Brookside Motors Update JUNE 25, 2008

This week Brookside Motorsports had a short trip to get to our race at the Illiana Motor Speedway in Schererville, IN.  The crews of both the #0 and the #14 late models put in 60+ hours as we had major engine installations in both cars to accomplish in a very short period of time.  In addition, the #14 had suffered severe body damage in a crash at Salem Speedway a couple weeks ago and needed to be repainted once we got it back with a new front end already assembled on the chassis.

We had high hopes for the weekend even though we had done significant work on the cars(which can always lead to something being “missed”).  We followed set up notes from previous races at Illiana, and felt like we would be “close” on the handling.

When we got to the track, we found out quickly that our set up on the #0 was not yielding the good handling race car we had hoped for, so we began making changes.  We changed springs, a different size sway bar, spring rubbers to stiffen the springs, different tire pressures, and nothing seemed to make the car better.  We made more changes between practice and qualifying and Sean went out and ran better than in practice, but still qualified in the 19th position. There were some very fast competitors at this race, and one of the regular CRA drivers (Boris Juckovic #53) clocked an 18.864 qualifying time, setting a new track record.

Al Longtin in the #14 moodyradio.org/fivelovelanguages.com car logged some good laps in practice, and continued to get the feel for the car and this track, being the first time he had competed on this oval.  As he took his qualifying laps, he went into the corners a bit too hard, which caused him to sail up the track and clock a slower time.  But now that qualifying was over, we all started to focus in on the 100 lap feature to be run later that evening.

In between qualifying and the race, we got a chance to visit with supporters of both cars who had come after hearing about it on Moody Radio and from our friends at KIDS CORNER.  The Family Fun Zone was a huge hit, and many families dropped by to play the games, sit in the car, and receive life impacting prizes.  We actually gave away a fender from the #0 car that had been damaged last week due to some contact on the track with another driver.  How would you like to have THAT hanging on the wall in your family room?!

CRA Chaplain Doug Hastings led a service at 2:15pm, speaking on “The Fear Factor” and how fear makes us do things that we shouldn’t do.  The lesson was taken from I Samuel 22 where Saul tried to kill David, fearing David was plotting to overthrow his reign. 

On Father’s Day, we prepared small gift bags for the CRA officials, to honor them for their good work with the series, and encourage them.  We were humbled to have one of the series officials come back this past weekend and thank us for the material…he had read it, and it had greatly helped him deal with some tough situations in his life this past week.  That one testimony made the whole weekend worth every bit of effort we put in at the shop and at the track!

Race time came, and our apprehensions came true as we soon discovered our handling on both cars was not what it needed to be.  Both Sean and Al got up on the wheel and made the best of their difficult handling cars.  We brought the #0 in several times during the caution periods, trying various adjustments to see if something would help it turn better in the corner.  But, for the most part, those changes made little difference.  We ran hard and allowed others who were faster than us to cleanly pass, and we finished the night with a 20th for the #0 and a 22 for the #14.

Pictures of the race weekend are found at both links below.  Thanks to Dennis Rizo and Maureen Ber from Moody Radio for the link to the pictures they took this weekend and posted on flickr,

http://community.webshots.com/album/563886499LYWobl?vhost=community

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22215641@N03/sets/

As you might suspect, our team was disappointed with our results, but God did some miraculous things that were far more significant than where we finished the race.  We had many fans come to the pits after the race, and spent time visiting with us around our cars and race trailer.  Investing time in people is a privilege and often times a blessing to others, and we thank all of you who made the trip to cheer us on.  Your presence was an encouragement to us!

Sponsor Spotlight:

Schepel Buick/Pontiac/GMC

Schepel has been a strong supporter of the Family Fun Zone tent Brookside Motorsports runs at each CRA event.  We appreciate their encouragement as we touch families, and encourage you to consider them as you look for a new or used vehicle.  As you visit their web site, you will see the following message.

When we opened our dealership in 1968, our goal, first and foremost, was to build lasting relationships with our customers.  We knew it would take more than just offering the best selection of vehicles, the best prices, and the best service.  It would take a commitment to treat our customers with fairness, respect, and honesty.
              Today, we see the results of our efforts.  Repeat and referral business continues to be the foundation of our business.  I have given my personal commitment to all our customers that their experience with Schepel will be a pleasant one.

The entire Schepel team and I appreciate the support we’ve been given through the years, and we look forward to serving you in the future.
   

Sincerely,
    RICHARD SCHEPEL,
     PRESIDENT

http://www.schepelbuickpontiacgmc.com/

Berkot's Super Foods is a full service grocery store. - Family owned and operated - whose greatest pride is providing you - our valued customer - with fast friendly service and only the freshest and highest quality meat, produce, deli, and fresh bakery products available.

