Drivers tune up engines

May 15, 2007

By MATT TUNSETH/ Frontiersman

WASILLA - Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.

The Mat-Su auto racing season got fired up with a weekend of fine-tuning and test runs at tracks in Willow and Wasilla Saturday and Sunday. At both Capitol Speedway and North Star Speedway, racers spent their time making a few final tweaks to cars in hopes of earning a few checkered flags this season.

&#8220I'm just trying to work out the winter bugs,” racer Damian LaMountain said while working on his late model Monte Carlo SS on Sunday.

LaMountain said he's been working on his car through the winter, but the weekend opening at North Star gave him a chance to get out and see what his car can do.

&#8220A few more tweaks and turns and we'll be ready to go,” he said.

LaMountain is one of the more veteran racers in the Valley, having raced in Alaska for more than a decade. He's been at North Star for the past three years, racing in the state's top stock car division. He said the asphalt track in Wasilla is the premier racing venue in the state.

&#8220This is the best it gets in Alaska as far as asphalt,” he said.

The weekend testing was the culmination of a year's worth of preparation for the three-month Alaska racing season.

&#8220It's a full-time job to keep one of these things going,” he said.

LaMountain was joined Sunday by a slew of drivers hoping for a successful season, ranging from wily veterans to green newcomers to the sport.

One of the newest on Sunday was 12-year-old Carly Meacham, who along with her family - dad Robert, mom Mary and grandmother Sheilah Eral - spent the afternoon testing out her Bandolero-class car, a scaled-down miniature stock car designed primarily for younger racers.

Having spent much of her childhood racing four-wheelers, Carly is no stranger to competition. But this year will mark her first behind the wheel of a car at the asphalt track. For her, the attraction to racing is simple.

&#8220Going fast and working on the car,” she said.

Carly's mom, Mary, said she believes her daughter is ready to take the step up to car racing.

&#8220She has the drive for it, and she loves it,” Mary Meacham said.

Although Bandoleros only reach a top speed of about 60 miles per hour, Mary admitted she still gets a bit nervous when her daughter straps herself into the cockpit. While dad Robert is responsible for the mechanical side of things, Mary said her job is simply to keep her fingers crossed.

&#8220I'm just the mom who has a heart attack,” she said.

Robert Meacham pointed out that the cars have a number of safety features to keep drivers save, including a full roll cage that prevents the driver from being injured if there's a crash.

In fact, as Carly's grandmother, Sheila, pointed out, auto racing is actually a much safer diversion for youngsters than many of the alternatives.

&#8220It keeps them away from the drugs and the booze and all that stuff,” she said.

In addition, she said that stock car racing is an ideal way for families to spend time together.

&#8220That's what I like about it,” she said. &#8220It's a family thing.”

Another racer out for some testing Sunday was Mike Bergt, who this season will be behind the wheel of a 5/8-scale baby grand car he bought recently. Bergt said this season will be his first as a driver, and he said it's something he's anxiously looking forward to.

&#8220I'm excited,” Bergt said.

Bergt said he'd been getting pressure from friends to get into the sport, and finally decided over the winter to try his hand at racing.

&#8220I finally bit the bullet and bought a car,” he said.

On Sunday, it was hard to tell who was more excited for the upcoming season, Bergt, or his son, Andrew, who took a turn sitting behind the wheel of the car.

.&#8220We might have to get a two-by-four so he can reach the pedals,” Bergt joked.

The family-friendly atmosphere at the track is what most racers said is the sport's biggest draw. In fact, even highly-competitive veteran racers often spend time helping their rivals get cars in racing shape.

&#8220Your fiercest competitors after you're done will come over and help you out,” Damian LaMountain said.

LaMountain recalled one race last summer when he and a rival traded a little paint out on the oval. Following the race, he said a couple heated words were exchanged. A short time later, however, all was forgotten.

&#822020 minutes later we're having an after-race beverage together,” he said.

The only drawback of the close-knit Alaska racing scene, LaMountain pointed out, is the state's short summers.

&#8220The only downfall of this place is the season isn't long enough.”

While the past weekend's action was only practice, a full schedule of races is set for Saturday, with races at both Capitol Speedway in Willow on Saturday and North Star on Saturday and Sunday. Gates open in Willow at 4 p.m. and 2 p.m. at North Star. For more information on the season at either track, visit www.capitolspeedway.org or www.northstarspeedway.com.

Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@frontiersman.com