“I continuously go further and further learning about my own limitations, my body limitation, psychological limitations. It’s a way of life for me.”- Ayrton Senna
Ayrton Senna said it well. I push myself more and more each time I am out on the track whether I am 20th, 10th or in the top 5. Without pushing yourself to your limits you will never know how far you can can go and what you can really achieve. This is how successful people achieve their goals, they will always strive!
This weekend I ventured out with Team CRP to the 2nd CKNA event at G&J Kartway, which is under 2 hours from my home. I haven't raced at this track in so many years, probably micro swift days, so it felt good to be back.
If you don't know much about G&J it has been around since 1958 in the cornfields and pastures of Southwestern Ohio. It is a very technical track that takes the motor out of the equation and puts the driving skills in, but the race craft has to be good for good results, or you will be in the back of the pack.
The weather was amazing all weekend long, Friday was practice day which I showed great pace all day, in the top 5 the entire day. I was pretty happy with the way the kart/motor felt and how my driving was, so I was ready for race day.
Saturday comes along and we have morning warmup which lined us up for qualifying, which lined me up in 8th. In qualifying I was able to pull off a 2nd place position, which was amazing out of 29 drivers, but I would prefer to be 3rd where I would be on the inside. I was still 6 tenths off of 1st, so I knew I had to find more time on the track.
Heat 1, I started 2nd and got pushed down to 5th on the start, since like I said the outside is terrible to be on. I stayed with the pack and was able to finish 5th.
Heat 2 I started 5th and again stayed with the pack and finished 4th, which would line me up in the final on the outside again, so I knew I was in for it.
Final comes around I start on the outside in 4th, I got shuffled down to 7th. I kept pushing as hard as I could and finished the race in 6th out of 29, which my goal was Top 10 this weekend, so I was pretty happy with that result.
Sunday was not my day at all. Warmup was not very good because kids would just keep passing instead of acting like it was a qualifying session, so I got stuck and lined up 24th in qualifying, which meant I had to go out in the first group of qualifiers. With no draft in qualifying I was able to salvage a 10th, which again is the outside.
Heat 1 I started 10th, fell back to 12th and was hanging with a competitor till 1 to go when we got tangled up and I finished 22nd.
Heat 2 I started 22nd, which if you are that far back it is going to be a disaster. Due to some incidents in front of me, I was pushed down to 26th, made up 8 spots to finish out the race in 18th.
Final comes around and I start in 18th and again on the outside, just a mess waiting to happen. On the start I was able to gain a few positions and just kept counting them off one by one. My kart was fast and I was rolling, and one of the fastest karts on the track, just not enough time to get up to the top 5. Since there were only 12 laps I was only able to get up to 8th place. If I would have had one more lap I could have finished out the race in 6th or 7th. Again finishing 8th was in my top 10 goal, so I was pretty ecstatic about it.
There are so many people out there that are not happy with a 6th or 8th place finish, but I am because that is accomplishment for me. Since I have moved up to the bigger kart I have struggled. I know most of it is due to my size, the weight on my kart vs. others and the driving style overall. I know my day on the podium will come and till then I will keep pushing forward and push harder each time I am on that track.
Thank you to Team CRP (my dad) for always being there to work on my kart and helping me improve. Thank you to Gary Lawson with Comet Engines for always making sure I have the best engines and all the support you provide to us.
Big thanks to all my sponsors CRP Racing, Rocks Trailer Sales, PKT, Ogio, Motul, Action Sports Canopies, GoPro and Slick Products.
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