Tuesdays with TMAC – Jumpin’ Jackson Flash!
(Bill W) May 19, 2009 – Terry McCarl put another notch in his gun belt by winning Friday night’s Jackson Speedway Sprint Spring Nationals worth $5,000. The rest of the weekend wasn’t too shabby either; as he scored second place finishes at both Knoxville Raceway and Huset’s Speedway. The Big Game Treestands #24 is mulling over this weekend’s options to add to a return to Knoxville on Saturday.
TMAC drew a spot outside row four for his heat race on Friday at Jackson. With the field assembled, just getting enough passing points was a chore. He was able to charge up to third, earning a top ten spot, and an opportunity to run the dash. “Whenever you get out of a 410 into a 360, it’s an advantage, because they’re running a couple of hundred horsepower shy,” says the Altoona, Iowa driver.
After running second in the dash (from fifth), TMAC started outside row one for the main event, and led all 25 laps. It wasn’t easy as strong winds buffeted the competitors down the backstretch. “That may have been the craziest race, wind-wise, that I’ve ever been a part of,” he says. “It was so bad, that I thought I broke my arm the second or third lap. The wind was raising the front right of the car so far off the ground, that the nerf bar was being buried on the backstretch. That was kicking up mud clods into my arm. My elbow to my shoulder is black and blue. On the red, we took the nerf bar off, so that helped my arm situation.”
TMAC stated that series such as the World of Outlaws probably would have cancelled the event, but the great promotion and hearty crowd on hand deserved better. “They couldn’t cancel with a great crowd like they had,” he says. “Most series would have cancelled in that situation, but the promotions surrounding the event were great. The crowd stuck around despite the wind and dirt blowing straight in their face. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I have to take my hat off to them. I was impressed.”
The win marked the seventh time TMAC has won at Jackson. On Saturday, TMAC traveled down to Knoxville and timed in second. He locked himself into the feature through the heat (finishing fourth). At the outset of the 20-lap main event, TMAC was mired in eighth (after starting tenth). “Things were clicking well in qualifying and the heat,” he says. “The first start I had there in the feature was really good. I came out of there running about fourth (the start was called back). When it counted, I got caught on the wrong part of the track, and had to play catch-up from there.”
TMAC ran a steady race from there on out, advancing all the way to second. An attempt to reel in Danny Lasoski fell just a bit short. “Once we got going, the car was smooth,” says the six-time Knoxville champ. “I think we could have won the thing, but Danny got so far out front. It was also good to see Lynton Jeffrey (3rd) have such a good run too.”
For the second week in a row, TMAC set quick time at Huset’s Speedway in South Dakota Sunday night. After a lightning quick run to win his heat from the eighth starting spot, the all-time leading feature winner at Huset’s lined up sixth for the main event. “Things went pretty well,” says the seven-time Huset’s champ. “We started sixth in the feature, and the wind had really dried the track out badly. There was room to operate the first ten laps or so, but after that it was marbles on the high side. We had to get in line there behind Clint Garner, which was unfortunate, but there’s not much they could have done with the wind. I thought we did a good job to get to second.”
As the team weighs their options for the rest of the weekend, one thing is certain. They’ll be at Knoxville on Saturday.
New 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
The Heyer’s from Ponchatoula, LA asks: Terry, how do you keep everything in your marriage and family life so fresh, fun and solid with all the travelling and commitments you have with racing such a challenging schedule?
TMAC Answers: I think the key is, my wife is my best friend. She is 100% behind me racing. I’m not sure she likes the boys racing, but she’s definitely behind me. We try to be together as much as we can. A motor home is a terrible investment, but for what I do, you really need one to have the family together. The boys are great kids and we all like each other.
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!
TMAC has won twice on this date in history, at the track he is the all-time feature winner at. In 1996, he drove Brad Gray’s #51 to a win over Steve Beitler, Randy Nygaard, Todd Wessels and Dave Ekern. In 2002, he drove the #24 to victory ahead of Justin Henderson, Gregg Bakker, Leonard Lee and Jake Peters.
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