Update from Octoberfest 350

We arrived Saturday morning for the Octoberfest 350, at Hagerstown Speedway, unloaded the car and got ready for competition. During warm ups entering turn three, 3 cars spun out, leaving a lane to the bottom of the track for me to get by. As I went thru the wreck, the car I had gone around got back in the throttle, trying to save the spin, and slammed my whole right side, pushing the rub rail into the rear tire, and smashing the whole body into the frame. After returning to my pit area, the crew worked feverishly to repair the car, to make the qualifying heat race. If we did not make the heat, we would have to start at the rear of the consolation race, with 40-plus cars out on the field, attempting to qualify for 26 spots, which would make passing on this speedway a difficult task. The crew, as they normally do, kicked into high gear and made the repairs, with the help of several friends, to include Bob Kriner who is a well known engine builder from Chambersburg, PA. We took him from engine builder to body man on Saturday afternoon. We started 5th in the heat and held it until a caution at halfway, when a competitor tried a risky outside move and made it work, dropping us into 6th. The next lap I tried the same move and was unable to pull it off, which allowed a car on my inside, forcing me to work the outside, until I had cleared that car and settled back into the bottom. At the checkered we finished 6th, which was one spot out from qualifying. That did start us on the front row of the consolation race. We started and finished 2nd, qualifying us to start in 24th position on Sundays' 100 lap event. Sunday, as the event started, I worked my way through the field as best I could. We had made changes to the car for the event, yet the car was not working as I would have liked it to. The car was very tight entering the corner, and continued tight the whole way through. This was making it hard to handle in traffic, and slowed my lap times terribly. Then adding to the problem by creating excessive tire heat and wear, around lap 60, I had worn the right rear to the point of no return, and got a flat. The caution was thrown for me, and to the pits I headed. The crew went right to work, changed the tire, and sent me back out without losing a lap. We continued to finish 15th after starting 24th. This is not the successful weekend that we had hoped for, but after all the issues we encountered, we were pleased. Once again, I have to thank the great crew I have, that never lets me down. This is a team sport, and these guys always go after it with all they have. Also, thanks to Bob Kriner for helping us out. He's always there for me when I need anything, even a helping hand, as a body mechanic. This is the last event of 2008. Now it time to prepare cars and equipment for 2009. Bob Kriner and his shop are working on several engines for next year. I will keep everyone updated on the off season progress, on the website. So stop by the website at www.delrougeux.com for new photos and other information that will be posted. Later, Del