove through the night toward Jesse and Kelli’s place in Wisconsin. We pulled into the driveway around 6am and saw the engine sitting there with an engine hoist.. I couldn’t help but chuckle, “We’re actually doing this!”
We brought it home and went to work.
By Thursday, we had it in the car. Naturally, it wasn’t as simple as setting the engine between the frame rails and tightening a few bolts.
One of the headers required some “modification” to fit the chassis.
Then came all the little things that are easy to overlook when discussing an engine swap: plumbing, wiring, fitment, and making sure everything worked together the way it should.
By Saturday afternoon, the car was running.
Sunday was spent cleaning the shop, organizing everything, and getting ready to leave.
Now it’s Tuesday afternoon, and I’ve just set up camp here at Lucas Oil Raceway with a new combination to compete at the biggest race of the year!
At The Big Go!
There are probably easier ways to prepare for the U.S. Nationals…
But this is what it’s all about! It’s a privilege just to be here. To have a shot. To experience the energy that comes with Indy.
Great Bend showed me what can happen when the car, the driver, and the plan all come together.
Brainerd reminded me that the plan rarely stays intact for long and that success sometimes has less to do with controlling the weekend than it does with responding to it.
This stretch has also reminded me that very few accomplishments in racing belong to one person.
I might be the one sitting behind the wheel, but I wouldn’t be here in Indy without Jesse, my parents, Maggie, and all the other people who offered their time, equipment, knowledge, and support.
When I think back on Dad saying, “We’re back in the game,” I realize that statement meant more than finding a car for first round.
It describes the mindset of the people around me.
There is no perfect weekend. There probably isn’t a perfect season, either.
There are just opportunities, obstacles, decisions, and the next move.
So, we’ll head into Indy with a new combination, plenty of unanswered questions, and another opportunity to make the best of whatever comes.
We’re back in the game.
Update from Jordan:
-Thursday morning:
Indy is off to a great start! Time trials on Wednesday went well- the first pass on the new SG combo was .007, 9.94 at 172 MPH. That alone was a success! 6 Runs over 12 hours provided for a long day. Both cars are showing great promise as we head into R1 Thursday. Stayed tuned for updates- I’ll be posting on the TIBR Facebook page through the duration of the event.
-Friday morning:
Both cars are through Round 1! I managed to pull into the lanes right, and made two strong runs to kick off eliminations. We’ll complete Rounds 2 & 3 today.
