Aug 2, 20213 min read

Clinical Racing Succeeds At Glen Helen

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again. A saying that has been anything but the truth for Clinical Racing in their first year racing in Class 2000. The Clinical Racing team headed to the fourth race of the 2021 MORE season at Glen Helen Raceway in Southern California to compete at the GG Lighting Freedom Cup.

With the first half of the season completed, the team looked to change their luck as Bend-Tech came on board with support and a whole new look as part of Bend-Tech Racing.

Qualifying

The racing weekend kicked off Saturday morning with a sight lap and a qualifying lap. There was no prerunning allowed, so this would be the only time the team could see the track before it started to count.

Clinical Racing had selected a rear start when entering the race, so they decided to use the two laps to get more familiar with the truck and feel if any adjustments needed to be made before the main race.

Qualifying went well for the team, and they would be prepared when it came time for the race. With no major changes, Clinical Racing could relax and stay out of the sun and heat.

Falling Short On Day 1

Racing in the Terra Crew Door Slammer heat, the Clinical Racing team would be on the 4.5-mile Grand Prix course with Class 1400 and 7200. Taking off next to the no. 2021 of Rich Henry, Clinical racing would get the holeshot up the famous Glen Helen hill.

The race started well for driver Steven Olsewski and co-driver Tyler Francis, but it would be over before they knew it. Around a mile into the course, as the team was dropping into the REM course, the front bypass shock’s reservoir hose blew, spraying shock oil all over the engine and into the cab.

“I couldn’t get my visor down fast enough,” Olsewski said. “We came down the hill, and with the course being wet, I thought it was just mud and water, but I was wrong.”

Stopped in their tracks, the no. 2013 truck pulled over at the drop-down before having an emergency crew come to them. They ended up calling the race after that as they couldn’t think of an easy solution, but oil was also in their eyes.

“With some help from really good friends we had the shock rebuilt and situated,” Francis explained. “Within two hours we had everything ready to go for Sunday’s race.”

Clinical Racing’s pride may have been hurt at the end of the day, but they all kept their heads up and were thankful to be able to compete on Sunday.

Cheers On Day Two

The team was ready for redemption on Day Two. Clinical Racing came ready to compete and leave it all on the track on the final day of the event.

Clinical Racing would be the last truck off the line in the Terra Heat, and as the only truck in Class 2000 to not finish a lap the day before, it was time to go. The green flag dropped, and they never looked back.

With seven trucks in Class 2000, they had plenty of work to do to get to the front of the pack. The pit team was excited to see the truck pass on the straightaway before heading into the speed zone leading to the finish line on the first lap.

Coming up on a truck with issues, Clinical Racing started to climb through the field. Each lap got the truck up in the field and gave the team more seat time and their lap times showed as they got more comfortable.

“We kept going and didn’t stop,” Francis said. “The truck was screaming around the track, and Steven kept getting faster and faster as we did the full heat and completed a total of eight laps.”

When the dust settled Clinical Racing had gone from seventh to third with their fastest lap being 6:52:27. The team made it on the podium for day two and took home fourth overall in Class 2000 for the weekend.

“We did it, we finally did it,” Olsewski said after the race. “All the late nights in the shop, all the trials, and errors in the previous races, it all paid off today. This was a big day for the entire team. We have all been waiting for this, and it picks us all up for the rest of the season.”