Galletta's Karting Club

8/7/2016 – Keith Raymond and Josh Arnold Split the Twin-30s!

Sunday, August 7th, 2016, Week 9 – Did the floodgates finally open last week? Finally we got some new faces in Victory Lane, and anybody watching the races is seeing how close and intense the action is! Keith Raymond executed a precise pass on leader of 29 laps, Jason King to take the 1st feature, stealing what would have been King’s 1st career win. Then it was a 1st-time winner, Josh Arnold, leading all 30 laps of feature #2, holding off some challenges from Jason King, Keith Raymond and the Chris Stevens/Matt Stevens/Kelly Miller points leader trio en route to his 1st career feature victory (Josh did win a 2015 Fall all-rookie race, but this was his 1st regular, veteran points race win). Points will be up as soon as they are tallied, and the complete race video is posted both above and on YouTube here.

Makeup Race / Rookie Heat

1. Keith Raymond (Galletta’s Greenhouse #0) – scored 13th in 7/2/2016 45-Lapper
2. RJ Wyman (Galletta’s Greenhouse #43)
3. Ken Town (Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)
4. Daniel Connors (Galletta’s Greenhouse #1)
5. (DNS – Practice) Griffin Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)

1st 30-Lap Feature – START:

1. Jason King (King Racing #12)
2. Josh Arnold (Arnold #93)
3. Keith Raymond (Galletta’s Greenhouse #0)
4. Kevin Galletta (Galletta Bros. #28)
5. Adam Lytle (Lytle #33c)
6. Matt Stevens (Galletta’s Greenhouse #33)
7. Chris Stevens (GallettasGreenhouse.com/Chrusher.com/OswegoSushi.com #4)
8. Kelly Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #9)
9. Ken Town (Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)
10. RJ Wyman (Galletta’s Greenhouse #43)
11. Daniel Connors (Galletta’s Greenhouse #1)
12. Melissa Stevens (Scissors n’ Fur #19)
13. DNS (Practice) Griffin Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)

Keith Raymond executed a last-lap pass on Jason King to rob him of his 1st career feature win! King had led all 29 laps before the perfectly timed precision pass. Wow.

1st 30-Lap Feature – FINISH:

1. Keith Raymond (Galletta’s Greenhouse #0)
2. Jason King (King Racing #12)
3. Josh Arnold (Arnold #93)
4. Adam Lytle (Lytle #33c)
5. Kevin Galletta (Galletta Bros. #28)
6. Chris Stevens (GallettasGreenhouse.com/Chrusher.com/OswegoSushi.com #4)
7. Matt Stevens (Galletta’s Greenhouse #33)
8. Kelly Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #9)
9. Ken Town (Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)
10. Daniel Connors (Galletta’s Greenhouse #1)
11. DNF – RJ Wyman (Galletta’s Greenhouse #43, #2)
12. DNF – Melissa Stevens (Scissors n’ Fur #19)
13. DNS – (Practice) Griffin Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)

2nd 30-Lap Feature – START:

1. Josh Arnold (Arnold #93)
2. Jason King (King Racing #12)
3. Kevin Galletta (Galletta Bros. #28)
4. Adam Lytle (Lytle #33c)
5. Keith Raymond (Galletta’s Greenhouse #0)
6. Kelly Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #9)
7. Matt Stevens (Galletta’s Greenhouse #33)
8. Chris Stevens (GallettasGreenhouse.com/Chrusher.com/OswegoSushi.com #4)
9. Ken Town (Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)
10. Daniel Connors (Galletta’s Greenhouse #1)
11. DNS – RJ Wyman (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)
12. DNS – Melissa Stevens (Scissors n’ Fur #19)
13. DNS – (Practice) Griffin Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)

Josh Arnold impressively led all 30 laps to his 1st career feature win. The top three in points were all bumper-to-bumper in back of him, but Chris got loose in the final turn trying one last pass attempt on Josh, Kelly got slowed behind the #4 and Matt almost got both Kelly and his brother, but Chris recovered and barely held him off. Kelly lost a spot in the exchange. Last second place changes like this are critical to the points when we’re this close, and I do believe this is the closest top-3 in points at this point of the season in our 21 year history.

2nd 30-Lap Feature – FINISH:

1. Josh Arnold (Arnold #93)
2. Chris Stevens (GallettasGreenhouse.com/Chrusher.com/OswegoSushi.com #4)
3. Matt Stevens (Galletta’s Greenhouse #3)
4. Kelly Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #9)
5. Keith Raymond (Galletta’s Greenhouse #0, #1)
6. Ken Town (Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)
7. Adam Lytle (Lytle #33c)
8. DNF – Jason King (King Racing #12)
9. DNF – Kevin Galletta (Galletta Bros. #28)
10. DNF – Daniel Connors (Galletta’s Greenhouse #1)
11. DNS – RJ Wyman (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)
12. DNS – Melissa Stevens (Scissors n’ Fur #19)
13. DNS – (Practice) Griffin Miller (Galletta’s Greenhouse #2)

SCORING NOTES:

• Due to a scoring error, this week’s race counts as 35 lap chart instead of 30 lap chart. My mistake means everyone earned a few more points (write it off to counting cautions).
• As of August 1st (this week’s race), no more makeup points for drivers outside of veterans with at least either one career feature win and/or top-10 in current/active season’s points. There is not enough time and mental energy for me to handle too much point digging/awarding otherwise.
• Keith Raymond and RJ Mayman each used mid-race kart changes, which is a -5 point penalty.

