Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Fall League #6 Wrapup

Twas the week before Christmas and all thru the track not a kart was stirring not even in the back. The karts were set up and prepped with meticulous care by Pat and Josh and Matt who always make it fair. With sugar plums dancing in his head, Race Director John had need not dread. For 15 racers had signed up prior and with more on the way he knew he would be ready. Twenty three racers joined the fun and now they all are waiting for the starting gun. Names are called, karts were given, now it's time to see them driven. With the GP track all a twitter it was time to see who would take home the glitter. Is that Santa in the red racing suit or Lattanzi doing his best imitation of the fat man with the white beard? He does give out candy!

With two warm up laps and a 5 lap Qualifier complete we see Austin Kipp starting from pole, with Eric Dickinson,Chaz Baca Jr, Tony Rolfson,and Steve Lattanzi rounding out the top 5.

Keep in mind Baca (221) and Rolfson (218) are 3 points apart going into the final Heat race worth 30 points to win and the Main worth 30 points to win. With 1 point increments down thru the field. Rolling start see's twenty three kart racers take the green flag and Kipp takes off like a rabbit being chased by a pack of hungry wolves. Rolfson gets by Dickinson. Within 5 laps Baca makes a risky move on Dickinson and Baca gets by so now Baca & Rolfson are once again nose to tail with Rolfson in front. Baca dives in on Rolfson 3 laps later and Lattanzi stays on Baca's tail to go along for the ride. Some contact was had during that pass but track officials declare it was within reason. Dickinson also gets by Rolfson before the end of the 10 lap Heat.

Finish Order Heat: Austin Kipp...Chaz Baca Jr (250)...Steve Lattanzi...Eric Dickinson...Tony Rolfson (244)...Jason Burstein...Josh Lambeth...Charles Crowe...Bobby Neumann...Keith Sears...Josh Walker...Mike McClaran...Rees Candee...Scott Lodding...Robert Ruiz...Ricky Lopez...Cody Gutierrez...John Eccles...John Pappagallo...Julia Castro...Kyle Tatman...John Gilles...Chris Wynne.

Like the Federal deficit the points battle between Chaz Baca Jr & Tony Rolfson grows larger. Doubles from 3 to 6. The starting order for the Main is set by the finish order of the Heat. Austin Kipp when he does make it to any of the organized races at F1Race Factory seems to think that pole position is his and if not on pole finds himself at the front of the field more often than not. That and he is usually over the equalized target weight of 200# which he seems to have worked around with great success. His protoge' and girlfriend Julia Castro is making her way thru the list of newcomers to competitive karting and gets faster each and every time out. We will soon see her name listed in the top 10 more often.

The heat is on and Tony Rolfson is visibly upset with his finish as he knows Chaz Baca Jr is one tough competitor and is hungry for the overall win. Rolfson is coming off a successful run for the title of "Champion of the F1 Race Factory 2010 AZIKC" which ended Dec.4th. Ten race, one hour endurance series held monthly during 2010 and is now being considered for the upcoming 2011 race schedule. Twenty eight new Sodi karts due to arrive any week now.

The Fall league Main is now up and the lucky twenty three racers know it's the last hurrah in this race series for 2010. All want their experience and finish to be a memorable one and for some of us it was one we will never forget. Steve Lattanzi had a race he will never forget. Starting in third and with his confidence level at an all time high he just needed to finish this race clean & sober to prove that his previous wins were not a fluke and he has acquired some karting skills along the way. Today was not to be that day. A bit of a struggle with one of his favorite karts put him squarely in harms way trying desperately to hold onto a top 3 podium finish. The first hit happened exiting a corner and saw 3rd place vaporize like a piece of rice paper lit with a match. Shaking it off and putting pedal to the metal he found an open area to settle in and try to make up some lost ground. Didn't last long as a second wave of hot shoes came barreling thru and the second hit not only cost him more positions but also set him up for a 3rd hit that has roots in the meat industry. "T"-Boned is what it's called and right there and then he should have called it a day and ordered steak fries and A-1 to go with the "T" Bone but again managed to get refocused and go the distance no matter where he ended up. Coincidentally the two "hit" men collided with each other laps later and a fist pump was displayed by Lattanzi as he went sizzling by. Sadly one of them was able to regroup in time and get by again this time hitless before the race ended.

