An article I found about Mikes first National event Win and the first Ironman in the collection! It didn’t start out as a promising weekend. As a matter of fact, it looked like Sunday’s Sportsman Nationals result was going to be the same as that of Friday and Saturday’s Pro-Am. But little did Mike Koontz know that it would all change in the blink of an eye. Koontz, the defending Division 9 Top Sportsman champion, decided to take a gamble when he loaded up his Jerry Bickel-built 2000 S-10 and headed north to Pittsburgh Raceway Park. After a less than ideal start to the weekend, with two early round exits during the divisional events on Friday and Saturday, Koontz was sure that the same fate was in the cards for Sunday as well. “I was terrible in the two divisional races,” Koontz said. “I was ready to go home because I just couldn’t do anything right. But then Sunday came along and I just kept rolling.” Koontz, a general contractor from Virginia, definitely kept rolling - all the way to the winner’s circle. “I think I must have been having a little too much fun the first two days of the race,” Koontz said with a laugh. “But once I got in the groove on Sunday, I just got lucky. I was really concentrating and just kept going rounds.” It took five tough rounds before Koontz would finally get his hands on an Ironman – the first with a Sportsman Nationals title emblazoned on it. After a win first round, Koontz went on to challenge Tim Molnar in round two of Top Sportsman action, but Molnar would provide an early gift with an - .018 red light. Koontz took advantage of the free time trial and ran it out the back door to record a 7.518/180.36 run on his 7.55 dial. In the semifinals Koontz received yet another bye run gift, but his final-round opponent, Scott Wasko, had to earn his way past Mark Payne in the semifinals. Wasko and Koontz both left the line with respectable lights, with Wasko enjoying a slight advantage .025 to .0288. At the line, however, the win light flashed in Koontz’s lanes as he was the beneficiary of a double-breakout finish. Wasko’s -.029 package was good enough for the runner-up spot with a 7. 421/175.71 (7.45) lap. Koontz snagged the win with an -.006 package on a 7.504/181.60 (7.51) run. “Heading into the final round I was really fired up and excited,” Koontz said. “In my eyes, I’d already won just by getting into the finals. To actually take the win was just a bonus. When you come to these IHRA events, you have to show up ready to race. All of these competitors are tough, and IHRA really puts on a good show.” Never having come to a race “up north,” Koontz was thrilled with his decision to make the haul to Pittsburgh. “It was the first time I’ve come north to race and I was really hoping to have done well in the divisional races so I could make up some ground on Steve Corker,” Koontz said. “I really love traveling to different tracks and not knowing who I’m racing. It is much more of a challenge and I get to meet a lot of new people. I didn’t know a single person at this race and I think that just helps me to focus more and do my own thing.” Despite his rough start to the weekend Koontz capitalized on his trip in the end, and as a result walked away with his first national event win.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Nov 2013 03:02:36 +0000
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