New Website Released. . .

         I just wanted to drop everybody a note about this blog and my new website.  After many changes and different layouts- OC2 Interactive Web Solutions presents the latest version of my website.  www.justinonderko.com  With the update of the website, I will now be posting the blog on the site.  I appreciate all of the readers that stop by and spend a few minutes reading my thoughts.  I look forward to continued sharing and reactions from you.  I want to thank OC2 Interactive for the hard work and excellent ideas that contributed to my site.  I look forward to the 2013 racing season, I believe it will be my most exciting season yet.

As the World Turns. . .

It’s been a very busy 2 weeks since I last checked in.  Not only has the racing world been active with the season finally coming to a close for national divisions; but we here at Onderko Motorsports have been hard at work as well.

First I want to start with the Phoenix race.  I ended up watching that race because my NY Giants were playing a horrible game and I didn’t want to get agrivated.  After I saw the stupidity the Jeff Gordon exhibited, I went through the roof.  As a former short track racer, I still believe in the unwritten rule that you never, EVER, hook a guy in the right rear and turn him into the wall head first.  We were through this with Kyle Busch last year at Texas in the truck race- did we learn nothing?  The reprimand was bogus too, and Jeff can thank his 4 championships for keeping him from being parked.  I am still wound up about this whole deal, and if it were me, He would have been parked for Homestead and Daytona- but that’s just me.

NASCAR’s Cup series has a new and first time champion, Brad Keselowski.  I enjoy the enthusiasim and energy that Brad brings to the sport, he isn’t as polished as some of the other drivers.  I think for that reason, he is a bit polarizing when it comes to the fans.  He is one of those guys that you either like or you don’t.  Either way, it is good for the sport that someone new is at the top of the game.

I hate to even bring it up, but did anyone watch the Kurt Busch special?  Or as my wife and I call it- the “I’m trying to save my career anyway I can” special.  For me, it was the most contrived and trite piece of bad film production that SPEED channel has aired in a while.  I wonder how much Kurt spent on buying that time slot.  If you didn’t watch it, I won’t spoil it for you- if you did watch it, you know what I’m talking about.  At one point in the piece, the cars were running at Sonoma, and INDYCAR sounds were dubbed on top of the video feed- probably because NASCAR wouldn’t allow the use of their feed.  It was terrible, and I still can’t believe he has a ride- champion or not- what was the last positive thing he has done for the sport.  I wonder if Mama and Papa Busch are proud of the boys that they raised?  I know, that no matter how big I may get, I’m never to old for backhand if I get out of line- my Mother and Father still don’t take any crap.

Lastly, and I mention this with mixed feelings, a couple of days ago the world learned that Ms. Danica Patrick will be divorcing her husband of 7 years.  I went through it- it sucks- it really sucks- it sucks more than anything you’ll ever do.  I mean, the tons of money will make it easier because she wont have to worry about losing her house or possessions, but I still feel for her.  On the other hand, I am waiting to see the fallout in the coming months about what caused the divorce.  I’ll take the high road for now, but I’m keeping my ears and eyes peeled.

Onderko Motorsports has been busy as well these past 2 weeks.  We will be announcing a really neat partnership this coming week.  I am very happy and proud to be joining forces with these folks.  I got to sit down and have a wonderful dinner with them the other week, and I am grateful that have the vision that they do.  I know I have been promising a new website, and it is coming.  Perfection takes time, that and we keep changing things and tweaking this and that.  I think I looks awesome- OC2 Interactive is doing a wonderful job.

At the time of writing this- it is Thanksgiving Eve in the United States.  I want to wish everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving.  If you are traveling- please be safe.  15 minutes of extra travel time is no big deal- if it means you get there in one piece.  I have a tremendous amount to be thankful for, and I’m sure- no matter what position you are in- you can find things in your life to be thankful for as well.  Happy Thanksgiving!  By the way-  at the time of writing this- 33 days till Christmas!  Till Next Week. . . .

We'll miss you, Randy Bernard. . .

            I have been racing for a while now.  As I have said numerous times before, I have been very fortunate to race many different cars at many different places.  I have learned a few things about this sport over the years as well.  I have also come to realize, that things are not always what they seem, and I’m pretty sure that maybe the last couple of days in the INDYCAR series haven’t been what they might want us to believe.

            On October 28^th 2012, it was stated that Randy Bernard stepped down from his position as CEO of INDYCAR effective immediately.  In my opinion, the best thing to happen to INDYCAR in a very, very long time- and he up and quits?  Nope- not buying it.  In the last 3 years I have watched Bernard take the series from a laughable anecdote to what we had this season, which wasn’t perfect- but it was a vast improvement.  People were buying tickets, watching the races on TV, starting to get excited about American open wheel racing again- is the board of directors at INDYCAR adverse to success?

            Bobby Rahal may have said it best, “I have never seen a series that has so much going for it, shoot itself in the foot so many times.”

            Racing is entertainment.  We put on a show and we charge admission.  Randy Bernard understood that- he may not have understood much else about the sport, but he understood that much.  Do you know why NASCAR is so successful?  They listen to their fans, and they give them what they want.

            Do you know why racing attracts people?  Because it’s cool- because it’s dangerous- it’s not something everybody can do.  The problem with racing is- its entertainment.  You must balance the danger with the safety, the risk with the reward.  That’s a tough job, not one that I would sign up for, but that’s the job of a promoter.

            INDYCAR driver’s balked at some of the things that made the “show” more exciting.  Double file restarts for example.  This was a great idea for the fans- because that’s who it should be about- the fans.  It was exciting to watch, but the drivers didn’t like it.  Along with a few other changes, there was the sentiment from the driver’s that Bernard cared more about the “show” than he did about safety.  Let me tell you something, I’ve driven some real shady racecars- FOR FREE.  These guys have the best safety technology in the business, and they make a bunch of money while sitting in that technology.  That’s part of the draw- the danger.

            Do you remember the days when they went 230 mph at Indy?  When you regularly saw the con-trails off the back wings, and the cars had that high pitched scream?  I do- and that’s what made me want to go racing.  Bernard understood what INDYCAR racing needed- its fans.  Without them, the series is nothing.  If there is no one to watch the “show”- there really isn’t a reason to keep putting the “show” on.