  Berkot's opened it's Mokena store in 1990 and has since grown to include five additional locations:

Our employees are all members of the communities in which the Berkot's stores are located and we are dedicated to their training and development as Berkot's associates. Berkot's also remains dedicated to the communities we serve - and who support us - by offering our full support to their organizations and events that enhance the quality of life of all members of the community.

We appreciate their support of the Brookside Motorsports team, keeping us hydrated at the shop and on race weekends with bottled water, Gatorade, and Pepsi, along with chips and cookies.

We are next off to Angola Motor Speedway for a race on Thursday evening, July 3.  We’ll keep you updated on significant events between now and then.

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this email update, send a message to doug.hastings@sbcglobal.net

The CRA Racing Series has a web site at www.craracing.net

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Brookside Motors Update JUNE 16, 2008

This is a bit longer than usual, but there is some exciting stuff in here, so here goes.

The week leading up to the Ivy Tech 125 at Anderson Speedway was a hectic one.  Coming back from Salem, we had significant work to do on the #14 car as well as the #0.  The #14 car suffered serious damage in Salem, and the whole front end of the car needed to be replaced so the engine was removed on Monday to prepare for that major work to be done.  The hope is that the front end work will be completed by Wednesday of this week and the engine re-installed in time for the Saturday race at Illiana Speedway.

The crew worked all week on the #0 car getting ready for Anderson.  We discovered a hole in our header, and were thankful that this didn’t cause us serious engine damage as we finished our laps in Salem.  A new one had to be ordered and was installed late in the week.

We were also chasing down an electrical problem, dealing with the alternator and battery.  We thought we had it solved but then we battled it again once we got to the track.

Anderson is a ¼ mile high banked, fast track that can be brutal on cars.  The typical Anderson race has many cautions during the first half of the race, and then longer green flag runs as the race moves towards the finish.  We battled the handling on the car, and decided to change rear springs, along with replacing a broken shock.  Sean went out to qualify and came out with a 14th position to start the race.

6:00pm came, with driver introductions and the waving of the green flag began the 125 lap feature event.  Several cautions for wrecks flew over the course of the first 60 laps, and then things smoothed out until close to the end.  Sean reported the car’s handling to be the best it had been all day, and he was slowly moving up in positions.  Anderson can be a “survival of the fittest” kind of race, and Sean stayed clear of the major incidents.  As the checkered flag flew, we crossed the finish line in 10th place…a solid day.  A violent thunderstorm came rolling in shortly after our race concluded so we feverously loaded our equipment into the race trailer, barely getting it all inside before the downpour and heavy winds swept threw.  Everybody stayed safe but it didn’t allow us to greet the race fans in the pits after the racing evening concluded.

The schedule was really tight, but we did hold a Chapel service for a small group, where Doug Hastings spoke on the Parable of the Prodigal Son, or more appropriate for Father’s Day, the Parable of the Waiting Father.   Read the whole story in Luke 15:11-32…a good reminder’s of God the Father’s patience for us as we are “prone to wander.”

The Family Fun Zone was a huge success, with many families visiting, playing the games, winning prizes, and just having a good time.  We continue to be extremely grateful to CRA for their support of this venture, along with Kid’s Corner Radio, Tyndale House Publishers/ RPM Books by Chris Fabry, Moody Radio, EMF Corporation, Schepel Buick/Pontiac/GMC, MEP, Schoenfeld Headers, and several others from the CRA racing community.

Click here for more pictures of our prep for the Anderson race and of this weekend’s action.

Brookside Motorsports could not do what we do without the great support of our sponsors.  Over the remaining weeks of the season we will periodically present a Sponsor Spotlight in our update in appreciation and recognition of this group of ministry partners.  We encourage you to support them and when you get the chance, thank them for their support of the Ministry and Racing efforts here at Brookside Motorpsorts.

KID’S CORNER RADIO

Kid’s Corner Radio is a production of the Back to God Hour.

Back to God Hour - Our Mission

Spreading God's Word and making disciples of all peoples through electronic media ministry.

For nearly 70 years, The Back to God Hour has covered the world with an ever-growing electronic media ministry. We beam the message of salvation to all corners of the earth in nine major world languages, using radio, television, the Internet, telecommunications and the printed page.

Ministry leaders, native to their own languages, provide leadership in production of culturally relevant programs and follow-up in order to present Jesus Christ and help people to grow in their faith.

