Fireworks & A Fast Car: July 3 Recap

The 4th of July race weekend is usually one of my favorite races - the racing is good and the fans show up in full force. And this weekend was no different! It was jam-packed and between the fireworks and a hell of a race car, we had a great night.

We started out strong in the first two practice sets - making a few changes in both to try and find a little speed. We ultimately went with what we knew, and it didn't let us down. So much so that I decided against running the third practice set.

Qualifying was a breeze and I earned quick time for the night. I'm really proud that we've taken home quick time all but one race night so far this season - and the one we didn't take home, I ran second quick. It's been awesome to show up and show out with a fast car in qualifying this season.

We started P6 in the heat race after rolling a 3 for the invert. The heat race was nice clean racing, and I ran a steady P5. It was a solid race, but I tend to not push too hard in the heat races, to avoid the possibility of tearing up a race car.

For the main event, we had a top 5 pill draw, and I drew the pole.

Starting on the pole is always a bit nerve-wracking but we had a stellar field of GAMs this year, so of course, it's a strong place to start.

The start of the main event was a bit of a struggle. We had several restarts and a bunch of cars got torn up in the mid and back of the pack. At each restart, I held my ground keeping the pole position, and of course, we had yet to finish a lap. But on the last restart of the race, Gasser got past me. From there, I ran in second place for a while, and then Fox got me. Fox and Gasser battled for the lead, before Fox ultimately ran away with it.

We took home a P3 finish, and I'm kicking myself for that last restart, but hey, that's racing. I'm still really proud of a podium finish.

It's been a hell of a season so far. I'm proud of myself and the 21 team, and I'm grateful to our sponsors and everyone who makes Ryan Jones Racing possible.