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The latest news
3-26-09 Website update! First time in 5 years! Just making sure everything works, nothing fancy.
1-30-04 My webhosting service lapsed temporarily and all kinds of stuff went screwy with the website, but I think it's about fixed now... Also, I started a new website www.chs2001.com to organize my high school reunion, because I was Senior President, and they tell me that's now my eternal responsibility.
10-28-04 I have decided to start a general tech section, which has a link in the navigation frame on the left side of the page. The first article will be about camshafts. If you do not understand cams, or know a new racer who does not, send 'em to wantlandracing.com!
10-4-04 Finally! An update! I wound up taking the season off, because I'm broke, and my car is worthless. I may try to make at least two of the CFR Fall Series races though... we'll see.
5-8-04 Today was the first points race of the season.... and let's just say that Wantland Racing is going to take awhile to get warmed up this year. I'm running the car, but it was too fast in the first round, and I braked... way too much, which cost me the race. Ah well, there's always race number 2.
2-22-04 The CFR Racer Banquet was last night at the Cedar Falls Holiday Inn, and as anyone who was there will tell you, it was quite a good time. I got a custom jacket as well as a sweatshirt from Schnitz Racing for winning the Summer Bike Class. Sometime soon, there will be pics here and probably on the CFR site as well; the best ones are of Tiger White and me.
11-4-03 I ran the Avenger in the final Fall Series race on October 26, and after I installed a tranny cooler and temp gauge, my consistency improved greatly. I also am getting better at launching the slow beast, but alas, I redlighted in the first round of eliminations, ending the 2003 racing season. It will be interesting to see how the final fall point standings come out.
10-19-03 Today I took the Avenger up to CFR for the second fall series points race. I missed the first race last weekend because I went home to Chariton for homecoming, so I'm not too worried about trying to win anything.... but anyway, this was the first time this car has ever been to a quarter-mile track, or that I have really given any thought to how I launch it. My time trials were all over the place, and I ran an 18.66 on an 18.75 dial in the first round of elims. Fortunately, the other guy broke out by even more, and I was on to round two. I figured out why it was inconsistent (trans heat), remedied it, and changed my dial to 18.65. I ran another 18.66 with a .534 light (if I remember correctly) to secure a round two win. But then along came round three, and I redlighted, plus the car was slow again... but, truth be told, I never even expected to go one or two rounds, and so I was very happy, especially when I collected my $20! And I should have 30 points coming my way; it could be worse. :)
10-9-03 Well, last weekend (Oct. 3-5) was the IHRA Division 5 ET Finals at Cordova Dragway in Cordova, IL. As the CFR motorcycle class winner, I went over there to give it my best, and things went well; we had a great time, but unfortunately the competition was quite a bit stiffer than myself. On Friday in the Race of Champions I got through the first round because my opponent red-lighted. I also ran my fastest time ever: 14.502 @ 94.67 mph. On saturday, I got into a gambler race, and lost by .0568 seconds in the first round. It was kind of a bummer, but at the same time, it was a really good race. Finally, on sunday in the final eliminations, I pulled a .490 redlight in the first round. That means I left the line ten one-thousandths of a second too soon. But, the bike didn't run right that time anyway, so I still would have lost. :P Anyway, Isaac came up and brought his truck, which was awesome, and we had a great time and learned all kinds of stuff, so it was really a great end to a great rookie season. Thanks to everyone!
9-24-03 WANTLAND RACING ON THE COVER OF THE DAILY IOWAN TODAY! If you are in Iowa City, pick one of these up. To see the article, click here. To see a PDF of the front page, click here. You may have to register to see that stuff, but even so, it's free and simple, so do it!
9-22-03 Well race fans, yesterday was scheduled to be the last points race, but it was rained out, so the season is officially over. And, more importantly, I am officially the Cedar Falls Raceway 2003 Motorcycle Class Champion! Talk about an excellent first season... Now it's on to Cordova and the IHRA Division 5 finals in two weeks.