Global Impact

• Ministries in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Indonesian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish languages.
• Reaching people in more than 170 countries worldwide.
• Headquartered in suburban Chicago, Illinois with satellite/follow-up offices in 16 countries.
• Ministries specifically designed to reach children and youth in seven languages.
• An average of 125,000 people contact The Back to God Hour ministries monthly, asking for prayer, requesting Bible study materials, copies of messages or other follow-up materials.

TYNDALE HOUSE PUBLISHERS

Tyndale House Publishers was founded in 1962 by Kenneth N. Taylor. Concerned that his ten children were having a hard time understanding the family’s devotional reading of the old English in the King James Version of the Bible, Taylor paraphrased the The Living Bible so they could hear and understand the scriptures in everyday English.

In 1954, as he rode the commuter train to his job in Chicago, Taylor started paraphrasing the New Testament into modern English. After seven years of writing and rewriting, he submitted the manuscript to several publishing houses, but it was rejected by all of them. Convinced that there was value in the work for more than just their children, Taylor and his wife Margaret, decided to use their limited savings to publish Living Letters.

In 1962, Taylor exhibited his self-published Living Letters at the Christian Booksellers Association convention. The following spring Billy Graham saw a copy of Living Letters and asked if he could print a special edition and offer it on the telecasts of his crusades. Half a million copies were given away through the Graham crusades. Ken Taylor’s dream had become a reality and more – a publishing entity had been born. Tyndale House Publishers grew from a modest home into a major publishing entity that reaches every continent in the world.

"I had always been fascinated by the story of the 16th-century Englishmen William Tyndale. His lifetime goal was to translate the Bible into English, even though there was a death penalty for anyone who dared to do this. William Tyndale’s dream was accomplished, but in 1536 King Henry VII arranged for Tyndale to be burnt at the stake for giving the English Bible to England. I too had a dream of giving America a Bible that was easy to understand." -Dr. Kenneth N. Taylor

At the Family Fun Zone, a big “hit” with the kids is the free copy of Chris Fabry’s book Blind Spot, published by Tyndale.  Blind Spot is the first is a 4 part kid’s series that deals with racing, so it is a natural topic for a book we gladly give to kids who visit the Family Fun Zone tent.  Chris Fabry is an author and is the radio host of Chris Fabry Live! heard M-F at 2pm CT on Moody Radio.

Thanks for working your way to the end of our update this week.  Please come see us as we race at Illiana Speedway in Schererville, IN (Northwest IN) on Saturday Night, June 21.  The CRA Super Series drivers will compete in the Elmer Musgrave Memorial 100 lap feature event that evening.  The Family Fun Zone tent will be in full operation, so stop by and visit and then cheer on the #0 Kid’s Corner Radio/RPM Books late model driven by Sean Matthuis and the #14 Moody Radio/Moody Publishers machine driven by Al Longtin.

Please make sure you add doug.hastings@sbcglobal.net to your safe senders list so this regular email update doesn’t go into you spam or junk mail folder.  If you know of someone who would like to be added to this regular email update list, please reply with their address.

Have a great week!

CRA Series information at www.craracing.net

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Brookside Motors Update JUNE 8, 2008

It has been several weeks since our last update, so we’ll bring you up to speed on the activities of the Brookside Motorsports team since our competition at Baer Filed in Fort Wayne, IN.

Last weekend, since there was no CRA event scheduled, the #0 team ventured out to Illiana Speedway to give our car a “test run” prior to our CRA event.  We prepared our second car (Lefthander chassis) for this “test,” knowing it would be the one we would be taking to Illiana to compete on June 21.  Four laps into practice, the engine “blew” and our night was over, almost before it started.  The GOOD thing was that the set-up on the car was very good, and Sean was extremely pleased with how the #0 Kid’s Corner Radio/Tyndale House Publishers Charger was hugging the track during those first few laps around the ½ mile flat track oval.  We plan to install a replacement motor this week and be ready for the June 21 event.  We are also looking forward to seeing many of our Chicago area friends and supporters at that race….please make the trip out to Schererville and stop by the team hauler in the pits after the races to say hello (entrance to the pits AFTER the race is free).

Work continued on our “Port City” racecar in preparation for the high bank ½ mile at Salem Speedway.  Both the #0 and the #14 cars we set to compete with 22 other drivers.  The weather was extremely treacherous (heavy rain which resulted in flash flooding) making our way down I-65 Saturday morning, but we arrived at Salem Speedway with the temperatures in the 90’s, and we began the day with high hopes of good safe racing and ministry opportunities for the Family Fun Zone team.