RACING RULES CLARIFICATIONS:

Two occasions last race came up where drivers weren’t 100% sure of the rules, and Chris and Matt hate making mid-race judgement calls because when they did so in the past, some drivers/spectators accused them of having conflict of interest. [Side note to a few occasions in 2006-2010: A false accusation, because we follow the rules, not just rules to help ourselves. When I personally challenged the accusers to watch the hundreds and hundreds of hours of our races available in our DVD library (and now YouTube) and find a single point where Chris and Matt didn’t obey rules, I would personally give them $100. Several years have passed and not one claim has been made).] Most rules at Galletta’s follow most short track racing rules, and most drivers do understand basic racing rules, but we do have occasional exceptions. Here are a few that came up this past race:

START/RESTART:

After the conclusion of the 1st feature, cornerman Brian Galletta warned Keith Raymond that one of his restarts was questionable, and felt that he passed Adam Lytle and Kevin Galletta before he was legally able to. In reviewing the video, it does not appear that Kevin was passed before the leader’s front bumper crossed the pylon in turn 4… BUT, the video was obstructed and did not conclusively show whether or not he was in the process of passing Lytle before the pylon. Brian, being cornerman with a clear view, did have the right to throw a yellow and give a warning. Regardless, this is a reminder/warning to all drivers, as you can be penalized in hindsight even if it was not stopped live, although you will likely receive a warning on your 1st offense. Here it is:

• Leader sets the pace on starts and restarts. However, this does not mean the leader can just blast the gas and leave everyone in the dust, unable to mount a challenge. He cannot go too fast, because the guys in the back are a half track behind before they even hit the throttle. . He should be in caution speed in turn 3, and the apex of turns 3 & 4, he may begin to get harder on the throttle. If he is too fast in the back stretch or 3, drivers in the rear are unfairly out of the action and it hurts the competition, so flaggers or other drivers can request a restart with one warning. 2nd warning, he will be sent to the rear.
• With the exception of our big races (the 200 Lapper, for example, which starts double-file), starts and restarts must be single file until the leader’s front bumper passes the pylon in turn 4. All drivers should be anywhere from a few inches to less than a kart length in back of the person in front of them (any more and there is too much space between causing a spaced out restart, any less and you’re bumping, and potentially causing an accident or crashing with the guy in front of you if they start to wreck). You MUST stay single file before the leader’s front bumper crosses the pylon, and if you are not in file, you could be disqualified. If a pass is executed BEFORE then, they will receive a warning and a restart will be done. 2nd offense they are sent to the rear. If it is caught on video after the race but missed live, there may be point penalties enacted during scoring.
• If it is caught on video after the race but missed live, there will be point penalties enacted during scoring.

TANGLES DURING CAUTION AND KEEPING OR LOSING YOUR SPOT:

After the race’s conclusion, Kelly Miller wondered why he didn’t get his spot back after tangling with Adam Lytle and coming to a stop during the 2nd feature. This brings up a good time to discuss the rule, which some drivers did not know. Here it is the rule:

If a driver wants to challenge losing his position during a caution, bring it up with Chris and Wes and we will either ask the officials and active drivers who saw it live, or else stop the race to review the camera footage.

1.  If a driver comes to a stop on the track to avoid, spins to avoid, or goes off the track to avoid a prone kart, and does not hit any barriers, nor flips, he will get his spot back, but if nobody saw it live, we may have to review the video.
2. If a driver kept going with zero to minimal contact with the prone kart, and the kart ahead did not wreck from any contact with the driver in question, he will get his spot back, but if nobody saw it live, we may have to review the video.
3. If a driver makes significant contact (a light brush or light contact is passable; but one’s riding bumper, hooked tires or bumpers, or effectively assisting in a spin out that would not have happened otherwise, is not) and either keeps going or comes to a stop, they are part of the accident and must go to the back. This is why one should refrain from riding someone’s bumper. If they spin or go off track, the chances you go with them are extremely high, as you have nowhere to go, and are considered part of the accident.

Sometimes it’s a judgement call, and sometimes the spun driver must be questioned (did the contact make him wreck or was he already losing control before the contact? Sometimes the line is so razor thin that one cannot properly judge, especially if the camera view is poor and/or not enough impartial witnesses). No matter what, all decisions can be penalized after the race when the race is being scored and the video is being reviewed, so always be as honest and truthful as possible in on-track close-judgement calls.

2016 World 1-WD Gas Flathead Backyard Karting Championship Point Standings

After the 6/12/2016 – 8/7/2016 Races:

NEXT WEEK’S HANDICAP: