A 30 year journey, and a 2nd chance.

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Day 3 Sunday the Jr's running late again -they started at 8:00 AM again.

But it is warm, not as hot, but sprinkling a little occasionally, not really wet, and breezy to windy (at least the sun is not frying us, but the air is actually worse). 1 T.T. in after 2 Bagels and Philly Cream cheese piled high and coffee, lights again will be slow even after recovering the spot I found last night w/ the stomach this full, and I was right first pass. But, the E.T is right where I figured it would be, and it is getting quite (albeit slow the way I am driving it), predictable for bracket racing in Sportsman.
We get the call for the second T.T. and we pull into the lanes for T.T. #2, then we will get to Elims. That leaves another hr. plus for more digestion of that heavy breakfast). They start to pull our lanes, my old friend John Irving is over there a bit in front in the right lane, I am in the left, but we are not matched up, it is only T.T. #2, and as the 1st pair of cars get up to the Tower Tunnel, my car is at the perfect temp to repeat the incremental(s) & raindrops are falling from the sky! Bigger ones this time, and my hood and windshield are actually wet, John comes over and says, you can run in this sprinkle can't you?...Like getting on the freeway onramp I say. We chatted a little...

Track goes quiet of course, not enough rain to wash us out, it will dry quickly, a few minutes go by and the light rain(just a few sprinkles), stops, and then the announcement comes (They want to get the program in today, get everyone on the road home at a decent hour), they have made a decision, so we are doing away with T.T. #2, will pull the potential bye out from best R.T. from T.T. #1 instead of T.T. #2, and they will pair us up and send us out for Round #1 of the Bracket. (another friend I knew back in the day, Paul Wong earned the Bye again, and ooops, he is up on the left up front...I get my wish from the other day (if you read my postings above), John and I get to play shoe polish games...That paired us up! (And we both give each other the thumbs up!) That was not planned, it was just fate.
My car is dead cold again by now, I am closer to the tunnel, and am dialed for the guy behind him. (No matter what, this is going to be fun...It is the very first actual side by side in the lights game I have learned & loved to play since the Mid 70's (and I have not played in the last quarter of a century), all I need to do is be green to have any chance at all. Red again and it is over.

It was both fate and fitting and I will not go any further than to say, my light was green, I was in D, so watched his light go green, and used 1 mirror, then the other mirror, then over the right shoulder right down to the stripe, I lifted a car from the stripe, did not hit the brakes (due to the prior light & short shower, just not smart to do w/ FWD slicks), and I did not trim the stripe close enough, and knew it immediately, I saw his win light flash on and to myself said double breakout. It was, and it was fun, but my weekend was over.

Win or lose I had a blast, now back to concentrating on making the car faster. (It is still a work in progress, gained a lot of data in one weekend, 9 total passes in (a dozen total on the car now), and know a few more things I need to do, plus change the oil.