9-20-03 Today was the next to the last points race, and things are getting interesting... I redlighted in the first round, so my day was done. On the plus side, all three runs today were faster than my previous all-time best! My new personal record is 14.637 @ 93.09 mph. I left right after that so I could come home and watch the Hawkeyes (who at this instant are leading Arizona State 21-2), so I do not know who came out on top... there is a good chance though that Brent Merrick won it, and took my points lead... we'll have to see how tomorrow ends the season.
9-15-03 www.wantlandracing.com is in the process of a big overhaul! I want to keep the page simple and efficient, and yet provide maximum information at the touch of a button. This is the first time I've really found time to organize the information since I got the domain name, so I hope you enjoy it, and keep coming back, because it's only getting better! Also, I missed the last race weekend, because the Wantland Racing Transporter was getting some serious engine love.... Fortunately, I am still in the points lead, and hopefully I can hang onto that through this upcoming weekend.
8-4-03 I won the points race two days ago on Saturday and am sitting comfortably atop the points standings right now. There were three bikes in the field. Well, two bikes and a sled actually, but still.... I had a bye run first round and lucked out with my opponent breaking out in the final. It was nice to actually get a couple of bucks back, since I am running on a budget of basically nothing, which brings me to my next point: I have to thank God for letting me do something I love, and Summit Racing Equipment for contingency for using their logbook, and also Quail Creek Golf Course in North Liberty, IA for letting me work on my bike in their shop.
8-2-03 Well, I've been slipping on keeping everything updated, but here's the story: It's saturday morning, and I'm getting ready for today's race. After a 4-week hiatus, there have also been races the last two weekends. Two weeks ago, it was just me and a guy on a snowmobile both days. He won. Twice. Last weekend, there were six bikes... myself, Brent Merrick and a bunch of new guys. The weather was bad; way hot and humid, and we only got two time trials because of the Night of Fire (which was cool), and my bike misfired at the top of first gear during the first round, so I was out. Hopefully today will treat me better.
6-22-03 We had two points races this weekend, with six bikes in the field on Saturday and five on Sunday. At least four of the riders were new faces (at least to me), which is great. Anyway... I got eliminated in the second round both days, winning over Mike Osborn and his Honda on Saturday and with a bye run (due to my reaction time during time trials) today. So, it was a good weekend overall. There are quite a few more bikes in the running now, but I think I'll still be sitting at third (or maybe second) in points when they are updated.
6-3-03 As of now, I am tied for first in the Cedar Falls Raceway points standings! I went up on friday night for a scheduled tuning session, but it was cancelled due to extreme winds and the resultant dust on the track. So that left me with saturday, where I redlighted in the first round of eliminations.... Saturday just was not the best day for machines or drivers. It seemed that nobody was running the way they should have been. What helped me out was that Sunday, I was the only motorcycle, and thus, the winner. Sunday would have been a great day even if there had been competitors, as I was running consistently and with great reaction times..... I had one perfect .500! I'm looking forward to the next points races on June 21-22 so I can increase my lead. :)
5-25-03 The Wantland Racing Team (that is, I) went to the track yesterday and laid down quite a few 14 second runs, including my current best of 14.903. This was the result of an all-nighter on friday during which I changed jets, sprockets and made a new exhaust baffle..... hopefully, I can make myself consistent enough to do well at the first points race next weekend.
5-4-03 I was planning on going racing today, but alas, the good Lord saw fit to pour rain from the skies, so instead my bike and I took a day of rest. As of now, the next points races are scheduled for May 31-June 1, although you can bet I will hit a test-n-tune or two before then....
4-30-03 www.wantlandracing.com is up and at least semi-operational. The only racing so far has been at a Test-n-Tune session on Saturday, April 26. My first run (ever) was a 16.222 @ 83.44 mph. Removing the exhaust baffle knocked off .58 seconds, and with some carb and rider tweaking, I finally got down to 15.198 @ 89.19 mph. I figure cutting over a second in one day with no investment isn't a bad deal. The first points race is Sunday, May 4, so check back for an update.
email-> ben@wantlandracing.com
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