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| Features |
| Racer’s Diary – Patrick Hubbell |
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by Patrick Hubbell
Photos courtesy Sean Buur, Go Racing Magazine - http://www.goracingmagazine.com
 | | Persistance pays off for Hubbell, first time Duffy Winner |
The IKF 2-Cycle Sprint Grand Nationals is an event that represents the pinnacle in kart racing. This event is host to the best drivers and teams that karting has to offer. However, in recent years the luster of this event seems to have become tarnished.
The caliber, professionalism and knowledge of the officiating staff at this year’s event has taken a great deal of heat from those who attended. If you subscribe to any of the on-line forums, you may have read many posts from individuals who were there and attest to the poor judgement calls made from the scoring tower, flagman and race director.
Although it has been 25 years since I last attended a national event, I just can’t believe the officiating was as bad as some people have described. I have to be honest, I was so busy acting as driver, crew chief and mechanic that I watched little of the racing at this year’s event. Aside from one very poorly controlled situation that occurred on Saturday during the Rookie Sportsman main event, I feel the event was managed quite well by the Tri-Cities Kart Club (TCKC).
None-the-less, hosting an event as significant as the 2- Cycle Grand Nationals is a daunting task that no club could possibly be completely prepared for. Much of the staff are volunteers who were donating their time to make this event possible
For me, this year represented many things. Possibly my last chance to win a Duffy. Perhaps my final race before retiring from competition. At 43 years old, with a wife and two small children, my ability to go racing or prepare to do so has become quite limited. After making several attempts in the past few years to attend a national event, I decided this would be the year to return and make my bid for a Duffy.
In 1977 I competed in my first karting National event held in Atwater, Calif. I ran that race with a box stock Yamaha KT100 engine with only one set of new tires. I had to beg a friend to haul my kart to the race and slept in my car for the first three nights I was there. I qualified 13th, got taken out of the race in the pre-final and finished the main in 13th.
The odds were stacked against me this year. I was about to leave my family for a week, drive 1,000 miles one way by myself to race at a track that I have never been to. I would be driving a chassis that I have struggled with all season and race a class that I have never raced before. Arriving late Tuesday afternoon would only give me a day and a half of track time to learn the track, dial in the chassis and tune the engine package. So, what could I hope for at best, perhaps a top five finish?
After thrashing on the kart for a day and a half before my first race, I was looking forward to Thursday. This was to be my day of R&R, you know hang out by the pool and sipping tropical drinks. Unfortunately that wasn’t to be the case for me. I needed to go to the track Thursday morning to mount the 40 pounds of lead that I needed to make the class weight. Where the heck was I going to mount 40 pounds of lead, and did I have 40 pounds of lead in the first place? After many trips to the scale house I was able to position all 40 pounds. Next I wanted to change the sprocket, this is when I discovered a bent sprocket hub. No problem, I have a spare. Well here we go. I need the hardware for the new hub, it’s different than the bent one. After hitting up the Invader team for some bolts, I proceed to get it installed and the gear mounted. A few other items to take care of and low and behold, it’s 6:00pm! How time flies when you are having fun.
It’s off to the hotel to shower, grab a quick bite to eat and hit the pillow. Friday morning I am up at 6 a.m., another shower to wake up and it’s off to the track for my first race, Formula Y/C Heavy. A disappointing qualifying run put me eighth on the grid for the pre-final. Not sure where I finished in the pre-final but I am grided seventh for the main event. When the green flag dropped I quickly moved up to fifth. At around lap 20, I am beginning to slow down. The kart is really laboring off the corners. I open up the low speed needle, but I am still bogging off the corners and now I am back to eighth with five laps to go. Then suddenly the engine’s RPM’s spike and there is no more drive. A thrown chain caused by an axle that was shifting. That would explain the bog.
 | | Hubbell in winner's circle celebrations |
By now the heat, the sleepless nights and the frustration have taken their toll. Try retrieving your kart stand, find someone to help you put the kart on the stand, dismount and mount a set of tires, change a gear, do a clutch adjustment, drain the little bit of fuel left in the tank, make a chassis adjustment, download the data from the logger and analyze the data, eat, drink and use the restroom, and fix anything that broke, all in about 30 minutes, BY YOURSELF!! So, when I say, ‘beating the odds,’ can you see why? I don’t think I have ever worked so hard at a kart race before. The guy pitted next to me said, “ I have never seen someone work so long and for so many days on a kart as you.” I have little choice but to push on and do the best I could.
