THE WEEKEND WARRIORS
One Week at a Time in the Dirt
A Racers View
By: Kevin "Ohio Outlaw" Lentz
Week 4 April 21, 2005
Well, time really does heal all wounds. Despite a lot of problems at Skyline Speedways' opening night on
April 8th and continued difficulties all week last week, the L & W Motorsports #00 was back at it on Friday
April 15th at Rocky Top Raceway . After a bad couple weeks that started to take the confidence out of our
team, we finally had a pretty good car at a fast race track. When I last left you it was Tuesday and we were
still a starter short of being ready to race. I made my weekly three hour trek to the shop on Thursday and
had our third new starter in two weeks installed by dad and David shortly before my arrival. I was on
vacation last week, so I decided that getting down there early on Thursday was the best idea. This was to
be our first trip to Rocky Top Raceway and had a three hour drive the next day.
By Thursday late afternoon we had the Rayburn once again ready to throw dirt. We loaded the car and my
truck with everything we thought we would need. After we loaded up, there was a little time to relax and
refocus on the task of getting our program headed in the right direction.My week was very enjoyable as I
finally had time to spend with my wife and son. The weather was great all week and I even got to do a little
yard work. My one and a half year old was amazed by good ole' dads' lawn mowing skills. It was a lot of
fun getting to watch him play outside for a change. I tried to spend as much time as I could with my little
outlaw, because I knew this was going to be a long weekend and I wouldn't get to see him or Kim from
Thursday thru Sunday. I usually feel guilty about leaving so early and then realize it is a sacrifice I have to
make if I want to get where I want to go. Still, it does weigh heavy on my mind. My goal is to eventually
be ahead enough that Kim doesn't have to work and can make these trips with me as a family.
Friday morning came with sunny skies and warm temperatures. I had a good feeling things were going to
start going our way. For once, we were ready early and seemed to have everything going smooth. We were
going to be short handed on Friday as David had a work related commitment and was not going to be able
to travel with my dad and I. We left at two o'clock and made it to Rocky Top three hours later ready to
have fun and get a strong finish. Despite a low car count at RTR, there were some impressive names such
as the feature winner Eddie Carrier Jr. I broke starter number three in hot laps and was unsure if I would
be able to race. After talking with a track official, it was determined that they would be push starting me all
night. Every official I spoke with at RTR was very professional and just happy to have us. Hats off to
these track workers. I decided that I would not attempt to qualify, thus tagging the tail in my heat. We
started on the tail and were as high as third before dropping out with a few laps to go. Again, starting on the
tail of the A-main, we were off and moving. I moved up to ninth and would have finished seventh but
broke a fuel line and was done for the night. I really enjoyed Rocky Top a lot, everyone was nice and
helpful. The track was smooth, fast and racy. The facility is pretty nice as well. I really liked the little
scoreboard in turn one. I enjoyed meeting T.J. Layne and appreciate him welcoming us to Rocky Top.
After loading up and collecting our winnings, we were ready to get home and get ready for Midway the next
night.
We finally got home about 3:30 a.m. and were up about 8:00 a.m. ready to get working. I was in a pretty
good mood and am happy to say that I had fun Friday. It's been a difficult ride so far for us in racing and
the fun has been limited at most. The team was pretty happy getting an early top ten and I regained some
lost confidence. We discovered that our new turbo start battery was a dud and was not holding a charge,
thus causing our starter problems. We got a new battery and fuel line and started working as fast as
we could. We were holding out hope that the starter was not damaged and we could still get another show in
this weekend. Well, as usual, we did do more damage to the starter than we hoped. We had about one
hour to have the car complete and loaded if we were to race Saturday night. The fuel line was on and I
made a decision to give the starter a few shims and then forget it. Of course, the starter was chewed up and
we were left as spectators for the night.
We decided to go to Midway and try to help other teams that needed help. In hot laps Jeff Gress and Mike
Burley got into each other and we found ourselves in the Gress pit trying to help him get his body back
together before qualifying. Jeff and his wife are great people and we really enjoyed talking with them.
Thanks for the cold one Jeff. We spent most of the night just talking to people and helping where we could.
