Mike Carson's 2003 season exemplified how hard work and perseverance can make a huge difference as the season winds down. The "Team Mazda" Four Cylinder driver ended the year with a respectable fifth place in the points standings, a great result considering the experienced drivers ahead of him and the fact this was his first year driving a stock car.

Quite possibly at a disadvantage right from the start with the only Mazda in the field, Carson was able to get the car better with every passing race event. This was achieved using one of the few tricks Four Cylinder drivers are able to use to optimize the power curve of their restricted cars.

"The reason I was getting so fast was tire size", Carson explains. "I kept going up in sizes until the RPM was right where I wanted it to be and the car had more top end speed."

Although a committed driver, Mike is also a committed family man - he missed opening night due to the birth of his first daughter! Carson was a bit behind the eight ball by event #2, and his finishes reflected those of a new car with a new driver on a new race track. But the good finishes eventually came, including a few good runs early on. By the end of the year he pulled off 4 heat wins and 9 solid feature top fives. In the last 7 features, 5 were fifth or better. A feature win did elude Carson in 2003, however he did get a handful of top three finishes which where usually achieved right behind the two dominating points leaders (Bob Deasy and Jimmy Carter). No DNFs and few incidents on the track contributed greatly to the year end result.

"The best night was when I won my first race", Carson remembers. This came on a particularly good weekend in late August, when a double header weekend handed him not one but two heat wins. He did have his low point though, as a technical DQ earlier that same month erased his points for the event. This was due to a suspension related infraction - in Mike's words "a learning experience". Considering this eventuality and the missed first week, fourth or third in the championship would have been entirely realistic.

Mike will be back at Sunset in 2004 with his Mazda and Crew Chief Colin Wagg, ready to go and looking for a championship. The car came out of the 2003 season in relatively good condition, so Mike and Colin won't need to do much in the April to get it ready to race - this will certainly be a car to keep your eye on next year. As Mike says: "Remember RED means fast!" -MB