Tuesdays with TMAC – Oshkosh B’gosh!
(Bill W) June 16, 2009 – Terry McCarl added another IRA win to his resume Friday night at the Oshkosh (WI) Speedzone. After a rainout Saturday at Knoxville, he added another pair of top fives at the Huset’s Speedway in South Dakota Sunday. The Big Game Treestands #24 is weighing their options for this weekend’s action.
It was TMAC’s first visit to Oshkosh. “The facilities there impressed me,” he says. “I had never seen the place. It was really wide. The people up there are always nice, it’s just a lot of fun going up there and racing with the IRA. They are a good bunch of guys.”
TMAC struggled to a 17th quick time in qualifying. “We qualified as the third car out and it was still really greasy,” he recalls. “I wanted quick time, because it paid $200 from Osborn & Son Trucking, which I appreciate. We definitely gave it 100%. I can be bribed.”
In order to get a spot in the first five rows of the feature with his bad time, TMAC would have to win his heat, which he did. He lined up sixth for the main event. “We had a good car,” he says. “I was able to drive up to second right away. (Mike) Reinke was good. We kind of had to hang with him, until we got to traffic. The top was really good and he is good up there. He just came off a second place finish down at Charter on Kasey Kahne Night.”
TMAC was able to pass Reinke in traffic and go on for his second IRA win of the year. “We were able to get by him,” he says. “It was fun, and I think a good show for the fans. The IRA always has a great car count and they love their sprint car racing in Wisconsin. I was hoping they did a Victory Lane interview, because I wanted to say I won in Oshkosh B’gosh!”
With two features, one a make-up, at Huset’s on Sunday, heavy rough conditions waited. “The track resembled a plowed field,” says TMAC. “Several drivers and I had asked they run the make-up feature later in the night after the hobby stock feature, but they didn’t. They ran it right after time trials. As it turned out, it didn’t matter. The track didn’t change much all night long.”
The first lap of the make-up event almost claimed the #24 for the night. “I don’t know how I didn’t tear it up,” says TMAC. “I went in there, and Lynton (Jeffrey) hooked a rut and got out of shape. We made contact, and all four wheels were off the ground for me. There’s no way I didn’t flip it. Unfortunately, Clint Garner crashed on the other end. We were able to continue after that.”
After restarting fourth, TMAC came home second. “We were able to get by Lynton and ran second to Chad Meyer,” he says. “Kenny Hansen (Meyer’s owner) just bought that motor from us, so it was kind of ironic in a way, but Chad was fast. I tried everything, including getting all four wheels above the berm, but I couldn’t do enough to get around him.”
After registering the 17th quick time of the night and winning his heat race, TMAC was ready to go, but the car wasn’t. “One thing good about the night was, the fans got to see a good show,” he says. “We were supposed to start twelfth, and we had a mag box go bad. We had to replace that and start at the tail. It was a tough place to start with the track the way it was. Mechanics don’t really set up a car well on a night like that. Their job is to not make it bad. The driver has to do the rest.”
The result was typical “TMAC from the back”. “It was narrow and rough with nowhere to pass, so I just went up above all of it,” he says. “We got up to sixth with ten laps to go. I made a move for fifth, hooked a rut, and it spun me just that fast. We were fortunate no one hit us. I hit it so hard, I thought the shock may have been ripped off, but we were able to restart at the tail again. It was unfortunate; because I was confident we were going to win it.”
Pull it in? No way. “I just had to ‘Cowboy Up’ and put the spurs on,” he says. “At that point, you can follow others around the bottom, or you can throw caution to the wind. Thank goodness Tod (Quiring) is the car owner! We were able to ride it out to fifth.”
The mad dash the last ten laps didn’t change TMAC’s thoughts about the drivers who tore up their racecars on the night. “It was unfortunate, because we had a great car count, and I want to see that continue,” he says. “I don’t want to see anyone crash. A good driver like Billy Balog towed from Wisconsin and tore up a car, as did some other guys like Garner and (Johnn) Cressman. It’s too bad, because Huset’s is usually not like that.”
Websites for the McCarl Gang!
Driverwebsites.com has developed websites for the McCarl boys. Check out the new look of www.TerryMcCarl.com, and check out the newly developed www.AustinMcCarl.com and www.CarsonMcCarl.com!
Front Row Challenge/Ultimate Challenge Tickets On Sale!
Order your tickets now for the $10,000 to win Front Row Challenge, and $15,000 to win Ultimate Challenge at the Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa. Call McTwo Promotions Tuesday-Thursday beginning from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 515 957-0020 to renew your seats!
Infield Party Passes for the August 10 and 11 events will be $25!
For more information on the Challenges or on TMAC Motorsports, visit www.TerryMcCarl.com.
In"Terry"gation
KingMcCarlFan24 asks: Terry, when you are watching the WoO races, which driver is the most exciting to you to watch? Which driver just makes you say, "Wow!, that guy is nuts!" And why?
TMAC Answers: Most of the Outlaw drivers are the greatest at what they do. I don’t know that there’s one above the rest. I guess Tim Kaeding is still one of my favorites to watch.
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 Day in TMAC History!
In three features on this date at Knoxville, TMAC has taken home nearly $20,000. In 2001, he won two features in one night. In winning the 360 Nationals over Don Droud Jr., Larry Neighbors, Wayne and Johnson and Ricky Logan, he pocketed $6,000. He also won the 410 feature that night over Kerry Madsen, Droud, Dennis Moore Jr. and Randy Anderson. In 2007, he won a televised WoO show worth $10,000 over Randy Hannagan, Craig Dollansky, Danny Lasoski and Donny Schatz.
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
Bill W Media
Monroe, IA USA
sprntcar@iowatelecom.net
- administrator on Jun 16, 2009
- Article Date: 6/16/2009