PRESS RELEASE:
CRANDON, WISCONSIN
Green Bay, Wisconsin (September 6th, 2005)
With 3 weeks off, time was taken to really evaluate the season so far, and to brace for the remainder of the races in Wisconsin and California. As expected from Bark River a lot of damage was done to the transmission. A lot of things got messed up internally inside the Transmission, “I found out the hard way that Transmissions don’t like going into 2 gears at the same time at a little over 8 thousand RPM’s. I really wrecked the transmission, now I’m worried that we will be going into Crandon without a spare, and sadly that is what happened. I like having the notion that if anything breaks I have a spare to use. I’m hoping that my luck changes and I don’t have any more problems for a while, the pocket book can only take so many hits!” Hintz arrived at the track after a long days work at the family trucking company to find that the track was all lit up for nights festivities held later that weekend. “Crandon has a special place in my heart, what I remember most is the wins that I’ve had in the Light Buggy, and even that very first win came from this place. The feeling that you get from standing on the lift of champions and being able to speak to the 40,000 plus people that attend the race is very special.”
Josh began the race in 14th position and came into the first turn in about the same position. “I was coming into the corner like I normally do, but unfortunately the track crew didn’t water down the start enough, and it was super dusty. I couldn’t see the front of my hood it was so bad. Once the dust cleared I was still full on the throttle, when I saw a bunch of trucks on the left side of the track, one was rolled over and another was sitting sideways in the middle of the track, there was just enough room to squeeze my Toyota through a little opening between the front of Kandel’s truck and the inside big blue wall. And just in that instant, Jim’s truck lurched forward and closed up my only line, I had two choices: 1. either to hit Jim full bore and create more work for the both of us or 2. Get on the brakes hard and try to avoid hitting him. I opted for the second of the two choices and ended up spinning out bouncing off of the inside blue wall and once the spin was done I was facing the wrong way on the track, and I stalled my engine out. I re-fired and found a way through all the blockage on the track. I ended up coming through the first turn basically in last place and fought my way back up to 10 place.” Josh was upset that they didn’t have a red flag situation and a restart the race. “I was completely behind the 8-ball after the first turn and drove my heart out, just unfortunate that they didn’t restart the race, I thought for sure CORR officials would have done that, but no avail.” I’m very happy with how well the truck performed – hopefully tomorrow I can get through the first turn this time. A top ten and a finish in this class is a start to better things to come with Hintz Racing.
Josh started in the same 14th position in the second row again and filed through the first turn towards the front. “I was so happy to have gotten through the first turn, that I didn’t even realize how well of a start I had.” Josh came through the first turn in 5th position and was fighting for 4th. “I made a couple small mistakes but was holding my own position pretty well, when I completely screwed up a corner and got way sideways, when Mark Oberg passed me. The very next turn he blew the turn and I caught back up to him, when all of a sudden going up for the Trac-Rite jump we were fighting for the same piece of real estate, when we bumped a couple times and then I ended up getting spun out. It was just good hard racing and neither one of us wanted to give up our position, Hey it happens.” Josh finished the race tied with his career best finish of 7th. “It felt really good to have a good race, I made some mistakes and in this class when you make a mistake normally there is somebody there to take advantage of it. I got a little out of shape a couple times, but I will promise you that I will get better. I can’t wait for California.”
Josh’s cousin Ben O’Connell won both races that weekend along with the Points Championship. “Four years in a row we have won the Light Buggy Points Championship, not only that, but Ben won the World Championship race this weekend also. My Brother M.J. Hintz has 2 World Championships, I have 2 World Championships, and Ben has 2 World Championships!!! Talk about an awesome accomplishment for this family!!! Congratulations Ben!!”
The 2005 CORR Lucas Oil Series will head to the newly built track of Otay Ranch in Chula Vista (San Diego, CA) for two back to back weekends of high flying CORR action along with some desert race vehicles also on September 24-25 the final two rounds of the 2005 CORR Lucas Oil Pro Series Points Championships and on October 1-2 for a chance to win some BIG money, and bragging rights until 2006.