Behind the Scenes: Mike Leone

To the Volunteer State we go for state #16

2007-03-27T14:32:00.000-04:00

#123 Volunteer Speedway, Bulls Gap, TN (4/10-mile dirt), 3/24/07...

With three of the four past weekends getting cancelled due to the weather in the Northeast and with Friday already washed out for Williams Grove, I decided to make the trip down to Volunteer Speedway for the World of Outlaw Sprint Car show. Weather wasn't to be a problem with partly sunny skies and temps in the low 80s.

I've heard many reports about this place and being a sprint car fan and the first ever appearance by the WoO, I figured this was the time. The race was scheduled in conjunction with the NASCAR events being held at Bristol Motor Speedway some 40 miles to the northeast. Traffic wasn't a problem on I-81 as came through around 30 minutes before the scheduled 2:30 start time.

Hot laps were scheduled to start at 6:45, but that didn't happen to some hour later as fans filtered their way in from Bristol. Traffic was backed up to the highway for hours as fans filled the speedway for a standing-room-only crowd and what was reported as the largest in the 30-year history of the track.

There were 35 WoO Sprints and 26 FASTRAK Crate Late Models in the pits. The late models had one qualifying lap and ran only a feature. Joey Saldana set a new all-time track record with a lap of 11.696 (123.119 mph) in sprint qualifying topping the mark of 11.743 set by a late model in a "run what ya brung" event.

The sprints were simply awesome to see on the 32-degree banking as the fast way around was on the extreme outside in turn four as they brushed their right rear tire against the wall. It reminded me of the first time I saw sprints at Eldora.

The sprint heats did not start until a couple minutes shy of 10 p.m. That's 2 hours later than what I had planned on. Four heat races, a dash, and a B main for the sprints came before the two features. The late models were first and their feature started at 11:32. The racing was very good by three backmarkers accounted for 8 of the 9 cautions pretty much ruining the racing. After the 9th caution, the drivers were given 5 more laps and they ran those off making for a 19-lap feature rather than the scheduled 25. Dale Ball took the win holding off Brad Hall.

It was now after midnight and not one sprint was lined up. The sprint feature didn't take the green until 12:20. The feature though was excellent! Jason Meyers led the first 20 laps. On lap 21 he and Donny Schatz made contact with Schatz doing a 360-spin and Meyers suffering a flat tire. Saldana was handed the lead and he held off hard-charging ninth place starter Tim Shaffer for the $10,000 win. Shaffer ran the bottom and was right on Saldana at the checkered coming up 0.199 behind.

I really enjoyed the facility and the racing was excellent, but there's no excuse for barely a two-division show ending at 1 a.m. with fireworks still to come. My challenge now was driving back to my motel I had reserved in Roanoke, Virginia so I could head on up to central PA on Sunday for Lincoln and Williams Grove's rescheduled races from Friday & Saturday night.

I got in bed at 3:45 a.m. and set the alarm for four hours later to make the good four hour drive to Lincoln. I arrived as the sprints were completing their hot laps and got in my seat with about 10 minutes to spare. for the 1 p.m. start. After Lincoln completed their sprint portion I headed on up to catch Williams Grove's opener on the fifth attempt. Well over 1200 miles later I returned home from a long weekend.

Volunteer made for my first race in Tennessee, which gave me 16 states to see a race in.

#123 Volunteer Speedway, TN 3/24/07
#122 Ohio Expo Center (Coliseum), OH 1/20/07

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Rumble @ The Coliseum open 07 season for #122

2007-01-26T14:15:00.000-05:00

#122 Ohio Expo Center (Coliseum), Columbus, OH (1/10-mile indoor concrete), 1/20/07...

I began the 2007 racing last Saturday with a trip to the Buckeye State at the Ohio Expo Center and the Ohio State Fairgrounds located right off Interstate 71. It was another "Rumble Series" event promoted by Tony Barhorst. I've seen his events at Toledo, Fort Wayne, and outdoors at Columbus Motor Speedway.

This was the first ever show inside the Coliseum building. Last year I took in racing a few buildings down at the O'Neill Building. This event included the highly-touted USAC Midgets along with the 600cc wingless Micro Sprints, and various classes of go-karts.

The Midgets had 26 cars on hand and less talented field than the one's held at Fort Wayne, IN. It was Ken Schrader Day as he was signing autographs and then competed in Midget competition. Schrader transferred to the feature by winning one of the two B mains, but was the second drop-out of the feature.

The Midgets were the only class to time trial, which started a few minutes before 5 p.m. and was followed up by various last chance races and features for the karts. Before the scheduled 7 p.m. start time for the midget heats, ABC commentator, Jack Arute, interviewed Sarah Fisher. Arute was competing himself in the Micro class.

The heats and last chance races for the Midgets were better than the 50-lap feature. Twelve cars were scheduled to start the Midget feature, but pole-sitter Matt Westfall was unable to fire, which slid third-place starter Blake Fitzpatrick to the pole. Fitzpatrick, a 15-year-old, led all 50 laps of the non-stop event which really stirred up the fumes in the non-stop action. The Midget feature was last and wrapped up well before 10 PM.

The various go-kart races and especially the Micro Sprint feature was better. Joey Payne, who won the week prior at Atlantic City, NJ, made it back-to-back wins taking the Micro Sprint main. Indoor standout and Ohio 410 Sprint Car racer John Ivy spun twice in the main, but charged back from 18th to finish 3rd and most likely was the fastest car on the track.

It was a good show. Admission is always high for these indoor events, which aren't cheap to put on. Adult grandstand admission was $21 with pit passes $30. Parking set you back another $5. The show was very organized and professionally run with little delays. The Coliseum provided an excellent view of the racing action as there wasn't a bad seat in the house. It was stated the Coliseum held 5,000 and the announced attendance was 4,000, but that seemed way overstated. Even with all of the people from the pits it may have approached half-full. It was nice to hear Paul Szmal (sp?) behind the mic. Paul is veteran of the Northeast racing scene especially the Modifieds. doing various media gigs and promotions.

It was sunny skies on Saturday with temps in the 30s in Columbus; however, the weather turned nasty the following day as snowstorm came through thankfully a day late.

The Coliseum made for my 26th track in the Buckeye State and #122 overall.

#122 Ohio Expo Center (Coliseum), OH 1/20/07

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The Gamecock State is #15 & #121

2006-11-29T13:16:00.000-05:00

#121 Cherokee Super Speedway, Gaffney, SC (1/2-mile dirt), 11/25/06...

I was in the area on Saturday and was able to check out the racing at Cherokee. On tap was day one of the two-day World Crown 4 Cylinder Nationals. Saturday included time trials and heat races for the four divisions. Car counts were 43 4-Cylinder Street Stock, 42 4-Cylinder Super Stocks, 18 4-Cylinder Young Guns, and 9 Crate Late Models. There were about 100 people in the grandstands. The weather couldn't have been better with sunny skies, not a cloud nor breeze to be found, and temps in the low 70s.

At 2 p.m. hot laps started followed by two timed laps for all 112 cars in the four divisions and then eventually heat races. The first heat race didn't hit the track until 6:40 PM.

Dennis "Rambo" Franklin is one of the top late model drivers in the south. I was in the pits when he crawled out of his late model with jeans and tennis shoes on then climbed into a 4-cylinder. He went on to win Sunday's $5,000 4-Cylinder Super Stock event and finished 2nd in the Late Model feature to Johnny Pursley, who I saw win at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's earlier in the month.

I saw a kid in a driver's suit that looked about 10 and there was girl walking around that barely looked 12. I was told that the age minimum started at 10! Their feature on Sunday paid $500 to-win and was won by Ben Wiley, while Benji Griffin win the 4-Cylinder Street Stocks that paid $1,500.

With the huge payoffs, I was really surprised the car counts weren't higher. There were nearly 80 4-Cylinder at Lowe's for $500 to-win earlier this month. Maybe it had something to do with the fact of the $100 entry fee and two days.

Cherokee has the typical southern red clay and some of the longest straightaways I have ever seen for a half-mile track. They did announce they are bringing in turns one and two next year. There isn't too much modern at Cherokee as the facility is pretty rundown. The nicest thing at the track is their victory lane. The bleachers are concrete. They have a Confederate Flag flying with their American Flag. Their food prices were very reasonable. They actually had a playground in the pits, which I have never seen before.

