Tyler McQuarrie
After a suspect stall by Sam Hubinette in Round 1, Tyler McQuarrie and the Falken Nissan 350Z were nudged out of the competition in the Top 16. By other drivers' standards, it would've left them steaming. But for Tyler--and a 2008 season filled with more issues than an episode of How to Catch a Predator--the sheer fact that the car had no breakage is cause for celebration.
It's been two years since I've run at Road Atlanta--last year, my motor blew and I was unable to compete. We showed up to practice on Thursday with many changes to the car, which in pre-event testing, proved to be the right direction for us to go. During practice, we made a few minor changes to dial-in the grip level that Road Atlanta provides. The Falken Tire 350Z ran flawlessly and I was feeling very comfortable in the car for Friday's Qualifying.
We had an hour of practice before Qualifying, but my car had something else in mind. It wouldn't start. The ASD guys found that we had a bad cam sensor. With the spare sensor back at the shop in Charlotte, NC, and none to be found locally, practice was over and Qualifying was about to begin. My event might be over before it even started, and I was having bad flashbacks of last year. Not good. As I watched Qualifying with a blank look on my face, I heard the PA announce for me to head back to the Falken pit.
Darren McNamara had just put down a strong run, putting him first and in the event. And since Darren and I both run the same motor, Falken went to Darren and asked if he would be willing to give up his second run, allowing us to use his cam sensor on my car to make it into Qualifying. He said yes, which says a lot about Darren as a driver and a teammate. The ASD guys thrashed to swap out the sensor, and finished with only a few cars to go before my turn. I lined up for Qualifying and realized that this was my first run of the day since we missed all of practice and my first Qualifying run. This one pass was my only shot--no pressure! Trying to avoid any mistakes, I laid down a conservative run that put me 13th. Not bad for my one and only run!
My cam sensor made the delivery Saturday, and my car was good to go. I was matched up with Michael Essa for Top 32. He did a very god job, but I was able to move on to the Top 16. Next up was Ryuji Miki. I followed him closely on the first pass, but made a small correction in the horseshoe, so I felt he had an advantage. When I led, I drove as hard as possible. Miki dropped a wheel in the horseshoe and I moved to the Top 8.
Next, would be the battle of the convertible Zs. Talking to Chris Forsberg before the match, we agreed to use the pass cone, which would put on a better show. When I followed, I tried to close in on him, but could only get as close as a car length--we had a clean run. On my turn to lead, I left the line and stalled. Much to my surprise, Chris stopped to wait! That was awesome of him because he could have taken off, ending it for me. We had another clean run but he was closer to me, and moved on. After the battle, I ran over to Chris to thank him for waiting at the line. He said that it happened to him once, but the other driver didn't wait, and he told himself that he would never do that to anyone. Pretty badass of him!
All in all, it was a good event. I learned a lot about the Z, and we made a lot of progress, but there is still room for improvement. We also got a good amount of points by making it to the Top 8. Most importantly, I learned how awesome people are in drifting. Big thanks to Darren for helping me make it into the competition, and to Chris for putting the show first. Actions like these make drifting so unique and different to other motorsports--I'm proud to be part of it!
Tyler McQuarrie
www.tylermcquarrie.com
Falken Tire
www.FALKENTIRE.com
Brian Crower
www.RUNBC.com
By Carter Jung
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