Team on the Brink After Good Finish at Merrittville

By DAVE SULLY - A somewhat momentous week was capped off by a strong run by Mat in the semi-final point night at Merrittville on Saturday, August 23rd, setting up a final push next Saturday for the team's ultimate goal, the championship. It was not easy, as some shivers went up the team's collective spines at Humberstone in the Tri-Track Modified event the previous Sunday, after the Saturday event at Merrittville was rained out. While looking very good in winning his heat, the car began smoking, and it was feared that something had gone wrong with the motor. Upon further review, it was determined that the smoke was caused by a loose valve cover. The condition also soaked enough of the engine that the team decided not to take any chances by running the feature, so they packed it in and began prepping for Saturday.

They went into Saturday's race, now down to two point shows after the rain-out, with a thirteen point lead over Chad Brachmann, with the goal of staying close enough to Brachmann to ensure that they would be in the lead going into the final night.

Mat came from last to finish third in his heat, and because he won the previous race, started twelfth, while Brachmann went off eighth. After initially dropping back to let things sort out, Mat was able to utilize the top to make his way forward. He was able to catch and pass Brachmann midway through the race, reaching third after a lap 29 restart. Then a heart-stopping moment ensued when Mat clipped the guard rail in turn four and the front of the car jumped into the air. Fortunately, no damage was done and Mat was able to right the ship without losing too much valuable track position.

He actually nosed into second and was poised to make a run for the lead held by Tim Jones, when a caution erased that move and forced him to restart from third. After dropping back to fourth, he was able to reclaim third from Tom Flannigan in the final accounting. Brachmann ended up fifth, giving Mat and the team a seventeen point lead going into next week's finale.

Talking about the race and the early strategy, Mat declared, “I was simply trying to stay out of trouble. We had a good race car. In traffic I wasn't as good as I needed to be, but when I could get out and run my own lane, and when I got to third there and smashed the guard rail, I was good. I think we were good enough to get by Jonesie, but it was my own mistake. I smashed the guard rail, and it set us back two spots. It was a bad deal there, but we're focused on the big picture right now.”

Regarding his pursuit of Brachmann during the race, he added, “Once I passed him I didn't worry about it. It didn't matter if he was right behind me, or two behind me, or five behind me. As long as we didn't lose any points tonight, we put ourselves in a good position. I'm looking forward to next week because we don't have to start twelfth.”

Thus, the moment the team has been waiting for is at hand. As we all know, there are no sure things in racing, but the goal is in sight. The last chapter will be written next Saturday.