Tag Archive for: #centralPA

The night started with a decent pill draw for Cappetta, putting her on the front row for the start of her heat race, “In the heat race felt good. It didn’t make much of a difference if I won versus finishing second, I’m just glad we could stay up front.”

Cappetta lined up on the outside of the front row for the feature on Saturday night, her best starting position of the season. There was a caution on the initial start, which meant the field lined up for a complete restart, “I was grateful for the second start because the first one was worse, but the motor stumbled on both starts.” Saturday was a scorcher and the heat and high temperatures played a big factor in the fuel system which is likely what caused the motor to act up. Despite the solid starting spot the feature was a frustrating one for Cappetta, “I couldn’t keep the car under me. If I would try to hit the bottom the car would skate up the track and I had my wing in the trunk by lap three.” Another piece of the puzzle that did not help things is the inconsistency of the tires, “it doesn’t allow for the right stagger for setups.”

“It sucks starting on the front row and then going backward like that. Every restart killed me because of the motor stumble and when I would try to slow the car down the motor stumble would kick in.” After 20 laps Cappetta crossed the line eighth, “If we would have stayed green I feel like we could have put together a top-five run. It just wasn’t our night, but I have to remind myself that we are still having a really good season compared to the last two.”

Another thing to factor into Saturday is that Cappetta and the entire race team worked all day, from 5:30 am to getting the car back to the stop after the car wash, “The team worked through the heat and we were all tired at the end of the night, but I couldn’t do it without them.”

Up Next

Lincoln Speedway, Saturday, June 13 at 7 PM

Season Stats

5 races, 0 wins, 0 top 5s, 3 top 10s, 1 top 15s

Saturday night’s Elijah Hawkins Memorial at Lincoln Speedway was not the best night of the season for Cappetta and the team, but Ashley looks at the night as a learning experience and an opportunity to regroup and make adjustments for the next race.

“The pill draw wasn’t terrible but it was enough to put me in the back of the heat race.” Track conditions did not help Cappetta’s efforts to move forward in her heat, “The track was really dry by the time we went out. Turns 1 and 2 were really slick and you had to hit the bottom of the corner just right.” Cappetta lined up sixth for the heat race and finished fourth, one spot shy of the redraw, “I made a two-car pass in the first turn and then settled in. I was hoping to make the invert but with the way the track was it was hard to get up to where we needed to be.” 

Ashley lined up 15th for the start of the feature, “On the initial start I got up to 13th after passing two cars in the first turn.” Unfortunately for Cappetta, the initial start was called back and the complete restart did not go as well, “On the second start I got shuffled back and got stuck behind someone. I had a lot of wheel spin off the turns and the car wasn’t good enough to move ahead.” Anytime Cappetta would get up to pass someone they would pass her back coming off turn 4. Cappetta continued to have pain in her hand and it amped up during the feature, “Overall it really wasn’t a good night, but the team will make some adjustments for the next race and regroup and work to do better.” Ashley crossed the line 16th to close out the 20-lap feature. 

After starting off the season strong Cappetta and the team will look to rebound and pick up where they left off at Lincoln on June 22. 

Up Next

Lincoln Speedway, Saturday, June 22 at 7PM

Season Stats

4 races, 0 wins, 0 top 5’s, 2 top 10, 1 top 15’s