Meanwhile at the front Tony Rolfson, remember him?, needing as many points as possible, went to the front from his 5th starting position and didn't look back until Austin Kipp tried to stick his nose where it didn't belong and Kipp got another pole position but not of the good kind. Eric Dickinson and Keith Sears had moved up and were now running 2nd/3rd with Baca holding onto 4th. Jason Burstein sits in 6th with Kipp falling in between him and Baca for 5th. That's the way the race for the Fall Championship would end and as long as Baca weighed out at 198# or more he will have won the 2010 F1 Race Factory Fall League Series Championship over Rolfson. He does and he is declared the winner overall. Rolfson is declared the winner of the last race and ended up only 3 points from a tie for first. Eric Dickinson had 3rd place sewn up over Sears (204) & Lattanzi (204) who tied for 4th place overall. All in all a great Fall league that saw 46 different names hit the sign up sheets over the course of the 6 race series.

Main Race Results: Tony Rolfson...Eric Dickinson...Keith Sears...Chaz Baca Jr...Austin Kipp...Jason Burstein...Josh Walker...Mike McClaran...Charles Crowe...Bobby Neumann...Josh Lambeth...Steve Lattanzi...Ricky Lopez...Scott Lodding...John Gilles...Robert Ruiz...Rees Candee...John Eccles...Julia Castro...Cody Gutierrez...Chris Wynne...Kyle Tatman...John Pappagallo

We had many new faces and one of them there every week, every race was NASA-AZ driver Chris Wynne who received this 6 race entry as a birthday gift. He walked away with the ever popular and very prestigious, "Kandyman Award". It's an award that recognizes the racer that races the most races and scores the least amount of points. It could also be called the never give up award but what's the fun in that. Trophy is fashioned from a bent or damaged front kart rim, bolted to a beautiful wooden base with a plaque that says, Most Races-Least Points! and filled with chocolate candy. Congratulations Chris and we will see you next league which should start sometime mid Feb. 2011.

Congratulations to all the weekly podium finishers and to Chaz Baca Jr (277) for being a consistent winner and the 2010 Fall League Series Champion. You would be hard pressed to find a nicer young man and family out there. Congratulations Tony Rolfson (274) and Eric Dickinson (250) for taking 2nd & 3rd place overall.

This wraps up another F1 Race Factory League and with the ongoing success of the leagues shall continue starting sometime mid Feb. 2011. Monthly AZIKC & more should also be part of the racing schedule at the Best Indoor Kart & Entertainment Venue in the Country, F1 Race Factory. 7 Years open and counting.

Keep the Rubberside Down! Thank You all for taking the time and resources to do this. Steve "Kandyman"

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

AZIKC Final Wrap Up Report

After going wheel to wheel for the better part of 2010, the monthly AZIKC Series at F1 Race Factory has come to a close and a worthy “Champion” has been crowned. Tony “TheTiger” Rolfson is now and will forever be known as the 2010 AZIKC Champion. Tony rose from the ashes of potential disaster by making a kart change prior to the close of the qualifying run and it turned out to be the right call. His qualifying run had him starting 11th and with Team Titanium (Steve Lattanzi/Charles Crowe) going into the final race first in points with no race drop and starting the race from the second position they would be in the prime time spot to take the AZIKC Championship and all the riches that come with winning it such as the 10’ solid gold trophy, thousands of dollars in cash and a “Winners” parade in their honor.

It was not to be for Team Titanium who ended up finishing a strong 2nd in the race and 2nd overall for the series. Rolfson came from the back of the field to finish 3rd in the race and score enough points after the race drop to take the Championship. Congratulations to Tony Rolfson and his coach and sideline strategist Paul Williams. Paul calls the shots from the sidelines and does a great job feeding Tony info that advances him thru the field with timely pit stop strategy and other valuable info. That’s what teamwork is all about. Next series we hope they change spots. Paul to drive the kart and Tony calls the shots! Team Titanium tried that, but since our communication device included two cans and a waxed string between the cans that kept getting tangled up in the wheels we gave up and use the yellow/blue foam bear claw to indicate our pit stop. Works like a charm and no innocent bystanders are hurt by the “claw”.