            NASCAR owns the ball, they own the field, and they own the rules, and if you don’t like it you can leave.  They take their cues from the fans and make decisions accordingly.  There is stability and continuity in the series- whether the teams and drivers like it or not.

            Somewhere along the lines, INDYCAR starting letting its teams dictate to the series- bad idea.  There is a reason the series tells the teams what’s going to happen.  Tony George didn’t want team interference when he ran the IRL, but he is pretty quick to make his voice heard now.  INDYCAR made a lot of its loyal fans mad and that saying something if they stuck around through the CART/IRL split.  Now I’m sure if the INDYCAR teams were making the money that the NASCAR teams were a lot could be overlooked- but things take time- time that wasn’t given to Bernard.

            The cost of the DW12 car was more than expected, and spare parts costs were also higher that expected.  Engine leases were a little hard to come by this year, and the debacle that happened at Loudon in the rain this year was inexcusable. I can see how this may have left some room for doubt in people’s mind about Bernard.  However, at a time when INDYCAR needed to back up Bernard, I feel like they left him twisting in the breeze.

            This hits home for me, because we announced our intentions of running in the Pirelli World Challenge Series for 2013 the other day.  The PWC is a support series for the IZOD INDYCAR series.  I’m sure that Jeff Belskus- current CEO (also previous CEO before Bernard) has a plan to continue to make INDYCAR stronger and better, and he is off to a good start by letting a lot of what Bernard had put in place left alone, but it didn’t make it any easier on me by letting Bernard go- or by Bernard stepping down is what I meant to say.

            I have made offers to other people via this blog before, and today is no different.  I would like to let Mr. Bernard know, that if he ever needs a driver to fill a field he can count on me.  Drivers who have made it to the top, sometimes forget what its like to be hungry and trying to make a name for themselves.  Every single driver, whether it be for INDYCAR, NASCAR, F1, GRAND-AM, can all be replaced, and for a much lower cost.  There is somebody out there who is sick of living on Ritz Crackers and peanut butter, and who spends his hard earned money to go racing, that would love the opportunity to compete at the highest of levels.

            Check me out on twitter @justinonderko, and my new website is just about to be released, so be looking for that in the next couple of days as well.  Till next week. . .

Reflection. . .

It’s amazing how fast time flies.  It seems like just yesterday the season was just starting; now the racecars, at least for us, sit idle in the shop- waiting for their respective checklists to be completed.  The weather is turning cooler here in the northeast, and instead of engines the furnaces will soon be running.  The season of reflecting is now upon us, time to look back at the past year and remember the good and the bad.

            This time of year is always a little depressing for me.  The season is over, and other than some winter testing, I won’t be back in a racecar to compete until next spring.  I think of racecars like people, and I don’t think the racecars like to sit any more than I do.  Although we had some up’s and down’s this year it’s hard to look back at this year and not call it a success.

We visited some new racetracks and ran very well right off the trailer.  That always makes a crew and a driver feel good.  It’s always easier to find a little speed during the weekend, than being out to lunch and playing catch up.  That was something that we worked on at the shop this year.  Making sure we felt like the setup we put in the car would be what we needed when we got to the track.  Running an in house car this year, we didn’t have the at track manpower that some of these other teams have.  I am proud of my team to be able to compete at this level, it certainly wasn’t late models- which is where their comfort zone was.

This year was a big step out of my comfort zone as well.  At the end of the day, the goal of racing is still the same, be the fastest car on the track- lap after lap after lap.  While we were able win multiple times this year, I am more proud of how my driving has progressed.

I’ve been racing since I was 12 years old- get ready- that’s 17 years.  I feel that I have made bigger strides in the last 2 years than in the first 15 combined.  Due, in part, to the time I spent at Bertil Roos- if you haven’t attended yet; do it, its worth every minute.  I am grateful for what I learned at the Roos school, but I think it has more to do with my age.  As I have spent more time behind the wheel, I have gained more of a respect for the “craft” that driving a race car is.

I believe that anyone can climb into a racecar and go fast, relatively speaking.  The concept of what we do is not all that complex- go fast- don’t wreck- win some races- visit victory lane.  In theory, it’s not hard- but it is sometimes maddening how difficult it can be.  3 years ago, I finally learned how to qualify.  That seems like a stupid thing to say, but it’s not.  Qualifying and racing are 2 very different things.  Most everybody can tape off the grill, and bump up the tire pressures and go bust off a quick lap.  In doing so, most everyone tries to go faster when they qualify.  I can’t explain it really well, but I actually try to slow down a little bit.  I call it “backing up the corner”; getting slowed down before the corner and being able to accelerate sooner and longer down the straightaway.  It goes against everything that feels right.  Now, you have to have a good car to do that, but that’s all part of the package.

That has translated into road racing for me as well.  The more I try to go fast and hustle the car, the more disappointed I am with the lap times.  Taking only what the car will give you, being ultra smooth, like ultra-ultra smooth, and knowing the track as well as you can- you know; doing your homework.  Before we went to every track this year, I would watch in car video for hours.  My wife would get so mad, she would be trying to go to bed, and here I am with the volume up blaring a track video.  Thing is- it works.  Knowing every square inch of the track- BEFORE- you ever get on it, can help a driver so much.

When I was younger, it was hard to tell me anything.  I knew everything there was to know about racing, racecars, and how to drive a racecar.  I “didn’t even know- that I didn’t know”.  Its funny, now when I watch races on TV, I’m not watching the “race”, I’m watching the racecars.  I’m watching how they look on the track, under braking, the roll in the corner, ride heights.

As I continue to make this my career, I find myself discovering a whole new side of this sport.  Everybody talks about it, but actually being disciplined enough to consciously being able to calm yourself down inside the racecar is pretty hard.  Not getting emotional behind the wheel, not getting frustrated, or nervous, is a big key to taking big steps towards being a great driver.

For me, this is what I’m most proud of this past year.  Not just strapping in and going full tilt till the checkers.  Making the race a chess match of sorts- you know- a chess match at 150 mph’s.  That’s partly why the end of the competition season is such a drag.  Winter testing just isn’t the same.

