Icy conditions

Kristin Nash left the sidelines and took up her position behind the wheel of a car at  Autosports Club's ice-racing competition.

The sport caught the eye of the 27-year after witnessing just a few races from afar. A quick phone call or two, a visit from JackFrost and she was tearing up the track at Mission Bay.

“It is awesome behind the wheel. It gets your adrenalin going. Unfortunately, for today, it’s hard to see because of all the snow. You get that little bit of an unknown of what’s going to happen.  It’s nerve-wracking at first,” she said last Sunday.

Unfortunately, the race didn’t quite work out as planned, though she did taste early success.

Nash was leading the pack, but crashed when another car slammed into her, damaging her front bumper. But she wasn’t about to give up, a handy-dandy welding torch coming to her rescue, leaving her hopeful she’d be up and running again before the afternoon competition ended.

“It’s the best time ever unless you hit someone and you end up back in the pits,” she said.

Denver, Colo.’s Logan Jones inherited his passion for racing from his grandfather, local construction magnate Tom Jones. The 19-year-old has raced all over the United States, including recent stops in Las Vegas and California.

Upon first learning about the sport, his first question was weather related. He wondered how it posibly got cold enough to race a car on a frozen lake. That changed quickly, after arriving in Thunder Bay for school.

It’s been an eye-opener, he added.

“Ice racing is a lot different,” Jones said. “For example you’re always sideways, you can’t see much and everyone is there for each other. It’s a lot more fun. You’re always spinning your tires and everything is sideways.”

More than 15 cars both studded and rubber participated in Sunday’s races.

Curtis Stieh, president of the Autosports Club, a number of drivers were forced to abandon plans to race on Saturday, a variety of mechanical issues to blame for most of the withdrawals.

Stieh said the keeps coming back to the track because of the team spirit that abounds in the wintry pits.

“There’s a lot of good teams and a lot of good people,” he said. “You also come out for the competition. You start your own little battles with different people that you’re racing with and you have a great old time.”