F1 Race Factory's own John Ahrens captured the 3rd place overall and was clearly frustrated by a kart not performing as strong as his karting skills. A late pass by one of the indoor karting newcomers had John’s neck snapping back with a solid hit before the pass. That and his 9th place finish in the race had him pacing after the race like a tiger in a cage at the zoo. Now, where is that raw meat when you need it?
This report tends to focus on the racers at the top of the charts but without all the racers at every skill level racing together this would turn out to be a pretty boring event week to week or month to month. A “Special” award was handed out today and even though the award title of “The Kandyman Award” which is given to the racer that runs the most races but scores the least points; it is given out filled with candy and meant as a huge thank you to the recipient as a way to say Thank You for showing up for every race and never giving up. It’s a nice trophy with a faux wooden base with a polished front wheel hub on top filled with candy and a plaque.

The recipient for the 10 race AZIKC series was non other than Bill Hunter. A true gentlemen racer and with neck brace firmly in place he never misses a race even with his heavy travel schedule. Thank You Bill and we will be looking forward to competing with you again once the 2011 AZIKC is put on the schedule. He still finished a very respectable top 10 overall.

Now for some of Saturdays AZIKC action: Taking the pole position was a F1 Race Factory track official by the name of Ron Phillips who comes with his entourage of baby strollers and assorted family members pushing the strollers and riding in them. Racing with Ron is always a clean affair and his progress behind the wheel is nothing short of impressive which was backed up today in the qualifier and the 72 lap race on the ½ mile GP track layout.

Team Titanium with Charles Crowe taking the honors and the first half of the race laid down a good enough time to roll from the second starting position on the grid. The Dynamic Duo Team of Julia Castro/Austin Kipp with replacement driver Chaz Baca Jr driving for Austin Kipp, who feels that being late is standard operating procedure, lined up from the 3rd starting spot. Logan Swane & Matthew Lamanilao rounded out the top five starting spots.

The start of the race saw Baca Jr leap frog Crowe to take second place away and Phillips and Baca raced off together as if off on a date. Crowe & Swane had their own two way race going as did Rolfson and Ahrens. This seemed to be a two by two race throughout the field of racers that numbered 14. After the first five or so laps it seemed like Baca Jr ran out of NOS or Crowe just turned up the wick and came right up on his back bumper. A, let him pass, order was given to Baca Jr by, Chaz Baca Sr and Crowe set off to chase down the runaway Phillips. Team Titanium was on a mission and wasn’t about to take this championship title lying down. One by one pit stops started happening and the mandatory pit stop is only 20 seconds long but seems like an eternity when you are pumped up on the adrenaline from all the racing you are in the middle of. Unless of course you are one of the two teams that do a driver switch. A different kind of anxiety happens at that time. Will we get this right with the time allotted and will the devil seatbelt system ruin our game plan? With the use of a seatbelt clip all was good and went as smooth as expected. Driver change at lap 36 went without a hitch for Team Titanium and now with Steve Lattanzi fresh as a daisy and raring to go, he starts picking off slower karts not knowing who has pitted and who has not. Just knows that passing anyone will be a good thing. By the end of his 36 lap stint he found Rolfson parked right behind him for the mandatory top five weigh out and knew that unless Rolfson weighs out under the 198# wiggle weight he will be declared the winner. Watching the scale bounce between 201 and 199 Team Titanium cried “Uncle” and resigned to the fact that they had second place wrapped up like an early Chrismas present. A great end to a long and exciting 2010 AZIKC series.