Practice brought unique results for both cars.  Al Longtin in the #14 Moody Radio/Moody Publishers machine went out to get a feel for this high banked oval, and was running respectable lap times and logging laps to get more comfortable with the track when he got caught up in a spin of another car causing significant front end damage to the #14.  The pit crew began the major repairs on the #14 (scrambling to get done before qualifying), while Sean Matthuis in the #0 continued in practice, working on improving the handling by making adjustments to the track bar and changing a spring in the right rear.  Qualifying was just around the corner.

The #0 qualified 18th and after intense work by the crew, the #14 was able to make his qualifying laps, but with no front nose or fenders on the car, his front end down force was greatly decreased and that robbed him of a chance to show what the car could really do.

Racing began at 7:00pm, and after the invocation and the singing of the National Anthem, 3 other Divisions raced their features before the CRA Super Series late models took to the track.  After driver introductions, the event began with 24 cars on the grid.  The race was fast and clean, and with only a few minor incidents for cautions.  Sean was holding his own, running in the middle of the pack and taking care of the car so we could be there at the finish.  Around lap 50, he reported a “clicking” noise but he stayed on the track since he continued to have full power from the engine.  At lap 69, he slowed significantly and entered the pits.  A quick examination under the hood uncovered a broken alternator belt, not allowing the alternator to charge the battery.  By now it was close to lap 80, and with only 20 laps remaining, the race would be over by the time the repair was made.  So our night was finished.

The #14 machine started the race, but we knew it would be a tough night with no fenders and the front end damage sustained in practice.  The goal was to run as competitively as possible, but allow the faster cars to pass by staying low on the track.  On lap 49, Al lost control coming out of turn 2 and hit the inside wall on the back stretch, causing severe damage to the front end and ending his night.

With the severe weather in the whole area both north and south of Salem, the crowd was a bit smaller than hoped for, which also impacted the number of people visiting the Family Fun Zone.  But even still the team of volunteers worked hard setting up the games and the show car, and spent time with the families who made their way to the pavilion just inside the admission gate.  The local TV station interviewed Donna Matthuis and she was able to explain what the Family Fun Zone was all about.  More ministry material was handed out, giving the kids fun prizes, Kid’s Corner Radio program CD’s, and Tyndale House publisher’s “Blind Spot” book by Chris Fabry.  The adults received a copy of the Moody Publisher’s book “The Five Love Languages for Men.”  The Family Fun Zone continues to provide great opportunities to minister to people attending the racing events.  Special thanks continue to go out to the CRA officials along with the generous sponsors of the Family Fun Zone.  The Family Fun Zone team this week included Donna and Cheyenne Matthuis, Nancy Hastings, Kelly Siegers, Renee Tomak, and Bill and Carol Kooienga.

I had the privilege of giving a chapel message to a small group who were able to attend. I spoke on “Facing the Giants in our Lives” - learning from the story of David and Goliath in I Samuel 17.  I also was asked to lead in prayer at the driver’s meeting, give the invocation, along with pray with one of the teams prior to the race.  Opportunities for ministry continue to open up every week.

So….we have lots of work to do at the shop as we prepare to race the #0 car at Anderson Speedway next weekend on Father’s Day, and both the #0 and the #14 at Illiana Speedway the following Saturday June 21.  Huge work goes into these cars by team members Sean Matthuis (driver), Shawn Matthuis (owner), Mac Hastings, Alex Treptow, Jim Rogers, Jeff “Skippy” Sanders, George Tomak, David Tomak, Doug Hastings, Kelly Siegers, and Jason Marion.

For more pictures of the Hoosier Hills 100 from Salem Speedway click here.

Follow the activities of the Brookside Motorsports team at www.brooksidemotorsports.com   The CRA Racing Series website is www.craracing.net

Brookside Motors Update MAY 23, 2008

WOW!  Here it is already, the first holiday weekend of summer.  Time seems to fly by faster every year.  Thanks for your continued interest in our race/ministry team. 

Last weekend we were in Fort Wayne, IN at Baer Field Speedway, which is a 3/8 mile track with no walls on the back stretch and turns one and four.  This unique track is sandwiched up against Fort Wayne’s International Airport where the roar of fighter jets drowns out the noise of our cars.

We took advantage of the free Saturday afternoon practice session to dial the car in.  Frustration agitated us through a bad set of tires but we were able to make some progress by the end of the day.  Sunday’s one-hour practice session was better and allowed us to qualify 18th.  This wasn’t as good as we had hoped for so after qualifying we changed a gear, a spring, and made a few other improvements. 

Because of a jammed packed schedule, we held a chapel for our team in our trailer before the race.  We talked about the burden, the decision, and the plan that Nehemiah put into action in his life in order to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.  The determination this man had to not let adversity, people, and enemies stand in his way shows us that nothing is impossible when we put everything before God and let Him lead us.

