Wife's view from the pits - by Lynda Makinson (June 2016)
Disclaimer: This is my view and opinion, not the view or opinion of Bruce Makinson or anyone else.
June 29, 2016
Hi Everybody,
Sorry but we will not be racing this coming Friday.
Bruce had a chance encounter with a wasp. His face is swollen and it just wouldn’t be safe for him to race right now. The doctor says it may take a week or so to clear up so he should be racing next week.
If by some miracle his swelling goes down I’ll let you know thru the this site if we are going…but right now it doesn’t look good.
Remember that next week’s race is on the Thursday night (July 7th).
Wish us well, because I’m thinkin’ I won’t be having a happy guy at home this weekend so I’m not thinkin’ I’ll be having a happy weekend.
Have a safe Canada Day!
Lynda
Sorry but we will not be racing this coming Friday.
Bruce had a chance encounter with a wasp. His face is swollen and it just wouldn’t be safe for him to race right now. The doctor says it may take a week or so to clear up so he should be racing next week.
If by some miracle his swelling goes down I’ll let you know thru the this site if we are going…but right now it doesn’t look good.
Remember that next week’s race is on the Thursday night (July 7th).
Wish us well, because I’m thinkin’ I won’t be having a happy guy at home this weekend so I’m not thinkin’ I’ll be having a happy weekend.
Have a safe Canada Day!
Lynda
June 24, 2016
Hi Everybody,
Sorry I’m late with the update but I’m on vacation this week.
Friday night was…well…if you’ve followed my updates you’ll know what I mean…Racings’ Stupid!
Of course the track was dry and slick, they did the same set up as the week before and well, it didn’t work. He had a better starting position, 15th, and instead of forward he lost a few spots.
The best part of the weekend was sitting in the garage drinkin’ beverages on Saturday night. Remember…happy wife, happy life. See pic in Gallery, my first selfie!!
This coming Friday is Canada Day and racin’. There’s a Modified 50-lap qualifier and fireworks so we have to pay for the fireworks so the entrance fee is higher.
Have a great week and safe Canada Day,
Lynda
Sorry I’m late with the update but I’m on vacation this week.
Friday night was…well…if you’ve followed my updates you’ll know what I mean…Racings’ Stupid!
Of course the track was dry and slick, they did the same set up as the week before and well, it didn’t work. He had a better starting position, 15th, and instead of forward he lost a few spots.
The best part of the weekend was sitting in the garage drinkin’ beverages on Saturday night. Remember…happy wife, happy life. See pic in Gallery, my first selfie!!
This coming Friday is Canada Day and racin’. There’s a Modified 50-lap qualifier and fireworks so we have to pay for the fireworks so the entrance fee is higher.
Have a great week and safe Canada Day,
Lynda
June 17, 2016
Hi Everybody,
This past Friday night was a scorcher…that was til the sun went down, and then it cooled off nicely.
Well, the guys did get the parts to complete the changes they wanted on the car and it showed. The Heat race was ok but the track was dry and dusty before they even got out there. I have to wonder if MIR did any preparations to the track before anyone got there (like they used to).
Bruce started 3rd in his Heat and was doing fine and the car looked good until a few laps to go another car gave him a serious bump from behind which allowed a couple of cars to go past him and he ended up finishing 5th. I’m not sure if it was a malicious bump or just a bit of a Wiley-Coyote because I watched this guy and he was all over the place. I’m thinking he may become my first MIR maroon.
So, for the Feature it put Bruce starting back in 24th. Yes, none of us quite understand how this is but Bruce seems to understand so I guess that’s all that counts…but I still think it sucks. Cars that don’t show up except once or twice start ahead of the regulars…yeah…it sucks.
Well, anyways, he started 24th of 28 cars and Sportsman was the last race of the night so the track was black and shiny, some say like asphalt but it looked more like a skating rink to me. Before the start you could see cars testing the track and sliding all over the place. I’m hoping MIR can get the track back to the better days soon, I know they are having staffing issues but there's got to be an answer to this.
Bruce started 24th (yeah, I’m getting to it) and being on the outside I was a bit worried because of the way the car has been this year. But to my pleasure, it was going great. I guess the change the guys made were in the right direction…forward and that’s where Bruce kept charging….forward. It was nice to see him passing cars again. The only thing we weren’t too happy about was one of the restarts three cars got ahead of Bruce and they weren’t supposed to be there and the officials didn’t do anything about it. This isn’t what I usually expect of MIR, they usually officiate better than that. They have transponders so there’s no reason for that other than laziness. The race was going quickly so there was definitely no reason for it. In the end Bruce finished 17th, which if that restart was done better then he would have been a lot further. It wasn’t really easy to pass because of the slickness of it all but Bruce was still able to do some therefore this is all good and now something to look forward to.
