Race Recap: Hyperfest 6/08

It's taken me a week and a half to write this for a couple reasons. At work I've been... well... working. You know you have a problem when you put in an 11 hour day then a) dream about your Outlook calendar that night and b) try to sleep in the next day but only manage 30 minutes past your normal wake-up because you're thinking about what's waiting for you in the office. Outside the office I've been dealing with all the things that come with Hyperfest, plus a few bonus items. Not only did I race last weekend and assume the usual responsibilities of updating the Cup website, I was/am in charge of booking models and doing the production work for the 2009 944 Cup Calendar. This probably doesn't sound like that big of a deal but we're talking about arranging arrival times, payment, shoot location/conditions, wading through upwards of 1,000 images and post-processing a few dozen for both the print calendar and to sell online. Here's a pic of the old man after the shoot...


Combine with that a major delivery of multiple furniture items and boxes from Vermont that prompted a complete repacking and organization of our storage space... and you have a very busy Chris over the last two weeks. At this point, I'm far too tired to go into exhaustive detail about the race. Instead I'll offer a few notes about the happenings of the weekend and then give you my clips from the weekend.

• I finished 11th overall (9th in chapter) both days. Since I'm not running for a top spot in the Championship this year, I didn't really put any effort into qualifying well. I started 24th on Saturday, which made for great video, and 19th on Sunday. The field size was well over 30 for whatever that's worth.
• The lack of stress present when you're just racing to have fun is amazing. Racing has become fun again, which is really cool.
  
• There was a major engine blowout on Saturday. A few of us had to do our own little Days of Thunder impression driving through the thick, thick smoke. Look for it in the video.
  
• We had a rollover and subsequent red flag on Saturday. I was right behind the guy when it happened so be sure to look for it in the clip as well.
  
• Laps for Life was a success, even if I did place 4th in the overall pledge amount list. We only managed 8 laps due to the red flag but the drivers raised well over $5,000 so thanks to everyone who contributed.
• We had a professional production crew taking some in car footage on Saturday so I set my camera backwards to get both front and rear views. The first video below is my first take at doing PIP, I think the results are pretty cool. If you'd like to see more footage of the goings-on around me check out videos from other racers here, here, here and here.

RIP George Carlin

He was one of my favorites and not just because he liked to use the f-word a lot. His social commentary was very pointed and often very much in line with my views on what's messed up about this country/world. We were fortunate enough to see him in Atlantic City years ago and I'm glad we did. Rest in peace good sir, you were one of the greats.

Shave and a Haircut

...is not two bits anymore but still worth it. I've been going to Dulles Barber since it opened last year but always got just a haircut. They use straight razors for your neck, a hot towel after your haircut and have four 42" plasmas on ESPN HD to watch from your comfy leather chair. A few visits ago, I saw a guy nearly twice my age sprawled out on a chair getting a lather shave. Making best use of a half day at work, I went in for a haircut and with the place being empty realized it was finally time for my first.

Having successfully lived through the process with no major trauma or scars, I can say it's something every guy should do once. It makes you feel manly and also somehow connects you to the "days of old" when things were slower but better. Not only is it the closest any self-respecting heterosexual male should get to a day at the spa, the results are also somewhat amazing. It's the smoothest shave I've had... ever... something guys could likely use to their advantage with womenfolk.

As a side note, I'd heard of the Grooming Lounge before but have never been since I live west of civilization. I looked up their prices in response to my experience and was astounded to find a hot shave costs $58! I got a shave and haircut for half that price, excluding tip. I don't know if the shave is an identical service but they certainly sound it. I know I'm not nearly trendy enough to be the Lounge's target market but c'mon... $58? Sheesh.