Montelo Racing Brings Home 3 Trophies from Topeka
by Laurie Montelo
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September 21st-26th, 2007, Topeka Kansas -- For traveling to such a land-locked state as Kansas, you'll never hear as much talk about "sand" and "the beach" as you will at the Tire Rack Solo Nationals, held at Heartland Park in Topeka. And so will begin another year of competing at Nationals, the fourth year for Pat, and my third year, which will turn out to be our most successful year yet, for both of us. |
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Our annual pilgrimage started on Friday night, heading towards the Quad cities, so Pat wouldn't have to drive the whole way in one day. We reach the truck stop where we want to stop for the night, but it's full, so we continue on. By midnight, we find a rest stop with room and pull over for the night. Hey, no one said it was glamorous, but all we really need is a place to sleep. The next morning turns out to be a great ride, with an awesome view out of our big RV windshield, a perfect way to take in the rolling hills of Iowa, the valleys full of the morning fog yet to be burnt off. We reach Heartland Park around 12:00, check in, get a paddock space and then head through the tunnel and into the speedway, where we will spend the next five days. Our area in paddock will have countless Chicago and Milwaukee region folks, so it's nice to come in and see familiar faces. We were just down the way from Team Blenderblaster, and the Borowski's, who manage to carry/fit more tires and equipment in an Acura Integra than you can possibly imagine. So even though there are 1200 competitors from all over the country, it still feels like home with all of our extended autocross family nearby. |
 Laurie on the west course Photo by Dan Cernese |
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 Laurie headed for the finish Photo by Dan Cernese |
I have likened it to a weeklong intensive course in autocross, where you eat, breathe, and sleep the courses you are preparing to drive. This year will be no different; as soon as the warm-up courses are broken down and the nationals courses set up, this is will be the focus, from remembering your apexes, braking zones, avoiding the rough, figuring out where the grip is, etc. For the warm-up, we were able to take five runs. We had walked the courses a few times the night before, but not the morning of the event. Pat said that would be good practice to look ahead and figure it out on the fly since the course would not be that fresh in our minds. Apparently that does not work for me, as I would not hit any of my apexes, and would spin twice throughout my five runs. Hey, better to get the crappy driving and the spins out of my system, because I had no intention of driving badly or spinning during those precious three runs we would get on each course on Tuesday and Wednesday. |
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Sunday night we started walking the courses- putting the west course in our minds a bit and then concentrating on the east course, which we would run on Tuesday. Monday morning was a warm sunny and windy day- one woman would say to me- "You're from Chicago, the Windy City, you should be used to this wind, right?" Chicago may be the Windy City, but Chicago has nothing on Kansas; the wind blew hard and steady on Monday, with the "sand" on the course stinging our legs as we walked the course. And it is sand, and while they blow it off the course each day, it still finds it's way back with that wind, or you will find it yourself if you are off-line. Much is made of the "sand", the "marbles", the "gravel", and the "beach". The surface is much better than the crumbling concrete we found at Forbes Field a few years back. |
 Pat on the west course Photo by GotCone.com |
 Chris Dvorak on the west course Photo by GotCone.com |
Monday night we packed it in early, getting ready for Tuesday morning, the big day. Pat would run third heat and I would run fifth; it was hard to wait all day to finally get out there. Tuesday morning, we woke up before the alarm went off to the sound of pouring rain- not a good way to start the day! The weather changed drastically from hot and dry the day before to cold and damp. The coats, hats and gloves came out. First heat drivers had to contend with the wet pavement; during the second heat it would drizzle a bit more and then it started to dry up. By the time Pat and his co-driver Chris Dvorak would drive in Heat 3 the course would be dry. Pat cones his first run, and then cleans it up dropping down to a 43.4 for his last run. He says that the surface suits his driving style. I guess so, because after the first day, he is in 11th, a trophy spot. |
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By the middle of heat 4, I wait in grid, and at least the sun has come out and it's dry. We discuss how I need to adjust my line after seeing where the rubber has been put down; finally it's time to get up to the line. I have a goal for this year- to be in the top half; there are ten drivers, and fifth or better is where I want to end up. That's the plan. I take my first run, and when I come back in and the worker gives me the sheet with the time, he says it's a DNF. Where did I do that? I figure it out- back by the turn around- can't do that again. So I take the second run, and hit two cones, one at the start. Now I have one run that doesn't count and another with 4 seconds attached, and only one more chance to make it right. The third run is a bit conservative, and comes out a half a second slower, but it's clean. It puts me in 6th place, a few one hundredths behind Aimie Ruth. We both need to go faster tomorrow. By Tuesday night the build up is over, one day down, but the pressure is still on, we've got to get back out there again tomorrow. We spend Tuesday night at a cookout at the Bullis RV with the Bullis's and the Ruth's. |
 Laurie placing 4th in SSL |
 Pat placing 8th in SS |
Wednesday morning, we get up and walk some more, look at our visual markers, and look at where the rubber has been laid down the previous day. Pat was in a trophy spot coming into Wednesday's runs, and would have another awesome day. He cones his first run, and then would clean it up. But the announcer says there is a cone attached to his second run, which neither Chris nor I can see where. (Pat doesn't know either.) Pat's last run would be .4 slower than the second run, but he thinks he hasn't had a clean one yet. He says that he would have driven his last run differently had he known the second one was clean. Timing and scoring were having some issues, so they did not right away announce who ended up where. I walked away before hearing, but the news is great- Pat will take 8th! Chris takes 15th. It's pretty exciting- Super Stock is the largest class and filled with a lot of nationally known talented drivers. |
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The west course is fun to drive, but I would DNF my first run, just like Tuesday. I would go out and take my second run and almost do it again, but this time hitting a cone (just like yesterday). Now, I have one run left and all I want is for it to be a clean one. I head out, it feels good, and it's clean- mission accomplished. Upon coming back in, I hear the announcer say that I have just passed Aimie by a half a second and would take the last trophy spot!! I can't say how exciting that was! It wasn't a particularly fast run, but it was enough to take fourth. Last year, Aimie beat me every time she came out, never by less than three full seconds, so this is progress for me. Well, we accomplished our goals for nationals this year- a trophy for each of us; it's been a good week. We would have liked to stay and watch our friends compete, several of them to receive trophies as well, but it's time to go back home- back to the kids and everything they have going on. We'll be back next year for the whole week, and perhaps bringing Anthony with us to compete in Super Stock, which will be pretty cool for our sixteen year old F1 hopeful! Until next year... |
 Photo by Dan Cernese |
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Results at the 2007 Solo Nationals
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