(Bill W) March 2, 2010 – Terry McCarl and the Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, California go together nicely. This weekend, the Altoona, Iowa sprint car ace will return to the Cali bullring for a two-night World of Outlaws invasion. He will try to add to his solid career numbers at the speed plant, and should have some momentum after recording quick time last weekend with the WoO in Las Vegas.
TMAC scored a runner-up finish in 2009 in Tulare after a duel for the lead on the final night. He recorded a triumph there over the WoO in 2004, and has run in the top seven in five out of the last six events he has run on the high banks. “I wouldn’t pick it as one of my favorite tracks to drive every time, but we seem to do well,” he says of the Thunderbowl. “Last year, the second day was one of the most fun races that I’ve run. We didn’t win, but we had a great race with Joey (Saldana). We both got by Sammy (Swindell) early on, and I made a run at the lead with one and a half laps to go. We just didn’t quite get there.”
The Big Game Treestands #24 was quickest after time trials at the Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last Friday. “The motor was running really well,” says TMAC of his Don Ott power. “We came out in the middle of the pack. It was good to set another quick time. You know when you can do that with the Outlaws things are clicking.”
The speed continued in the heat race, where he advanced from outside row two to second at the checkers. “We were really fast in the heat,” he relates. “We were able to get a jump on the outside there and move up to second, but we weren’t that great in the feature to be honest.”
After a dash finish of seventh, he posted inside row four for the main event. After treading water for awhile, mechanical issues surfaced while running in the top ten. “The engine blew for some reason,” says TMAC. “There was a part failure of some sort. It was blowing some water under the caution, and it blew the head gasket. I think the water pump may have broken, and that burned it up.”
After the fast start to the night, the high hopes were dashed. “Obviously, it was disappointing,” says TMAC. “I feel we had a top five car heading into the feature. The last two out of three Outlaw shows…we’ve fallen out of, so we want to end that at Tulare.”
The finish was one of the closest in history, and saw Jason Meyers come from 18th to edge Steve Kinser and Donny Schatz at the line. “It was an awesome race,” says TMAC. “I wasn’t really planning on watching it while standing on my car, but it was a great one for the fans. It was a packed house. I just wish we were involved in the finish.”
He hopes to be in the middle of it all at Tulare.
Front Row Challenge/Ultimate Challenge
The 15th Annual Front Row Challenge and the 9th Annual Ultimate Challenge will be held Monday and Tuesday, August 9 and 10, 2010 at the Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Advance ticket holders from 2009 can purchase the same seats NOW by calling McTwo Promotions, Inc. at 515 957-0020.
Tickets will be open to the public on March 23. Visa, Mastercard and American Express are welcomed. Visit www.OskyChallenges.com for further details.
Websites for the McCarl Gang!
Driverwebsites.com has developed websites for the McCarl boys. Check out www.TerryMcCarl.com, and check out www.AustinMcCarl.com and www.CarsonMcCarl.com!
In"Terry"gation
Jesse Horton from Fresno, CA asks: What is it about Tulare that seems to bring your best out?
TMAC Answers: It’s the kind of track that you really have to get up in the seat and drive your ass off. I think it caters to my style a bit. Going into turn one, there is always a hole a couple feet from the fence. You have to go above it though and honk it in there. We were able to break the track record out there last year going out early. That surprised me, because on the first day, it’s usually greasy. I have a lot of friends out there that motivate me to do well too. I advise people to go there, because it is always a good race.
Got a question for TMAC? Send it to us at sprntcar@iowatelecom.net, and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for TMAC" in your subject line.
This Week in TMAC History!
This week in 1992, TMAC scored a top ten in his rookie season with the World of Outlaws at the San Jose Fairgrounds in California. Stevie Smith won that event, ahead of Jac Haudenschild and Steve Kinser. TMAC drove the Weldon Offill #88 that season. He had eight career wins at the now defunct raceway including the 1990 Gary Patterson Classic, the 1991 Johnny Key Classic and the 1999 Trophy Cup.
Website Updates
Keep up to date with McCarl Motorsports at www.TerryMcCarl.com. We keep it fresh for TMAC fans!
"Tuesdays with TMAC"!
"Tuesdays with TMAC" is an up close and personal look at colorful sprint car veteran Terry McCarl. To receive "Tuesdays with TMAC", send an e-mail to sprntcar@iowatelecom.net with "TMAC" in the subject line.
TMAC Motorsports would like to thank sponsors Big Game Treestands, AmeriCashAdvance.com, DeBerg Concrete and Remington Treestands.
- Bill Wright on Mar 02, 2010
- Article Date: 3/2/2010