Jacob Wilson Racing- News Archive

News Archive

Rumble in Ft. Wayne- VIDEO!

Thursday December 28^th-We arrived at Fort Wayne early so we could get a good unloading spot, learning from last years half-mile hike. After we claimed our pit spot they held two rounds of practice. We used these two rounds to get the car running and tuned in for Friday and Saturday’s main events.

Friday December 29^th -With two rounds of practice the night before and then two more Friday morning we got the car to where we thought it needed to be. In qualifying, after a long afternoon break from noon to five, the car began to show signs of carburetor trouble. It was only running on three cylinders the entire run. Qualifying 23^rd put my #07 in the 6^th position of the 3^rd heat race. After making changes to the engine of the car, thinking we had solved the problem, we hit the track. We had a car that could move to the front. I was doing so until 2 cars got together and with no time to react sucked me right in the pile. Running 5^th at the time I put to the tail of the field. I charged my way back up to 3rd before the end of the heat. When I pulled back into the pits we started to assess the damage that needed to be repaired before the consolation race. In the crash I bent the front axle, tie rod, and drag link. We switched out the front axle and tie rod with spares, and leaving the drag link for later repair. We started 6^th in the 3^rd consolation race, what a coincidence. Starting with an early charge to 4^th, the car felt great. I moved into third with some difficulty, and then began to track down the front two. Running short on time left me one position out of the A main transfer.

Saturday December 30^th -Morning practice consisted of only one round on Saturday. This round plagued Team WBR with more engine troubles, thinking we had fixed the car, we went out to qualify 23^rd once again due to the same problem. We decided it was time to overhaul the car completely. We changed carburetors and the car setup completely only to be stricken down in the heat with another three cylinder engine misfire run. Moving up to 5^th in the race was a great feat for a poor running car. We finally got the car to run in the pits changing to our 3^rd set of carbs and our 3^rd fuel pump. Luck finally fell our way and we got to start on the inside row of the consolation race, rolling out in the 5^th starting position. Moving up quickly to third after freight training the 2^nd and 4^th place starters, I began to apply some pressure on the 2^nd place running car. After a caution on the second to last lap when the race went back green applied pressure again immediately. I got my break when the driver hit a slick spot in the racing surface and slid up the track coming to the white flag. Finishing second I transferred to the A main and started 14^th out of 15. Coming to the green flag in the feature I knew it would be a challenge to get to the front of the field, this goal was made nearly impossible with the outstanding driving of Tony Stewart whom lapped everyone except second place. I quickly made my way to the inside line and began my charge by passing up to 11^th place by the 10^th lap. This is when Stewart passed me the first time. Billy Wease followed Stewart and I clung to their back bumpers in attempt to bring me up through the field. I managed my way up to 8^th before Dave Darland lapped me at the halfway point. Knowing that he was the second place runner I followed him and continued my charge to the front. On lap 40 I was running in the 5^th position when the caution flag flew for a car leaking oil that had stopped outside turn 3 attempting to leave the track. This is when the luck began to tumble for WBR. At the time we were running 5^th. When the race went back green I restarted 9^th. Unfortunate for the team but that’s just one more thing for me to overcome. While under the yellow I also realized that the break pedal was just falling to the floorboard with out applying any stopping power. For the next three green flag laps I would pump the brakes while around the track and take it very easy. When the brakes came back, which is a miracle, I once again started to run down the lead pack but ran out of time. On a weekend that it didn’t look very good to start with we ended up making the show, which was one of our goals. We were scored at 9^th but are pretty sure that I ended up 6^th. Gaining more experience and continuing the climb for the top of the racing ladder.

I am looking forward to racing the USAC regional series and hopefully the PRA Big Car series this coming season.

Check this nice story on WBR in The Paper of Montgomery County

Anderson Speedway Sprint Car Test- After an accomplishing season of racing I was left with no direction for where I wanted to go in 2007 until coming into contact with an old friend, Jack French. Jack helped me land a Pavement Sprint Car test with one of the premier teams in USAC. Walker/Gidducci Racing has two of the best cars in the land driven by Dave Darland, and Dave Steele. I was lucky enough to get to test the number 11D. This is the car that Dave Darland drives. The test was at Anderson Speedway, a track I had come to love through the Regional midget series. First time out in the car I was still a little bit nervous but quickly pulled in after having engine problems and never getting to make a good lap. The second, third, and fourth rounds I was getting used to the horsepower as well as the power steering, not to mention the line. For the fifth round we put on new tires and ran fairly quick breaking into the 11.60's, good enough to be in the top six at the last USAC show. Then came round seven and something I didn’t expect to happen. I rounded my third lap and ran a 11.53, which Jack said would have been good enough for the pole if the track had any rubber down. All in all, I had a lot of fun. Hoping that this will open some doors for next year, but as of right now I am not sure. A special thanks to everybody that helped at Walker Racing and a very special thanks to Jack French for all of the help. Dustin Morgan came along and tested a session too. It was neat to meet him, Clinton and I enjoyed hanging out with him Sunday at Walker's shop and Monday at Anderson. Good luck Dustin! Photos Click Here

09/23-24/06 Lowe's Motor Speedway, Concord, NC

07/15-16/06 Midstate Raceway, Springfield, IL- The heartland pavement series that I have been running traveled to a 1/3 mile tri-oval just outside of Springfield , Illinois . This weekend I would be running both the Phantom Phenom go-kart and the Rage Nitro Champ kart. Friday was an all day practice as always on the series helping us get the karts tuned in. By the end of the day we had the kart able to run with the top of the class after about 10 laps but we couldn’t get it to fire off earlier. The Champ was not as good, we couldn’t keep pace with my team mate and brother who had his Champ dialed in perfect. Saturday started with practice followed by qualifying and then the races. Thru qualifying we were sitting in the top five in every class. In Briggs Junior Lite and Briggs Junior Champ Lite I brought the 07 home in fourth place in both. In Briggs Junior Animal Lite I started the race in fourth and climbed in to third. As the leaders started pulling away slowly until my kart jumped into the track on lap fifteen and started heading back toward the front. Making a last lap pass for the win. Sunday was another decent day for racing action. As the day came to a close we made a strong push in the point standings capturing a third and two fourths in my classes. The next race for this series is at Jamaica Raceway in Jamaica , Iowa .

07/07/06 Anderson, IN- Anderson is by far my favorite track to race at in the Kenyon Midgets. So to no surprise I was wound tight when we arrived at the 1/4 mile high banked oval. Although having engine trouble in practice I thought we would have a fast car come time to qualify. The car jumped right into the track and handled perfect but once again the car was plagued with engine trouble causing the 07 car to wind up 10th. From that point to the heat race I was focused and ready to run now that I know we had the problem fixed. We started strong in the heat before the handling went extremely loose, causing me to take the corners a little easier. We wound up 5th in the heat and started 10th in the feature. The feature went without problems and a collection of yellow flag runs and staying out of the wrecks put me in the 7th position as I crossed under the checkered flag. A strong and once again clean run by the 07.