PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANDREW MENESES , SCOTT WITTY , DAVID HILNER |
was going home .”
Schroeder ’ s toughest draw of the day came next , as he paired up with two-time PDRA Pro Street world champion Tim Essick , who Schroeder admitted has beaten him more times than a few in their past dealings . This time , though , Schroeder left the line first and stepped up to a 4.123 at 189.20 , while Essick slowed a bit to a 4.179 .
“ When I used to race him two or three years ago , I would have a different outlook . I would go up there and swing at the fence and just try to outrun him ,” Schroeder said . “ Instead , those guys are all feeling the pressure , versus me with the two-year break , I ’ m kind of just there having a good time . I just really didn ’ t let any of that stuff get into my head and pretty much just left it alone . I knew if I went down the track it ’ d be a good race .”
Another quick light in the semifinals helped Schroeder move on to the final round . He ran a 4.044 at 190.70 to take out fellow young gun Joel Wensley Jr . and his quicker 4.02 at 195.36 on a holeshot .
Schroeder didn ’ t need a starting line advantage in the final round . He charged to a weekend-best 3.977 at 191.40 , which also counted as low E . T . of race day , to get the win over Norris .
“ The final I knew was going to be tricky ,” Schroeder said . “ I ’ m not gonna lie , even if I had a good light and Dan would ’ ve made a full pass and not had to pedal it , he definitely would ’ ve beat me . Him and Riddle are tight-knit and I know what that thing will run . You ’ ve seen what it ’ s run over the last two [ PDRA ] races . I kind of
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just swung a little bit , but nothing stupid . Again , I just kinda got lucky . I had God on my side .”
The top-end celebration was an emotional one for Schroeder and his small , family-based team . His mother , Linda , was diagnosed with cancer over the offseason but made the trip to Bradenton with Schroeder and his father , Joe .
“ After my mom ’ s cancer deal and not knowing the severity of it , I really wanted to go down there and win for her to prove that no matter what the odds are , you can win . That was in the back of
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my head all weekend .
“ When I got out and went down there to them , I couldn ’ t even talk to them . I started crying just because of the emotion of it ,” added Schroeder , who thanked his parents , crew member Ryan Carrick , supporters Hussey Gaskets and Scotty Wheels Racing , as well as Tom Kasper , the DI team , and the class sponsors . “ It ’ s just kind of wild to win . Let ’ s face it . That was the biggest 10.5 race in history and you ’ re on a huge stage . It was a blessing to win that .” DI
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May / June 2024 |
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