Koger Race Report

Hialeah

by Trish Koger

"Anyone caught raindancing would have been shot!" Rick Koger was quoted as saying after the conclusion of the August 9th Legends Cars of Florida feature race at Hialeah Speedway.

Rain -- it has become a four-letter word for the TK Race Team. After five of our last seven races were rained out, we were ready to migrate our racing venture to more arid lands... the Mojave would do! The last thing we needed to see this weekend was rain. So, what DID we see for the duration of the four-and-a-half hour trip down to Hialeah? Rain. Heavy, heavy rain. Non-stop.

I was definitely getting concerned with the prospect of yet another rainout... actually, for two reasons:

First, my crew chief was beginning to picket outside the garage. He was looking like a one-man UPS center -- and the neighbors were getting concerned that it may turn hostile! But, seriously, the continuous work without the rewards of racing were starting to wear on Rick. Since each track we visit requires a different setup, a different rear-end, and sometimes, different springs, the work is the same whether we hit the track or load up due to rain. (And the prospect of trying to hire a scab crew chief was not a pleasant one!)

The other reason that a rainout would have been hard was the fact that my mom was in town from California and was FINALLY going to see me race. Hialeah, in fact, was going to be the very first race of any kind that my mom would see. (Maybe "Mother" Nature would be kind in light of this!)

Well, Mother Nature was kind... it did eventually stop raining... though barely. The track delayed opening its gates until the final storm had passed, so the track's events were shortened to "features-only" (no heat races). This meant that the number draw would be even more critical this time. But, Mom must have been an influence on Lady Luck, too -- I drew #3 and started on the pole!

After two practice sessions, the Legends Cars lined up for the feature. As we rolled out to the starting grid, the #9 of Jimmy Walker joined me on the front row... and Jimmy is usually always a contender for the win. But that didn't bother me! I was on the pole and ready to roll!

We fired up our engines and pulled out for our parade laps. I glanced over at the turn two fence and gave a thumbs-up to my cheering section: Mom, Rick, Dan (my stepdad), and Kevin (Dan's crazy, but lovable, business partner). Hopefully, I wouldn't find the three of them passed out after I pulled back into the pits!

As we slowly rounded turn four, I GUNNED it! I popped it into fourth gear as Jimmy and I flew by the flagstand, neck-and-neck. We dove into turn one, still side-by-side, and then roared through turn two like fighter jets flying in tandem. I held the #90 Florida Online car in tight to the corner to give Jimmy the racing room he needed to clear the outside wall. Then we blasted down the backstretch, and I was starting to pull ahead when YELLOW! The warning light ahead came on, and then quickly it turned to red. We immediately slowed and rounded three and four towards the flagman again.

As I came around the turn, I saw what brought the stop to the race. A four-car wreck on the other end of the track included one car literally bottom-side up. Everyone was fine; however, it took a while to get it all cleaned up again.

We eventually got the signal to fire 'em up again... and we pulled off to replay the initial parade laps. As we made the final round to the frontstretch, Jimmy had just started to creep up ahead of me. So, I had no choice -- I fired. This time he got the jump as we headed towards the first turn. In the meantime, I had a pack of hungry wolves on my back bumper... and I was giving it everything I had!

For eight laps, I retained second place... beating off the blood-hungry pack. We began lapping a few cars, and one of them happened to catch my eye as we rounded turn three. That's all it took. That one milli-second lapse in concentration allowed my tires to drift a third of a car length too high, and I hit the "marbles." Those slippery balls of tire residue suddenly swooped my car up towards the wall, and then the freight train went roaring by.... In just a blink of an eye, I had gone from second to seventh. Without a moment's hesitation, I managed to catch myself back out of the slide... and quickly and went from racing to chasing! I wasn't going to let my chance for a top-ten finish get away!

I kept up with the pace of the lead pack... but had my own battle continuing for the seventh position. David Chambers (#47) and I were dueling it out. A one point, we actually ran side-by-side for a full two laps, and I was on the outside! We were NHRA drag racers along each straightaway... and Thunderbird pilots going through the turns. Racing is fantastic!

We juggled positions a few times, but David wound up beating me to the finish line... nevertheless, I walked away with an eighth place finish, and a smile from ear-to-ear. Mom had witnessed a good one! (And, by the way, it rained the rest of the weekend... and I didn't care.)

Keep reaching for the checkered flag!

Thanks for all your support!

--Trish Koger #90

To send a letter to Trish, email to koger@thunval.com

Check out the Distant Thunder archives for other articles by women drivers.