The call for the cars to line up came quickly and the green flag flew.  After a few accidents (which all seemed to happen right in front of us) Sean powered the Kids Corner car into the top ten.  While making a pass to 8th position, Sean was bumped and sent spinning.  He held onto the car and no damage was done but the loss of position and a trip to the back of the pack sure hurt.  With only 30 laps to go, Sean was able to make his way back through the pack to finish 16th.

The Family Fun Zone tent was a big hit with the kids and families at this event.  Despite the cold and windy day, we had approximately 35 families register and approximately 70 kids came through the tent and played games.  We had several men and women without kids stop by out of curiosity. They were very receptive to taking Kids Corner Radio Program information home with them for their kids or grandkids.  We were also able to give them copies of The Five Love Languages (for men); the women seem to be excited about giving this book to their husbands!

We are off this holiday weekend but we plan to take our other race car to Illiana Speedway for a test session/race.  We look forward to seeing our friends from the past there.  Please continue to pray for our race teams, not only for our safety but also that we may be Christ-like in all that we do (and that can be pretty tough at the track).

We continue to be grateful to our sponsors for their faithful support.  We do still have financial needs as we anticipate racing strong throughout the entire season.  If you or someone you know resonates with our mission, please point them in the direction of Shawn Matthuis at 815-485-0033.

A few more pictures can be found here.

If you’d like to be dropped from these email updates or know someone who would enjoy reading of our racing and ministry activities, you can request that by sending an email to doug.hastings@sbcglobal.net

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Brookside Motors Update April 28, 2008

Finally, we enjoyed a good weather day and the opening event for the CRA Super Series took place on Sunday, April 27 at Winchester Speedway.

Because of the good weather, there was a good crowd in attendance and lots of families took time to visit the Family Fun Zone. Kids got to sit in the show car, play games, and we handed out many copies of the Kids Corner Radio programs on CD, Chris Fabry’s Tyndale House kids racing book called BLIND SPOT, and copies of Gary Chapman’s best seller THE FIVE LOVE LANGUAGES (for Men) published by Moody Publishers.

We are seeing many open doors to place ministry material in the hands of the families, while we show them some hospitality and fun in the Family Fun Zone. Our plans include setting up this Family Fun Zone tent at most of the races on the schedule this season.

The 100 lap feature for the 24 late models started about 3pm. Exciting racing took place as both the #0 Kids Corner/Tyndale House Publishers and the #14 Moody Radio/Moody Publishers late models took to the track. The set up on the #0 seemed to be right on the mark, and Sean Matthuis went out for the only practice session and felt good about the handling and speed. After a strong qualifying run, he put the #0 in the 13th starting position, ahead of several veteran drivers. He drove a very strong race and the car was working real well in the upper grove. Slowly Sean moved the #0 forward little by little, getting up as far as 7th when a yellow flag flew on lap 96. During the yellow flag, something broke in the rear end, and Sean had a difficult time even making the final four laps, but stuck with it and finished in 9th place. Again, racing is a lot like life, with its highs and lows. Dealing with the good is easy but dealing the bad is always a challenge. We were proud of our team for the way we worked together, and for the solid finish for the #0.

All day, the crew for the #14 Al Longtin machine fought a fuel system issue, eventually discovering a kinked fuel pick up which wasn’t allowing steady fuel to flow to the carburetor. Adjustments were made right before the race began, so Al didn’t have the benefit of any practice laps or a qualifying run, so he started in the rear of the field. Winchester has vary fast, ,high banked turns and the learning curve is steep, so Al logged laps for most of the race, developing a growing feel for the car and the track. As the checkered flag flew, he crossed the line in 16th place, a very respectable finish for his first competitive oval racing experience.

Chapel again had a good attendance, many from the Brookside team, but several other teams also participated. I spoke on Hebrews 12:1-3, several verses that had crossed my path multiple times throughout last week. I talked about “running the race” and that in the race of life, speed is not always the key, but persistence and focusing on the right goal. After the service, one team came up to me and told me they had those verses on their racing team’s web site. We again got to interact with Jim, the Winchester Speedway gate keeper. At the conclusion of Chapel, we prayed for his daughter, Jama, who is battling diabetes, as well as for safety for all the drivers, crews, and officials. Of course, we began each word of prayer with a word of thankfulness for the good weather that God had blessed us with on Sunday.

We took a few more pictures this week and they are posted at http://community.webshots.com/album/563245591FqFlkS?vhost=community

The phrase “Give Us This Day our Daily Bread” is more and more precious to us as a race team, as we wait for God’s supply on the financial side. He is opening great doors for ministry, and we are confident He will provide the needed resources to sustain that ministry to families through our race team. We are extremely grateful for the sponsors who have already come on board, and are watching expectantly for additional partnerships to develop. If you have ideas for people who might connect with our mission and vision, please let us know.