Cherokee made for my first ever track in South Carolina giving me 15 states now plus Ontario to see a race in. It accounted for my 16th new track of 2006

#121 Cherokee Super Speedway (SC), 11/25/06
#120 Concord (NC) Motorsports Park, 11/4/06
#119 The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway (NC), 11/3/06
#118 Wyalusing (PA) Valley Motorsports Park, 10/15/06
#117 Shippensburg (PA) Speedway, 10/7/06
#116 Linda's Speedway (PA), 10/6/06
#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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Concord is #120 and is part of a double with The Dirt Track

2006-11-10T11:10:00.000-05:00

#120 Concord Motorsports Park, Concord, NC (1/2-mile asphalt), 11/4/06...

The races were scheduled to start at Concord at 2:15 with last chance races. This would leave plenty of time to see some races and head back to The Dirt Track, which was only about 15 or so minutes away.

Though it was cool, it was a beautiful sunny, peaceful day with not a cloud nor any wind to be found. On tap at Concord was the North-South Shootout with various modified classes along with two classes of vintage cars. When we arrived shortly after 1 PM they were having an autograph session on the speedway with the cars and drivers. This is a very neat touch as fans go around collecting autograph cards and getting pictures.

I could tell Concord was a very fast track with it's banking. It has the old, nostalgic-type southern-feel to it. The pits were full of cars of cars and a decent crowd was on hand of probably 800 or so, but not what I expected even though it was announced that it was the largest crowd and car count in the event's four-year history. A total of 44 Modified Tour Type Cars and 34 SK-Type Modifieds attempted to qualify on Friday. The Vintage Modifieds totaled 15 and Vintage Sportsman 17. The combination of Pro-Four Modifieds and Four-Cylinder Stocks came in at 23 and there were 10 Limited SK-Type cars.

Concord has the cement bleachers and it looks like they added on with additional bleachers down toward turn one. You can tell as the old pit booth and entrance in the track that went under the bleachers are no longer used due to the size of the trailers I surmized. There is a tunnel underneath turn two that is used to get in and out of the pit area.

I'm not an asphalt fan, but I do really enjoy the modifieds as they flew around the tri-oval. Pennsylvania's Tony Hirschman set fast time on Friday night with a lap that averaged more than 117 miles per hour. We watched the two last chance races, which started shortly after 2:30, and the first feature before heading out. Hirshman ended up winning the 100 lapper, which was run last, and earned $10,600.

The facility, though old, is well taken care of and very neat. They have a nice play area for the kids behind the grandstands. The one thing I noticed in the parking lot was the large number of northern licenses plates of people that came down from the north.

Concord made for my second track in the Tar Heel state and 15th new track of 2006.

#120 Concord (NC) Motorsports Park, 11/4/06
#119 The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway (NC), 11/3/06
#118 Wyalusing (PA) Valley Motorsports Park, 10/15/06
#117 Shippensburg (PA) Speedway, 10/7/06
#116 Linda's Speedway (PA), 10/6/06
#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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"The Dirt Track" #119 is one of the nicest!

2006-11-10T09:58:00.000-05:00

#119 The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway, Concord, NC (4/10-mile dirt), 11/3-4/06...

I headed south for the World Short-Track Championships at The Dirt Track at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Located northeast of Charlotte, NC in Concord, the 4/10-mile dirt track is one of the nicest dirt facilities in the nation. The track is located right across the street from NASCAR track, Lowe's Motor Speedway. The stadium-style seating holds some 15,000 spectators and with the Musco lighting, it leaves for a pretty spectacular view.

Six divisions made up the event as a record 271 cars from 16 states plus England competed in preliminary action on Friday night including in some 77 four-cylinders, 55 Fastrak Crate Late Model, 47 USLMS Steel-head Late Models, 30 ASCS 360 Sprint Cars, 28 IMCA E-Mods, and 26 CRASHCars.

With so many cars hot lapping on Friday night they missed their scheduled starting time of 7 as the first of 24 heat races took the green at 7:23 PM. In between their heats they ran a make-up feature for the CRASHcars. It was a long day for me so I headed for the exits after their feature as they still had 8 heats for the 4 cylinders and 3 heats for the UMP Mods. The temperature had dropped from the mid 50s down to the low 30s. A crowd of 500 or so gathered for the preliminary action.

Saturday evening opened up with last chance B main qualifiers for five of the divisions before leading into the six features. Scheduled starting time was 6:50 and they pretty much hit that. A much better crowd was on hand somewhere in the 1,500 range. Though it was again sunny the high for the day only was in the mid 50s and quickly dropped down into the low 30s by the end of the night probably keeping their crowd down. They were predicting nearing record lows in the upper 20s.

They really did a good job keeping the show moving and the crowd entertained. The Raceiever radios certainly helped keeping the cars in line. One thing they didn't do was use the red flag, which was a first for me.

The CRASHCars is a novelty entertainment division, which are basically souped up demolition derby cars with roll cages. Their feature was first up and took the green just a couple minutes shy of 8:30. Chris Blair survived a late-race tangle with Jim Cook to score the 15-lap victory. As part of the show, Cook crashed Blair's victory lane celebration.

Johnny Pursley came out on top to win the 25-lap feature for the Fastrak Crate Late Models, one of the south's fastest growing divisions. 18 of the 19 finishers were on the lead lap and the only car one lap down wasn't lapped until turn three of the final lap. Pursley earned $2,500 for his efforts beating Lowe to the finish. 16-year-old Chris Ferguson charged from 18th to finish third ahead of 20th starting Dennis "Rambo" Franklin. It was a busy day for "Rambo" who competed in preliminary action at another North Carolina track earlier in the day before running two features Saturday night.

Making his first ever ASCS Southern Region start, Ron Blair made the long haul from Ohio pay off as he captured the 25-lap 360 sprint car feature for his first career win. The Troy, Ohio driver has been fast all year running all over the country competing in both 410 and 360 events. Just in his last five events, he's run with SOD in Michigan, the Canadian 360 Sprint Championship in Ohsweken Speedway, the 410 finale at Williams Grove, the Short Track Nationals in Little Rock, Arkansas, before nabbing the $1,500 victory Saturday night.

Blair charged from the 10th starting spot in his heat race Friday night to capture the victory then drew the pole position for Saturday night. Six cautions and a few challenges on the restarts by Justin Collet were the only things to slow the Buckeye gasser from victory. New York invader, Bryan Howland, ascending from the 11th starting spot to finish second after getting past Collet on the final lap. Howland also earned $1,500 including the $500 for being the highest finishing pre-entered car. Five of the six stoppages were for accidents that necessitated the red flag at 99% of the tracks in the country, but not here.

Ricky Weeks totally dominated the 25-lap USLMS Late Model feature for steel-head motors leading from start-to-finish in a race that started just three minutes shy of 10 PM. Weeks took advantage of his outside pole starting positions and only four cautions slowed his run to the checkered. Weeks, a three-time Carolina Clash Champion, earned $2,000 for his second win. "Rambo" Franklin came from 13th to finish second.

With it already being well after 10, I didn't stay for the final two features of 4-cylinders and UMP Mods, which I had the least interest in.

I really enjoyed the facility. Though it seemed as they were way overstaffed, their workers were very courteous. The Dirt Track at Lowe's Motor Speedway made for my 119th career track and the 14th different state to see a race in. This year I have been to 88 races at 27 different tracks.

After the races we stopped at Sonic drive-in restaurant to get something to eat. After placing the order, I used the restroom to interestingly find a sign giving instructions "how to wash your hands". Thank God, not sure what I would have done! When the girl came out to bring our food, my friend paid for his off the grand total. I then asked her what I owed her. She looked at me and said, "ah ah...i can't do math'. Hmmm...but this was girl making change! I guess everyone pays with the exact amount. I said forget it, give the money back, and I gave her a $20. She gave me back my change, which wasn't exactly correct as I think we made out in the deal by 50 cents. I guess that's why there are signs in the bathroom giving directions "how to wash your hands".

On our way home we stopped to get gas and a sandwich from Subway in Virginia. Beside the Subway counter was hot food like chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, etc. There was one item that was unfamiliar to me and I asked the girl what that black stuff is and she responded in her southern accent and missing teeth, "it's green not black and it's kale." I thought it looked like onions and she responded, "it's not onions it's kale". I told her I had never heard of it and she asked where I was from and I told her Pennsylvania and she rolled her eyes and said, "must be a full moon out there." A guy that overheard the conversation came by and rattled off something to the effect about beer and kale and being good together as that was all I caught as the rest was southern jibberish to me.

#119 The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway (NC), 11/3/06
#118 Wyalusing (PA) Valley Motorsports Park, 10/15/06
#117 Shippensburg (PA) Speedway, 10/7/06
#116 Linda's Speedway (PA), 10/6/06
#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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North we go to Wyalusing for PA track #50!

2006-10-17T14:01:00.000-04:00

#118 Wyalusing Valley Motorsports Park, Wyalusing, PA (1/5-mile dirt), 10/15/06...

