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Cole Mann - Round 1 - Stars East - Ocala Gran Prix, Ocala, Fl - April 4 - 6, 2008 Written By: Cole Mann Racing 4/10/08 (Hewitt, NJ) -- This was Cole Mann's frist time attending a Stars Event. Also, he would be part of a new team and on a new chassis while competing in the Stars TaG class. Cole is now part of San Yves Motorsports and will be driving the Maranello Chassis. Cole is being coached by Jon Nevoso who is the creator of the Nevoso Cadet Kart that has won numerous National Championships. Jon himself is also a Karting Champion. Thursday was check in day. Pit was set up, tech was done and everyone was ready for practice day on Friday. Weather for practice day was in the mid to high 80's, very humid and 30% chance of rain. The day started off pretty good with times only a few 10ths off the top guys. Cole ended up missing a practice due to motor issues. As we made changes during the day it seemed that we were going in the wrong direction and everyone else was getting faster and we were getting slower. At the end of the day many changes were made to the kart, axle, seat position, castor etc. Now to see what happens on race day. For the race weekend Stars was now running the format that they do for the Race of the America's. On Saturday there is a practice, qualifying and 2 Heat Races. On Sunday there is a practice, 1 Heat Race and 2 Finals. On Saturday morning practice it seemed that all of the adjustments that were made on Friday night got Cole going in the right direction. He was right there with his times. In qualfiying Cole managed to Qualify 16th in the 32 Kart field. This is a tough field of competitors. Many top notch ICA drivers have moved into the TaG class now that the ICA class has gone away, and there are many other seasoned TaG veterans in this class also. It was very hot and humid and 60% chance of rain. Everyone got through practice and the first set of heat races without rain. In the first heat race Cole started 16th and managed to finish in the 9th place position. When the second set of heat races came so did the rain. It poured and a few classes had to go out on the rain tires. The sun came out again and the other classes dried up the track and the TaG class would be able to go out on slicks for their 2nd heat race of the day. Again you start where your original qualifying position was. So Cole started in 16th and managed to finish in the 13th position. He did some great racing and learned alot about his competitors and the track. With the scores of heats 1 and 2 added together at the end of the day Cole was sitting in 10th position for the starting grid for Sunday Finals. Still heat 3 needed to be added in there. For Sunday the heat and humidity was very high and there was no threat of rain, it was going to rain, just a matter of when. Everyone was able to get practice and the heat races in when it was still dry. In heat race 3 we made the mistake of setting the tire pressures a bit too low and it took Cole's kart too long to come in. He didn't get fast and start passing until the end of the race. Once again you start where your original qualifying position was, which was 16th. He had a great start and came out of the 1st lap in 8th. He got passed and started to go backwards, then his kart hooked up and he gained some spots back and finished the race in 14th position. His team mate in the class Edward "Macho" Fortier also made the same mistake with tire pressure and he went backwards a bit also. But good news came later after all of the scores were added up from the 3 heat races and Cole would find out that he was in the top 10 on the grid for the Finals. Cole would be starting from 8th position. The team and Jon were very proud of him. Again he is a Stars Rookie and he is in a very talented field of drivers. Now the rain rolls in and it would be rain tires for all classes for the both of the Finals. It rained and rained! In Final #1 Cole started from his 8th position. He did some great driving in the rain. Lots of passing going on back and forth. Cole went on to finish in 10th position. A top 10 for his first Stars Race. The whole San Yves Motorsports team was proud. In Final #2 Cole would again start from the 8th position. This time it was pouring so hard we don't even know how the drivers were able to see where they had to go. Cole came out in 6th spot on the first lap. Once again a lot of passing back and forth going on. Halfway through the race Cole hit one of the big puddles on the track and totally bogged his motor down. This slowed him down considerably. He kept driving and did the best he could and backed up his top 10 with 13th in Final #2. Overall it was a great weekend for Cole. Cole would like to give special thanks to Jon Nevoso, Michael Abreau and Chris Rock for all of their help and support over the entire weekend. Cole's results would not have been possible without their help. Also Cole would like to thank his partners for their continued support of his racing career. Thanks to San Yves Motorsports, Shupps Kart Shop, Savage Designs, World Wide Bearings and Walters Web Design.
To learn more about Cole Mann Racing and the very successful future on the way, please visit our resume page and/or the contact us page. We would be happy to go in to detail with you about how motorsports marketing can help your company or business grow! |
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