Our next race is in Ft. Wayne on May 18, so we have several weeks to work in the shop. Pray for Shawn, Sean, Mac, Alex, Jim, George, Jeff, David, Kelly, and Jason as they put in multiple nights and long hours each week at the shop working on the cars. The NASCAR guys always remember to thank their shop guys, and we are learning how important it is to appreciate the hard work that goes on behind the scenes long before race day. We’ll soon have our web site updated with new pictures of all the crew.

Thanks for your interest....feel free to share these updates with friends and family who might be interested in our team’s activities. Remember to support our sponsors listed on the “Sponsor” page of our web site at www.brooksidemotorsports.com

We’ll post another update as we approach the May 18 event.

 Brookside Motors Update April 21, 2008

On Sunday, we woke up to cloudy skies and wet pavement, so the schedule for racing was delayed as they once again dried the track.  We did finally take to the race track for a practice session, but soon after that, the skies opened again and washed out the rest of the day.  The event has been rescheduled for next Sunday, April 27.

The Family Fun Zone made its debut and was a great success.  Especially because of the rain, families were looking for “shelter” and some of them found it in the Family Fun Zone.  Donna Matthuis, Nancy Hastings, Kelly Siegers, and Kaitlin Kutchinski hosted the tent and interacted with Moms, Dads, and kids.

 The CRA made “Chapel” a priority in the schedule, and because of the rain, more crew members were able to attend.  About 20 came to the service, where Chaplain Doug Hastings talked about “The Present” (a book written by Spencer Johnson), and related various passages of Scripture to the idea of “taking advantage of the present moment, learning from the past, and planning for the future.”  Several people asked for a copy of the Gospel of John that Doug offered during his message.  Prayer requests were received and the service was closed in prayer.

So, we’ll be back at Winchester next weekend and will keep you informed of the results.  Pictures of this past weekend are available by clicking here.  You can also stay up to date on Brookside “news” by visiting our newly designed web site at www.brooksidemotorsports.com

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Brookside Motorsports Update- april 18, 2008

Our last update had us traveling to Anderson, IN for the April 12-13 weekend, but on April 11, we received word the event had been postponed due to anticipated cold and rainy weather.  We will now be in Anderson on Father’s Day.

So…our next event is this weekend in Winchester, IN.  The famed Winchester Speedway, is known as the “World’s Fastest ½ Mile.”  We will head out early Saturday morning for the 4 hour trip to eastern Indiana, and hopefully dodge the rain and get some practice time in before the Manning Service 100 on Sunday at 2:00pm.  Both the #0 Kid’s Corner/Tyndale House Chevy Monte Carlo along with the #14 Moody Radio.com/Five Love Languages.com Ford Fusion will be running in what has turned out to be the season opener.  Sean Matthuis will pilot the #0, while Al Longtin makes his CRA Super Series driving debut in the #14 machine.  We are excited to have both Moody Radio and Moody Publishers on Al’s car this season as he runs 8 CRA Super Series races. The picture below shows the #14 car being prepared, but not yet having the “contingency” stickers from all the CRA Super Series partnering sponsors.  A large picture of the Five Love Languages for Men book cover will wrap the hood of the #14.    It has been a mad dash to get both cars ready for this weekend, but it appears we are ready to take some laps and go fast.

We are extremely excited about the launch of the Family Fun Zone tent at this event.  Donna Matthuis, along with several other key volunteers will “man” this tent that will include interactive games, prizes and a full size show car (pictures below) very similar to the one the fans will see on the race track.  We hope to provide an “added value” for families and at the same time, have them enjoy a friendly and fun experience and send them away with “prizes” and gifts that have ministry value.  CRA recently featured the Family Fun Zone with a very kind article on their web page at http://www.craracing.net/news/2008/april2008/familyzone41408.html    We’ll be handing out copies of “Blind Spot,” a kids fiction racing book by Chris Fabry and Published (and provided) by Tyndale Publishers.  The Five Love Languages Men’s Edition, by Gary Chapman has been provided by Moody Publishers for the “big kids” that visit us in the Family Fun Zone.

A huge “high five” goes out to the crew at VanBruggen Signs, who have transformed our “totor” and trailer into a rolling billboard for www.Kidscorner.net  They have been a huge support during these early days of getting our cars (and trailer) ready for the season.

We hope to hold a Chapel Service on Sunday morning before the driver’s meeting.  We’ll be having “church” at the track when many of you will be attending your home church….if you remember…pray for us as we continue to build relationships with the drivers, crews, track and race officials.