The Finish Order of Race # 10: Ron Phillips…Team Titanium (Steve Lattanzi/Charles Crowe)… Tony Rolfson…Logan Swane…Matthew Lamanilao…Keith Sears…Pete Linawag…John Pappagallo…John Ahrens…Dynamic Duo (Chaz Baca Jr/Julia Castro)…Bobby Neumann…Bill Hunter…Josh Walker…John Gilles

AZIKC Top Three Overall: Tony Rolfson (258 points)…Team Titanium (Steve Lattanzi/Charles Crowe) (246 points)…John Ahrens (227 points)

The 2011 Racing Schedule is under construction.
Meanwhile the place to be is F1 Race Factory for Fall League Racing. Tues… Dec. 7…Dec. 14... 6/6:30 check in…Racing by 7pm
Final to be on Sat. Dec. 18th…9/9:30am check in…Racing by 10am on the ½ mile GP track
$35.00 + tax. Weight equalized to 200#.
Don’t be Late or You get to Spectate!

Keep the Rubberside Down!

Steve Lattanzi “Kandyman”
steve@f1rf.com
Specialty Events, F1 Race Factory

317 S. 48th Street . Phoenix, AZ 85034
(d) 602-427-4416 / 602-302-7223 (t) 602-321-2035(m)
Visit us online @ www.f1racefactory.com

F1 Race Factory - Your Phoenix Destination For Adrenaline-Packed Outings
Arizona's Premier Indoor Karting & Entertainment Venue
Seasonal Leagues, High Level Competition Events, Public Racing 363 Days A Year
Two Indoor Tracks, 45+MPH Karts, Billiards, Trackside Bar & Grill.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Fall League Session #3 Wrapup

Headlines after last nites Fall League Race at F1 Race Factory should read,” Chaz Baca Jr Ramps Up and Takes No Prisoners” on his way to a dominating win in both the group 2 Heat and “A” Main race. Steve”Kandyman” Lattanzi, in the way five laps from the end of the heat of his first place run, no problem, BOOM!!!, problem solved and Logan Swane played follow the new leader which was very, very smart. Lattanzi is thinking of filing an age discrimination suit as he thinks it had something to do with age and his Geritol Energy Drink sponsor is considering dropping him for these young guns. Baca Jr also takes over the points lead from Tony Rolfson with 133 to Tony’s 131. A tie for third place in points (115) Eric Dickinson & newcomer Logan Swane both need a win in the second half of the series to catch Baca Jr or Rolfson. With 45 points available every week to the winner of both the Heat & the Main and no race drops, any misstep will be costly as former winners and top runners, Mike Davila, Steve Lattanzi ,Austin Kipp, John Gilles, Troy Salisberry , Ian Pierce, Keith Sears and Charles Crowe have learned by missing a race or by missing the entry cut off into the “A” Main with an off performance in the Qualifier/Heat race.

Last nites action saw “The Dreaded Black Flag” make an appearance for contact between Josh Sarchet and Kyle Tatman with Tatman getting to meet the barrier system up close and personal. His forward progress was cut short and you could feel the disappointment from 50 yards away. He’ll be back and has vowed to make himself smaller at times like this.

Something about having some magic invisible spray. Another thing that caught everybody off guard was a long time regular driver, that shall remain anonymous, came into the pits after passing the white flag & before the checkered flag waved, which ended up costing him 3 spots and 3 points to put him in a tie for 3rd overall. The clue to this racer will be found among the position finish part of the report. The entire field looked left as they passed him by sitting in the pit with a helmet color we all know and some fear. I bet new eyeglasses have been ordered this morning. It has been recommended that this racer sit thru the training video again. Maybe as a group we could sit thru it together. I’ll hand out the notepads and there will be a quiz at the end.

We had one new racer join us this week and from the look on his face when all said and done is he will be back for some fast and competitive action next week. Welcome John Eccles. Over the course of this Fall league we’ve had no less than 21 new racers step into the fray even if it was just for one race. We had a total racer count of 25 in last nites competition. That number allowed us to run two groups and start to finish time ran 2 hours on the button.F1 Race Factory is making every effort to pick the karts equal to each other by eliminating karts too fast or off the pace. The close racing action and laps times back this process up. The back of the house VIP’s aka the mechanics make this all possible by working hard to assure that the karts are in the best possible condition and running order and we could not do any of this without their expertise and commitment to providing the best the karts have to offer. Thank You, Pat, Josh and Matt. None of this happens without you.

