Nebraska Memorial Day Races

Thursday 5/27: I-80 Speedway
On the drive out of Colorado God blessed us with incredible views all the way in to Nebraska. The sun shined on the Air Force Academy Chapel and then we drove along the outside of an incredible storm. There was an amazing twister cloud and hail that just edged us.

We were on the way to Greenwood just outside of Ft. Kearney, Nebraska when one of the trailer tires blew out. As we were changing the tire, a Nebraska sheriff lectured us about the truck laws of his state. We then headed to Kearney to get a new tire and a spare after this being our forth blown tire. It quickly was discovered that we had to check each other for wood ticks.

When we arrived at I80 we heard of the sad news about the sprint car great Jessie Hockett. Justin had begun a friendship with Jessie after his time down with the World Nationals. They had been e-mailing and Jessie was great about mentoring Justin in the ways of racing. We were all saddened to lose such a great ambassador in the sprint car world. We will continue to pray for Jessie’s family and friends during this time of loss.

That night Justin was second row of his heat and almost everyone he was with was from the National Circuit. The car was setup way too loose and at such a fast track he was quickly pulled to the back and finished 7th. So he started at the back of the B and finished 8th. Overall good night with some great guys.

Friday 5/28: McCool Junction
We did the routine maintenance on the car in the hotel parking lot and then drove about an hour west to the next track and got all set up. First time at this track and Justin started inside pole and finished last. The crew did a great job making some major adjustments to the car under fast pace setting of getting ready for the B feature. We then only missed the A main by 2 spots discovering engine problems during the b main which cost us the race.

Saturday 5/28: Eagle Raceway
The next day after cleaning up the car at a car wash, we started working on the car again. The crew found the problem with the engine and made the needed adjustments, tuned the chassis and headed back east for our third race of the weekend. This race was out of the ascs sanction so it was mostly local drivers. The track pits were really packed and it was very hot outside. This track had an impressive following of race fans and the stands were packed out. Since we came in with no points, they started Justin at the very back of his heat race. He had the transfer spot but spun out so had to race the b feature, third row. Justin fought a very tough 10 laps keeping the needed transfer position to the A feature where he started last place and ended up 17th. We’ll be back to the track in a few weeks to run with the National tour guys. Justin’s brother Nick, who is one of Justin’s biggest supporters, will be flying in to watch this one.

Nebraska Weekend

A little late but an update from us both.

From Justin:
Well, what a weekend! We arrived in Greenwood, Nebraska on Thursday night to race on the fastest track I've ever seen or raced on. The term "crazy fast,"…this was that place. We unloaded the car and tried to start it and it wouldn't start. The fuel shut off valve came apart in my hand. We rebuilt the valve and then it fired up as I went out on the track for mud packing. My pill draw for the race was inside front row for my heat race. I got an amazing start and was leading the first two laps, then a caution. Restarted and I was entering into turn one and through turn two, my right front tire jumped the cushion and I went rolling down the back stretch. My car rolled twice in the air and came down on the top wing. They scraped my car up off the track and brought it into my pit stall. Our night was over, but we rebuilt the entire car suspension that night at the track. We headed out for the next track and got rained out. From there we headed to Calhan, Colorado to get rained out as well.

From April:
Three days of racing has wiped us out! Justin’s first night out in Nebraska had some highs and lows. This speedway is massive and the teams actually pit INSIDE of the track. The photo at the top shows how the rigs sit inside the raceways. Crazy cool! We had to stand on top of the rigs to see the events. Justin was doing amazing but ended up rolling. The top wing was crushed and several bars broken. He was ok and his angels kept him safe. It didn’t even really shake him up too bad which shows that this is his calling. :o) This is the kind of wreck that every driver needs to face to see if they truly have what it takes. We had a good friend of Justin’s find a new wing for us for at a good price and helped us put the car back together again.

The next night we were ready to race at a different track but it got totally rained out. So much rain that the rigs had to be towed out of the pits. We drove back home to make our first race at a local track in Calhan, CO. But that one also got rained out. Lots of mud, drenched clothes and soggy shoes this weekend. Bummer!

Special thanks to our good friend Tim O'Neil who took these amazing photos of Justin at Greenwood. You can check out more of his photos at his website.