After attending the races Saturday night at Williams Grove Speedway, I left from the Motel 6 in Carlisle early Sunday morning and headed northeast toward my Sunday afternoon destination- Wyalusing Valley Motorsports Park.

A few notes from Saturday. I did the online reservation for Motel 6, which will save you some money. On my way to Williams Grove I stopped at Mama Leone's Pizza in Marysville and asked if the last name Leone got you a discount and I was granted one. Williams Grove ran off a great program starting right at 6 PM with 30 Sprint Cars and 29 Big-Block Modifieds and finished up at 8:45 PM.

After Williams Grove I got gas at Sheetz in Middlesex Township for $2.09. I got $26.05 worth of gas and ordered food. When I went to pay the clerk, she was sure I had already paid and couldn't seem to figure out the confusion. Finally a kid came back in and said he paid for the wrong gas. At the time just one register was open with all the racing people coming in. The "manager" opened a second register and after a delay was able to refund the guy's money. Meanwhile the clerk had difficulty redoing my transaction and asked me if she could ring up the food separately and I said that was fine as long as I got a credit card receipt for each transaction. After another length delay the "manager" comes back and finally asks me If I could pay with something other than a credit card. Even though I could have paid for cash, I told him no I was paying with my credit card. Their problem was not my problem and I had waited long enough and people were now getting impatient. Finally the "manager" said, "there's nothing we can do" and I said "so you mean I don't have to pay" and he said "no". I thanked the guy, who was now trying to pay for "his gas" and he said "yeah anytime". Wow is all I could think. Stuff like this just amazes me. Can you imagine how the higher-ups at Sheetz would take this?

So at the end of the day, I got a discount at Motel 6 for booking online, a discounted meal because my last name was Leone, and $26.05 of free gas to complement a great night of racing!

Back to Sunday...I took my time on the gorgeous sunny day taking in all the sights of northeast Pa. If you've never been to this part of the state, I believe it's the state's most beautiful part. When you get away from the hustle & bustle of city life and our daily grind and get to an area like this you really see how simple life is. Time passes by slower, worries are minimized, and people seem more content with themselves. You feel one with nature and closer to God. The sunshine hitting the mountains and changing leaves gave you a calming, relaxing feeling.

Wyalusing (pronounced Y'lou'seen by the natives) is located on Route 6, which runs across the northern corridor of the state. The track is located a couple miles off Route 6. I arrived just shy of noon and hot laps got underway at 1 p.m.

The 1/5-mile dirt oval opened earlier this season running 270 micro sprints, slingshots, and go-karts. Sunday’s season finale included the track’s featured division- the 270 micros (season-high 26 cars), their slingshots (9 cars) along with the 600 micro sprints (5 cars). There might have been 50 people in the stands. Grandstand admission was $10, while the pit admission was only $15 and a two-day pass was only $25. The high school chorus did a nice rendition of the national anthem in the infield right before the features.

There are no lights at the track as racing started 25 minutes past the scheduled 1:15 p.m. start. The day belonged to Shane Penny. The Nescopeck driver nearly made a clean sweep of every race he entered winning both micro features, both heats, and one of the two dash for cashes. Penny first led all 25 laps of the 600 micro main earning $350 topping Parker Evans, Dusty Hesitand, Johnny Gearhart, and Vic Quinones in a race that had just one caution.

After finishing third in the 270 micro dash, the only race he didn't win, Penny started third and passed Ryan Kissinger for the lead on lap 16 and cruised to the dominating victory. The 35-lap race had four cautions in the first two laps then the final 33 laps went non-stop with Penny winning by more than ¾ of the track. Penny earned $500 for the win plus lap money and contingencies. Kissinger held off Russ Thorton and Nick Porreca, who were all over the second place finisher for the second-half of the event.

The 25-lap slingshot feature had just one caution as 14-year-old Nick Pecko led from green-to-checkered for the $250 win. Cody Coons was more than a straightaway back in second. Third through fifth were Shawn Light, Scott Elmes, and Rich Howard.

The three features took just a bit over one hour to complete, which was much better than I had thought and even with starting 25 minutes late having two intermissions to put some water on the track, and 270 driver intros the show was still completed 10 minutes shy of 5 PM.

WVPM made for my 50th Pennsylvania track and 118th overall. They use a trailer for their office/scoring/announcer tower. The food was reasonably priced. The flagman was one of the best I've seen in some time. I was very surprised as most small tracks incompetent officials. But I did hear him say that he's flagged for 19 years. He also passed candy out for the fans during intermission. They announced they are going to move back the backstretch and bank the turns for 2007, which should make for better racing. The 600 micros will be much more frequent visitors, if not regulars.

#118 Wyalusing (PA) Valley Motorsports Park, 10/15/06
#117 Shippensburg (PA) Speedway, 10/7/06
#116 Linda's Speedway (PA), 10/6/06
#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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14 hours after Linda's, Shippensburg accounts for #117

2006-10-09T15:38:00.000-04:00

#117 Shippensburg Speedway, Shippensburg, PA (1/4-mile dirt), 10/7/06...

Room rates were sky high because of a car show taking place in Hershey, so I booked a room in Shippensburg Friday night. Little did I realize I was at the exit of the speedway only one-half mile away.

I left the room at 11 AM to find the speedway. Racing was to begin at 2 PM and you'd never know racing would take place in three hours as I didn't see a sole around. I did see a grill going which was a good sign and the answering machine told of the day's racing. What was supposed to be a partly sunny day in the mid 60s turned be a cloudy, windy day with temps in the low 50s.

I figured I had a lot of time to kill so I headed into town to find something to eat. Brother's Pizza was the stop and I had an excellent, small (huge) stromboli. After killing more time at the nearby K-Mart, I headed back to the track. It was now 12:45 and there were only three race cars. The cars finally did come in all at the same time from about 1 to 1:30.

Rather than heat races at 2 PM it was hot laps. As soon as the final hot lap session ended the first heat was lined-up and ready to go taking the green at 2:27.

Just like Linda’s Shippensburg is located right on I-81 only Shippensburg is located 40 miles southwest of Harrisburg . Shippensburg is a very small and narrow ¼-mile dirt oval. Shippensburg had seven classes scheduled with very low car counts in all classes as only 51 cars were in the pits. Car counts were 12 600 micro sprints, 12 mini stocks, 9 six-cylinder strictly stocks stocks, 8 thunder rear stocks, 6 front-wheel-drive strictly stocks, 3 cyclones, and 1 truck. The lone truck ran with the six cylinders. There were less than 75 spectators spread around the five-row bleachers and picnic tables.

The eight heat races took 45 minutes to run and after a 20 minute intermission the first feature hit the track at 3:30 . Shippensburg inverted the heats on points; however, the finish of the heats determined the feature line-ups with a heads-up start meaning for little passing in the feature. All of the feature winners started either first or second.

The thunder rear stocks saw Keith Armolt lead green-to-checkered in the 15-lap non-stop feature over Greg Short. Three cautions slowed the six-cylinder strictly stock main as it was pole-sitter Jeff Dicken leading all the way over Randy Stahl. Mike Holley kept the trend going in the 600 micro sprints as the pole-sitter led all 15 laps with just one caution slowing the event. Outside pole-sitter Keith Bass led all but one lap to win the 15-lap mini stock main over Gary Newell. Just two of the three cars started the cyclone feature as it was Dillon Stake winning by one-half lap over Carl Biddle for his 14th victory. The front-wheel-drive strictly stocks was run in a light drizzle as it was second starting Chuck Ingram leading all 15 laps for the win over pole-sitter Adam Adams. The checkered flag waved at 4:48 .

Shippensburg did a great job keeping the program moving even though the flagman was very quick with the yellow throwing it as soon as a car got sideways or got in the infield. Actually there would have been hardly any cautions had he not been so quick. One of the mini stocks got upside down after catching the backstretch jersey barriers. That turned into a lengthy delay as they first had to get the car righted, then burned off the gas, and then cleaned up the mess.

Shippensburg was like Linda's pricing with $6 adult admission and had very low food prices. The surface was very smooth and slick as go-karts were scheduled for Sunday. It didn't look like there much track prep. The announcer was very annoying and basically said whatever he wanted including one time when one of the mini stocks went into the infield, "oh he just got his nuts shook around". He wasn't afraid to use hell and damn either. When he asked one of the winners about last week, the driver replied, "shit happens".

Shippensburg made for my 49th Pennsylvania track and 117th overall.

#117 Shippensburg (PA) Speedway, 10/7/06
#116 Linda's Speedway (PA), 10/6/06
#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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Getting Linda's track out of the way for #116

2006-10-09T13:00:00.000-04:00

#116 Linda's Speedway, Jonestown, PA (1/4-mile dirt), 10/6/06...

