From Bill W
Tulare from another angle…upside down that is! Though TMAC is used to success at the bullring, the weekend with the World of Outlaws at the Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, California got off to a rocky start with two flips on Friday night. Despite the setbacks, the Big Game Treestands #24 and driver Terry McCarl were fast every time they hit the track. This weekend, the WoO will be in Texas for a doubleheader at Kilgore and Baytown.
Misfortunes began in time trials, and the driver admits he may have been trying a little too hard. “Usually, you’re quickest on the second lap (qualifying) at Tulare, but we were seventh quick on the first one, and that was awesome,” says TMAC. “The second lap, I knew Tim (Kaeding) had broken my track record (2009) and I’m weird about that. I took it in even higher above the hole in turn one and the left rear caught it and threw me into the fence. I flipped my ass off and tore up the car pretty good.”
It helps to have a teammate on the road, and the two Big Game Treestands teams came together. “It took pretty much everything but the frame,” says TMAC of the damage. “(Crew Chief) Greg McCormick, Scott Coffman (Pace Chassis) and the Big Game Treestands #7 team worked hard to get the car back for the heat race. They had to replace the front end, the tank, all four wheels, and all four shocks. We knew the rear end was probably bent and something was wrong in the steering, but we ran out of time. I don’t know how we ran third in the heat to be honest.”
Running third bought some more time. “Then we changed the rear-end and the driveline before the feature,” says TMAC. “We were awesome. Three and four were slick and one and two were rough. We started twelfth, and we were up to seventh about the fifth lap when there was a caution. I know Tulare, and I’ve been good there. I know we had a real shot at winning with the car we had.”
Then disaster stuck a second time. “I got up beside Joey (Saldana) on the restart,” says TMAC. “I got underneath him coming off of four and he got back on me. I was going to crash him if I didn’t lift. (Fred) Rahmer got up beside me, and just took me out. He apologized, but he was in the same situation I was with Joey. It was a heck of a crash, and Tommy Tarlton hit me a ton as well as the other guys. There was nowhere for them to go.”
Though there was a sore neck afterwards, TMAC is thankful for Butlerbuilt’s products. “I can’t thank Butlerbuilt seats enough,” he says. “They have another thing that helped me, and that is their new collar that goes over the torque tube to protect your ankles. I had a crash at Jackson (MN) once where I got hit full blast on the left rear. I thought I broke both legs. This time, my heel hit something, but that pad helped me a ton.”
TMAC turned over only three times in 2009, so twice in one night was no fun. “It was disappointing, because on the yellow, I really thought I had the fastest car out there,” he explains. “It didn’t hurt the engine thank goodness. My guys were working until 3:30 a.m. in the pits, and we were late coming to the track the next day. You don’t flip twice in a night very often. I think we tore more up on Friday night, than we did all year last year.”
Saturday night went much smoother. 11th Quick and second in the heat put him outside row five for the main event. He charged forward again, only to spin out several laps in. “We started twelfth and we were up to seventh,” says TMAC. “We began to battle Craig (Dollansky) and (Donny) Schatz for fifth and sixth. I was running a line that went in high and then came down off the bottom. I got a run on Craig, and I hooked a rut coming across the track. That just got me loose and I spun out in the loose stuff.”
TMAC would surge back to twelfth from the back. “I thought we had a top five car again,” he says. “I think if we just survived we would have made a top five. To be honest, I was not 100%, because I had some neck pain, and flipping twice the night before…you don’t want to do it again the next night. I didn’t want to make that phone call to (owner) Tod (Quiring). We kind of did what we had to do, and got the Hell out of California.”
This weekend, the WoO hits Lone Star Speedway in Kilgore, Texas on Friday, and Houston Raceway Park in Baytown on Saturday.
Front Row Challenge/Ultimate Challenge
The 15th Annual Front Row Challenge and the 9th Annual Ultimate Challenge will be held Monday and Tuesday, August 9 and 10, 2010 at the Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Advance ticket holders from 2009 can purchase the same seats NOW by calling McTwo Promotions, Inc. at 515 957-0020.
Tickets will be open to the public on March 23. Visa, Mastercard and American Express are welcomed. Visit www.OskyChallenges.com for further details.
Websites for the McCarl Gang!
Driverwebsites.com has developed websites for the McCarl boys. Check out www.TerryMcCarl.com, and check out www.AustinMcCarl.com and www.CarsonMcCarl.com!
In”Terry”gation
Eric Hobbs asks: What are your feelings on the new double-file restart format?
TMAC Answers: We just had our stuff junked because of it, but personally, I still like it. We’re really good on restarts, and the fans like it. It does help me get to the front, and as a promoter, I think it is exciting for the fans. I think the Outlaw officials made the right call on Saturday by calling it off, and I think if you have a rubber-down track or rough conditions, it’s not going to be good. They made the right call. In normal conditions, I like it.
Got a question for TMAC? Send it to us at sprntcar@iowatelecom.net, and we may answer it in this section! Put “? for TMAC” in your subject line.
This Day in TMAC History!
On this date in 2006, TMAC ran fourth at the Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with the World of Outlaws. He started ninth in an event that was run during miserable conditions, including high winds. He registered the quick time of the night with a lap of 14.419 seconds. Donny Schatz passed Jeremy Campbell at the halfway point to win it.
Website Updates
Keep up to date with McCarl Motorsports at www.TerryMcCarl.com. We keep it fresh for TMAC fans!