If it wasn’t for bad luck, Danny O’Brien would have no luck at all. That cliché has been around longer then the rich history of racing in the O’Brien family, but fits the story well after bad luck continues to plague the team. After sweeping both opening night events at Mohawk International Raceway and Brockville Speedway back in May, O’Brien has struggled to find consistency in his 2012 racing program, with bad luck being the culprit of their misfortunes. The troubles continued this past weekend as O’Brien returned to Mohawk Raceway on Thursday night for their 358 Modified Mr. DIRTcar Series race and Brockville Speedway on Saturday for a regular night of racing.
The night started out well for O’Brien on Thursday night, winning his qualifying heat, and then drawing the pole position for the 75 lap main event. Danny ran strong through the early stages of the race, running solidly in third at the first yellow on lap 16, patiently saving his equipment for later in the race. Danny’s strong run at Mohawk would go bad in a hurry on a lap 47 restart. As the green flag dropped, contact from another car got O’Brien’s 1000 Islands RV car sideways with several cars piling in. The wreck ended O’Brien’s night.
After working hard to get the car fixed for Brockville, Danny and the team made the necessary repairs and were at the track with plenty of time to spare. O’Brien was third fastest in opening practice, and backed that up with a strong run in his qualifying heat, taking the win convincingly. During the final practice session before the feature, O’Brien developed a mechanical failure, and would be unable to run the feature. He did start the race in Tabatha Murphy’s Sportsman to get some points, but would be unable to do more then just start and park.
“We can’t seem to catch a break here lately”, says O’Brien. “I have to thank Tabatha and Ralph Murphy for letting us use their car to start the feature. It allows us to get a few points that we may need later in the season”.
This coming week, Danny will be back at Mohawk International Raceway as they return to their regular Friday night routine, and back to Brockville Speedway on Saturday night.
Danny O’Brien would like to thank 1000 Islands RV Centre, Pat’s Rad, BOB FM, Ponte Bros. Masonry, Morrison Racing Engines, Snap-On Adam Way, Wurth, Bicknell Racing Products, and Integra Racing Shocks for their support going into the 2012 season.
For more information on Danny O’Brien and the 17D racing team, please visit our brand new website, www.dannyobrien.ca. The website just received a new look this week. You can also follow Danny O’Brien through www.1000islandsrvmotorsports.com, a new website recently launched by longtime sponsor 1000 Islands RV.
From Craig Revelle – Finish Line Web Design
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