As you can tell, I’m already looking forward to next year, and I can’t wait to tell everyone the plans as well.  I guess its back to the shop, and maybe a few board meetings till then.  We haven’t released our website yet, but stay tuned- its going to be pretty cool.  Follow be on twitter @justinonderko, and justinonderko.com as well.  Till next time. . .

It's Been a While. . .

It seems like a long time since I sat down to put my thoughts to paper- so to speak.  A lot has happened in the last 2 weeks as well.  Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas clinched the Daytona Prototype title in the Rolex series, and its something like Scott’s 5^th and Memo’s 4^th.  Those guys are definitely deserving Champions and excellent road racers.  Though I’m not a huge fan of the man, Brad Keslowski has made a statement in the Sprint Cup Chase; winning 2 of the first 3 Chase races.

As for me, the last week was spent with my wife.  We kind of took the honeymoon we didn’t take last year when we got married.  Last year, 6 days after we got married, instead of taking a honeymoon my wife went along with me to a race that we had scheduled.  The best part about that weekend ( heavy sarcasm here) was that it rained both days and never climbed out of the low 50’s.  She sat in the clubhouse or the truck most of the day to keep warm and dry.  I figure that was pretty special for her to do for me, so I let her plan the week that she wanted this year.  We spent a lot of time out on the boat- which is something we both love, so it was a really nice time.

I wanted to mention a foundation we had on the car a couple weeks ago at Mid-Ohio.  The Motorsports Rehabilitation Foundation.  While it is something no driver likes to think about, getting hurt inside a racecar is a very real possibility.  As I get older, I find that I think about it a little more than I used too.  Now that I’m married, and with the possibility of a family- what would I do if something happened?  Worse yet- what would my wife do?

That’s where MRF comes in- they help out families of injured drivers in those times of need.  Scott Lynn founded the MRF about 15 years ago after an accident while competing at Watkins Glen.  He exited turn 1 at 125 mph, and hit the retaining wall head on.  It was then that he realized that while he was extremely lucky- it could have very easily gone the other way.

The MRF is able to step in and help those that have been either injured or the families of those who have been killed in sanctioned motorsports events.  They understand that the medical bills, legal fees, and everyday bills that tend to rapidly accumulate at the time of an injury can be a real burden.  A burden that can very easily become too much to deal with for most people.  It’s not something we think about when we load our racecars up, but life can change very quickly at the racetrack.

Michelle Randall, a co-founder, and Eugene Hahn, a director, not only are educated in  economics and business, they also understand the business of racing.  Better yet- they understand WHY we do what we do.  More often than not, that is important as well.  When someone gets hurt- the question or statement is “why did he/she have to be out there”.  It’s what we love, and to know that a foundation like MRF is out there- makes it easier to climb into a car.

Regardless of who you are- a fan, a crew member, a driver- I ask you to log on to www.gomrf.org and check these guys out.  They are an outstanding group of people, and it is a wonderful service that they provide in a terrible time in someone’s life.  Learn about them, read about who they are, donate to the cause- and hope that you never have to use them.

The wheels are turning over here at Onderko Motorsports.  I wish I could tell you about all that is happening behind the scenes.  I hope to make some big announcements in the near future- but you know how that goes- nothing- nothing-nothing and then BAM!  All kinds of good stuff comes out.  Anyway, I will be staying busy the next 2 weeks, and hope that you will too.  By the way- we will be unveiling a new website very soon, so we are really excited about that as well.  Log on to www.gomrf.org and check those guys out!  Till next week. . .

2012 IZOD Indycar Championship. . .

           Congratulations to Ryan Hunter-Reay- the 2012 IZOD Indycar Champion.  Boy that has a nice ring to it.  Personally, I’m glad that we have an American driver as champion again, after all- it is an American series.  Although I have never been a huge fan of Will Power, I can’t imagine the range of emotions he must be dealing with.

            While I understand that the difference between myself and IZOD drivers is about 5-6 million dollars a year, I would like to think we are the same on the inside.  I remember the joy of 2010 and our Late Model Championship, and the sting of 2012 at Mid-Ohio is still acutely felt.  For me, winning the championship made day to day life much happier and easier to deal with- and conversely; breaking the transmission at Mid-Ohio made even the smallest things seem like a big deal.

            I’m sure the Monday morning meetings were very different as well.  The guys at Andretti Autosport were probably still celebrating, while it might have been a little uncomfortable over Penske Racing.  I believe that you run every lap of every race to the fullest- or at least as full as you can make it.  I believe each lap counts, and as a driver it’s your job to make sure you run all the laps.  Which is why I don’t believe Ryan “lucked into it” or “got lucky”.  Sure, when Will Power spun and crashed, it made Ryan’s job easier, but he could have just as easily crashed as well, or broke, or any number of things.  That’s why you never give up- ever.

            On the other hand, I don’t think it’s completely fair to blame Will Power for “losing” the Championship.  Yes, he did spin, and effectively ended his chances.  However, was there a time this season, when maybe his crew made a mistake or two?  Maybe.  Was there ever a time when Will had 10^th place car, and was able to bring it home 5^th?  Again, maybe.  In the end, it really doesn’t matter, because the driver is like the quarterback- they are the ones who shoulder that responsibility of winning or losing.

            All that being said, Ryan edged Will by 3 points.  3 points.  3 points.  3 points can make you go crazy.  3 points can make you say “what if” all winter long.  3 points can get you fired, or it can get you another deal for next year.  A lot can be said by 3 points.

            As for me, the off season is here.  Time to regroup, and move forward for next year.  Getting back on the winter training schedule, and keeping in shape for next year.  It’s not a time to lay back, it’s a time to get ahead.  Getting budgets together, renegotiating contracts, signing new sponsors- its time to get to work.

            I’m going to switch to a bi-weekly format for the blog for the offseason.  It will give me chance to focus on all of the aforementioned items, and make it more interesting when I do get to update you.  I would like to wish my wife Marisa a Happy Anniversary, we will have been married 1 year on September 24^th.  Now, I know its not 10 years, but you have to give her most of the credit, living with a racer is measured like dog years- it always feels longer than it really is.  She’s pretty amazing- and I’m glad to be with her.  Anyway- enough with the mushy stuff, this is a racing blog- enough with the mushy stuff, this is a racing bloglways feels longer than it really ispretty cool in the next few weeks, so stso follow me on twitter- @justinonderko, and we will be unveiling something new and pretty cool in the next few weeks, so stay tuned.  Till next time. . .

