Well Viper Days at Mid America Motorplex is over for another year , but it was alot of fun as always. The 70% chance of rain was spot on, it just occured about 300 miles to the South of the Pacific Junction , Iowa track, so two beautiful days greeted the drivers. I was there to flap my gums announcing the races and to do a little driver instruction. I got to ride along with Jim Wallace ( Iowa ) and Ray Datillo ( Kansas ) and both of these gentleman were in hog heaven - I need to figure out how to bottle their enthusiasm and patent it. Great job and they are both hooked , I bet!? I also had a riot riding with Nancy Stein and Angie Stearns for some advance instruction and boy are these ladies fast. Neither of them put a wheel wrong and they were clicking off super quick times -- it was an absolute pleasure to ride with these talented divas of the race track.
The race on Saturday started off with alot of excitement as Rob Foster came back to his stomping grounds ( Omaha Metro Area ) to run against friend and close competitor ,Bob Woodhouse. With a clean start , Foster was right on *****'s tail going into the increasing radius sweeper at turn 5, when he decided to take a deep dive to the inside. He clipped Woodhouse's rear fascia and left his right winglet and part of his fascia on the track. The debris was picked up by an alert track crew, and no time was lost, but Foster fought the remainder of the race with a car that was pushing in all the turns. This allowed Bobby Archer to make a valiant rush towards the second podium spot ,but the GT1 driver fell short of time in the Saturday Sprint Race, though taking the numero uno spot in his class. Woodhouse and Foster captured the one and two slots, but the best drive of the day was garnered by Kyle Foster ( 20 year old son of Rob Foster ), who slithered through the crowd to snare the 4th position in only his second time in a Competion Coupe. His drive was most impressive after his missed shift at the start ,which saw him fall almost to dead last. We also saw stellar runs by Seth Palatnik ( second in GT1 ) and Howie Frank. Howie was in Second ( in class ) in his number 354 GT1 for quite a bit, till engine troubles put him in the pits - tough luck after such a strong start. We were also introduced to Mark Kirby and Mark Stearns , as the Rookie Drivers are now baptised into the Viper Racing League fold.
Sunday saw a good spectator turnout of around 1500 folks, and though it was very windy , the skies were blue and fears of racing Water Mocassins was not to be. Drivers were greeted at their race meeting with the pronouncement that the 33 lap race would begin with an inverted start.Woodhouse and Foster were going to see if if they could carve their way to the front, and the driver that got the best jump was none other than perenial Pro, Bobby Archer. He got clear up to third by turn 5 and actually lead the race for awhile. Bob and Rob , soon were battling again, and the two World Challenge Series Comp Coupes, showed they were the class of the field. As they seperated from the group a great battle was ensuing with virtually all the other competitors. For about a third of the race, spectators were enticed by the constant switching of places between the cars of Mike Greenberg, Russ Oasis, Joe Bregante, Seth Palatnik, Mike Dalsin, Mark Kirby, Kyle Foster, Barry Robertson,and Mark Stearns. Again, as in Saturday's race Woodhouse, Foster, Archer, and eventually Kyle Foster distanced themselves from the pack. As places switched more often than partners at a square dance, Seth Palatnik patiently whittled down the pack to cut into another second place podium , behind Bobby Archer, in GT1. This was in a Gen 1 GT1 Snake, and his solid finishes both days means the old Black Snake will be a force to reckon with this year. Kudos go to all the drivers for putting on a safe , exciting show for the fans, and the crowd enjoyed a fun autograph session after the race -signing T-Shirts, Viper Days calendars, and pictures many drivers have of their racing Vipers. Woodhouse is obviously hoping the strong drives of Saturday and Sunday will carry over to his next World Challenge Race at Lime Rock Park, later this month, but the interesting item to note , is that 7 of the 9 Comp Coupes running in the Series , have drivers that came out of the Viper Days Proving Grounds. This is a true testament of the value the Viper Racing League has given to this cadre of talented track pilots and if you want some dynamite instruction in your Viper, make it to the next Viper Days .
The race on Saturday started off with alot of excitement as Rob Foster came back to his stomping grounds ( Omaha Metro Area ) to run against friend and close competitor ,Bob Woodhouse. With a clean start , Foster was right on *****'s tail going into the increasing radius sweeper at turn 5, when he decided to take a deep dive to the inside. He clipped Woodhouse's rear fascia and left his right winglet and part of his fascia on the track. The debris was picked up by an alert track crew, and no time was lost, but Foster fought the remainder of the race with a car that was pushing in all the turns. This allowed Bobby Archer to make a valiant rush towards the second podium spot ,but the GT1 driver fell short of time in the Saturday Sprint Race, though taking the numero uno spot in his class. Woodhouse and Foster captured the one and two slots, but the best drive of the day was garnered by Kyle Foster ( 20 year old son of Rob Foster ), who slithered through the crowd to snare the 4th position in only his second time in a Competion Coupe. His drive was most impressive after his missed shift at the start ,which saw him fall almost to dead last. We also saw stellar runs by Seth Palatnik ( second in GT1 ) and Howie Frank. Howie was in Second ( in class ) in his number 354 GT1 for quite a bit, till engine troubles put him in the pits - tough luck after such a strong start. We were also introduced to Mark Kirby and Mark Stearns , as the Rookie Drivers are now baptised into the Viper Racing League fold.
Sunday saw a good spectator turnout of around 1500 folks, and though it was very windy , the skies were blue and fears of racing Water Mocassins was not to be. Drivers were greeted at their race meeting with the pronouncement that the 33 lap race would begin with an inverted start.Woodhouse and Foster were going to see if if they could carve their way to the front, and the driver that got the best jump was none other than perenial Pro, Bobby Archer. He got clear up to third by turn 5 and actually lead the race for awhile. Bob and Rob , soon were battling again, and the two World Challenge Series Comp Coupes, showed they were the class of the field. As they seperated from the group a great battle was ensuing with virtually all the other competitors. For about a third of the race, spectators were enticed by the constant switching of places between the cars of Mike Greenberg, Russ Oasis, Joe Bregante, Seth Palatnik, Mike Dalsin, Mark Kirby, Kyle Foster, Barry Robertson,and Mark Stearns. Again, as in Saturday's race Woodhouse, Foster, Archer, and eventually Kyle Foster distanced themselves from the pack. As places switched more often than partners at a square dance, Seth Palatnik patiently whittled down the pack to cut into another second place podium , behind Bobby Archer, in GT1. This was in a Gen 1 GT1 Snake, and his solid finishes both days means the old Black Snake will be a force to reckon with this year. Kudos go to all the drivers for putting on a safe , exciting show for the fans, and the crowd enjoyed a fun autograph session after the race -signing T-Shirts, Viper Days calendars, and pictures many drivers have of their racing Vipers. Woodhouse is obviously hoping the strong drives of Saturday and Sunday will carry over to his next World Challenge Race at Lime Rock Park, later this month, but the interesting item to note , is that 7 of the 9 Comp Coupes running in the Series , have drivers that came out of the Viper Days Proving Grounds. This is a true testament of the value the Viper Racing League has given to this cadre of talented track pilots and if you want some dynamite instruction in your Viper, make it to the next Viper Days .
