PWA Oval Series: Max Lange in P6, Michael Heilek as a Lawn Mower & Max Heilek Early in the Garage

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The Roval in Charlotte claimed its victims, and our team was no exception.

On the schedule of the Oval Series was the Roval in Charlotte. Max Lange started from P4, and a battle for the front positions unfolded. Max and Michael Heilek started from the back of the field and never really got into the race. Max Heilek first had no luck (a severe braking error) and then had bad luck on top of that (a head-on crash into the barrier). After that, he could head to the bar early. Michael Heilek never really got into the rhythm of the race either. Frequently driving off-track and having occasional collisions, he still made it to the finish line. Max Lange wasn’t spared from bad luck either, touching the wall and bending his suspension. In the end, however, P6 still brought some valuable points for the championship.

Results for the NASCAR-FAN Store Threewide Racing Team:
6st place: Max Lange
16th place: Michael Heilek
21th place: Max Heilek

Race Report Max Lange #66:

On the schedule of the Oval Series was the Roval in Charlotte. Max Lange started from P4, and a battle for the front positions unfolded. Max and Michael Heilek started from the back of the field and never really got into the race.

Max Heilek first had no luck (a severe braking error) and then had bad luck on top of that (a head-on crash into the barrier). After that, he could head to the bar early. Michael Heilek never really got into the rhythm of the race either. Frequently driving off-track and having occasional collisions, he still made it to the finish line.

Max Lange wasn’t spared from bad luck either, touching the wall and bending his suspension. In the end, however, P6 still brought some valuable points for the championship.

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Race Report Max Heilek #12:

Yes, it was time for the Charlotte Roval, and anyone who knows me knows that road courses are far from my strong suit.

Unfortunately, I already knew going in that it would be extremely difficult to carry over the momentum from my third-place finish in Dover.

But hey, luckily NASCAR awards points for every position—even for the “beater car,” which is what the NASCAR-Fan Store Threewide Racing Team Ford Mustang with the #12 would surely become, at least collecting points from the cars that dropped out.

As for the race itself, I immediately pulled off an incredible ARCA brake maneuver right at the start, T-boning a wrecked car a solid 10 seconds after the crash occurred. Seconds later, in turn 1, another car involved in a separate incident rejoined without looking and slammed into my side, leaving me with steering damage. Just one lap later, a car ahead of me spun while accelerating back onto the oval, crashing into my hood and adding even more engine damage.

Shortly before the stage caution, I was nearly lapped, so I pitted for a slightly longer stop to repair some of the damage. Knowing that the upcoming yellow flag would give me a wave-around to rejoin the lead lap, I decided to take the risk.

After being waved past the pace car, I disastrously locked up my brakes while entering turn 1 and planted my #12 NASCAR-Fan Store Threewide Mustang firmly in the Tums Heartburn Turn. The car had to be towed back to the pits, but unfortunately, it couldn’t be repaired enough to continue.

Thanks to the unusually small field, I still managed to collect a few points from the race. Now, I’m looking forward to the upcoming ovals, ready to build momentum for the playoffs, where I’m fully confident I’ll be competing.

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Race Report Michael Heilek #75:

The 6th race of the PWA Oval Series took place at the Charlotte Roval—a road course within the oval series, which for some drivers was reason enough not to participate at all. Although my lap times in practice were about 3–4 seconds slower than the fastest drivers, skipping the race was not an option for me. As a result, only 23 drivers made it to the grid.

For me, the goal was once again to drive clean and keep the car on the track. That’s why I decided not to qualify and instead start from the back of the field.

Right off the start, there was a crash in the midfield before turn 1, allowing me to gain a few positions immediately. Unfortunately, I never really found my rhythm in the race. My wheels kept locking up under braking into the chicanes and corners, although I managed to avoid hitting the wall. To prevent further issues, I pitted for new tires just before the stage caution.

During the caution, my teammate and son, Max, crashed his Ford Mustang into the wall at turn 1, suffering engine damage and unfortunately being forced to retire.

As the race progressed, I was shoved aside twice—first spun out and then pushed into the wall. This caused significant damage to my suspension, making it incredibly difficult to keep the car on the track. In the end, I crossed the finish line in P16, four laps down.

Once again, Max Lange delivered a strong performance with a 6th-place finish, helping our NASCAR-Fan Store Threewide iRacing Team maintain its lead in the overall standings.

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