The weather report was certainly conflicting for central Pa. this past weekend. Some forecasts had rain early Friday and clearing for the rest of the weekend, while others had a chance of rain right throught Saturday evening.

My plan was Linda's Speedway Friday night, Shippensburg Speedway Saturday afternoon, capped off by my favorite track Lincoln Speedway Saturday night. The first two tracks would be new ones.

Rain showers broke up and pushed south early in the morning. However, the rain pretty much stayed right on the turnpike and south for much of the day. Linda's is only 20-30 miles away. I watched the radar all day and the shower seemed to have a tough time progressing north of the turnpike so I left at 2:30 figuring worse case I'd either be down their for Saturday's races or at the last minute could head to Borger's.

I had sunshine until I got off I-80 and it got progessively cloudier as I headed south. By the time I reached Port Royal it was cloudy and looked as if it could rain at any minute. I kept calling every 30 minutes and never did talk to anyone only the answering machine. As I got to Harrisburg and headed north on I-81 the skies lightened and I figured i was in the clear. In fact skies cleared later and the moon, with an odd large ring around it, was visible for most of the night.

I got to Linda's shortly after 6:30 PM as hot laps were slated for 7 and racing at 7:30. A huge field of cars were on hand including 59 270 micro sprints, 47 600 micro sprints, 21 125 micro sprints, and 13 chargers. The car count was boasted for three reasons, one was the fact that it was the Steve Buch Memorial with $500 on the line in both the 270s and 600s., two, many drivers were prepping for the upcoming National Open, and three, Path Valley Speedway had cancelled.

I knew it was going to be a long night with the large car count plus a make-up feature was up first for the 270s. Hot laps, which started after 7 took forever to complete. The September 22 make-up feature took the green at 8:06. Rich McKay won his first of the year in a race that had just two cautions. Mike Rutherford and Ed Kenderdine were second and third. The field was so tough in the night’s regular program that McKay didn’t even make the feature.

The first of 14 heat races took the green at 8:24. After 5 b mains, the 600 micro sprint feature took the green at eight minutes shy of 11 p.m. Mike Dicely took the lead on lap three and cruised to the dominating victory in his first appearance of the season. Seven cautions plagued the event. Arron Spahr and Drew Heistand finished second and third.

The charger feature was a good one with pole-sitter Chris Smith scoring the victory. Smith’s victory came by less than one-half car-lenth over Mike Derr. Dave Reightler was third.

Mike Dicely’s bid for a sweep of both features was short lived. The pole-sitter led the first two laps of the 270 feature, but Steve Buckwalter was too much taking over on the third circuit and went on to the easy victory. Buckwalter of Royersford drives just about anything including ARDC Midgets, 410 Sprint Cars, and 358 Sprints to name a few. Buckwalter has been at winner at Mercer in the midgets. Dicely completed a great night finishing second. Robert Crawford, who finished fifth in the make-up feature, came home third. In should be noted that a fuel stop was required after just three cautions and ZERO laps completed...yes that's right! The feature ended up with 7 cautions.

With it being after midnight and only the 125 micro feature remaining, I made my way to the exits. I did enjoy the racing at Linda's. The 600s always put on a great show no matter where I see them race. The downside was the constant problems getting the car in line. The flagman grew more and more frustrated as the night went on and numerous times went down to line-up the cars himself, which cost more and more laps. Admission at Linda’s is only $6 and they had some of the cheapest food prices I’ve seen. I had an excellent hot sausage sandwich from the crock pot, french fries, and a pop for just $5.

Linda’s made for my 48th Pennsylvania track and 116th overall.

#116 Linda's Speedway (PA), 10/6/06
#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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3 hours to see what....#115 in NY

2006-09-25T15:07:00.000-04:00

#115 Freedom Raceway, Delevan, NY (1/3-mile dirt), 9/22/06...

Have you ever gone to the races and wondered what you saw or secondly worried that you were even going to see a race?

The above was the case at New York's Freedom Raceway. I had planned on making my first visit a week ago Friday for their season finale, which was to include the traveling New York Mini Sprints. Despite no rain, Freedom pulled the plug due to wet grounds and postponed the event to this past Friday night less the Mini Sprints; however, two of Bradford (PA) Speedways classes were added. Freedom has been a track I've been trying to get to for years now and it just never works out. With very little racing taking place in the region, I decided hopefully this would be the week.

Friday's forecast called for increasing clouds with rain holding off until at least 10 PM according to weather.com and after midnight according to the NWS. The rain quickly spread across Ohio, but began to break up as it neared eastern Ohio and western PA.

I doubled-checked to make sure racing was still on and it was confirmed. I hit a few sprinkles and a brief shower near Erie. The weather didn't look very good south of Buffalo, but as I neared the speedway the sun peeked through.

I arrived just before their scheduled 7:30 start time and found very few people or race cars. A drivers meeting was taking place. And when the lineups went up on the board I was relieved that racing was going to be taking place. The crowd slowly came in, but still numbered only around 125. Car counts were 16 mini stocks, 7 street stocks, 6 pure stocks, 5 e-mods, 3 Bradford charges, 2 super stocks, and 0 Bradford thunder stocks. A total of 39 cars for what was supposed to be 7-division show.

I came to realize that "Fun Night" was only to be King of the Hill Races for their regular divisions except the Mini Stocks, which I knew were going to be highlighted in a 30-lap $300 to-win feature.

Because there were only 5 e-mods and 2 super stocks they decided that instead of a King of the Hill, they'd combine the class for a single 10- lap event, which was won by champion Greg Oakes in his e-mod over Rich Thorton's super stock.

The street stocks held their King of the Hill won by Rich Wulff followed by two mini stock heats, a pure stock King of the Hill won by John Ellwood, and the charger heat race.

They went right into the 30 lapper for the mini stocks, which was a decent race won by Kyle Bedell after passing his brother Craig Bedell on lap nine. Only three cautions slowed the event as all 16 cars took the green.

They went into their intermission as all that was left were mechanics races, official races, ladies races, and the charger feature so I made my way for the exits as it was 9 PM with about a three hour drive home. I hit rain not far from the speedway and that continued for much of the drive home.

Freedom used to feature New York's only weekly 360 sprint class before dropping them a few years back. The Patriot Sprints were schussed to make an appearance on the Friday of Labor Day Weekend, but that show was scratched. They did have a T3 All-Star Modified Series event earlier this summer and they are trying to work in a crate late model division.

Freedom has been for sale for a number of years now. The facility is in drastic need of improvements. They do have a scoreboard and one of the biggest American flags I've seen at a race track. A program was on sale for $2, which featured colored driver photos of both themselves and race car for the five divisional champions. There is an infield road course, which I believe is operated on various Sundays. The surface itself was very nice, although very few races took place on it and it was dark by the time racing got underway.

Freedom Raceway made for my 9th Empire State Track, 10th new track of the season, and #115 overall.

#115 Freedom Raceway (NY), 9/22/06
#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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The places we go to see racing...Southern Columbiana County

2006-09-18T12:39:00.000-04:00

#114 Spring Valley Raceway, Millport, OH (3/4-mile dirt off-road course), 9/17/06...

Located in rural southern Columbiana County a few miles off the beaten path, Spring Valley Raceway holds off-road races on Saturdays and Sundays one weekend per month from May through October. The drive back to the track off the highway was probably the longest I have seen and I really wasn't sure where it was taking me to other than past shacks, weeds, junk and more junk. When I pulled in the sign said admission was $10 (even though the website said $8) though there was no one there taking money. I was not even aware of this track nor its close proximity to me until reading Randy Lewis' report earlier this summer.

The motocross track is located to the left and the off-road track to the right. Motorcyles & ATVs were practicing while only a few vehicles had gathered at the countable track. The dune buggies pitted near the registration table, while the trucks were up on the hill.

Racing was to get underway at 11 AM though the first vehicle never hit the track until 12:30 PM. There were 7 dune buggies and 6 trucks on hand. It was pretty laid back, low-key family & friends racing. Other than a truck that was parked with people watching from the bed, there were no spectators. When I left there was a guy sitting ready to take money, i doubt he ever took any in. I was surprised that there were no concession trailers nor any pop machines present anywhere on the facility.

Spring Valley made for my 26th Ohio track and #114 overall. It was the first offroad racing I have witnessed.

#114 Spring Valley Raceway (OH), 9/17/06
#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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To the Top of the Hill for Sprint Cars!

2006-09-12T12:52:00.000-04:00

#113 Hilltop Speedway, Millersburg, OH (5/16-mile dirt), 9/8/06...

