We are well into the off season now for the short track racer. Its actually just the “Not Racing” season, because you really can’t take any time off anymore. Its cold and the only place where anyone is racing is down in Daytona. The Rolex 24 hour race is this weekend, followed by ARCA/NASCAR with their respective races. It seems like the Saturday night short track racers have a long way to go until they fire their motors again. This is the time, however, that is most important. This is the most time you will have all season long- time to prepare your machines; cause once the season starts it doesn’t stop till October.
Last time, we left off we were in the off season of 2004, and the car was being rebuilt and was being gone through for the upcoming season. I was going to run the whole season and make a bid for “Rookie of the Year”. I had the guys in the shop working pretty well, and was trying to teach them all I knew, and help them become more knowledgeable about what they were doing. I felt like I had things under control, and for the most part I did.
What I didn’t count on, was that people make mistakes. Mistakes cost money, and money is quickly spent. So even when you’re not racing, racing will still cost you money. It made me aware, very quickly, whose head was in the game and who was at the shop for a good time. As the season approached, the car was almost finished; I turned my attention to removing some of the guys who were there for the wrong reasons. That sounds so bad- I basically fired volunteer help, but it had to be done- anyone who races will tell you- we don’t do it for a good time, and I was serious about it. After it was all said and done, I was able to retain 1 guy out of the original 7 I had- there were others that left on their own.
While I felt like I was right back where I was 6 months ago, things were actually looking up. The productivity was back up and there were less mistakes being made. It was tough to lose that many people, but I think it was the best thing at the time. I was able to put more time in on the car myself, instead of acting more like a supervisor. The season was rapidly approaching, and the car was just about complete. I needed to paint it, and put on the new vinyl, but all in all I was happy with the progress.
The best part about this time, was that now I felt like I was taking steps to achieve my goals. I had always loved racing, and always dreamed about driving. All of the extra money and time spent getting the car ready- the late night calls to the girlfriend telling her I wouldn’t be able to come over, the busted knuckles, and all of the frustration- just seemed to go away when I looked at the car in the shop. It is a part of racing you just have to experience to fully understand it, but I remember how great that felt, and how I was getting ready to compete in my first full season. I never gave it a second thought that it might not go exactly like I wanted it too.
While it may seem like things slowed down during the off season, they will pick up again next week. While we are racers at heart, we spend 90% of our time in the shop getting ready. You may have heard its where races are won and lost. The work in the shop isn’t always the most fun, or most rewarding, but it is necessary. Next week the season gets underway, and we look at what it takes to keep the car on the track for the whole season. I know I ask each week, but please check out my sponsors on this page. I appreciate your interest in the blog, and you can check me out on twitter @justinonderko.
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