Desert Center, CA - Larry Mason enjoyed a nearly perfect weekend of racing at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway (about 45 miles east of Indio, CA) May 17-18, 2014 by virtue of taking two victories and control of the SCCA SoPac Divisional Championship points standings. The weather proved to be quite challenging for everyone as the temperature soared to 108° F. Saturday’s race saw Mason take the overall pole position in his run group and although he was out-horsepowered into Turn 1 at the drop of the green flag, he was able to hound that driver in the corners to re-take the position and pull away for the win in his Auto Diagnostic Services Formula Mazda (FM). Not only did he win the race but set a new track record in the process!
“I drove hard the whole race because I knew I had a bunch of faster cars behind me. Once I got up front I really wanted to stay there and prove that our pole position wasn’t a fluke – we really earned it,” said a very satisfied Mason. His Polar RC3 GPS heart rate monitor came back with the message “Maximum Training +” meaning that he spent most of his time in HR Zone 5 and averaged over 160 bpm for the entire race!
The combination of heat and the track’s excessively long corners took a toll on Mason’s tires however and that proved to be an issue for Sunday’s race. “I tried to order a new set of hard compound tires for the race, but the supplier was out of stock so we ended up having to run on two used sets for the weekend.”
Normally, the FM class must race on the same tires that they qualify on, but that rule was waived for this weekend. This allowed Mason to put on a softer compound for Sunday qualifying and he went out and unofficially (official track records are set during the race) lowered his track record time by three seconds! At the start of the race he was able to stay in front for the first lap but then a car from a faster class glued himself to the back of Mason’s rear wing. The other competitor poked his nose inside Mason’s car repeatedly trying to pass but Mason was able to hang on until he gave the other competitor too much room on the inside and Mason spun backwards from getting onto the marbles (dirty side of the track). Mason didn’t stall, but was driving backwards in the middle of the corner waiting for the whole field to go by. He did a reverse 180 and kept going but couldn’t get back to win overall. Although he missed breaking his own track record, he did walk away with another first place in-class trophy.
“The heat didn’t bother me, but I know it was tough on all the corner workers so I really appreciate their work and enthusiasm over the weekend. I also want to thank my crew chief Tom Engelsman who was sweating it out with the car preparation all weekend. Special thanks also go out to Sonia Mason who showed off her hospitality skills by preparing a delicious and healthy lunch of turkey tacos with homemade pico de gallo and a refreshing mango fruit salad.”
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 Photo by CaliPhotography |
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