2012 National Championships- Mid-Ohio Memories

           The 2012 NASA National Championships at Mid-Ohio are in the history books.  Even in another year of recession, the pits were full of drivers and teams chasing victory at the famed road course.  We saw Daytona Prototypes, Mustangs, Corvettes, Hondas, and everything in between.  Drivers raced hard and fast for 4 days, and in the end the drivers that were able to out race and in some cases outlast the competition- took home the trophy.

            Since we’ve got home, I’ve tried to figure out a way to put this past week into words.  It’s hard to describe the whole experience.  There are really two sides to last week for me.  There is the obvious racing side of things, and then there is the human element side of things.  For me, I always try to down play events such as this.  Even though this is the National Championships, in reality- it’s just another race.  I believe you can get caught up in the sheer spectacle of things and lose focus on the task at hand if you allow yourself to get wrapped up in the moment.

            No matter how long I’m at this game, the last few miles on the road until I pull into the racetrack are always the worst.  My insides are turning upside down and my mind is racing a mile a minute.  This past week was no different, in fact, it was worse- I mean, come on, it’s only the biggest race of my career.  I have to admit, it was pretty cool to have a set of credentials with the Mid-Ohio logo on it.  The whole scene was such a spectacle- just the sheer size of the event was awesome.

            I try not to get wrapped up in the moment to often, I feel like I should be past all of the shock and awe of racing, I’ve been around this sport for so long now- I feel like I’ve had my share of ups and downs.  It was really hard, especially Wednesday when I wasn’t out on the track.  It was both exciting and scary at the same time- to realize the tens of millions of dollars that surrounded me, in racecars-equipment-motorcoaches- and vendors.

            Much like I try to be at the racetrack- enough with all that crap- lets get down to business.  I was ready to get out on the track- that’s where the world still makes sense to me.  Time to see if the last 2 weeks of preparation have paid off.  The time out on the track was spent learning and trying to figure ways to make us faster.

            To make a very long story short- during qualifying on Friday, we lost 3^rd gear.  We tried all that we knew how, but in the end- the damage was to severe and with the resources we had at that time, we couldn’t fix it.  We were not able to compete in the final race of the Championship weekend- resulting in a DNF.

            Now that tells you the end result of the week, but it doesn’t quite tell you the whole story.  It has been a long time since I have seen people work with the speed, accuracy, and efficiency as my guys did during our time at Mid-Ohio.  I am very proud of the team and the car that they gave me.  Due to the rules package that we race under, we must declare our horsepower and weight before competition begins, as measured by a dynamometer.  We declare 148 horsepower- our competition declares over 390.  Without getting into the specifics of the rules- I’m giving up 240+ horsepower.  This is not to make excuses- its to drive home the point of the caliber of car my team put underneath me.  I was turning lap times within 2% of the pole winner after only 40 minutes on the track.  Now- practice/qualifying is not the race, but I’d say we would have had a pretty good shot at a podium.  But. . . we broke- so we’ll never know.

            To that point, we broke- we didn’t make a mistake and end up crashed.  We didn’t end our day by making a careless error in the pits- we broke.  Something that I’ve come to accept in this sport- parts break, bearings fail, tires go flat, and none of those things happen sitting in the trailer, they happen in competition.  Case in point, a few months ago, Dario Franchitti- this year’s Indy 500 winner, blew his engine on the pace lap at Iowa.  Now- I’m sure someone at Gnassi Motorsports got fired, but it’s a prime example of parts failing.  It happens- everything has a life span- and when its up, its up.  It’s the reason teams that compete in the most premier series don’t run parts more than once.

            All of this is of little condolence to the fact that our week ended early.  It is, however, part of the game we play.  It is why we continue to prepare our cars the way we do, and try to eliminate this from happening again.  Each time we have encountered a problem this year; we’ve redesigned it and fixed it.  I’m proud of that, and I’m proud of my team- Thank you.

            I want to thank our partners- OC2 Interactive (oc2interactive.com), RAD Racing (ncprs.org), and our latest partner- MRF (Motorsports Rehabilitation Foundation - mrf.org).  Without their support this year, we would not have been able to compete at the level we did.  We look forward to the rest of this year and looking ahead to next year as well.

            There are a lot of things to take away from Mid-Ohio, and we are currently tearing into the transmission to find the cause of the failure.  We will be posting some videos and pictures from Mid-Ohio soon, so check back often.  Till Next Week. . .

2012 NASA National Championships. . .

         The last couple of days have been spent going over our checklists for Nationals.  The car has been put back together, and given the green light for competition.  All of the pit boxes have been gone through, restocked, and set aside.  I try to stress to everyone- "Its just another race", but I think we all know, its not just another race.  The hauler was loaded up on Monday, it was washed, and fueled up for the trip Tuesday.  From our shop, Mid-Ohio is roughly 400 miles.  Mostly highway, it should be an uneventful trip.
         Most of Tuesday was spent traveling, we made it into Ashland, Ohio around 8pm and parked the truck at the hotel.  Early Wednesday morning we got up and traveled the 25  miles to the racetrack.  No matter how many times I travel to a racetrack- no matter if I've been there 100 times or going there for the first time- I get that nervous pit in the middle of my stomach.  We made our way to registration and got all of our credentials.
        After registration, we went to the paddock area to find our pit area.  We were fortunate to secure a space really close to the grid area, so we can keep track of what's on the racetrack.  I will tell you- parking at any race is a really pain- but here at Nationals- it is even worse.  We are packed in tighter than a can of sardines.  We got the truck and trailer parked, and the racecar unloaded, and set up our pit area.
       We got set up and took a walk around the entire paddock area to get familiar with where everything is.  We found the tech area and walked back to our pit area to get the racecar and take it over to have it gone over.  After we got our tech sticker, we took the car back to the pit area, and put the car up on the lift.
       We had a Welcome/Drivers meeting at 5pm Wednesday, so we headed over to that area to get a seat for that.  No matter how many races you've been to, or how many driver's meeting you've been to, they are all the same.  "Be safe, don't wreck each other, be on time for your sessions"- was the message that we got.
       We will begin our track time tomorrow, and really look forward to getting our first laps under our belt.  Next week I will give you the rundown of our on track time, and how we made out.  I'm proud of our team and what it took to get here.  I feel we have done all that we can to get ready for this race, and now its time to go out and see what happens.  "Be smart and make good decisions, the big race isn't until Sunday- so keep the wheels on it"- is the mantra right now- so now its time to get at it.  We haven't had the best of luck this year, so hopefully the racing gods look our way and we can avoid any on track scuffles.  I'd like to say "Thank You" to my guys, and I will do my best for them and our sponsors.  Till next week. . .

