Team Oberg race report from Route 66 Speedway at Chicagoland Raceway

It was a very disappointing visit to the Route 66 Speedway at Chicagoland Raceway for the Oberg Team this past Wednesday and Thursday. Gear selection was the big downfall. It seems that every track needs to have a different gear ratio than the last and figuring these ratios out makes the difference. During practice on Wednesday, Mike had the fastest time. During qualifying, he had the 6th fastest time which started him on the outside of the 3rd row for the night time round. Mike did get a great start when the green was dropped, but he didn’t have enough top end when he was on the long stretch of the track. I could tell when he went by the Grand Stands that he was topped out in 3rd gear and wasn’t gaining on the leaders. After the mid race caution, he gave it his best but couldn’t keep up. He finished the run in 6th place which could have been worse. The guys were able to find a gear to change out for Thursday. It wasn’t the best gear for the situation but it was all they had. Mike looked good in practice and had some good lap times. With the 6th place finish the previous night, and the inversion of the top 6, Mike would start the night with the pole position. We were all hoping to have a good run to make up for the previous night showing. As the green flag dropped, Mike was able to pull the lead at that point, but by the time he came through turns 1 & 2 a couple of the competitors got by him. He struggled to the half way yellow to maintain position but we could tell he was having issues. Shortly after the restart, Mike pulled off the track when the gearing that was used disintegrated and he was done. “We know we’ll have the correct gearing for the final rounds in Crandon next week,” says Mike “So we will really have to push it to the limit to finish higher in the points. We also want to look good in the inaugural running of the AMSOIL Cup Race on Sunday.” The visit to Route 66 Raceway did have one bright spot. On Tuesday night, the drag strip was opened to some of the TORC Pro Drivers to try their hand at racing a Dodge Viper. Out of the 18 Drivers that competed, Mike had the fastest time of all on the first round. This had Mike really pumped when the top 4 went to the final round. During his last attempt to beat the rest he missed a gear and finished 4th. Not a bad run for his first time on the drag strip. We are now preparing for the big weekend at Crandon to finish out the 2010 season. Cory went right back to the shop after Chicagoland and got right to work getting the AMSOIL/Chevrolet ready to do battle. Cory’s report was that all looked good and he would just need to do some prep work. We’re looking forward to a record crowd and want to put on a good show.