This coming Friday is a regular night of racing so it will be regular entry fees. I also want to mention that we will be racing Thursday July 7th instead of Friday July 8th because of a special race involving the Big Block Super DIRT series cars. And yes this one will have higher entry fees.
Well, that’s it for this week. I hope the heat wave will be over and we can enjoy our evenings out at the track.
Have a great week everybody!
Lynda
This past Friday night was a scorcher…that was til the sun went down, and then it cooled off nicely.
Well, the guys did get the parts to complete the changes they wanted on the car and it showed. The Heat race was ok but the track was dry and dusty before they even got out there. I have to wonder if MIR did any preparations to the track before anyone got there (like they used to).
Bruce started 3rd in his Heat and was doing fine and the car looked good until a few laps to go another car gave him a serious bump from behind which allowed a couple of cars to go past him and he ended up finishing 5th. I’m not sure if it was a malicious bump or just a bit of a Wiley-Coyote because I watched this guy and he was all over the place. I’m thinking he may become my first MIR maroon.
So, for the Feature it put Bruce starting back in 24th. Yes, none of us quite understand how this is but Bruce seems to understand so I guess that’s all that counts…but I still think it sucks. Cars that don’t show up except once or twice start ahead of the regulars…yeah…it sucks.
Well, anyways, he started 24th of 28 cars and Sportsman was the last race of the night so the track was black and shiny, some say like asphalt but it looked more like a skating rink to me. Before the start you could see cars testing the track and sliding all over the place. I’m hoping MIR can get the track back to the better days soon, I know they are having staffing issues but there's got to be an answer to this.
Bruce started 24th (yeah, I’m getting to it) and being on the outside I was a bit worried because of the way the car has been this year. But to my pleasure, it was going great. I guess the change the guys made were in the right direction…forward and that’s where Bruce kept charging….forward. It was nice to see him passing cars again. The only thing we weren’t too happy about was one of the restarts three cars got ahead of Bruce and they weren’t supposed to be there and the officials didn’t do anything about it. This isn’t what I usually expect of MIR, they usually officiate better than that. They have transponders so there’s no reason for that other than laziness. The race was going quickly so there was definitely no reason for it. In the end Bruce finished 17th, which if that restart was done better then he would have been a lot further. It wasn’t really easy to pass because of the slickness of it all but Bruce was still able to do some therefore this is all good and now something to look forward to.
This coming Friday is a regular night of racing so it will be regular entry fees. I also want to mention that we will be racing Thursday July 7th instead of Friday July 8th because of a special race involving the Big Block Super DIRT series cars. And yes this one will have higher entry fees.
Well, that’s it for this week. I hope the heat wave will be over and we can enjoy our evenings out at the track.
Have a great week everybody!
Lynda
June 13, 2016
Hi Everybody,
As you know, we didn’t race this past Friday night due to technical difficulties. Saturday, Bruce and I drove out to St. Andrews to pick up the necessary parts to make sure he races this coming Friday. Part of me was glad we didn’t race as I’m sure it was a cold and damp night out there and with my rheumatoid arthritis in my legs I wouldn’t have been happy. The other part that was not happy about not being there is we did miss our friend Billy Cook’s grandson, Thomas Cook, win in the Sportsman feature. Congratulations Thomas, great job. The Cook family are a great bunch of people and very respected in DIRT racing. Billy has been a long time friend of the Makinsons. If Bruce doesn’t win, I would rather see a Cook in victory lane.
Also at BOS, our friend Nichole Austin Cameron (daughter of David Austin) won her first Rookie Sportsman Heat race. This is the first year she’s out racing a Sportsman. Great job Nichole, we miss you guys.
So this past Friday night, Bruce and I were sitting around sipping beverages when Bruce brought my attention to the June 2nd Wheels flyer from the Stittsville News. There was a quote there that applies to many things in life and in our case, Bruce’s racing.
As you know, only one car can get the checkered flag first, but to me they are all winners because of the courage they show by being out there. Many people say, “I can do that”….yeah….I’d like to see you try. And it’s always easy for people to say to Bruce “so, did you win?” and when he answers no their reaction is as if he’s a loser, but Teddy Roosevelt says it best. Here’s an excerpt from the speech "Citizenship in a Republic" delivered at the Sorbonne, in Paris, France on 23 April, 1910 (a speech that is 106 years old and still very much applies today).
THE MAN IN THE ARENA
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Need I say more?!?!? Pretty inspirational words….