I rolled the kart into the trailer, shut the door and headed for the hotel. Saturday morning I get to the track early to repair the damage from the previous day. I decide to change to a fresh engine hoping to find a little more speed and make my last bid for the Duffy. Well, more problems. The engine is only turning 13,600, the chassis is pushing and over-steering and the rear crash bar breaks. I fix the crash bar, mount a new set of tires for qualifying and change the gear. At the driver’s meeting I am beginning to feel rather poorly. I was so tired from the heat, being a one-man operation and feeling sick I was about to pack it up and head for home. I decided to go look at where I qualified, I am glad I did. I’m fourth and only a few tenths off the pole time. That was the boost that I needed.
When the green flag dropped for the pre-final, I quickly moved into second. Unfortunately I left the door wide open going into turn two and lost a position. A few laps later I lost one more position going into turn one. Now I am back to fourth when the checkered flag flew.
After analyzing the data from my MyChron II, I realize I have an engine problem. I can’t get any RPM’s out of it. A short conversation with Garry Woltjer and I am back in my pit with wrenches and parts flying as I switch back to my other engine with only minutes to spare before the call to Parc Fume. It’s late in the day, I am exhausted and all I can think about is this is my last chance for the Duffy. I’m sitting on the outside of row two with an axle sprocket that is questionable. Obviously it was not round and the tight spot is acceptable but the loose spot is so loose it’s a miracle that it stayed on for 30 laps.
At about 6 p.m. we are about to go racing. Masters Formula Y/C is the last class of the day, and my hopes for a win. When the green flag was waived, I quickly moved into second as we exited turn one. For the next five laps there were five karts nose to tail. I could feel the kart behind me as I concentrated on setting up the leader for a pass. He seemed to be a little loose exiting turn two. On lap five coming out of turn two, the leader got wide and lost the drive up the hill. I was ready for this. I took a tighter line through the exit and got a good run off turn three. As I began to pass on the inside going down the short chute between three and four, we traded some paint. Hey, rubbing is racing, right?
Once I got past the leader I was now out in front leading the Masters race at the 2003 Grand Nationals. I steadily pulled away from the pack opening up a comfortable lead. Thirty laps is a long race. When I was shown the five laps to go signal I began to hear every noise the kart was making. More so, I was concerned about the chain. With one lap to go and a substantial lead, I purposely slowed down just a bit. Hoping to bring it on home. I could not believe my thankful eyes as I came onto the main straight to see the checkered flag waiving. I figured with the lead that I had, even if something broke, I could coast to the stripe. Fortunately I made it under power. I had just won my first Duffy.
I was really taken back by all the thumbs up signals from spectators in the stands, corner workers, fellow competitors and officials as I made my way around the track and into the scale house. Once I cleared the scales I was approached by a local news reporter and gave a short interview. Next came the awards’ ceremony. While the experience of winning a Duffy for the first time could never be downplayed, I must admit the presentation of such a significant award should be a gala event. Looking back, the awards presentation was of a caliber slightly higher than a club race. I assumed there would be a banquet similar to the local IKF regional awards. No matter, I was on such a high that it has taken two weeks for my feet to touch the ground again. This is obviously one Grand National event that I will never forget and cherish the rest of my life.
Special thanks to my wife Karen, my two daughters Nicole and Brittany, Carl and Gary Woltjer, Ralf Hotfelter of R&C Kart Shop, John Cordell and Ken Rothenburg. And a special thanks to Kevin Webster of NorCal Kartsport for introducing me to the Arrow chassis. Without the help and support of these people I would not be a Grand National Champion today.
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