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“That Galesburg race was one of the best Sim-Races I’ve even been in. I just got into that guy and he did a 360 in front of me. I let him gather it back up and I was yelling, ‘gas it and go!’ in to the mic.   It was awesome! “said John Hernly as he recounted the final laps of the April 30th, Galesburg race.   Hernly had been in a battle with Brad Skusa for the top spot when Skusa got turned by Hernly with ten to go.  “It is a bad feeling to spin someone out.  I want to win fair and square and I was glad the he was able to save it and hang on to the lead. Skusa is a really good driver.”   Several laps after Skusa had made his miraculous save, Hernly was able to make a clean pass, eventually going on to win the event.  

That level of driving is what the twenty-eight year old Lansing native has come to expect from the Michigan Circle Track Sim-Racing League.   “The biggest surprise in Sim-Racing are the number of high quality drivers that may never have been in a real race car before. They have learned the etiquette,  how and when to give-and-take,  and such.   There are a lot of guys that would probably be better behind the wheel than some of the current drivers in the NASCAR Nationwide series, “ Hernly said with a chuckle. John’s mother was diagnosed with ALS, often referred to as "Lou Gehrig's Disease” about four years ago and his father has a chronic heart condition.  With a good portion of his time committed to caring for his parents, Sim-Racing has enabled the former quarter midget champion and modified driver to keep on racing. 

John began racing quarter midgets at age four with the Capitol Quarter Midget Association, often racing against NASCAR Sprint Cup star Ryan Newman over the years.   “I’m glad that he finally cut his mullet off,” Hernly joked.   In 1992, Hernly made it to the Central States quarter midget championship at Kil-kare Raceway in Xenia, OH, which is one of the premier events for quarter midgets. Driving a brand new 1992 Stanley quarter-midget,  he won the event,  putting nearly half the field a lap down.   “When I got out of the car people were coming up to me saying that that was the best race they had ever seen.  There were so many people coming up and telling me that and congratulating me.  It was the best feeling I’ve ever had. “    The Central States race was a qualifying event for the Grand Nationals.  Hernly made it to the Nationals on two occasions, once in Syracuse NY and the one in Indiana.  “I had bad luck both years I made it to the Nationals.  The first time in, ’92, I got hit from behind and it broke the ignition on the engine. The second year, I got hit from behind again and a sticking brake caliper forced me out of the show.”

After growing out of quarter midgets at age seventeen, John ran for a year in modifieds at Springport and Spartan.  His brother, Tom Hernly, Jr., was several years older and running some  ASA and Hooters Cup races by that time.  “Yeah, my brother pretty much bankrupted both himself and my dad before I got a chance to race big time,” Hernly said, laughing once again. “The family sold everything off and I went to college.  By the time college was paid for, there was no money for anything else.”  John was quick to point out that for folks on a tight budget, there is a lot to be said for Sim-Racing. 

With regards to the MCT-SRL, Hernly says “We’ve got a good thing going here and I’m going to stay dedicated to it.”   To this end, he has been helping out with chassis set-up and doing some light administrative tasks.   John has a very nice race set-up, complete with a large, wide screen monitor, Trackstar wheel and pedals from Extreme Competition Controls. Inc. (ecci.net) and a Lightning SST shifter from Sim-Gear.com.  The TV Land sponsorship on his No.64 is “A tribute to the best family shows on TV.”    Hernly is very appreciative of  the support we have received from Blazin’Pedals for hosting the league’s races, to Dennis Rouix from Simthuder.com for the Outlaw late-model mod which we run in the series and to our track builder, the ever mysterious individual known as “robo19.”    Hernly then hinted that he would like the opportunity to run at Shady Bowl in DeGraff, OH some day.  “I’ve watched a lot of really good racing there.  I bet that it would be a lot of fun to drive.”

John finished up by sharing a few suggestions for drivers coming into the series. “I’ve seen guys that try to make moves as soon as the green flag drops and that doesn’t work. It is just a patience thing.  It takes time and practice to do well and people shouldn’t think that they are going to turn fast lap times right away.” John’s recommendations:  
- In the advance control settings, anyone using a wheel should set it to linear.  The default is non-linear and that will create a delayed response to steering input.
- In the Sim the impact of cold tires is a bit exaggerated.  It is like being on ice-skates until the pressures build up.  Drivers that are starting out need to take it easy for a few laps until the tires heat up and they will have more traction and control.
You can find John racing at the front of the pack on Thursdays at blazinpedals.com