Phoenix-Pomona-Phoenix
So much has happened since my last blog entry! We went to Phoenix for testing, headed to Pomona for the Winternationals, and then headed back to Phoenix for the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals. That may not sound like a lot since it’s really only three things, but a lot took place during the course of those three events!
We had a pretty good test session in Phoenix during the first week of February. The new crew guys that we have seemed to work together pretty well, so that was nice to see! During the first couple days, there were definitely some challenges that the teams had to overcome. Doug’s Mac Tools dragster had a pretty big boomer on the second day of testing, and it took a lot of hard work by every guy on that car to get everything in working order to come back to the track the next day. My dad (Jim O) said that he and Troy (Fasching) think they’ve figured out what’s been causing these gnarly engine explosions, so hopefully we won’t be seeing another one anytime soon! He’s also very thankful that the cars are running Red Line Oil because “if we didn’t… the engine damage would have been a lot worse!”
By day three, things were starting to make a move in the right direction! The cars started making good, clean, fast passes, and it seemed like everyone found their groove. It was amazing to see how fast these guys came together with the new additions and changing positions within the teams. It seemed to me that the comfort level on day four was a lot higher than it was on day one, and I think that helped everyone to let out a sigh of relief. We essentially had the same 60 people on our team for two years, so heading back to the track after some turnover and other changes was kind of nerve-racking! Seeing everything and everyone come together like it did at Phoenix test made me even more excited to head to Pomona for our first race of 2016.
The Winternationals is always a huge race. It’s the first race of the season, obviously, so there’s a huge turnout of competitors, fans, and NHRA legends like Don “The Snake” Prudhomme and Ed “The Ace” McCulloch. This year, the Winternationals held even more meaning: it marked Alexis’ 100th event in a Nitro Funny Car, and it was the first race that would be aired on Fox Sports 1! Alexis has already accomplished so much in her first 100 races: she was the first woman to break the 4-second barrier in a Funny Car, claimed the Wally at the 60th annual U.S. Nationals, set track records, and has now become the first woman to compete in 100 nitro Funny Car events. I’m so proud of everything she’s achieved so far, and I can’t wait to see what she accomplishes in her next 100 events!
Having the first NHRA event air on Fox Sports 1 was pretty sweet! I was out to dinner with the “Yella Fellas” on Friday night when someone said “Hey, we should turn the race on!” Sure enough, the place we were at had FS1 and we were able to watch the Friday night qualifying show. We were pretty impressed with what we saw! They’re doing some cool things with graphics, and I loved seeing all the different camera angles they were using. Hopefully you were tuned in to the coverage and got to see Tony Pedregon race a Toyota Camry alongside Del’s DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car at Phoenix test! I thought that was such a fun and creative idea. I feel like Fox did a great job on their first show, and I think it’s only going to get better from here!
Team Kalitta had a pretty successful showing at the Winternationals this year! Alexis qualified fourth after running a career best 3.942 ET and made it to the quarter-finals where Del and the DHL team got the win light against the Patron team. J.R.’s SealMaster team made it to the semifinals before being defeated by Doug’s Mac Tools team, and we ended the day with Doug and Del in the final round. We may not have gotten the Wally, but the day really couldn’t have gone much better. My dad got the whole team together after everything was said and done and talked about how proud he was of everyone and how this was a great starting point for us this season. I would have classified this as an “awwww” moment, and it went with the theme of the day since it was Valentine’s Day.
Something else we did in Pomona that was pretty fun was record the first episode of Late Night Lounge with Buck and JaaanO! Our team manager, Rachel DeLago, came up with the great idea to record Nicky Boninfante and Jon Oberhofer in their natural habitat: the DHL crew chief lounge. Those two sit up there and talk about everything, and they’re usually pretty funny! It seems like their lounge is the most popular hang-out spot at the track because people are constantly going in and out of that trailer. You’d be surprised how many people they can fit into their little 12-foot x 12-foot lounge. You can find the link to the pilot episode of Late Night Lounge on our Facebook and Twitter accounts, but be warned! There is some adult language and crude humor. But it’s pretty funny, so I recommend giving it a watch!
In other news, my boyfriend, Isaac, and I celebrated our third Valentine’s Day on Sunday in Pomona! Nothing says “I love you” like the smell of nitro and clutch dust. We also got to meet up with our friends Adam and Jenna on Saturday and Sunday of Pomona, and that was one of the highlights of this trip for me. Adam worked at Kalitta Motorsports from 2013-2015 and left at the end of last year to move back to the west coast so that he and his girlfriend, Jenna, could be closer to their families. We became really close with Adam and Jenna while they lived here in Michigan, and we’ve missed them a lot since they left, so it was great to catch up and spend some time together. I got to spend a day with them in San Diego before I headed back to Michigan, and we had a blast! We ate some awesome seafood by the beach, did some crazy rock climbing adventures to get to a super cool spot on the beach, and ate some delicious Mexican food for dinner. I was only there for about 24 hours, and we definitely made the most of the time we had!
It was nice to have some time at home to work on my school and spend time with my cat before heading back to Phoenix for the CARQUEST Nats. Once the season gets going it's kind of hard to find time to relax, so I'm enjoying this slow start to the season!
We didn't pick up any little gold men named Wally in Phoenix, but we had another pretty good weekend. J.R. struggled a bit on Sunday and went out in first round. Alexis made a great 3.96 pass in first round, but it wasn’t enough to turn on her win light. Del made it to second round before Robert Hight laid down a stout pass to send the DHL team packing. Doug's Mac Tools team was making some impressive runs all weekend! It was awesome to see my dad and all the Mac Tools guys come onto the stage in their No. 1 qualifier hats on Sunday morning for driver intros.
It's always a proud moment for me when I see my dad in one of those green hats, even though he doesn't wear them for very long because he thinks they're unlucky. Now, it's not that he thinks the hat itself is unlucky, but the fact that the hat is green. Dick LaHaie, who was one of my dad's mentors when he first came to work for Connie, always said that "unnecessary green was unlucky," so that clearly stuck with my dad. What is "necessary" green, you ask? Money! Drag racers and their superstitions....
I'm looking forward to spending these two weeks before Gainesville at home, but I'm sure that I'll be more than ready to get back to the track by the end of this first week! Having off time is great, don't get me wrong, but I'd still rather be at the track listening to the cackle of 10,000 horsepower. The track is like my second home, so I get a bit homesick for it whenever I spend too much time at my actual house!
Hope you all have a great week/weekend, and remember that you can follow along with all things Kalitta on Twitter and Instagram @teamkalitta and on Facebook at Kalitta Motorsports!