DOWN & DIRTY IN THE PIT
Team Effort Behind RWM Success

RWM Team left to right, Randy Waitman, Connie Waitman, James Silcox, Scotty Ensign, Steve Glau, Steve Smith and Ken Bragiel.

By Jim Evans

Randy Waitman has seen his share of the spotlight through the years, but the International Hot Boat Association’s two-time World Champion drag boat racer and longtime drag and sprint car racer is humble enough and smart enough to know that behind every great driver is a great crew.

Waitman, of Ramona, now races “Outlaws” — the premier racing category for sprint cars — under the banner of his company, Randy Waitman Motorsports. He would be the first to admit that without his pit crew, his sprint car wouldn’t even get off the starting line.

Ken Bragiel, winner of the gift certificate from the Rotary Club’s 4th of July drawing, got to be part of the RWM pit crew for one race. Photos by Jim Evans

Members of the pit crew are the unsung heroes of every auto race. While the winner is paraded in front of the cameras and gets to kiss all the pretty girls, the motley pit crew, usually covered with dust, dirt and grease from head to toe, kicks back in relative anonymity with the quiet knowledge that they, too, are winners.

Like racecar drivers, champion cyclist Lance Armstrong was similarly lauded with every victory stage of his record seven Tour de France wins. But behind the scenes of every race, even for Armstrong, was a support team that made sure everything was synchronized for victory.

Racing sprint cars doesn’t necessarily equate to the celebrity status of NASCAR, Indy-style racing, or even the Tour de France, so maybe Waitman hasn’t had the same opportunity to sip champagne or kiss as many pretty girls as he would like — he probably figures his wife Connie is pretty enough anyway — so his pit crew might not be missing out so much. But Waitman’s crew of pit volunteers is second to none, as far as he is concerned.

The Randy Waitman Motorsports pit crew, an eclectic group of local residents with an unbridled love of automobiles and racing, consists of: crew chief, James Silcox; team manager, Scotty Ensign; assistant crew chief, Steve Smith; and team engineer, Steve Glau.

Silcox, who used to race bikes for Supersport while serving in the Marine Corps and who worked for a Poway auto dealership for several years, works for Waitman’s automotive service company — RAE of Ramona.

Ensign owns a local landscaping business that helps sponsor Waitman’s car.

Smith, whose wife Doreen is one of the team’s sponsors through her real estate company, has done some racing in the past and works in information technology for Goodrich Aerospace.

Glau, is an engineering manager and previous drag racer.

“Each crew member volunteers one to two days a week and has a specific responsibility,” Silcox said. “We rotate those responsibilities so that each of us gains the experience necessary to step in when necessary, to perform any task that might be required to keep the car operating optimally. The ‘build’ and maintenance of the car is as satisfying to us as it is to race it.”

A sprint car — or any racing car, for that matter — is not an inexpensive venture.

“A turnkey sprint car will cost at least $60,000,” Waitman said. “The motor alone can run as much as $35,000, and tires typically run about $250 apiece — and tires are only good for one race.”

The pit crew carries a trailer-load of spare parts to each race and must be prepared to change out parts quickly and efficiently to keep the team competitive.

“The car also has a direct drive, which means no transmission,” Silcox said, “so the pit crew has to ‘push start’ it to about 20 to 30 mph before it really takes off. A sprint car weighs about 1,200 pounds with a 410-cubic-inch engine and 800 horsepower, so it will go about 170 to 180 mph on a big track once it gets going.”

Ken Bragiel, a longtime motorcross enthusiast from Ramona, soon will have the opportunity to join the pit crew for an upcoming race, as a winner of one of the Rotary Club auction items at the recent 4th of July fireworks auction.

“I’ve wielded a few wrenches in my day, and I am really looking forward to it,” said Bragiel, 43, who stopped by RAE to take his first gander at Waitman’s sprint car.

“Our pit crew is a real team,” said Ensign, pointing proudly to the motto displayed prominently on the wall of the garage at RAE, where the crew works together on the sprint car: TEAM — Together Everyone Achieves More.

“Life begins at 100 mph for all of us,” Silcox added with a smile.

Racing enthusiasts interested in helping the pit crew should contact Waitman at (760) 788-4912. Team players only need apply. Readers also may refer Waitman’s Website at www.randywaitmanmotorsports.com for information about The Simulator, a virtual reality racing simulator available for special events.