Getting Ready for the National Championships. . .

            This week in racing saw Indycar at Sonoma and the NASCAR Series at Bristol.  I was able to listen to the NASCAR race on the radio for most of the evening; I actually was able to get home from the shop to watch the final 50 laps.  Carl Edwards really needed a win but came up really short after a badly different pit strategy left him out on the track with 150 lap old tires.  Denny Hamlin was able to snag the win, while a few tempers got hot during the evening.  I made it a point to at least listen to the race, since that’s where I came from (short track racing) and Bristol never disappoints.  Wednesday night the Modifieds raced at Bristol, and we had some friends go down to compete.  Ryan Newman indirectly took out half the field when he couldn’t hang onto his machine off of turn 4.  The ensuing wreck that resulted from people trying to miss him had the front stretch clogged shut while cars got airborne.  I’m glad Newman has the time and money to cost other teams the remainder of their season.  A few of the teams were pretty low budget, just to make a show like that was a big deal, and some of them left with junk racecars.  Indycar was out in wine country, Sonoma California.  The race was dominated by Will Power, with Ryan Briscoe ending up with the win.  The race was actually pretty boring for the first two thirds, but all of the sudden things started changing and happening to jumble everything up.  The ever quick-witted Marco Andretti had another DNF- and while being interviewed afterwards admitted he was trying to blow the engine up so the team didn’t get a penalty for changing engines heading into Baltimore- The pit reporter then informed him of the rules and let him know that an engine with a known problem could be changed without penalty- though I’m sure he already knew that.  Alex Tagliani and Ryan Hunter-Reay had a bit of a run-in in the closing laps as well, Hunter-Reay has seen himself free fall from the championship lead in the last couple of races.  

            As for me, these past couples of days have been very productive.  I spent most of the weekend putting the engine and driveline back into the car.  One of my very good friends came by the shop to give me a hand.  Adam was one of the first guys that helped me each week back when I ran the short tracks.  It was kind of like old times, except for the fact that he has a son now.  I have to give a special thank you to Adam’s boy- Noah- he was very good all day, and I hope he is a future crew member; he certainly has potential.  Anyway, the engine and driveline is back in, ready to go.  I found a couple of things that needed attention, so I was glad to able to address them.  A few things need touched up, but nothing really major.

            I look forward to being able to spend a little bit of down time over the holiday before we head out to Mid-Ohio.  In one week, I will be writing this blog from a hotel room in Lexington, Ohio.  I look forward to getting out there and getting the pits setup and then getting out on the track.  It’s only an 8 hour haul for us, so it shouldn’t be too bad.

            We have a big unveiling of sorts happening next Wednesday as well, we will be launching a new version of my website.  OC2 Interactive, one of new sponsors for the 2012 season, is currently putting the finishing touches on it as we speak.  Take a look at it next Wednesday and then give them a call for any web or mobile based work you might need done.  They specialize in high quality work with a time and cost efficient mindset- in fact that’s their motto- “When you absolutely, positively need to have it done right, on-time, and in-budget.”  Check them out- www.oc2interactive.com
            It’s going to be a busy week, and arguable the biggest race of my career- to date.  It is just another race, though.  Its going to start with the green flag and end with the checkers- it’s what’s in between is what counts.  In addition to the new website, we will be blowing up Twitter while we are out there, follow me @justinonderko.  The site will have links to Twitter and Facebook, so check us out.  Happy Labor Day to everyone, I hope it is a safe and enjoyable day for all, and I will see you out at Mid-Ohio for the NASA National Championships!  Till next week. . .

Summit Point Reloaded. . .

            This past weekend had Onderko Motorsports at Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia.  I was excited to be returning to that speedway since we ran so well in June.  We arrived in town Friday night and checked in to the hotel, it had taken a little longer to travel on account of the rain, but we made it safe and uneventful.

            Saturday Morning bright and early we unloaded for the day and I headed over to the drivers meeting.  We went over the way the day was going to go, and the order of events and how they would be run.  It was a pretty normal start to the raceday.

            We got ready for practice, and headed over to the grid to get lined up.  We ran decent in practice; I made a significant gear change during the week and it really changed my shift points.  Once I got comfortable with the car again, I pulled back into the garage area.  There was no use in putting more time on the car with Nationals right around the corner.

            Qualifying came and we ran really well.  The times came way down, and I really started to get comfortable with the car.  Our fastest lap came on the last lap of qualifying, which tells me that the car is working really well and should be fast in the race.  When we checked the grid order we found ourselves on the outside of the front row.  That was our best qualifying effort this year.  So far the day was going very well.

            The call came from race control to start getting the cars to the grid.  Once again my team got the car ready to do battle.  I got ready too, and climbed aboard and belted in.  I really felt like we had a great opportunity to get an overall win on Saturday.  I knew that if I kept the car on the track and didn’t make any mistakes an overall podium was almost expected.  We took our pace laps and took the green flag.  The polesitter didn’t exactly jump the start but he did get an awfully great jump on me before the green came out.

            I dropped back to third as we headed down to turn 1.  It took 2 laps but I got back to 2^nd spot.  I lost some time to the leader, but I settled in and really started to push the car to catch him.  The car was really working well, and we were .5 seconds off the track record with our times.  I felt good, the car felt good, the crew was feeling good- and then it happened.  BANG.