Let’s get to the meat & potatoes
Top 5 Qualifiers Group 1: Mike Davila…Tony Rolfson…Eric Dickinson…John Gilles…Ronald Jones.
Top 5 Finish Order Heat Group 1: Mike Davila…Eric Dickinson…John Gilles…Tony Rolfson…Sergio Serrano.

Top 5 Qualifiers Group 2: Steve Lattanzi…Josh Lambeth…Logan Swane…Chaz Baca Jr…Austin Kipp
Top 5 Finish Order Heat Group 2: Chaz Baca Jr…Logan Swane…Steve Lattanzi…Josh Lambeth…Austin Kipp

The “B” Main heads out onto the track for their race of the nite with Bobby Neumann on pole and Julia Castro with Rees Candee providing the heat from second and third starting spots. Neumann builds up a head of steam and pulls away to let Castro and Candee battle it out for second place. By lap 25 Rees has taken over second from Castro and never looks back. Now it’s Josh Walkers turn to give Castro some grief and within a few laps does just so by getting by and with a wave is able to keep her at bay for the rest of the race. Further back in the field we see Charles Crowe go from a sixth starting place to fourth within three turns but since his lucky number is the number six he decides to go back to that spot by race end. He must be saving all his fast times for the upcoming AZIKC final on Sat Dec 4th. where he is one half of the currently in 1st place team of Team Titanium. Good strategy Charles. Some great racing was to be found throughout the “B” Main and is always fun to watch. Also gives the “A” Main racers a chance to see the kart they will pilot in their Main race perform.

Finish Order “B” Main: Bobby Neumann…Rees Candee…Josh Walker…Julia Castro…Scott Lodding…Charles Crowe…Cody Gutierrez…Chris Wynne…John Eccles…Josh Sarchet…Kyle Tatman…Edwin Akpaita

The “A” Main see’s it’s fair share of action at the start with Steve Lattanzi & Eric Dickinson nose to tail for the first 10 laps of the 48 lap main. Lap after lap Dickinson see’s imaginary openings to attempt a clean pass but once Lattanzi started to focus on what was ahead instead of what was behind him he slowly put some distance between himself and Dickinson. Now Dickinson and Austin Kipp got to battle for sixth and seventh place with Kipp taking the spot toward the end of the race. Meanwhile at the front, a four pack of fast indoor kart pilots lit their afterburners and fell into a rhythm that nobody without NOS was going to catch. I guess the payment sent to the backmarkers didn’t hit their bank accounts in time to slow the leader down and Chaz Baca Jr went on to win the “A” Main in picture perfect style. Congratulations Chaz and we mean that from the bottom of our empty gas tanks. Somebody check his fuel to see that he’s not sneaking aviation fuel in there. The battle between Rolfson & L.Swane was a real nail biter. Tony gets the spot.

Finish Order “A” Main: Chaz Baca Jr…Mike Davila…Tony Rolfson…Logan Swane…Steve Lattanzi…Austin Kipp…Josh Lambeth…Sergio Serrano…Keith Sears…Early Pit Stop Expert Eric Dickinson…John Gilles…Mike McClaran…Ronald Jones.

Thank You all for taking the time and resources to do this. Next Fall League Race is Tuesday Dec. 7th. Check in between 6/6:30. Racing starts at 7pm.

Keep the Rubberside Down!

Steve Lattanzi “Kandyman”
steve@f1rf.com
Specialty Events, F1 Race Factory

317 S. 48th Street . Phoenix, AZ 85034
(d) 602-427-4416 / 602-302-7223 (t) 602-321-2035(m)
Visit us online @ www.f1racefactory.com

F1 Race Factory - Your Phoenix Destination For Adrenaline-Packed Outings
Arizona's Premier Indoor Karting & Entertainment Venue
Seasonal Leagues, High Level Competition Events, Public Racing 363 Days A Year
Two Indoor Tracks, 45+MPH Karts, Billiards, Trackside Bar & Grill.