Regional Series #4-CQMA

October 9th-10th, 2010

Jonathan raced in the regional series, leg #4 at CQMA this weekend. This was his first regional race in a competative class. Jim was away on a planned hunting trip and we originally did not plan to race this weekend. I changed my mind as the race approached because I wanted to give Jonathan some seat time with the top drivers in the region. This "practice" turned out to be a wonderful experience for Jonathan. Since Jim was absent, that left me as Jonathan's handler. Thank goodness for the awesome members that helped me! I learned a lot too and had fun and I'm hoping to learn more in the future.

On Saturday, there were 16 Jr Honda drivers broken up into 3 seperate groups. Each group drove 2 heat races. Jonathan started in the 6th position out of 7 in the first heat. This heat had some of the best driver in the region including the points leader for CQMA, points leader for BQMA, and the Regional Series points leader. In this 30 lap race, Jonathan drove patiently and clean. He was able to work his way up to a third place finish!!

In the 2nd heat, Jonathan started on the pole. With the same drivers in this heat, I knew this would be a tough position for him to keep for another 30 laps. Again, Jonathan drove phenominal. Jonathan was passed a few laps in however regained the lead by making a beautiful pass. Jonathan was able to keep the lead until about 6 laps in when he was passed by the CQMA points leader. Jonathan drove a great pattern, stayed on top of the restarts, watched his back, and took home a 2nd place finish!! Jonathan made it straight to the A Main Event and didn't have to drive the C or B Mains!!

Jonathan started in the 6th position out of 8 for the A Main. I knew this was going to be a tough race of 40 laps. My only hope was for Jonathan to finish with his car still in tact. Jonathan's car was extremely loose and was fighting it the whole time. Jonathan finished in last place but I was so proud of his driving! He never spun, wrecked, or had any calls against him. He also backed off when he should have when attempting passes-a huge feat for us!

Overall, I am extremely proud of Jonathan. A race that was supposed to be "practice" for us turned into a great competative experience. I am proud of how Jonathan is growing as a driver.