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2005 In Review

As noted below, 2004 finished with a flair and 2005 started the same with another win at our home track, Spencer Speedway. In fact we had five of them throughout the year along with two seconds, three thirds and a number of other good outings. While racing is lots of fun, it can’t compare with another significant event in 2005. Similar to 2003 the Kelsch Racing family grew. This time it was Austin Thomas Kelsch born on July 2, 2005. He’s already started on a collection of cars and some tools to keep them running.

Wanting to stick closer to home we decided on only two out of town races; Maple Grove and Pittsburgh PA. Maple Grove was an exciting time. A loss of compression on number 5 during the last time trial would apparently end our day. They called Super Street to staging for round one so we put the car back in the box and prepared to head home. A brief shower sent all cars back to the pits. Having nothing else to do we decided to take a look at why the loss in cylinder pressure. It was a blown head gasket. An announcement came from the tower that the rain would soon stop and the track would be dried. The rain delay gave us the time to replace the gasket. Just as we finished warming the engine and adjusting the valves they again called our class to staging. And the best part, we won the round. (A special thanks to Dean Olschewske, Lance Pinto and Steve McGrath for their assistance with the head gasket repair.)

Not to sound like a broken record but it was out seventh consecutive year earning a place at the NHRA Division 1 Bracket Final. At the season end banquet we received an added bonus for our third place season finish and special recognition as “Best Appearing Super Pro”.

2004 In Review

Just prior to the 2004 season we decided to increase the “rubber on the road” and went with the new Aluma-Star wheels by Weld. To complement the 3” wider wheel we upped the tire size and returned to our old favorite Mickey Thompson slicks. The new combination worked well all season.

We were off to our best season start ever, opening at the NHRA Division 1 event at Maple Grove PA. It’s a track we have enjoyed over the years and 20004 was no exception as we finished the event in 7th place. Of the seven scheduled Division 1 events in 2004 we attended six. Atco NJ came at an inconvenient time.

Year over year we have improved our performance and this year was no exception. Our season end was our best ever. Labor Day Saturday we were at our home track, Spencer Speedway, and claimed a third place finish. The following day was the Inaugural 1/8 mile Shootout at the new Skyview Dragstrip, Tioga Center, NY. Many from our area were planning on attending and the 3rd place finish made it a “free” trip. Seven rounds later we were in the winner’s circle. The following week we were at Spencer Speedway and it was another first place. And again the week after that it was a first place in a box / no box gamblers race, also at Spencer’s.

For the sixth year in a row we were pleased to represent our home track at the NHRA Division 1 Bracket Finals in Delmar Delaware. This year our Kelsch Racing crew chief was the Spencer Speedway Team Captain at the event.

2003 In Review

Our pre-season test & tune revealed some mechanical difficulties. Easy for me to say, I wasn’t driving. (see Driver’s Seat page) But as Paul mentions, all’s well that ends well. The best way to sum up the year is to listen for the wedding bells. We at Kelsch Racing were pleased and excited with the addition of a new member of the family. Paul, our driver, married Katie, a local resident and occasional driver in the Street class at our local race track. Besides all the details for the wedding, was the purchase and renovation of their new home. The decision was made early in the season to limit our race schedule.

We did make an appearance at the national event at Englishtown. We ran well, won some money and got our name in the National Dragster. We watched three days of rain at the NHRA Division 1 Maple Grove race. Such are the drawbacks of participating in an outdoor sport.

The remainder of the season was spent at our local track. We did well and enjoyed the good times spent with our racing friends from earlier years. Once again our season ended with, for the fifth year in a row, earning a spot representing our local track at the NHRA Division 1 Bracket Finals.

2002 In Review

The competition plan for 2002 was participation in all seven NHRA Division 1 events, one NHRA National, one IHRA National, and again to represent our local track, Spencer Speedway, at the Division 1 Bracket finals. We met the plan and more.

Our first event was the Matco Tools Spring Nationals at Englishtown NJ. As you will see later, Englishtown is one of our favorite tracks. Being our first race of the year, however, we had some early season problems which led to an early close to the event for us.

