I had been adjusting my chassis set up all day during the Spring 2005 Bug-o-Rama #55, trying to get the car to launch straight. It's difficult enough setting up a new chassis, but the hardest part has to be getting back in the seat and doing a full-throttle launch, just after darting towards the guard rail. That, combined with marginal track conditions, set the stage for one of the hairiest quarter mile passes that I had ever run.
I made it past the first two rounds of eliminations to face Jeff Lovell in the final. Sure enough, my launch was crooked and the track was greasy. I ended up riding the guard rail all the way down the strip. In fact, I recall not wanting to let go of the steering wheel to shift from third to fourth, because I was fighting the car to get it back in the groove. At the top end of the track, I could see Jeff letting out of the throttle and crossing the finish line before me. I lost, but I was happy to have just made it from one end of the track to the other!