Track Schedules

Tuesdays with TMAC – Victory at 34 Raceway!

(Bill W) September 27, 2011 – The VerMeer #55 worked flawlessly as Terry McCarl drove from green to checker to take the $4,000 to win Monster Energy™ Sprint Car Series show last Saturday night at the 34 Raceway in West Burlington, Iowa.  The win was the Altoona, Iowa drivers seventh of the season.

TMAC set a blistering lap in qualifying, but things were feeling good even before that.  “The second I took the green in hot laps, the car felt awesome,” he says.  “It was the most fun I’ve had in the car in a long time.  From turn three when I took the green on, I felt great.  It made me confident, and Burlington is one of my favorite tracks around.”

An invert of six in the heat saw TMAC come home in the fourth and final transfer spot for the feature. “We were fast in the heat, and we got to fourth really fast,” he says.  “I got up behind (Austin) Johnson I guess, and I got tight for a second.  I lost my line in one and two and lost a spot.  From there, I had to get my elbows up and get back in a transfer spot.  You don’t want to do anything too crazy at that point.  The car felt really good and the motor was great.”

Drawing for the dash first was no advantage.  “I drew the last spot,” says TMAC.  “That wasn’t great, but I had a great start.  They had to call it back because Lynton (Jeffrey) and (Joey) Moughan got together.  Without that, I think we would have won it.  As it was, we started fourth and ran second.”

The team went to work setting up the racecar.  “It was a great racetrack,” says TMAC.  “It was slick in one and two and rough in three and four, so it was different on both ends.  I could run above the cushion in three and four and low in one and two.”

The Monster Energy™ series allows Hoosier tires.  “The Goodyear tires have had me screwed up so much this year,” says TMAC.  “I haven’t been able to tighten the racecar like I’m used to.  It has made me timid as a mechanic on how tight I’ve set the car.  It was great running Hoosiers and an open wing.  It was just so fun to have a great racecar.”

Starting second in the feature, there was little doubt from the drop of the green flag that it would be tough to catch TMAC.  “I really didn’t get a good practice lap before the feature,” he says.  “We got the jump on (Jordan) Goldesberry at the start there, and I didn’t know how the car would react in one and two.  It rolled the bottom perfectly, and I got a great run coming off of two down the backstretch.  I remember thinking how I haven’t felt that good in a long time.”

When traffic came into play, TMAC didn’t skip a beat.  “I got into traffic and I was able to run the middle like I used to feel all the time,” he says.  “The car was good everywhere.  I didn’t even pull the wing back until the last restart, and that was just a couple of inches.  It was just for something to do.  You know you have a balanced car at that point.”

Friday night did not go well at Jacksonville Speedway in Illinois for the “Shaheen’s Blast from the Past”.  “It was just a night you chalk up to experience,” says TMAC.  “We drew last (9^th) in the first heat.  I don’t mind that, but it’s tough in the first heat after the mods go out and dig it up.  I think the track was heavier for the heat than it had been in hot laps.  Every single car was a good one it seemed.  Not to make excuses, but that made it tough.”

TMAC finished seventh in the heat, putting him in the B main, which he won.  “The car felt great in the B,” he says.  “We started 16^th in the A, and it laid rubber after about five laps.  At that point, you’re back in heavy traffic on a tiny track, and you can’t get going.  On top of it, we ran most of the way without brakes.  We ended up twelfth and loaded up in one piece.  It did motivate me for Saturday though, and that turned out to be a positive.”

To check out opportunities to partner with TMAC Motorsports on a nightly basis, visit www.TerryMcCarl.com or call 515 957-0020!