After being dormant for 30 years, Hilltop Speedway reopened back in May. The 410 Sprint Cars were scheduled to make their first of two appearances of the year in June, but rain washed out the show and it was rescheduled for Sunday. The weather that day and radar looked terrible so I passed and planned on attending this show.

The weather was great on Friday with sunny skies and temps in the 70s. Hilltop advertises 6:30 PM for time trials and 8 for heat races. I arrived around 7 and found hot laps still taking place on the dusty surface. Hilltop time trialed the Sprints, Late Models, and the E-Mods. After time trials the track was watered, which was good timing as the sun was setting. The track, though dry, was much improved and you could see the racing.

Car counts were good with 19 410 Sprint Cars, 14 Super Late Models, 25 E-Mods, 24 Pure Stocks, and 25 Mini Stocks. The World 100 at Eldora took a few Late Models from them. With Attica not racing, they picked up 12 or 13 of their Sprints, the remainder were former Wayne County 360 competitors, with the exception of Texan Sam Haefertepe, Jr. who is touring the country with Rick Ferkel turning the wrenches. There has been talk that Hilltop would like to run more Sprint shows in 2007 and the rumors have also flown that Attica is considering dropping the 410s for the Late Models. That would be the only way 410s could make it at Hilltop unless the shows were scheduled on off Attica nights.

The fastest 6 qaulifiers in the Sprints, Late Models, and E-Mods were locked into the dash. These racers did not run a heat race as the inverted dash determined the first 6 starting spots of the feature, while the rest of the racers started straight-up on time in their heats with the heat finishes determining the remainder of the feature field. The heat races did not start until 8:35 PM.

After all the prelims, the track crew reworked the track. A great crowd was on hand as they really couldn't have gotten anymore people in the granstand area. Food was cooked on the grill as they had two concession areas.

The 25-lap Sprint feature went non-stop with Brandon Martin winning his first feature of the year. Martin passed pole-sitter Rob Chaney and drove a great race through lapped traffic to capture the $2,000 win. John Ivy, who started 5th, passed Chaney for second on lap 20. Chaney dropped to 3rd ahead of Lee Jacobs, Jamie Martin, and Chuck Wilson.

The 25-lap Late Model feature took the green at 11:03 and despite just 14 cars was an excellent race with only one caution. Eric Myers, Ryan Markham, and Scott Peltz put on quite a race as the three were covered by a blanket the entire race. Markham hounded Myers for 19 laps before finally getting by on lap 20, but missed his mark in turn two the following lap and dropped back to third. With Peltz in second he pressured Myers and made the winning move on lap 24. Myers held off Markham for second. Clint Coffman, and J.R. Gentry completed the top five.

With a good two hour drive home I headed for the exits. The facility was better than I expected and the racing was decent. The food was good and the crowd was impressive. Only downside was the late starting time and the surface could have been prepared better ahead of time. Hilltop made for my 25th Ohio track and #113 overall.

#113 Hilltop Speedway (OH), 9/8/06
#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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Go west to the Hoosier State to beat TS Ernesto

2006-09-06T13:33:00.000-04:00

#111 Lincoln Park Speedway, Putnamville, IN (5/16-mile dirt) 9/2/06...

With rain covering all of the northeast and Ohio, I decided to head west for the weekend to get in two new tracks. Indiana looked like the closest bet with racing I wanted to see. I decided on Lincoln Park Speedway on Saturday and Kokomo on Sunday.

The rain didn't stop until near Dayton, Ohio then it continued drizzling until about an hour east of Indy. When I reached Indy the sun came out and the temps soared to the mid to upper 70s after only being in the 50s and low 60s for much of the trip.

After checking in at the Motel 6 in Cloverdale I made the short drive to Lincoln Park Speedway. With make-up features on tap and fireworks I knew it was going to be a long night; however, I never expected the turnout of cars either. With nearby Paragon not running and Bloomington off on Friday night, I'm guessing that helped the pits swell with 40 Bombers, 39 Non-Wing Sprint Cars, 38 UMP Mods, and 31 Super Stocks.

Racing was supposed to start at 7, but the first make-up feature didn't take the green until 7:23. The Sprint feature was excellent as it went non-stop on the tacky track with Billy Puterbaugh picking up the victory in the 25-lap non-stop affair. With the exception of the Mod feature that had lots of bumping and banging, the features ran off good. It was neat seeing 70-year-old Don Duncan win the Super Stock feature for his first win since 1999, which was a very popular win. He stated that tonight may be his last night. He went out and finished second in his heat too.

The heat races started at 8:35 and it wasn't until 11:17 when 15 heat races and the 4 B mains were completed. The fireworks display was one of the quickest I have ever seen as it was over by 11:27.

Thankfully the Sprint Car feature was up first. It took the green at 11:43. This feature didn't go as smooth as the first one as there were two bad starts and a spin on the third start. The rest of the feature went pretty smooth with only 3 cautions and finished at exactly midnight. Fifteen-year-old California driver Cole Whitt drove an impeccable race to capture his first career win holding off a bevy of challenges behind him. Four drivers battled hard using the entire track for second.

With it already being midnight and the Mods up next I had had enough and was tired from seeing races Friday night, getting up early, and making the long drive so I headed for the exits and the short drive back to the motel.

Lincoln Park offered great racing and a very racey surface. Though it did slick off later, the drivers could race all over the track. Had it not been for the late start, 15 minute light outage, and fireworks, and the make-up features, the program would have been completed in a decent time. They did do a good job of keeping the show moving. A very good, late-arriving crowd turned out that kept coming well after start time. The track has a very nice website, but the facility is slightly rundown and high grass and weeds were present. Overall I enjoyed the night and there aren't too many times you can go to the races and see a 15-year- old and a 70-year-old win.

Lincoln Park made for my 7th career Indiana track and 111 overall.

#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale Speedway (OH), 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston Speedway (PA), 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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#112 Kokomo Speedway, Kokomo, IN (1/4-mile dirt), 9/3/06...

I checked out of the Motel 6 in Cloverdale, IN shortly after 11 AM and headed northeast back to Indy then north toward Kokomo. I ate lunch at Cracker Barrel in Kokomo and headed for the speedway.

A good field of cars were on hand including 34 non-wing Sprints, 28 Thundercars, 23 street stocks, and 22 UMP Mods.

Kokomo time trials the non-wing Sprint Cars and did it in 6 groups of 5 or 6 cars each. What to me is supposed to be a timesaving effort turned into a length process. Time trials were slated to start at 6 with racing at 6:30. Time trials didn't start until after 6 and then the other three divisions had to hot lap. I watched hot laps and time trials for the Sprints in the turn two bleachers. What an awesome sight seeing a non-wing sprint broad-sliding it on a tacky surface driving it in as hard as they could make it stick. That was an eye-opening experience.

The first green flag in a heat race didn't start until 7:15, which was 45 minutes past their start time. The racing was great and moved along good until the Thundercar heats when two cars got together on the start and the pushed the other into the turn one exit where the water barrels were and eventually over on his roof. That was a length delay. The Sprint B main was horrendous as six cars got upside down and the final double flip saw the checkered flag wave. Eighteen cars were scheduled to start with 15 taking the green and I believe only 6 "finished". Sixty-year-old popular veteran Terry Pletch was one of the survivors despite having his tail tank and push bar smashed. Under the final red, he did a bow for the fans as it was possibly his last race.

The fireworks show got underway just before 10 PM and last over 20 minutes. Why the Sprint Cars weren't ready to go after fireworks was beyond me. Yes Monday was Labor Day, but there was no reason for another delay when it was already after 10:30.

The Sprint Car feature was excellent as 15-year-old Chris Windom scored his first career win beating Saturday Lincoln Park winner and fellow 15- year-old Cole Whitt. Track veteran John Wolfe was third over Casey Shuman and 16-year-old Hunter Schuerenberg fifth. Pretty amazing to see kids this young wheeling these high-horsepowered cars with this much success. There was so much two, three, and four-wide racing that it was hard to keep track and know what to watch. Windom did a stellar job driving through traffic and Whitt closed in at the finish. Windom said in victory lane that he races Midgets on Wednesday nights in Illinois then races Sprint Cars Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in Indiana. Kokomo is five hours from home. I would expect to see big things from Windom and Whitt in the future.

I gave the Mod feature a chance as it took the green at 10:53 and what started off good turned into a long one. I finally gave up nearly 20 minutes in with 12 of 20 laps completed.

I really enjoyed Kokomo and my trip overall as it was some of the best racing I've seen in a long time. Kokomo was a very professional-run facility. The two announcers were excellent. Only downside was the late start and no seemingly hurry to push the show through. I was surprised at the $15 front-gate adult admission for a regular show as they charged an additional $3 for the fireworks; nonetheless an excellent, enthusiastic crowd was on hand.