This coming Friday night the Vintage Modifieds will be at MIR and no Mod Lites. The entrance fee is the normal amount.
I hope to see you there.
Have a great week,
Lynda
As you know, we didn’t race this past Friday night due to technical difficulties. Saturday, Bruce and I drove out to St. Andrews to pick up the necessary parts to make sure he races this coming Friday. Part of me was glad we didn’t race as I’m sure it was a cold and damp night out there and with my rheumatoid arthritis in my legs I wouldn’t have been happy. The other part that was not happy about not being there is we did miss our friend Billy Cook’s grandson, Thomas Cook, win in the Sportsman feature. Congratulations Thomas, great job. The Cook family are a great bunch of people and very respected in DIRT racing. Billy has been a long time friend of the Makinsons. If Bruce doesn’t win, I would rather see a Cook in victory lane.
Also at BOS, our friend Nichole Austin Cameron (daughter of David Austin) won her first Rookie Sportsman Heat race. This is the first year she’s out racing a Sportsman. Great job Nichole, we miss you guys.
So this past Friday night, Bruce and I were sitting around sipping beverages when Bruce brought my attention to the June 2nd Wheels flyer from the Stittsville News. There was a quote there that applies to many things in life and in our case, Bruce’s racing.
As you know, only one car can get the checkered flag first, but to me they are all winners because of the courage they show by being out there. Many people say, “I can do that”….yeah….I’d like to see you try. And it’s always easy for people to say to Bruce “so, did you win?” and when he answers no their reaction is as if he’s a loser, but Teddy Roosevelt says it best. Here’s an excerpt from the speech "Citizenship in a Republic" delivered at the Sorbonne, in Paris, France on 23 April, 1910 (a speech that is 106 years old and still very much applies today).
THE MAN IN THE ARENA
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Need I say more?!?!? Pretty inspirational words….
This coming Friday night the Vintage Modifieds will be at MIR and no Mod Lites. The entrance fee is the normal amount.
I hope to see you there.
Have a great week,
Lynda
June 9, 2016
Hi Everybody,
FYI - due to technical difficulties we will not be racing this weekend. Yes, part of me is enjoying the thought but the other part is in withdrawal...I have a Friday ritual so it's hard to break that routine ya know.
Sorry if you were planning on coming out this Friday but hopefully we will be back at it next week.
Anyways, the way it's been very cold at night I'm thinking it would have been even colder at the track...so it ain't that bad.
Have a great weekend,
Lynda
FYI - due to technical difficulties we will not be racing this weekend. Yes, part of me is enjoying the thought but the other part is in withdrawal...I have a Friday ritual so it's hard to break that routine ya know.
Sorry if you were planning on coming out this Friday but hopefully we will be back at it next week.
Anyways, the way it's been very cold at night I'm thinking it would have been even colder at the track...so it ain't that bad.
Have a great weekend,
Lynda
June 03, 2016
Hi Everybody,
All I have to say is that it wasn’t the night we had hoped for….oh heck…you know I’ll say more. And remember, this is my page and my opinion so if you don't want to hear the truth I suggest you pass on this weeks write up.
We have great sponsors…we have a great driver…great crew and we have a great facility to race at.
But lately the track itself is not the greatest. I heard a rumour that the person that used to prepare the track for race day has moved on (he received another offer from another track in another state) so we’re left out to dry (pun intended). And it seems that MIR is having trouble finding a replacement for him. The track has been dry and you can’t use the weather as an excuse. They have water available to them (if not their pond they have the whole damn St. Lawrence Seaway!!).
It’s been so dry that sitting in the stands is almost impossible. I have to wonder how the fans felt after the race this past Friday night. You should have seen the walls of dirt blasting into the main grandstands. I was videotaping and I have to say from the pit stands I could barely see corners one and two because of the walls of dirt.
I heard from drivers that at times it was hard to see and not to mention pass other cars. If you got stuck on the outside, you’d drop back because there was absolutely no grip up there.
I’ll stop ranting in a minute…MIR, we love racing there but make it so the drivers can race and the fans can see the race!
Also, MIR has been taking the advice of some people that can’t be racers and not having a second set of hot laps. Especially with the way the track has been, we need time to adjust the car to the conditions of the track. And let’s not worry about getting the fans home early….the longer you keep them there the more they spend on concessions and beer. I’m thinking 20-30 mins longer for Sportsman and Modifieds running hot laps isn’t going to hurt much but will help with sales!!!
OK, I’m done.
Now for the race, really I was trying to avoid it but I guess you want to know. As you can guess, it was hot and dry. The track was stupidly dry. In the Heat race Bruce started 2nd on the outside (remember what I said about the outside above), well, he dropped back and finished 6th of 7.
