In a Funk

Simply put that is the only way that I can describe my day yesterday.  I simply could not get anything going.  I was in a Funk!!

During time trials the car was running well, however I could not find the tree.  I was all over the place.  I just simply could not figure out what I was doing.  I was lost.  However like I just stated the car was running well.  It was dialed in.  For the 3 time trials it went a 5.286, a 5.253 and a 5.253.  Back to back runs to the thousandth of a second.  We can take that.

First round comes up and I draw Jeff Johnson and his Dodge Dakota that runs 5.60's.  I decide to dial the car a 5.25.  I cut an .015 light to his .024.  I get to the finish line and tap the brakes.  I take the strip by .001 but while doing so break out by .001, this running a 5.249.  Luckily for me, He ran a 5.600 on his 5.61 dial to break out more than me, to give me the round win.

Second round, I draw Mark Smith in his dragster.  This is the same guy that I lost to in the first round last week when I gave him back the stripe.  This time I decided to a 5.24 to Marks 5.38.  Mark leaves with a .003 light to my .015.  So he has me covered on the tree.  I get down to the strip and think that I have him so I tap the brakes as I pass the finish line.  His win light comes on.  Sure enough, I did it again.  Gave him the strip by .006.  There is a pattern developing here.  I ended up running a 5.252 on the brakes, while he went a 5.392 on his 5.38 dial.  So he had a 15 thou package, which would have been hard to beat, but if my run completion numbers is correct, I should have won by .002 if I would not have tapped the brakes.

Luckily for me, KV decided that this weekend they would have first or second round buy backs.  So that meant the even though I lost in the second round I could buy back into the race.

I go back up for the buyback portion of the 3rd round only to pull up beside Jeff Higgins, the same guy that beat me in the finals last weekend.  Jeff is dialed a 6.11 and I dial a 5.24.  Jeff leaves to a red light, which was good for me as he went 6.111 on his 6.11 dial.  I missed the tree a little and have a .022 reaction and run it out the back door to run a 5.228 on my 5.24 dial.  Track got tighter and the 60 ft picked up 1 and it carried it through the entire run.

4th round I draw my good buddy Xavier Lewis.  Xavier is dialed a 6.69, which he has ran all day long.  I decide to dial the 5.22 that I had just ran.  I leave the line with a .025 to his .048.  So I have him covered by a good amount.  I get to the finish line, I know that I have him covered up so I banzai the brakes.  I go around him and his win lights comes on.  My first thought is that I had given up the stripe again.  I get the ticket and X-Man went dead-on 8, while I went a 5.215 on the 5.22 dial, thus breaking out by 5 thou.  I killed 9 mph in the process.  Looking at the ticket, I picked up 2 full numbers in 60 ft.  Run competition shows the car would have ran a high 5.19.  So the car just decided it wanted to fly that pass.  I still took too much stripe but I had thought that I killed enough.  I did not expect the race track to keep tightening up that much.

Not a great weekend, but a few round wins.  I just need to figure out what I am doing.  Still early in the season so I have plenty of time to get things straightened back out.