Thursday at Pomona

[Chuck Norton]

The opening day of the new season played out pretty much the way the weatherman predicted. The only wild-card put on the table was the widely reported and much discussed encounter between John Irving and the christmas tree. As might be expected, neither John's Dodge truck nor the clearly less robust electronic marvel fared at all well. The big winner, scarred but clearly triumphant in the eternal struggle between the irresistible force and the immovable object was the concrete block that anchored the tree. In retrospect, I would put my money on the concrete block every time. The hour-plus long delay deprived Super Stock racers of their second hit of the day.

Up until that point of the morning, everything was going pretty much according to plan. The conditions this morning were very representative of Pomona. My weather station came up with a density altitude of just over 1200' with a combination of 5? degree temperatures and a depressed barometer reading, normal for being at the leading edge of a winter storm. We certainly did not have killer conditions. The traction seemed excellent to me although I heard a few reports of wheel spin from others. At the time of the tree-killing incident, we were about 2/3 of the way through the field in the second lap. Being strapped in and about four pairs behind John Irving, I missed the excitement. By the time they got the surface cleaned up and the rest of the field down the track on the second pass, my weather station showed 2400' plus. Now, at nearly 7 PM, the rain is showing no signs of letting up. One on-line weather information source suggests that Sunday may be the only non-rainy day in the next five days. Ever a pragmatist, I changed to another source and now I'm pleased to report that we'll have rain on Friday and Saturday while Sunday and the early part of next week will feature a return to our normal pattern of boring sunshine and warm weather. It would not be beyond reason to check for conditions next weekend. Actually, it's far too soon to make even an educated guess as to the eventual schedule. There's a good possibility that the Stock field is set. If the schedule dictates, the same could be true of Super Stock although a second pass for that group might materialize if there's a decent break in the weather.

So, to recap the day, there were no surprises. We knew that Jami Jones had a very fast 305 car and she's set a first trigger point for a review of her combination. Apparently, Monte Jones has been busy this winter. John Calvert likewise set a trigger for the new Mustangs while Ron Roddell earned a hefty, outright horsepower fine that should be levied against his fuel injected 265" high-winder on Monday. At this point in the event, there are a lot more questions than there are answers.

[BobUnkefer]

c

As always, love the posts, keeping those of us that can't be there up to date is much appreciated, especially with your unique way of letting us "see" through your words.
Supposed to be 70 and sunny in KC tomorrow, sorry I'm not there to enjoy your rain. No, really I am.....
Will see you in Phoenix?

Unk

[Don Kennedy]

C
There is no doubt you are the best at reporting .
DK

[Ken Haase]

Well, now we're gettin' somewhere! Insight from a man whose command of the English language is only exceeded by... well, his command of the English language. I hope this is a harbinger of things to come. Now there's a reason to get on here and find out what's going on. Chuck, please try to find the time to post words and pictures of the happenings at Pomona and any other venues you will be attending.

Unfortunately, it sounds like Mother Nature is not going to provide much material for you until Sunday. Or beyond.

Thanks. It's much appreciated.
Ken

[bobbyd6]

Congrats to Monty & Jami Jones on their 1st #1 Qualifier in Stock Eliminator!! Also Monty does the engine work on Ron Roddell's #1 qualifying SS/GTMA Grand Am. Pretty impressive for an engine shop in the middle of a cornfield in Nebraska!!

[Just Observing]

Calverts pass thursday:

[RJ Sledge]

Chuck

You da Man!!

RJ

[Ed Wright]

Thanks Chuck!

Less than great weather didn't keep you new stocker from going 1+ under. Good job!

[Superfan1]

Chuck, thanks again for the great updates! Do you have any idea what the DA was for Stock Q2? You mentioned that the DA was 1200' in the morning and it went to 2400' later in the day. Robert Pond's 9.760 in AA/S in so so air is impressive; just wondering what the DA was when he ran in Q2; I am assuming that it was 2000+' Thanks.
Bill Seabrooks - superfan1

[Bruce Noland]

The very best.