NASA 12 Hours of Thunderhill Returns

Schedule Change for Thawley – Marital Crisis Avoided

NASA announced yesterday that they are returning to the dual format of their big, year-end enduro at Thunderhill. After a two year hiatus, the - race within a race - 12 Hours of Thunderhill will once again receive its own checkered flag at 11pm on Saturday December 1st, 2007, a mere 12 hours into NASA’s flagship 25 hour endurance race. This news will not likely evoke more than an “oh” from most who hear it. But for those of us running the WERC series, it is a much bigger deal. For us, it’s a double points race.

Double.

If you're not up on your NASA enduro trivia, the 25 Hours of Thunderhill is not a points race. Never has been. The 25’s special blend of sadomasochism, potential for mechanical disaster and hypothermic sleep deprivation has always been reward enough for competing. But it’s a lot to ask a regular WERC racer to do for want of championship points. The 25 is its own deal and that is as it should be.

The 12 is a different matter. Asking a typical WERC team to do a twelve hour points race at the end of the season is really not that big a deal. Sure, it’s three times longer than any other race we’ll do all year. But we still have the option of going to bed that night. Not much chance of being startled awake by a Radical or GT3 doing an outside pass when you’re asleep in your hotel room.

So NASA’s announcement of a seventh race (with season points for eight) looks to add challenge and drama to the season.

And if I were to simply add it to my ’07 racing schedule it would add challenge and drama to my marriage as well. Can’t have that. So, it is with mixed feelings of reservation and glee that I announce the following change to the RoadRaceGeek 2007 schedule:

I ain’t gonna make it to the first WERC race at Infineon. Not gonna happen.

At the end of last season, I promised my long suffering, ever-patient wife, Sharon, that I would not do a full season of Honda Challenge in ‘07. Instead, I would only concern myself with the six races in the WERC series.

I know what you’re thinking. It’s not my fault. NASA added the seventh points race, not me. I didn’t know and obviously could not have foreseen this change of events. I should be able to add the seventh race without marital penalty, right? You must be single. That or your wife likes racing and poverty more than mine does.

Dropping the first race is not without its advantages, though. (This is the glee part.) A lot of work is currently being done to the car. Any racer reading between the lines knows exactly what that means. It’s all torn apart. And although it is closer to being ready than it was last year, it still needs some attention. An extra month of preparation before California Speedway is fine with me. Plus, who wants to tow to NorCal four times in a season? Three races at either end of the state is plenty.

I don't have any photos to go with this story. So here's Benoit eating an ice cream.