The following week we were at Maple Grove PA. We qualified for the race and were in the top 8 feature event held on Saturday night. Good starting line performance and consistent car performance led to a victory. The following day we were out in the second round.

We must return to an earlier mention of Englishtown. In 2001 we finished in a tie for 3rd. Both car and driver like the track. Again, a good combination of starting line performance and car performance led to round after round victory. At the end of the day we finished in third place. We are looking forward to two appearances at Englishtown in 2003.

Our one IHRA event was the Carquest Auto Parts Empire Nationals in Leicester NY. Here again we were consistent. Against very stiff competition we were third round runner up.

Our season ended with, for the fourth year in a row, representing our home track in the Bracket Finals at Cecil County Dragway MD. The weekend opened with our winning our local track competition “Closest To Your Dial First Round Time Trial”. The car and driver were right on all weekend. In round 1 eliminations we had a .508 light. Unfortunately we suffered our first race-day breakage when, about a foot off the line, the ring and pinion decided enough is enough. Paul parked it about 10 feet out and waited for a push back to the staging lanes.

In NHRA Division 1points we finished 20th out of 160 entrants, an improvement of 10 positions over 2001. We had a 9th place finish in Jeg’s Allstar compared to 20th in 2001. All-in-all, a very good year and another step closer to a consistent winner.

2001 In Review

After a local IHRA 10.90 feature race where we finished tied for 5th out of nearly 100 entrants our divisional/national season started with an appearance at the NHRA MATCO Spring National in Englishtown NJ. The car qualified well and saw a first round ET of 10.902. The tight level of national competition was evident when our competition ran 10.900. Although a loss, our ET was second best for the round and showed our ability to compete at that level.

The IHRA major event for 2001 was the Empire Nationals in mid July. Year over year we have increased our round win count. The Empire’s was no exception. We were third round runner-up and placed in the money. In fact we were in the money 8 times during 2001.

After events at Maple Grove, Lebanon Valley and Numidia our NHRA Division One effort ended at the rain delayed Federal Mogul race at Englishtown. Our second trip to Englishtown ended very different from our first. We went to the semi-finals where lost to Glenn Winzer on the tree and broke out by .004 Our efforts in Federal Mogul gave us a 30th place finish out of 147 cars and 20th in All-star point out of 139 cars

The season ended with our 3rd in-a-row appearance at the NHRA Division I Bracket Finals in Delmar, Delaware. In the past we have bettered the prior year’s results. That string continued this year. We were the last door car in our group of ten cars.

2001 was, for both car and driver, a success. All our objectives were met and our increase in performance has us on track for an even more successful 2002. We sincerely appreciate all those who supported our efforts. We trust our supporters and fans enjoyed the 2001 season as much as we from Kelsch Racing did.

2000 In Review

Changes during the 1999 post season made a measurable difference as we prepared for 2000 and our inauguration into Super Street.

We opened the season at ATCO Raceway Park in New Jersey. It was an opportunity to use the new throttle stop and Mega 300 computer from Biondo Racing. Although the race was rained out, we were able to complete two days of time trails. Following our home opener at Spencer Speedway on May 6th and 3 weeks of local racing we headed for our first Super Street Division 1 race at Maple Grove, Pennsylvania. Although a second round loss put us in the trailer we gained confidence that we were indeed competitive.

A major objective for 2000, to appear at an NHRA National, was realized with our qualification to run at the Summit Pontiac Nationals near Columbus, Ohio on June 15th through 18th. Carburetor problems put us out early. The experience, however, made the trip worthwhile.

Early June saw great success at our home track. We earned a third place followed a week later with top honors. Mid June put us at the Empire Nationals in New York. Our earlier Pontiac Nationals carburetor problems came back to haunt us. Although we were not successful at the race, the generous folks at the Holley factory trailer gave us the info we needed to fix the problem.

The season ended with our appearance at the NHRA Division I Bracket Finals in Delmar, Delaware. For the second year in a row we would represent our home track as the 2000 season came to a close. We bettered last year’s performance by one round but more importantly were able to reflect back on the season and feel good about what we had done and how far we have come in two short years.