Late
Race Incident Takes Her Out of Contention
Craig Revelle - Finish Line Web Design
May 15, 2012
PENTICTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA – The final
result at Motoplex Speedway in Vernon, BC was nowhere near indicative how well
Sarah Cornett-Ching performed in the opening round of the OK Tire ARCA West
Series debut on Saturday night. A
solid run went south after contact from another competitor sent her into the
wall, ending what would have been a great day for the Cornett-Ching
team.
Sarah had a great practice session at
Motoplex a week earlier, and the team was confident going into opening
night. They tried out a new setup
during that practice session, and were anxious to see how they stacked up
against some of the best racers in the province.
“We have done a lot or work over the off
season and applied some new things to our set up going into last weekend’s
practice and we were really happy with how the car performed”, says
Cornett-Ching. “It is a great
feeling to be competitive and battle for wins each and every night that we race,
and we also take pride in knowing that we are one of the few competitive teams
that set up our own car”.
In opening practice, Sarah posted the
third fastest speed, but she was looking for a little more grip coming off the
corners. In time trials, they were
unable to find that grip, and were 10th out of the 21 cars. With the inversion of the fastest 10
cars from time trials, Cornett-Ching was able to start from the front row in her
qualifier. She got off to a great
start, and the changes they made to the car got the rear grip they had been
looking for, and she drove her Snap On Tools #99 to
victory.
"It
is a great feeling to put our car in victory lane to show our sponsors, crew and
everyone who supports us we have what it takes”, says Cornett-Ching after the
qualifier”. It also doesn't hurt to
put a little fear in the competitors minds either!"
At the drop of the green flag in the
Lordco 100 ARCA West Series season open, Sarah got off to a great start,
settling into second place, and she maintained that through the first 60 laps of
the race. Sarah was able to battle
on the outside to maintain her position on the first restart of the race, but
after the second caution, Sarah lost ground on the outside, and while looking
for an opening to get back in line, trouble began, as she was hit from behind,
causing a chain reaction of events that resulted in her car hitting the inside
wall on the frontstretch. She was
able to rejoin the field, and finish on the lead lap, but her 16th
place finish was a disappointing end to a very promising
night.
"I
am really disappointed with the finish but I can honestly
say I can't wait for the next race May 26 in Williams Lake, BC”, says
Cornett-Ching after the race. “We
have a race car that's faster than a jet fighter and it will be in
Victory Lane yet this year”.
For more information on Sarah
Cornett-Ching and to follow her racing accomplishments, please visit her newly
revamped website, www.sccracing.com or visit her on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/sccracing.