Early next week we’ll send along a report on the weekend, with a link to pictures of both the racing activities and the Family Fun Zone.  We continue to seek sponsors for both our racing and Family Fun Zone activities….if you know of someone who might want to partner with a racing team that also focuses on ministry, please have them contact Shawn Matthuis at 815- 485-0033.  We continue to be amazed at how God provides the support at just the right time for us to take the “next” step.

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 Brookside Motorsports Update- january 20, 2008

The annual CRA Awards Banquets took place on Saturday, January 13 in Anderson, IN.  Competitors from all four Divisions were honored for their accomplishments during the 2007 season.  The Brookside Motorsports team was well represented by the entire Matthuis family along with a number of other crew members.

After the welcome by Series Director Glenn Luckett and the blessing by Doug Hastings (CRA Chaplain and Brookside team member), a delicious buffet was served to the 250 attendees as they enjoyed sharing stories and memories of the 2007 season.  The awards presentation followed dinner. Brookside Motorsports owner Shawn Matthuis and driver Sean Matthuis were honored in the Super Late Model Division for finishing 8th in overall points.

Shawn and Donna Matthuis took advantage of the gathering to speak with several race teams and sponsors about the expanded ministry plans for the 2008 season, specifically related to a “Family Tent.”  This tent, to be set up at each event, in cooperation with the CRA Series, will offer kids and families a place to stop on the way into the track to see and sit in a show car, play interactive games, and receive content rich prizes.  Staffed by volunteers, this will allow better interaction with families and the opportunity to demonstrate one on one the love of God in an intentional way.

The Brookside team is well underway with the rebuild of the #0 Kid’s Corner Radio late model race car ( www.kids-corner.org ), and are still seeking additional  sponsor partners as we plan for an exciting 2008 season.  You can contact Shawn Matthuis at 815-485-0033 if interested.  The first race will take place in Nashville, TN on March 29…as we approach that date, we’ll keep you posted on team developments.

Also joining us this year will be Al Longtin, driving a car sponsored by Moody Radio.

CRA has a web site at www.craracing.net Visit our Photo Gallery page to click on links to all our 2007 season pictures (scroll to the bottom of the page).

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Brookside Motorsports Update- November 26, 2007

The 2007 season came to an end for the Brookside Motorsports team at the Winchester 400, where Sean drove the Kid’s Corner Radio/WMBI Radio #0 late model to a 14th place finish.  With that persevering finish, Sean finished 8th in overall points in his rookie season as a CRA Late Model Division driver.  We were pumped and extremely thankful for the protection of God’s hand on Sean, the car, and our team the entire season.

We are extremely grateful for our sponsors that stood with us during the 2007 season.  It was amazing to watch God provide the resources needed, just when we needed them, each step of the way.  We are now in a similar position to watch God provide, having the engine and rear end rebuilt to return the car to the condition it was when we began 2007. But, all the resources needed to make that happen are not in the bank account.  So if you or someone you know would like to be the instrument God uses to meet this need, please contact us by email or phone.

We met as a team in November and reviewed the 2007 season and mapped out a strategy for 2008.  We will add a second car and driver to the garage, welcoming Al Longtin, a recent road racer who will now make the transition to oval racing with us in the CRA series.  AB Resources, Al’s company, was one of our faithful sponsors in 2007. 

We listed a number of things that we want “step up” next year, and most of those center around ministry.  We will work extremely hard to be competitive in the races, and there is no doubt Sean can drive the car fast, but we also know that making an eternal impact on the lives of the people involved in the series is a higher goal.  We are already working on some ideas which we believe will touch people’s lives and point them towards the God we know who loves each of his creations and longs to have a personal relationship with them through His Son Jesus Christ.  CRA has asked me to serve as Chaplain again next year, and I am excited about the opportunity that brings to share messages each week and to encourage and pray with drivers and teams.

The CRA 2007 Series Awards Banquet will be January 12, 2008 in Anderson, IN, where each of the top 15 Super Series teams will be recognized and given their awards.  The racing schedule for 2008 should be published by then, and we will be working throughout the winter to make ready the Brookside Motorsports cars for competition beginning at the end of March in Nashville, TN.  Kid’s Corner Radio (www.kids-corner.org ) has indicated their interest in sponsoring Sean in the #0 again this season, and we are working on another ministry to sponsor the car Al Longtin will pilot each week.

Stay up with all the latest news about Brookside Motorsports by visiting www.brooksidemotorsports.com .  We soon hope to post a recent audio feature that played on WMBI-FM in Chicago that featured the team and our efforts during the 2007 season.