            When I say BANG, it was a bang- followed by the transmission going from 4^th gear to 2^nd gear.  The telemetry started flashing at me telling me the motor was over revving, my brain was screaming at me to get the car out of gear.  By the time I pushed the clutch in, the motor had revved to 11,478 rpm’s- well above the 9500rpm redline.

            I got out of the racing line and headed for pit lane.  I made it back to the garage area and climbed out of the car.  I knew it wasn’t the clutch, and my fear was that I broke the main shaft in the transmission.  All I could picture was chunks of gears and metal gravy in the bottom of the trans.  I didn’t want to mess with it at the track so we loaded it up and went home.

            Sunday was supposed to be spent with my wife, but instead I went to the shop and tried to figure out what had happened.  Around lunchtime my wife, Marisa, came over to the shop and helped me pull the driveline.  She was a big help and actually was the one who first realized what had happened.  We run a sequential style gear box, and as we were working she noticed that the shift cam didn’t feel right.

            The bolt that held the shift cam had actually sheared and allowed the cam to come loose and would no longer engage a gear.  A 2 dollar bolt ended what would have been a great day.  The good news is that it should be a quick fix.  We are going to put in a fresh engine and the gearbox is currently being checked out.  This is not something I wanted to be dealing with right before Nationals.

            Next week I should have good news and we should be just about wrapped up and ready for Nationals.  A big thanks to Marisa for giving up some weekend time with me to help me figure out what was wrong with the racecar.  It looks like I might owe her a special date night.  Check us out on Facebook, and follow me on Twitter @justinonderko.  Till next week. . .

Countdown to Summit Point. . .

          It seems rain has made quite a few appearances at the race track this season.  The last 3 weekends in a row have had rain to some degree.  Grand-Am and NASCAR were up in New York this past weekend.  Watkins Glen is a beautiful racetrack, and is situated in an even more beautiful area of New York.  On Friday is poured at Watkins Glen, effectively washing out Nationwide practice.  The rules state, however, that you must complete at least one lap in practice to be eligible to take a qualifying lap.  Since the Nationwide Series allows for wet weather racing- Goodyear has developed a great wet weather tire for the series- the drivers had to strap in a take a lap.  Many of the drivers voiced their displeasure for needing to go out on the racetrack.  It’s a shame that the Nationwide Series has drivers with so little experience to begin with, and almost none of the drivers have rain experience.  You could tell just by watching the cars, the drivers were very tense inside of their cars.  All three races this weekend, Grand-Am, Cup, and Nationwide- were excellent races to watch.

            The countdown to Summit Point is in its final days.  At the time of writing this, 48 hours from now, we will hopefully be checked into the hotel, and getting ready for bed.  Again- I’ve said it before- but when we travel, we always stay at Holiday Inn Express- never had a bad experience.

            The car is sitting in the shop, ready to go.  The guys were able to work ahead on some things and we were able to give ourselves a cushion on time.  It’s nice not to be rushed, but I’m sure something will pop up as we load everything up.  In fact the last time we went to Summit Point, we got a very- VERY late start.  Our truck and trailer sits just outside the shop, we have a dedicated parking spot for it, so it very rarely gets moved in between races.  As we were getting ready to pull out of the shop parking lot, the truck lost all of its power.  Long story short- like 4 hours long- a groundhog had a Thanksgiving Day feast on the engine’s wiring harness, and it shorted out a few things.  Luckily, we have some people who not only are great with racecars, but are great truck mechanics as well.  Some wire, a few connectors, and a little luck- and they got us back on the road.  We made it to the hotel at 3:30 am, and had to be at the track by 6:30am- everybody did a great job and didn’t complain too much about the lack of sleep.  I’m hoping for better than that this week.

            The last time we were at Summit Point, we missed the track record by .062 seconds.  We’ve made a few changes and think we have a real good shot at nabbing on Saturday.  The weather forecast is fair, with only a 30% chance of showers and a high of 77 degrees.  Give me a little cloud cover during the race, and it should help us get a little more grip on the track.

            If all goes well this weekend, we will be qualified for Nationals at Mid-Ohio in September.  When we get back from Summit Point, we will have 2 weeks to go over everything and get back to race ready condition.  We’ve had some mechanical issues that have required some thought, and it will be nice to have a chance and see if the changes we made will work.

            Check back next week, we will have results from Summit Point and we’ll see if the changes we made worked.  Also- we’ll know if our name is in the record books or not.  We will try for updates throughout the day, so check me out on twitter @justinonderko.  Also friend me on Facebook, and we should have updates there as well.  Wish us luck- and- till next week. . .

           

Getting Back to Normal. . .

This past weekend, my wife and I were in Virginia.  Her sister was getting married and we traveled down to help out and attend.  While it was hot- really hot, it was a very nice time.  They got married on top of a bluff over looking the Potomac River.  We had a good time, but are glad to be back home now.

Since we were in Virginia, I wasn’t in the shop.  However, we are just about ready for Summit Point on the 18^th.  All of our parts and pieces have arrived, and are waiting to be installed.  This week should wrap everything up. 

            I am excited to head back down to Summit Point, we’ve made some changes and I think they will work well.  It is probably going to be hotter than in June, but I believe we are headed in the right direction.  A couple spring changes, and some changes to the rear-end, should squeeze a little more speed out of the car, couple that with a gear change- and  think we have a real shot at the track record- which we missed by .062 seconds in June.

            I don’t have a lot for this week, and I apologize to my regular readers for that.  I will tell you this though; we are now officially on the entry list for NASA’S Nationals at Mid-Ohio.  It is going to be a pretty big deal for us; this will be the biggest race that our team will compete at.  We are excited about the race and the place where its being held- Mid-Ohio is a really cool place to race.

            Well. . . I think this is where I end this week and head off to the shop.  Just remember- follow me @justinonderko on twitter, check out www.justinonderko.com, check us out on youtube as well- we have our Pocono races up so you can see what its like to drive through turn 1 flat out at a 140mph.  Good luck to those who are racing this week, it’s the middle of the season- and everyone is trying to grind it out till the end of the year- so everybody stay safe and stay out of trouble.  Till Next Week. . .

A Little Bit Of Rain. . .