The racing was good as usual at midway. We talked to Skip Waterman for a good half hour and look
forward to seeing Skip piloting the R-III machine of Brent Steele. We plan to return to Rocky Top
Raceway this Friday (15th) and Midway Saturday (16th). I would once again like to thank Jody Shannon
and Todd Lefevers for this opportunity. I want to thank my sponsors: Rhodes Race Wire, A-C Cleaning
and Restoration, Midwest Right of Way, Bunker Hill Welding And Fabrication, www.DirtFans.com , and
Fire Freeze Worldwide. Lastly and definitely not least the fans for their continued support of all the tracks
and driver If you would like to join L & W Motorsports as a sponsor please e-mail me kalentz00@aol.com
Kevin "Ohio Outlaw" Lentz
L & W Motorsports
www.lwmotorsports.com
April 8th and continued difficulties all week last week, the L & W Motorsports #00 was back at it on Friday
April 15th at Rocky Top Raceway . After a bad couple weeks that started to take the confidence out of our
team, we finally had a pretty good car at a fast race track. When I last left you it was Tuesday and we were
still a starter short of being ready to race. I made my weekly three hour trek to the shop on Thursday and
had our third new starter in two weeks installed by dad and David shortly before my arrival. I was on
vacation last week, so I decided that getting down there early on Thursday was the best idea. This was to
be our first trip to Rocky Top Raceway and had a three hour drive the next day.
By Thursday late afternoon we had the Rayburn once again ready to throw dirt. We loaded the car and my
truck with everything we thought we would need. After we loaded up, there was a little time to relax and
refocus on the task of getting our program headed in the right direction.My week was very enjoyable as I
finally had time to spend with my wife and son. The weather was great all week and I even got to do a little
yard work. My one and a half year old was amazed by good ole' dads' lawn mowing skills. It was a lot of
fun getting to watch him play outside for a change. I tried to spend as much time as I could with my little
outlaw, because I knew this was going to be a long weekend and I wouldn't get to see him or Kim from
Thursday thru Sunday. I usually feel guilty about leaving so early and then realize it is a sacrifice I have to
make if I want to get where I want to go. Still, it does weigh heavy on my mind. My goal is to eventually
be ahead enough that Kim doesn't have to work and can make these trips with me as a family.
Friday morning came with sunny skies and warm temperatures. I had a good feeling things were going to
start going our way. For once, we were ready early and seemed to have everything going smooth. We were
going to be short handed on Friday as David had a work related commitment and was not going to be able
to travel with my dad and I. We left at two o'clock and made it to Rocky Top three hours later ready to
have fun and get a strong finish. Despite a low car count at RTR, there were some impressive names such
as the feature winner Eddie Carrier Jr. I broke starter number three in hot laps and was unsure if I would
be able to race. After talking with a track official, it was determined that they would be push starting me all
night. Every official I spoke with at RTR was very professional and just happy to have us. Hats off to
these track workers. I decided that I would not attempt to qualify, thus tagging the tail in my heat. We
started on the tail and were as high as third before dropping out with a few laps to go. Again, starting on the
tail of the A-main, we were off and moving. I moved up to ninth and would have finished seventh but
broke a fuel line and was done for the night. I really enjoyed Rocky Top a lot, everyone was nice and
helpful. The track was smooth, fast and racy. The facility is pretty nice as well. I really liked the little
scoreboard in turn one. I enjoyed meeting T.J. Layne and appreciate him welcoming us to Rocky Top.
After loading up and collecting our winnings, we were ready to get home and get ready for Midway the next
night.
We finally got home about 3:30 a.m. and were up about 8:00 a.m. ready to get working. I was in a pretty
good mood and am happy to say that I had fun Friday. It's been a difficult ride so far for us in racing and
the fun has been limited at most. The team was pretty happy getting an early top ten and I regained some
lost confidence. We discovered that our new turbo start battery was a dud and was not holding a charge,
thus causing our starter problems. We got a new battery and fuel line and started working as fast as
we could. We were holding out hope that the starter was not damaged and we could still get another show in
this weekend. Well, as usual, we did do more damage to the starter than we hoped. We had about one
hour to have the car complete and loaded if we were to race Saturday night. The fuel line was on and I
made a decision to give the starter a few shims and then forget it. Of course, the starter was chewed up and
we were left as spectators for the night.
We decided to go to Midway and try to help other teams that needed help. In hot laps Jeff Gress and Mike
Burley got into each other and we found ourselves in the Gress pit trying to help him get his body back
together before qualifying. Jeff and his wife are great people and we really enjoyed talking with them.
Thanks for the cold one Jeff. We spent most of the night just talking to people and helping where we could.
The racing was good as usual at midway. We talked to Skip Waterman for a good half hour and look
forward to seeing Skip piloting the R-III machine of Brent Steele. We plan to return to Rocky Top
Raceway this Friday (15th) and Midway Saturday (16th). I would once again like to thank Jody Shannon
and Todd Lefevers for this opportunity. I want to thank my sponsors: Rhodes Race Wire, A-C Cleaning
and Restoration, Midwest Right of Way, Bunker Hill Welding And Fabrication, www.DirtFans.com , and
Fire Freeze Worldwide. Lastly and definitely not least the fans for their continued support of all the tracks
and driver If you would like to join L & W Motorsports as a sponsor please e-mail me kalentz00@aol.com
Kevin "Ohio Outlaw" Lentz
L & W Motorsports
www.lwmotorsports.com
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