Well, he ended up qualifying 24th of 28 cars…yes, on the outside again. My suggestion to him was to drop back and go to the inside and then go forward (after all he wasn’t far from the back and it’s better safe then sorry). He did, and going forward wasn’t an easy task (remember the above comment of not being able to pass) and he ended up finishing 25th. He did go forward but not as much as he usually would have.
This year is a bit disappointing. We have a good car, good things were done to it in the winter and it’s just not taking with the track not being what was it was last year.
The Sportsman class is the largest at MIR, 27 to 28 cars have been showing up nightly and there are some very good cars there and many good drivers. The classes with fewer cars seem to have it easier to pass. But you really have to see 28 cars come screaming around corners 3 and 4, it’s quite a sight to see and hear.
Bruce and Bobby are planning on making some changes that, they hope, will make the car more competitive on this dry track. Let’s all wish them good luck and hope they get it working at MIR. But I can assure you we aren’t the only ones out there unable to pass like we used to. I just hope that MIR doesn’t lose cars because of the track conditions.
Well, that’s it for this week.
This coming Friday there are no Modifieds and the Empire Super Sprints will be there (I’m sure the dust will fly with them flying around the track). The gate fee will be higher.
So far we plan on attending but it will all depend on the changes the guys want to make and if they get them completed before Friday.
If we aren’t going, I’ll email everyone.
Have a great week,
Lynda
All I have to say is that it wasn’t the night we had hoped for….oh heck…you know I’ll say more. And remember, this is my page and my opinion so if you don't want to hear the truth I suggest you pass on this weeks write up.
We have great sponsors…we have a great driver…great crew and we have a great facility to race at.
But lately the track itself is not the greatest. I heard a rumour that the person that used to prepare the track for race day has moved on (he received another offer from another track in another state) so we’re left out to dry (pun intended). And it seems that MIR is having trouble finding a replacement for him. The track has been dry and you can’t use the weather as an excuse. They have water available to them (if not their pond they have the whole damn St. Lawrence Seaway!!).
It’s been so dry that sitting in the stands is almost impossible. I have to wonder how the fans felt after the race this past Friday night. You should have seen the walls of dirt blasting into the main grandstands. I was videotaping and I have to say from the pit stands I could barely see corners one and two because of the walls of dirt.
I heard from drivers that at times it was hard to see and not to mention pass other cars. If you got stuck on the outside, you’d drop back because there was absolutely no grip up there.
I’ll stop ranting in a minute…MIR, we love racing there but make it so the drivers can race and the fans can see the race!
Also, MIR has been taking the advice of some people that can’t be racers and not having a second set of hot laps. Especially with the way the track has been, we need time to adjust the car to the conditions of the track. And let’s not worry about getting the fans home early….the longer you keep them there the more they spend on concessions and beer. I’m thinking 20-30 mins longer for Sportsman and Modifieds running hot laps isn’t going to hurt much but will help with sales!!!
OK, I’m done.
Now for the race, really I was trying to avoid it but I guess you want to know. As you can guess, it was hot and dry. The track was stupidly dry. In the Heat race Bruce started 2nd on the outside (remember what I said about the outside above), well, he dropped back and finished 6th of 7.
Well, he ended up qualifying 24th of 28 cars…yes, on the outside again. My suggestion to him was to drop back and go to the inside and then go forward (after all he wasn’t far from the back and it’s better safe then sorry). He did, and going forward wasn’t an easy task (remember the above comment of not being able to pass) and he ended up finishing 25th. He did go forward but not as much as he usually would have.
This year is a bit disappointing. We have a good car, good things were done to it in the winter and it’s just not taking with the track not being what was it was last year.
The Sportsman class is the largest at MIR, 27 to 28 cars have been showing up nightly and there are some very good cars there and many good drivers. The classes with fewer cars seem to have it easier to pass. But you really have to see 28 cars come screaming around corners 3 and 4, it’s quite a sight to see and hear.
Bruce and Bobby are planning on making some changes that, they hope, will make the car more competitive on this dry track. Let’s all wish them good luck and hope they get it working at MIR. But I can assure you we aren’t the only ones out there unable to pass like we used to. I just hope that MIR doesn’t lose cars because of the track conditions.
Well, that’s it for this week.
This coming Friday there are no Modifieds and the Empire Super Sprints will be there (I’m sure the dust will fly with them flying around the track). The gate fee will be higher.
So far we plan on attending but it will all depend on the changes the guys want to make and if they get them completed before Friday.
If we aren’t going, I’ll email everyone.
Have a great week,
Lynda