The bookends of my four-race, four-day, three-state trip were Sharon (OH) on Friday night and Tri-City Speedway (PA) on Monday.

Kokomo made for my 8th Indiana track and 112 overall.

#112 Kokomo (IN) Speedway, 9/3/06
#111 Lincoln Park Speedway (IN), 9/2/06
#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds (PA), 8/16/06
#109 Midvale (OH) Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway (PA), 6/29/06
#107 Hesston (PA) Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway (PA), 5/16/06

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Figure 8 racing comes to New Castle!

2006-08-22T12:58:00.000-04:00

#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds, New Castle, PA (dirt figure 8) 8/16/06

I've watched various motorsports events at the Lawrence County Fairgrounds such as truck & tractor pulling, demolition derbies, and ATV races; however, this year during the fair figure 8 races were added on Wednesday night.

Admission to the fair was $7 and the grandstands were an additional $2. I actually expected a larger turnout with many racing people in the area and normally at the fair anways. There were probably 500 or so people on hand although numerous trackchasers were on hand for this inaugural event. The car count was very good for the first time with nearly 30 cars. Most of the competitors were from Butler as the farm show has annual held figure 8 races.

The show started shortly after 7:30 PM. Two yuke tires were places in the middle of the frontstretch. Four 8-lap heat races were contested with 8, 7, 7, and 6 cars respectively starting each race. The winner of each heat recieved $50, a trophy, and advanced on to the feature. The remaining cars, which was somewhere around 25 were then to run 4 last chance races with the winner advancing to the feature and also to receive $50 and a trophy. Only 15 cars made the call so just 2 last-chance races were run with the top 2 finishing advancing.

The feature awarded the winner $500 and a trophy, which was won by the #36 car with the last name of Rombold from Prospect, Pa. The event was completed in one hour and a half and I left before the $300 to-win demo for the remaining cars plus a combine demo, which i have seen before at this fair.

Lawrence County Fairgrounds made for my 47th Pennsylvania track.

#110 Lawrence County Fairgrounds, 8/16/06
#109 Midvale Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway, 6/29/06
#107 Hesston Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway, 5/16/06

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Rain in western PA leads me to Midvale for #109

2006-07-24T13:33:00.000-04:00

#109 Midvale Speedway, Midvale, OH (3/10-mile asphalt) 7/22/06

With most tracks in western PA cancelled due to the rain, I was hoping one of the three Ohio asphalt tracks in eastern Ohio that I have yet to attend were still racing. Painesville had already cancelled and even if they hadn't, there wasn't any way they would be able to race looking at the radar. Barberton and Midvale were still on. The majority of the rain passed through our area around noon time; however the backside of the system was coming off Lake Erie from mostly Cleveland east.

Barberton was slated to start at 7 and is only an hour drive for me. Late last summer on a very similiar weather pattern I considered going to Barberton, but it didn't look like they would be able to race and to my luck they did. Barberton seemed to be the edge of the rain that was moving south. I called throughout the afternoon and it didn't look much more than a few sprinkles in the area, though there was steady rain coming off the lakes but it appeared that it kept breaking up after it got south of Cleveland.

I left at 5:30 and kept calling along the way.
I figured if they cancelled I'd head south to Midvale. Only a few sprinkles fell on me until I go to Akron when the rain let loose and by looks of the shy didn't look like it would end any time soon. By the time I got within sight of the track at 6:30 they had just cancelled.

A quick call to Midvale found them still racing. The lady that answered said they started racing five minutes ago. I had already checked the distance prior to leaving for Barberton in case this happened and figured it would take me about an hour. I thought I could beat the rain down there and at least see some racing and hopefully it would break up by the time it would get there. I ran out of the rain south of Canton and I arrived just prior to 7:30. There was some peeks of blue sky and it was dark to the west. It was quite cool for late July as it was only in the mid to upper 60s.

A pretty decent crowd of I'd say around 500 was on hand despite the threatening weather. The pursuit races were just getting underway for the four divisions when I arrived. Car counts were 41 compacts, 18 pure stocks, 14 late models, and 11 sport stocks.

I later learned that qualifying starts at 4:20 for all divisions, which makes for a very long night. After the four pursuit races, a faster pastor race was held for local pastors and the features were called up.

The late model 25-lap feature took the green at 8:42 and was won by Ryan Tedesco. Midvale uses a rule where if you beat your qualifying time you either get sent to the rear or are black-flagged apparently depending on the division. Tedesco took the lead on lap 10 but the following lap beat his time. Tedesco though was able to come back through the field and make the winning pas on lap 21. Six cautions slowed the event. One very hard crash marred the event on lap 17 which saw the #8 car slam head-on into the turn two wall after contact with a couple other cars pretty much destroying his car. After the clean-up light showers began to fall. The racing restarted but had to be yellowed as the intesity of the rain picked up with 19 laps completed. The cars remained on the track and eventually it slowed up enough that they could get back
racing. The rain did stop for good just after the victory lane interview.

The sport stock feature saw just 9 of the 11 cars start the feature, which took the green at 9:31. This was a good race as five cars battled for the lead after the halfway point of the 20-lap feature. Keith Thomas, who started 7th, took the lead on lap 15 and went on for his 5th straight win. Thankfully this race had only one caution as the same cannot be said for the pure stock feature.

At 9:45 the pure stock feature took the green for the 30-lap special. Something told me this race would be a long one with 18 cars starting and being a special. Eight cautions and 47 minutes later the race was finally checkered with just 11 laps completed. Midvale uses time limits on all the races with 5 minutes added to the number of laps. The race would use a 35-minute time limit. When the time expires, they give them two more cautions, which was odd to me.

The compacts were split into 3 features, each being 15 laps. All three were good ones. The first one took the green at 10:38 and the last one ended at 11:10, not bad with only four total cautions. The first one had just one caution with Mike Hostetler picking up the victory after taking the lead on lap five. David Breehl returned to action for the first time in a couple years and scored the win after the first and second place cars made contact on lap 11. Just one caution slowed this event as well. The third feature went to Michael Keith, who inherited the lead on lap 13 after the leader was black-flagged for beating his qualifying time.

Midvale surprised me as the facility was much nicer than expected. Very well manicured, neat, and clean. There are two sections of bleachers with a break in between the terraced off area. The announcer called the action from a patio area instead of the tower with the scorers. You couldn't hear the announcer except when it was totally quiet and even then it was quite a strain. Way too long of a show though. They did a good job of moving the races along, but unneeded laps under caution and drivers constantly stopping to have officials check their cars on the backstretch border on insane. I have never seen so many cars stop for such long periods of time. At many times during the show I was totally dumbfounded as to what was going on. The officiating seemed very questionable to me at times.

Another different rule Midvale uses is that the first three cars are single file and the rest of the field is double on all restarts. Midvale does serve alcohol. The hot dogs I ate tasted like bologna.

Midvale does have a figure-8 track, but did not have any races on it on this night. Midvale, which is located five miles south of New Philadelphia just off Route 250, made for my 24th career Ohio track and #109 overall.

#109 Midvale Speedway, 7/22/06
#108 McKean County Speedway, 6/29/06
#107 Hesston Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway, 5/16/06

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McKean County is 3rd PA track this year to come off my hit list

2006-06-30T10:09:00.000-04:00

#108 McKean County Raceway, East Smethport, PA (1/3-mile dirt) 6/29/06

Never did I expect to be able to log McKean County in for their special Thursday night program with a 60% chance of rain and the radar showing scattered storms all around and even rain hitting the speedway later on.

Despite the fact, the drive up was relatively rain-free with the exception of some showers through the Allegheny National Forest. The sky was dark to the west and north as I headed northeast to the speedway looking like I was bringing the rain with me. The few sprinkles of rain ended as I pulled into the parking at about 6:45.

The show was scheduled to start at 7. The headlining ULMS Late Models took to the track at that time as it appeared they were the only class to hot lap. After the late models finished hot laps, the national anthem was played and the super stock heat races hit the speedway.

Just a $10 admission was charged for the show which included a $2,500 to-win show for the ULMS Late Models plus super stocks, e-mods, street stocks, and 4-cylinder stocks. With the threatening weather, the crowd was fair at about 500 or so. Car counts were pretty good with 28 late models, 21 street stocks, 21 sportsman (e-mods), 19 4-cylinders, and 14 super stocks (limited late models).

After the completion of the two super stock, three street stock heats, and one late model heat the skies finally opened up. It really looked like the rain was going to set in for awhile and heavy at that, but surprisingly the rain was short-lived as the skies broke up.

