Tacoma, Washington –
6-14-2010 – After finally rejoining the 2010 racing season, "Terrible" Tim McDougald and his #68 KMB Design / Hargis Engineers / Print-NW / Ringers Gloves / Cornwell Tools Toyota Camry were once again met with more mechanical problems.
After the previous problems sidelined McDougald for two races and derailed the season goal the team had outlined early on, "Terrible" Tim made his return to Southsound Speedway in Tenino, Washington with a renewed spirit and a refocused goal. This time the goal would be to make it through the night. With a double header on tap, "Terrible" Tim and his HayWire Racing team knew this would be a bit more challenging than they had planned. "We didn't even realize it was a Twin-Main night." said driver "Terrible" Tim. "We had been so busy trying to get the car fixed and get back to the track, we didn't look real closely at the schedule. Someone pointed it out about mid-week and we were kind of shocked. We definitely were not anticipating that."
Early practice showed both some signs of promise and some signs of concern for the small family operated team from Tacoma, Washington. With a couple quick practice sessions to dial the car in, the team set about making some pretty drastic changes to the #68 KMB Design / Hargis Engineers / Print-NW / Ringers Gloves / Cornwell Tools Toyota Camry. "We came to the track with what we thought was our 'starting point'," said "Terrible" Tim. "The car was very tight, I mean very tight. We kept working on it, but it didn't seem to be getting any better. then we stumbled on something that really helped and we started getting very close. I was really happy with my guys. I know I was getting frustrated and I'm sure it showed over the radio. But they just kept working on it and finally it started getting really good. I can't thank them enough for their dedication."
While the setup was slowly coming around, other issues seemed to be sneaking in on the #68 HayWire Racing team. "We seemed to have some engine issues that we can't quite put our finger on. It just didn't seem to be running right," said "Terrible" Tim. "This season we haven't really had a lot of time to trouble shoot things. It's really just been a lot of 'get it to the track and hope for the best'. We know we have some sort of ignition problem with this new crate motor. We don't really know what it is, but it just doesn't seem to have any power." Aside from the engine problems, the team developed an issue in the rear end that would ultimately bring their night to an early end. "We noticed some noise in the rear end that didn't sound right just before qualifying," said "Terrible" Tim. "But it seemed to run ok, so we didn't really think much of it at the time. I'm not sure what it was, but we know now that it was trying to tell us something."
Through all the problems, the team found themselves looking pretty good after a solid run in qualifying set "Terrible" Tim and his #68 KMB Design / Hargis Engineers / Print-NW / Ringers Gloves / Cornwell Tools Toyota Camry 7th quickest out of the 15 car field. With a 6 car invert for the first 35-lap Main Event of the night, "Terrible" Tim would be starting right in the middle of the field and the middle of the action. "I was pretty happy with our qualifying run," said a very excited "Terrible" Tim. "We've been struggling with this new setup for a while now and it was nice to hit on something where we felt like we were starting to understand some things and get where we need to be. This new car is going to be a real nice piece. So far I'm very happy with it. We have some work to do still, but to put it in the middle of the field this early in our new program was really cool. My hat's off to my crew for their effort on that."
The action would heat up shortly after the green flag, as McDougald found himself in the wrong spot at the wrong time, sending a fellow competitor spinning around coming out of turn 4. "J.J. (Hamilton) was passing me on the outside. I didn't expect him to come out of the turn so straight, he really cut it hard in the middle and sort of drove down through my lane. I felt pretty bad for turning him like that. I just didn't see that coming. But sometimes you just find yourself in the wrong spot, that's racing." After restarting the race at the back of the field, McDougald would go to work trying to make up some lost ground. But just 10 laps in, the night would come to an end as the rear end broke, sending McDougald to the pits and ultimately home for the night. "I don't really know what broke yet, we haven't had time to pull it apart yet," said a rather dejected McDougald. "After it broke the first time we kind of used all our resources to get it back together. I'm not sure what the extent of the damage is, but it don't look good. This one may take some time to fix. This hasn't been the best season for us, it seems like we just can't shake the bad luck. I thought maybe we were doing ok after Donny had a couple good weeks in his car. I was hoping we could translate that over to mine. Early on things were looking good. When I did the warm-up laps I told the guys on the radio we were in good shape. I was really feeling confident then and felt like it was going to be a good run for the first race. I just can't believe it ended like that. I don't know what to do to make this stop."
Now the team will head back to the shop and start assessing the extent of the damage and formulate a plan to get the #68 KMB Design / Hargis Engineers / Print-NW / Ringers Gloves / Cornwell Tools Toyota Camry back on track one more time. After a very tough early season, it may be a while before the team can pick themselves back up after this latest blow. But one thing is for sure, they will be back to try again. "I'd like to say we will be back for the next race, but I know it won't happen," said "Terrible" Tim. "the reality is that we have just exhausted all of our resources trying to recover from the first round of problems we had. I think this one will sideline us for a couple races here. Hopefully we can make it back for the holiday weekend, but I think the 17th is probably more realistic and even that may be a stretch right now. I don't really want to put a timeline on it because honestly I'm not sure when we will be able to get it back together. But I know my guys and we'll go to work on it. you'll see us again this year."
To keep up to date on the progress of the repairs, the changing plans and any other news on the #68 KMB Design / Hargis Engineers / Print-NW / Ringers Gloves / Cornwell Tools Toyota Camry or any of the HayWire Racing team cars, simply head over to the team website and blog at http://www.haywire-racing.com, check the team Facebook site (HayWire Motorsports), sign up for the team newsletter at http://www.haywire-racing.com/phplist or follow the team on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/terribletim68.
For up to date news, information and complete coverage contact:
HayWire Motorsports
14711 12th Ave E, Suite B
Tacoma, Wa. 98445
Or visit the HayWire Racing website at - http://www.haywire-racing.com
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