So the engines were alive at Indy again this past weekend.  It was the inaugural Brickyard Grand Prix.  NASCAR driver Jamie McMurray was able to put his Daytona Prototype on the pole, but it was the Starworks Motorsports duo of Sebastian Bourdias and Alex Popow who brought home the trophy.  Andy Lally and John Potter took GT honors.  The only things wrong with this event was, it was run on Friday afternoon.  I can’t imagine the ratings were very high, and that is a shame, because it was an excellent race.  It rained very hard for the moments leading up to the start, and then cleared off as the cars got on the track, but Mother Nature kept it interesting by raining about 45 minutes later.  It was a very entertaining race to watch, and I loved watching the drivers in the rain.

           I love racing in the rain, for 2 reasons I guess.  First- and this is plainly economical- the race goes on, no matter what.  Second- Rain is the great equalizer.  If you watched the Brickyard GP, you saw that in the rain; the GT cars were faster than the DP cars- Speed isn't always fast in the rain.  The rain separates the true racers from the pretenders.  When I attended Bertil Roos- it rained quite a bit.  So for me, the first time on a road course was in the rain.

            Its funny, most guys hate the rain.  I mean- it is scary as anything you’ll do.  135 mph and you can’t see 30 feet in front of you.  The brakes lock up right away, and the car pushes and twitches all the time and you can’t get on the power hard.  Its frustrating, mentally draining, physically exhausting- and that’s why I love it.

            Throw the set-ups out the window (for the most part), and all your onboard telemetry doesn’t do you any good, its just you and your racecar.  Don’t get me wrong- its you and your racecar all the time- but there is something different when it rains.  I will never forget what Dennis Machio (owner/instructor of Bertil Roos School) said to me- “Constant evaluation of the track and the conditions- the track is never the same lap to lap; even corner to corner.  Its either getting worse or its getting better- almost never does it stay the same.  A driver that can accurately assess the conditions and make the necessary changes is going to be fast.”  You know what?  He’s right.  I hope it pours at Nationals.

            As for me, I am fulfilling family obligations this week/weekend.  My sister-in-law is getting married out of town, so my wife and I are helping her get ready for that.  While I haven’t been in the shop- that doesn’t mean progress isn’t being made.  The guys have been hard at work and we think we have a good handle on what happened at Pocono- and by "we" I mean "they" because they're doing the work.  They've gone back to the drawing board and are confident that when we roll into Summit Point we will have it fixed.

            So, when I get back in town- I’m going to head over to the shop and check in with everybody; but until then I’m helping my family out.  Remember, follow me @justinonderko, and check out the website (www.justinonderko.com)- we have some new video up from Pocono.  Until next week. . .

Like Old Times. . .

This is a big week in motorsports, the INDYCAR series has the week off, but NASCAR and Grand-Am will be at Indianapolis this weekend.  Scott Dixon will be joining Jamie McMurray and Juan Montoya, in Ganasi’s DP car.  Chip is putting together a ride for these drivers to race in the Grand Prix of Indy.  AJ Almendinger had his “B” sample tested, and it came back positive, so his suspension has gone from temporary to indefinite.

As for me this week has been busy trying to get our car back together for Summit Point in August.  Since this car is brand new to us, it has taken a little bit of time to decipher the parts, and where to get new parts from.  It was a lot easier with the late models, I knew those cars inside and out- and one phone call would pretty much take care of any problem.  We will get it all figured out in plenty of time.

It has kind of been like old times for me these last couple of days.  I remember in the early part of my career, when I was learning the cars.  That uneasy feeling you would get when you are looking at critical parts for the first time.  Then trying to figure how they work, and what it was supposed to look like- BEFORE- you blew it up.  Then trying to find someone who sells that part you need.  Finally- trying to talk to someone who sells those parts and get raked over the coals on the price of those parts.  Yep, pretty much like old times.

            There is one good thing about all of this.  After we fix our clutch issue, we will understand our racecar that much more.  Its one of those things that is hard to explain.  You kind of form a relationship with a racecar.  It’s like when you meet a girl and ask her out on a date.  You go on the date, and if the date goes well- you go on a couple more.  You start spending a lot of time with her, because you are having fun, you feel good when you’re together.  After a while though, its not all fun and games- and maybe you have a fight- that’s what my racecar and I did at Pocono- we had a fight.

            I’m trying to make up with my racecar right now- but instead of buying jewelry- we’re buying parts.  Nice, new, and shiny parts- and if I buy the right parts- we won’t fight anymore.  For good measure- I’ll give it an extra coat of wax after I put it all back together.

            I’m kind of poking fun at the situation, but Pocono really wasn’t that bad all things considered.  I’ve been very fortunate over the last couple of years, and I haven’t had many bad days at the track due to mechanical failures.  Spoiled I guess, but you can’t beat the crap out of a piece of machinery and expect it to stay together forever.

            I’ve got some plans for Summit Point; it will be our last race before we head to Mid-Ohio for Nationals.  In case you have some time next weekend, The INDYCAR series will be there, so you can tune in and see what the track looks like.  We missed the track record at Summit Point in June, by .062 seconds.  I think we can squeeze a little more speed out of the car, and I have a little more time in the seat- and that always helps. 

            I look forward to getting the car back in shape, and changing a few things.  It’s kind of a light week to talk about, but we will be in the shop getting our work done.  We really want to be able to put our best foot forward at Nationals.  Hopefully all goes well this week and I have good news very soon.  Till Next Week. . .

Pocono's Grand Slam. . .

            This past weekend we traveled to the Pocono International Speedway for NASA’s Grand Slam at Pocono.  If I had it to do over again, I would probably never have loaded up the car and left the shop.  Actually, it wasn’t that bad, but it was a very frustrating and mentally draining weekend.

            We arrived early Saturday morning and unloaded for the day.  I headed off to the drivers meeting and met up with a few drivers I knew.  NASA was going to run Saturday clockwise on the “Long Course” and Sunday would be run counterclockwise.  That’s pretty neat, because even though we are at the same track, it is very different to run the track opposite ways.  After the drivers meeting, I headed back to the pits and met up with everybody.

            The call came for us to head to pit road for practice and I climbed into the racecar and belted in.  The crew unplugged the oil tank, and I fired up the engine.  I looked over the gauges and everything was good to go.  My guys pushed me out of our pit spot, and I shifted into 1^st gear.  About that time my weekend fell apart.

