3rd Place Finish for Richert
July 4,
2004 Gimli, MB - David Richert took 3rd place
in MKA Race #5. Under cloudy skies and cool temperatures, the day got underway
with morning practice sessions. After struggling to post a fast time in the first
session, Richert was able to come to grips with the track conditions and post competitive times in the second session. “I made a few adjustments to the front end that provided more grip and reduced
the understeering problem I had” stated Richert.
The afternoon saw qualifications getting underway
as the karts took to the track to determine the starting positions for the final. At
the end of the session, Richert found himself in 2nd. Starting the
pre-final from the front row, Richert was able to get a good clean start and make it safely through the first corner in hot
pursuit of the leader. Setting times quicker than the qualifying ones, the front-runners
immediately opened up a gap. Richert was able to keep in touch with first but
was unable to get close enough to pass, so he would start the final from 2nd.
Once again, the front row got away cleanly as
the first few laps were a carbon copy of the pre-final. Midway through the final
race, the 1st place kart nicked a pylon beside the track causing Richert to veer off the track in avoidance and
relinquish his 2nd position. “I saw the pylon ahead start to
fall onto the track” said Richert “and thought I was going to end up running into it so I took evasive action,
unfortunately it caused an off course excursion.” Returning to the track
in 3rd place, Richert pushed hard for the remainder of the race but it was not enough as he was forced to settle
for the final podium spot.
The next race is MKA Race #6 on Sunday, July 25.
