Rain showers skirted the speedway as well, sprinkling a few drops (and producing some rainbows) as both Skyler and Ev Barrett fielded their sister No. 16 cars.  The track was new to us, but didn't slow Ev nor Skyler.  They attacked the good-sized short track as if they had been there before. 

Ev knocked off a hard charging heat race, finishing fifth.  Skyler finished fourth in his heat.  The track surface looked in good shape, but Skyler said it was uneven  high to low in terms of traction.  It also had the kind of clay that formed large "marbles"--almost baseball sized--up high.  He kept getting whacked by them in the helmet visor whenever he raced a high line--but that was also where the traction was.

In the feature, Ev ran very well until a sparkplug wire came loose, fused on the hot exhaust manifold, and melted through.  She lost a cylinder, and had to pit.  Bad luck! 

In his feature, Skyler had some initial trouble getting "stuck" onto the track, but got increasingly comfortable on a high line.  In a small field of cars he finished last, in 9th place, but the "take-away" (what he learned) was his increasing confidence in running a high line close the wall.  Unlike lots of small speedways, Gold Spike Raceway had a concrete wall all the way around.  Crew Chief Bill Smith's thoughts on walls:  "Run close to them, because you do less damage when you hit them...."

My management strategy on new speedway experiences is simple:  get Skyler out of the bubble of his local speedway, and he agreed it was a great experience.  He said he learns a lot from each new track, and brings some of the confidence home.  Each time we go on the road to a new track, he runs faster and harder the next race at home.

Skyler also had lots of family in attendance from the St. Cloud area, as well as friend Jessica Jones and her pal from Princeton High School.  Jessica's from a racing family, and we always enjoying seeing her and other friends of Team Weaver at the racetrack.

The whole team (12 of us) gathered for a late night breakfast in St. Cloud, then convoyed home in the moonlight, arriving back in Bemidji at 1 a.m.

Next appearance:  River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, ND--where the "big boys" run.  That's Friday night, June 5--always weather permitting.