            The car started to move, and then BANG.  Catastrophic clutch failure.  So. . . back to the pits and up on the lift.  I changed out of my driver’s suit, and into my street clothes- I was part of the crew on this one.  To make a very long and frustrating story short, I blew up the clutch.  We were able to make repairs and get the clutch back together- but not before missing qualifying as well.  We checked with race control, and they said that we would have to start at the back of a 40+ car field.

            This wouldn’t have been so bad, if I would have had even a couple of laps on the speedway.  I, however, had absolutely no track time in this car.  We felt confident that we had the problems fixed, and again we were called out to pit lane to pre-grid for the race.  This time, when I went to pull away, the car moved forward and got up to speed.

            As we came off the last corner, which was NASCAR turn 1 backwards, the green flag was waving and the hammer went to the floor.  I started passing cars and trying to get through the field.  The tracks’ timing and scoring loop was down, so my crew was trying to count the positions I was making up.  That doesn’t work very well on a 2.5 mile road course because you just can’t see the whole track.  We thought we finished 14^th, overall.  In fact, I finished 7^th, which meant in roughly 35 minutes, we passed over 30 cars and ran down the leaders.  Not bad for not having a single lap on the speedway.

            The bad news, the car started to shake and vibrate the last lap.  That meant we were going to be tearing back into the transmission after the race.  We let the racecar cool down, and once again started pulling parts back out and getting frustrated.  We realized, about 2 hours into it, we didn’t have what we needed to fix the car.  The bad news- we had to go back to the shop to get a whole new set-up, the good news- we only had a 2 hour trip.

            Sunday morning had us once again fixed up and ready to go racing.  This time, we made practice and we were happy with the car.  Again, long story short, 3^rd lap of qualifying. . . coming down the front straight- I shifted into 5^th gear- BANG- but this time followed by a serious over-rev of the motor.

            If you would have been at the track, at roughly 1:45pm you would have heard this whooshing sound.  It was all of the air being let out of our sails.  It was too much; I don’t think we could have handled anymore.  But. . . once again, there we were.  There we were, back in the pits, but this time in the rain and really- REALLY- upset.

            The Race Director also announced at that time, that due to the weather, they would be moving the race up about an hour because of a thunderstorm headed towards the track.  Back to square one.  Only this time, we had half the time to fix it, and we had to fix it, because if we didn’t run at least half the race, we would be given a DNF for Sunday.  Not something we could afford with Nationals in September.

            My crew is the best.  Hands down, they kept at it and never gave up.  Even after the race started, they kept thrashing.  In fact, as they were wrapping up, I climbed in and started getting strapped in, and somebody headed down to race control to notify them we were indeed heading out.  My guys tightened the last bolt, let me down off the lift and race control gave us the green light at the end of pit road.  We did, in fact, run over half the race.  We salvaged a terrible day.

            We salvaged an entire weekend.  With everything that happened, we still managed to win our class on Saturday.  We persevered and made the best of what we had to deal with.  On the positive side, our engineers have already started working on finding a fix to the problem.  I think, in the next couple of days, we will have found the cause of the problem, and the solution.  All in plenty of time to test it out when we head back to Summit Point Raceway in August.

            I want to thank our sponsors for the support this week.  It makes it a lot easier to get through weekends like we had, when you know your sponsors are behind you.  I will have updates next week about our progress with the car.  Till next week. . .

Countdown To Pocono. . .

            NASCAR was at Daytona, Indycar was in Toronto, and the racing was great at both places.  While the racing was great, the sanctioning bodies were also handing out penalties, fines, and suspensions this weekend too.  Eventual NASCAR race winner Tony Stewart was found to have an open cooling hose during qualifying, and had to start in the back of the pack Saturday night, though he did win the race, NASCAR still took 6 driver’s points away from him.  AJ Almendinger was temporarily suspended from competition, for violating the substance abuse policy.  Until his “B” sample is tested he will be sitting out of the car.  For his sake, I hope this test comes back negative.  Ryan Hunter-Reay won his 3^rd straight race on Sunday.  The points took a major toss this weekend as well.  Mike Conway had a podium as well, but during post race inspection, was found to have to big of a fuel cell.  10 points and $15,000 later, the team still ran very well and hopefully it’s a sign of things to come.

            As for me, our cars have been loaded up and are ready for their trip to the Pocono Raceway.  This will kind of be like a homecoming of sorts for me; the first road course I competed on was Pocono’s North Course.  NASA will be using the North Course plus NASCAR turns 1 and 2 plus the frontstrech as our course this weekend, 2.5 miles around.

            This weekend is a little bit different for us, while we will be racing during the day; we will be attending “Our Lady Queen of Peace” (Brodheadsville, PA) Church Festival Saturday evening.  I hope we avoid any contact on the track and keep the racecar in one piece during the day, because it will be on display Saturday night.  We let the kids sit in the car and sign some autographs, take some pictures and get some time to hang with our fans.  We also are going to use the time to talk about RAD and why it’s important to live a drug free and healthy lifestyle.

            We should have some good video and pictures from this weekend.  Since the race is so close to home, we will get to have a lot of people at the speedway supporting us.  Friends, family, old crew members, are going to be there to see us race.  My Mother, who is kind of our team photographer, is able to come this weekend as well.  I always enjoy when she comes, because there are always great shots that she is able to get.  She is going to get a test, she is used to oval short track racing, but this is a whole new dynamic.  Look for her photos on the site after the races.

            Speaking of the http://www.justinonderko.com/ site, one of our sponsors- OC2 Interactive- is currently working on designing our new site.  I actually had a conference call this afternoon and I can’t wait to see the site go live.  Special thanks to Michelle for taking time out of her day to discuss the progress of the site.  OC2 is the real deal- if you need web based design- they will create what you need.  Check them out www.oc2interactive.com- look at some of the work they’ve done, it speaks for itself.

            Next week we will review the race weekend and how it went.  We are prepared for a good weekend, hopefully the weather stays nice, but we are bringing our rain tires just in case.  I kind of hope it does rain- I really enjoy racing in the rain- you have to be very technical and precise with your inputs- you’re on the razors edge the whole race.  Till next week. . .