As always, if you would like to be dropped from this email update list, please reply to this email and write “unsubscribe” in the subject line.  If you know of people who would like to be added to the update list, have them contact me at doug.hastings@sbcglobal.net

We trust you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are looking forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus this Christmas.

Have a wonderful Christmas Season and we’ll update you in January 2008.

Brookside Motorsports Update October 15, 2007

The Brookside Motorsports team traveled to the famous Winchester Speedway (Winchester, IN) this past weekend for the Winchester 400, a 400 lap event for the CRA (Champion Racing Association) series final points race of the season.  Pardon the long update here…read what you want and skip the rest.

PRACTICE

Arriving at the track early Saturday morning, we unloaded the trailer and quickly got to work.  Jason Marion joined me in the “tire barn” as we picked out our 12 tires we would use for the 400 mile event.  Normally we are looking for 4 tires, so the task was much bigger and tougher this time around.  Stacks of tires were everywhere.  While we did that, the rest of the team took the car to the technical inspection area to be cleared to run the first practice session.

We had the car “in the ballpark” as we unloaded, but needed to really fine tune the handling since we knew the competition would be extremely tight amongst the 40 cars registered for the race.  Adjustments were made to tire pressures, springs, and shocks to help the car handle better, and we took a breather before the second practice session.

QUALIFYING

Qualifying took place at 5:00pm, and we were 11th in line to take to the track.  Qualifying consists of 2 laps at top speed.  They take your quickest time of the two laps and place you in starting order based upon everyone’s fastest time.  After 38 cars had made their qualifying laps, we found ourselves starting in the 25th position.  A total of 40 cars would start the event, with the 2 promoter’s choice positions going to Nextel Cup drivers Kyle Busch and David Stremme.

After a flurry of pre-race activities including an autograph session on the front stretch, the 400 lap race of endurance began.  This track is known for eating up cars and spitting them out, so we knew we could get a good finish if we were still running at the end of the race.

RACING

Just before the race began, as Sean climbed into the car to strap in, we met as a team around the driver’s side window and had a word of prayer.  We knew it would be a long day and prayed for patience, safety, teamwork, and for our team to behave in a manner that would represent Christ and His Kingdom in a positive way.

The green flag flew shortly after 1:00pm ET and we were off and running.  On lap 50, we slowed to avoid a wreck in front of us in turn 2, but one of the other drivers didn’t react quite as fast as Sean, and ended up sliding into the driver’s side rear quarter panel, tearing it up really bad.

We came to the pits, and made repairs with duct tape and tie wraps and sent Sean back out.  We knew we had a long day ahead of us with the car in that condition, but were still committed to the original goal of finishing the race.  Sean drove hard and even with the damage, was very competitive and enjoyed some good green flag racing.  We continued to take advantage of the yellow flags to come in and make adjustments to the car, change tires, and refuel.

On lap 350, Sean radioed in and reported he had lost a cylinder and was running on only 7.  Robbing him of his full power, he held on to finish the race in 14th place, up 11 spots from our starting position.  Final official results of the point standings should be posted in a few days, but we are hopeful we moved up one more position as a result of this good effort.  We started this race in 9th place in overall points.

MINISTRY OPPORTUNITIES

The schedule was very hectic, and the Chapel service slated to take place on Sunday morning just had too many other competing demands on drivers and teams, and so it didn’t happen.  What DID happen was the opportunity for me to pray before the race with one of the teams who we have become friends with and encouragers to one another.  I was also privileged to give the invocation before both the Saturday evening race program and the big Sunday event. 

We handed out Kid’s Corner “ministry bags” to kids and adults during the autograph session, and had many opportunities to point families to the Kids Corner web site (the address is largely displayed along both sides of the car.  There was great interest and we hope the “seeds” we plant with the ministry bags yield much fruit for the Kingdom of God.

We took lots of pictures this weekend, so click here and enjoy the visual reminders of this  Winchester weekend.

Special thanks to a couple of our sponsors this week including the AB Resources (financial planners) and Dry Trax (race track drying equipment).  These two, along with our other sponsors, have been very supportive of our efforts this season and we could not have attended all these races and had the ministry opportunities we have had without their encouragement and financial investment.

Stay tuned for future updates and plans for the Brookside Motorsports team by visiting www.brooksidemotorsports.com   Once final season results are posted, we will send out an update to summarize our season efforts.

Read all about the CRA Series at www.craracing.net

As always, if you would like to unsubscribe to this newsletter, please send an email to doug.hastings@sbcglobal.net and we will remove you right away.  If you know of others who would like to receive the updates, have them email the same address with their request.

Have a great week!

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Newspaper Article on the Brookside Motorsports team

Neighbors Brookside article Sept 2007

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