The track, which was already tacky, was even faster once it was run back in. Racing resumed at about 8:45 and the remainder of the heat races and the B main were completed. The heats were all good racing as 3 of the 4 late model heats came right down to the finish.

After an intermission to groom the track, the super stocks were up first and their feature was cut from 25 to 20 laps. Randy Hall, who has dominated both the super stocks and e-mods, went on to victory. Hall has now won 4 of the 6 super stock features and 4 of the 5 e-mod features.

The late model feature was moved up ahead of the street stocks. 24 cars took the green for the 35-lap event. David Scott led the first couple laps before Rick Briggs took over. Sprinkles began to fall on about lap 6. Young Dave Hess, Jr., who has well over 100 career wins to his credit, came from the 5th starting spot and took the lead on lap 9.

Bob Close, who started alongside Hess in 6th, charged to the front and passed Hess in lapped traffic on lap 19 as rain began to fall. As the laps ticked off in the 20s, the rain seemingly picked up in intensity every lap. The only saving grace was no yellows, but as the lap count approached 30 it appeared questionable whether the event would or should make it to the 35 scheduled laps.

Todd Andrews began waving his hands to say that he could not see. On lap 33 some of the drivers began to slow and the yellow was displayed. Meanwhile on the backstretch, a lapped car got sideways and leader Bob Close drilled him at full tilt. Then Hess came in and hit both. It was one of the hardest impacts I've seen this year.

What an unfortunate ending to such a great race. With it now pouring and the surface gone with the red flag, the show was rained out shortly after 10:30. The controversial ending saw the win given to Close with Hess second and Briggs third.

Food prices were very reasonable as was the $10 admission and just $25 pit pass, which was no where near enough with the crowd to cover the expenses. They had a nice program for $2 on sale. The relatively new large aluminum bleachers have seat backs.

The racing was excellent. I think 2 heats would have sufficed for the stocks and e-mods and 3 for the late models. The intermission was a little lengthy with the forecast. All in all I thoroughly enjoyed the track and racing. For the most part the officials did a good job keeping the showmoving and were very professional at their jobs unlike many tracks. I was glad to see they cut the laps in the super stocks and moved the late models to second feature.

The area is very scenic around the speedway and with the sun, clouds, and rain made for a pretty spectacular sky with the mountains in the background and even a rainbow present during the rain. The weather and cloud movement is very difficult to read as I can now see how they get many of their shows in, while others rain out.

McKean County made for my 46th Pennsylvania track. I've now hit this year the 3 PA tracks I've been trying to get to for a long time now in Grandview, Hesston, and McKean County.

#108 McKean County Speedway, 6/29/06
#107 Hesston Speedway, 6/17/06
#106 Grandview Speedway, 5/16/06

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Hesston Speedway next to come off my hit list

2006-06-19T12:23:00.000-04:00

#107 Hesston Speedway, Hesston, PA (1/2-mile dirt), 6/17/06

An open Saturday night allowed me to knock off Hesston Speedway, a track I've been wanting to get to for many years now.

Located between about 7 miles south of Huntingdon between State College and Bedford, the drive took me 2 and half hours to conquer.

Before leaving I called to confirm the 305 sprints were on the card and to make sure racing was slated to start at 6 as that was what was advertised on their website. The lady said yes with hot laps at 5:30 and racing at 6. That seemed early for a Saturday night track in the summer night.

It was one of, if not, the year's hottest days of the year in western Pa. as it was 91 when I pulled into the parking lot at about 4:45. There is only one drive in for both the spectators and pit parking as another drive was roped off.

The sprint cars and a few others pit in the outer pit area off turn one, while the majority of the other cars pit in the infield.

I knew racing wasn't going to start on time as the racers were steadily arriving between 5:30 and 6 and the track was still being run in at that time. A driver's meeting was called in the infield at about 6 followed by heat in the motors for the sprints, and eventually hot laps.

Very few fans were in the grandstands at 6 as they continued to flock in until almost 7:30. Hesston has drive-in parking high above the backstretch and I'd say at least 200 fans were back there coupled with probably 400 in the main grandstands. The main grandstands sit high atop the speedway. The thick wooden bleachers are very steep giving a great view of the speedway.
The track itself reminded me of a tad smaller Hagerstown less the red clay as it was hard and smooth. The announcer and flagman both were above average, which surprised me for a track in this area.

An excellent field of cars were on hand including 27 limited late models, 24 305 sprint cars, 24 street stocks, 18 hobby stocks, and 12 4-cylinder stocks.

The heat races finally began at 6:52. In the first heat race a stock got loose coming off turn four and came back across the track causing another car to get upside down necessitating a length clean-up. The program dragged on as it was 8:50 when the heat races were finally completed.
After a 20 minute intermission, the street stock feature took the green at 9:10. Thankfully the 15-lap event went non-stop and it was a good one with lots of side-by-side racing, in fact the winning pass made by Bill Heffner on lap five was a 3-wide move.

The featured attraction of the night was the 30-lap limited late model special paying $1,000 to-win. This race was delayed when a car got sideways in turn two and the collision forced another car to get upside down causing another delay. Eight cautions slowed action in the first 10 laps. The last 20 laps ran green-to-checkered with Derek Byler picking up the win after taking the lead on lap 9. The cautions ruined what was a good 5-car race for the lead early on as just 12 of the 26 starters finished the event.

Over an hour later at 10:30 the 305 sprint feature took the green. Veteran Jim Kennedy passed Rod Ort on the second lap and survived a scare in lapped traffic when two cars spun directly in front of him on lap 16, but was somehow able to avoid the accident. Kennedy went on for his 1st win of the season. Kennedy is well into his 70s and I saw him win last season at Lincoln Speedway in a major snowstorm. Of course, Kennedy thrilled the crowd with his famous yodeling act. The win was very popular to say the least. The 305 sprint cars are a very competitive and affordable division. They race bi-weekly at Path Valley weekly at Hesston along with series visits to tracks like Port Royal, Lincoln, and Williams Grove. Their car counts continue to rise as the week before Hesston had 29 cars. The amazing part is that their races pay less than $300 to win.

With it being nearly 11 and a two and half hour drive home, I headed for the exits not watching the hobby stock and 4-cylinder features.

The show/track had many positives and negatives. Positives...announcer, flagman, viewing, car count, racing itself, and the food selection and quality was certainly impressive.Negatives...nearly 1 hour late start as five hours after the scheduled start time they still had two features left, slow clean-up & race operation in general. Constantly having cars stop to get their fenders pulled out gets annoying. I think 10-lap heat races (12 or more cars) are too much especially on 1/2-mile tracks.

Overall it wasn't a bad show, somewhat better than what I had expected.
Hesston made for my 45th Pennsylvania track.

107. Hesston Speedway, Hesston, PA 6/17/06
106. Grandview Speedway, Bechtelsville, PA 5/16/06

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Finally Grandview Speedway comes off my hit list

2006-05-18T14:40:00.000-04:00

#106 Grandview Speedway, Bechtelsville, PA (1/3-mile dirt), 5/16/06...

After getting 15 new tracks in the last four months of 2005, my first new track of the 2006 season came four and half months since my last new track on December 30.

Grandview Speedway is a track that has been on my hit list for quite a few years. Saturday night tracks are tough to get to for me being committed to Mercer Raceway Park on Saturday nights, but every time I seemingly planned to hit one of their late season or midweek specials something else would come up or Mother Nature would have other ideas.

With the Northeast being pounded by rain and cool temperatures the last 8 days, I figured Grandview would remain on my hit list. Tuesday's forecast appeared to be a 50% chance of the wet stuff and best case 40%. I figured I'd watch the weather Tuesday morning and see if it was worth heading out at about noon. When I awoke to the forecast of just AM showers/PM sun in Philadelphia, my hopes brightened. Upon further closer inspection, the forecast for Bechtelsville looked to be about 30% so I decided on the near 5-hour trip.

Once I got to the other side of State College skies began to brighten and only a few spotty showers fell the last couple hours of the trip. While there were some big black clouds in the sky, blue surrounded them I figured it wouldn't be enough to rain them out. Nearing the track, the roads were wet but the sun was shining and later did learn they had an afternoon shower.

"Thunder of the Hill" has been a concept of Bob Miller, who's heavily involved with the URC Sprint Cars. Bob always takes pride in his shows and I was looking forward to this World of Outlaw Sprint & ARDC Midget Car doubleheader. I knew Bob would run a tight ship and do everything in his power to get this show in.

A field of 33 410 Sprint Cars were on hand including 17 from the WoO and 16 locals at this neutral track that only has 3 410 Sprint Car shows scheduled. A good field of 26 Midgets were on hand.

