Klutch Kickers - RD 2 - Holt, FL [4/24/21]

Man!!!!! What an eventful Round 2!!!!

Luckily, we got to kick it off at the beach.

We got to explore downtown Ft. Walton and of course we had to visit a skate shop. Can you imagine my footwork videos in these Vans?!?!? Hahaha

This time we did our normal routine - left on a Thursday and arrived to FL that evening. We did this to ensure that we could make Friday’s practice. We were able to get quite a few laps in and the car felt really good. I was definitely feeling more ahead this round already since we didn’t practice on Friday for the 1st round.

Fast forward to Saturday….. LOTS OF RAIN!!!!! And even a small tornado.

We all kept thinking we were going to be able to stick it out but the rain just kept getting worse and worse. SO much so that almost everyone’s tents / awnings were damaged or completely destroyed. I’m sure you maybe saw Enjuku’s crazy video with Mike Pollard almost getting blown away with their awning, It was pretty gnarly! Thankfully, our team got lucky and only 3 of our poles bent that were holding up the vinyl. With a few pieces of angle iron, Dad, the team and a few other helping hands were able to get the poles straight again in order to get us back up and running. They ended up calling it a wash somewhere around 11 or noon. We decided we would fix up the tent and head out to spend the day at the beach, again because we love the beach!

We shifted gears and ended up using this as a team bonding day, Exploring a little more and of course trying to map out the rest of the weekend since our Saturday now did not include any Qualifying! BUT - We made the best of it!!!

Sunday was a much better story, weather wise!!! I was ready to hit the track and burn some tires!!!

We had some merch + a little Tire Streets / Accelera activation offering tire changes!! Can’t thank our crew enough for making this all run so smoothly!

Time for practice.

I was feeling great all during practice. Honestly, I was just ready to DRIVE. As usual, you gotta lose the bumper!

For Top 64, we had a bye run so that went pretty smooth.

Top 32 we first battled the Durty Z, Kabbott Cardoso! We ended up getting the win but he put up a pretty good run and I was impressed with his driving for such a young age!

Next up in Top 16 was Ethan Parnell, It was pretty fun to drive with a friend that I’ve been trying to help coach. Sharing lessons and trying my best to expedite his progress behind the wheel. We ended up taking the WIN.

Breaking into Top 8 we battled Alec Hohnadell. Sadly, no photos of this battle. Alec had the higher points in the current standings so he got to lead and I chased. The run started out really well and then in outer zone 2 we bumped / went off track which caused some chaos and Alec was not able to fix his car giving us the win to move forward!

After Alec was our battle against Dirk Stratton, I was super hyped for this battle since Dirk is active in pro competitions. I’m up for a challenge these days as I am aiming to progress my own driving. I knew this was going to take focus and a perfect chase run.

Any time you’re fighting for a podium position - it’s a good race! My mind felt strong and I was mentally ready to conquer this battle. Unfortunately, I got mixed up between outer zone 1 and outer zone 2 and that super small mistake cost us the win. These are the lessons I will remember and better on my next opportunity. You gotta find the leverage gained in a true loss. (below is where I wish the arm was pointing in the other direction. : )

After this battle, it was time to battle for 3rd / 4th position with my boy Troy Manners. It’s always a weird feeling to battle again after losing, but it’s a sharp mind that can bounce back. Here we go!

Last Round Troy and I had a “One More Time” and HE got the win - this time, I wasn’t going to let that happen. I was mentally and physically ready for this battle and took the win for 3rd!!!!

All in all - minus the crazy weather day, this was such a rad round. I felt confident in my driving and in my car and knew I had the strongest team to back me. Huge thanks to Dad / Adrian / Caden / Jeff / Corey / My wife and Mom for bringing the good vibes. My mind is already set for Round 3 as I now sit 4th in overall points. WE CAN WIN THIS CHAMPIONSHIP, LETS MAKE IT HAPPEN.