Time trials began at 7:30 just after Bob's daughter Chelsea spun off a great rendition of the national anthem. Skies got dark to the west and the wind kicked up as qualifying was spun off in 20 minutes. The show would include 4 heats, two dashes, a B main, and a 35-lap feature for the Sprint Cars and two heats and a 20-lap feature for the Midgets.

The track was tacky and a little choppy in the turns with all the rain that had fallen, but made for some exciting racing. Grandview is a very fast 1/3-mile with lap times around 12 seconds. The Sprint Car feature took the green about 10 minutes to 10 PM. The only caution of the event was for Dave Cordier, Jr. After giving Cordier 3 courtesy laps to fix a stuck throttle, Cordier exited the event before the green flag fell. Cordier's family promotes Shellhammers Speedway and was making his season debut in his immaculate #7c. Cordier was a surprise as he made the invert and went on to win heat #4 holding off Terry McCarl plus beating the stars of Todd Shaffer, Joey Saldana, Randy Hannagan, and Chad Kemenah!

What would follow was 35 hold your breath, non-stop laps in just over 8 minutes. Aussie Brooke Tatnell led the first 7 laps before exiting on green handing the lead to Daryn Pittman. Pittman looked like he was headed to the $10,000 victory, but got held up in lapped traffic and was passed by point leader Donny Schatz on lap 33. Schatz, who started 7th, then raced on to his 4th win of the year. A call to local Greg Hodnett, who finished 6th. Hodnett timed poorly in 23rd and worked his way from the 22nd starting spot to a solid 6th and may have had the fastest car, but got held up behind Fred Rahmer and the lapped car of Becca Anderson for numerous laps.

The Midget feature was a good one. It appeared Mike Miller was on his way to his first feature win of the year, but a caution on the last lap changed things dramatically. Steve Buckwalter had made his way from the 10th starting spot to 2nd and the caution gave him a last lap chance at overtaking his car owner. Heading through turn 3, Buckwalter pushed his way under Miller. I then could not tell if Miller cut back down on Miller or not, but Miller's left front tire got run over and he flipped in turn four. The red was thrown and during the down time it was decided to place Buckwalter on the rear, who then raced into the pits without finishing the event.

Andy Martin led the final lap for the victory. Miller, who schedules the events & is considered the drivers' rep, has now flipped in 3 of the 4 ARDC events this season. I'm guessing it was an interesting conversation back in the pit area between Miller, Buckwalter, and the ARDC officials. I don't think ARDC knew what to do and I'm curious what Miller wanted to see done. Instead of his first win and a 1-2 finish for his cars, he ended up with a damaged race car and a finish of 19th & 21st. The Midget feature took about 40 minutes to complete and the show was over at 11 PM.

I really enjoyed the racing at Grandview. Excellent racey surface that provided two and three-wide racing all night long. You sit close to the track and the announcers were excellent. I was amazed by the steepness of the bleachers in turns three and four. A good crowd was on hand, but the weather kept it from being a big money maker.

Grandview made for my 44th Pennsylvania track.

106. Grandview Speedway, Bechtelsville, PA 5/16/06

A 3rd trip to Indiana to complete 2005

2006-01-02T21:55:00.000-05:00

#105 Allen County Memorial Coliseum Expo Center, Fort Wayne, IN (1/8-mile indoor concrete), 12/30/05...

They say women have intuition and ESP, but something told me not to go the races Saturday night, December at the DeVos Place. Maybe it was the high prices, lack of clear information, the potential of bad weather, or something else. Whatever it was I decided against making the trip and would wait and go to the indoor races two weeks later at Fort Wayne. Had I decided to go I wouldn't have known or even thought about checking the status of the racing before I left. Reading Guy's column just makes me shake my head in awe of the lack of preparation for the event. First and foremost thoughts and prayers go out of the family of the man who lost his life. And though it no way compares, I feel for those that traveled to the race on Saturday to find out they cancelled. After reading all of the circumstances of the two days, I would also highly doubt that the event returns.

On to Fort Wayne. I have considered going to this show the last few years, but always decide against it for one reason or another. This year, especially with the second day being on Friday, I decided that as long as there was no major snowstorm I would make the 4-hour trip. All week they called for dry conditions and temps around 40 with wintry weather coming in late.

I left around 12:30 PM on Friday and caught Route 30 in Mansfield, OH and ran it right to Fort Wayne arriving around 4:30. I decided on Pizza Hut before I headed to the races as I figured the food would be expensive and I'm not much for waiting in long lines and carrying food back to my seat. I'm not sure what some of you have experienced, but I have had numerous poor Pizza Hut experiences. This one though was totally opposite. Everyone was very friendly from the hostess to the waitresses to the cashier, and the restaurant was clean. The placemats had games for kids and they brought you a water, which I haven't seen at a restaurant in a long time. I had two different waitresses and the manager check on me. And I was in and out in less than a half hour! I get so disgusted with service anymore so it was nice to see how it's supposed to me done for once.

I was impressed with the Allen County Memorial Coliseum. First it was easy access in. I got a great parking spot as people were filing in. Parking was $3, which I thought was reasonable. The ticket buying and taking process was efficient and took no time. General admission was $18.50 and allowed you to sit anywhere except for the middle reserved section. Beings I was by myself I was able to find an aisle seat up near the top on the frontstretch (actually off the start of turn 1).

By the time racing started, ushers were helping people find seats and the balcony was full with standing room only. I'm not sure what the capacity is (maybe Allan knows) and I couldn't see the entire frontstretch bleachers, but I would guess there was some 6,000 people.

Various go-kart features were being run as I entered and that continued until shortly after 6 p.m. Opening ceremonies began at 6:45 and included interviews with Tom Bigelow, USAC's Rollie Helmling, and Tony Stewart as this was the final event of USAC's 50th season.

Qualifying for the USAC Midgets was contested earlier as Tony Stewart broke the track record for the second straight day. Heat races for the midgets began right at the advertised 7 PM start time. There were 34 Midgets on hand down from 39 the night before. Four 12-lap heat races were run, which inverted the four fastest cars in each heat race, and transferred the top 2 finishers to the feature. Winners were Stewart, Ryan Litt, Jacob Wilson, and Rex Norris III.

A few more go-kart mains were run before the 3 12-lap Midget B mains that took the top 2 finishers to the feature.

At 9:07, the 600 Micro Sprint feature took to the track for their 50-lap feature. 18 cars took the green flag. John Ivy won for the second straight night. He started 6th and made the winning move on the outside in lapped traffic on lap 20. Eight cautions slowed the race and only 9 cars finished with just 2 on the lead lap. Ivy is one of my favorite racers. I remember his dominating days in the 305 Sprints back in the 90s and he's been strong in the 410s recently. I got to see him win in a go-kart last month at Columbus.

The 14 Midgets that qualified for the feature were brought out onto the track. The lights were shutoff. The drivers were then introduced as they came out in the spotlight from one of the track's exits off turn two. It was a pretty deal especially when Stewart came out.

The feature would be 60 laps and took the green right at 10 PM. Stewart started 8th and made some unbelievable moves as he advanced to 3rd on the opening lap. Then he and Matt Estep passed Norris for 1st and 2nd on lap 3. Stewart didn't waste any time as he went to the outside of Estep. The two raced side-by-side for a couple laps before Stewart powered by on the outside on lap 6. Stewart survived 6 cautions and dominated the rest of the event for the win. Dave Darland was impressive. After getting crashed in his heat he made repairs to win one of the B mains. After starting 11th in the feature, he passed Billy Wease on lap 35 for 2nd, but was no challenge for Stewart.

Though the $2,000 win pales in comparison to the record millions he won this year in the Nextel Cup, you would have never known from Stewart. He had his helmet off as he coasted into victory lane. He climbed from his car and immediately climbed the guardrail into the flagstand to the approval of his home state fans of which many were decked out in their "orange". You would have thought he just won the Daytona 500! That and his interview alone were worth the price of admission.

Stewart noted how much he wanted to win the race as it was his last chance to win a USAC race in 2005 to keep his 15 year streak alive of at least 1 USAC victory since he started in 1991, and it was also the last race of the first 50 years. He stated that he was more worn out from running the race without power steering than running 500 laps at Bristol!

I listened to Stewart's interview and figured it would cost me in getting out as I wanted to drive straight home, I was surprised at how easy I got out. The feature ended at 10:22 (the webpage noted last year's show ended at 10:30) and even with listening to his interview, walking to my vehicle, I was back on the highway by 10:45!

It was pouring rain and 37 degrees when I got outside. Temps remained about the same as it poured until changing over to wet snow between Mansfield and Akron. Thankfully it stayed warm enough and didn't get slick until between Akron and Youngstown where I did see a pickup truck upside down. Had the temperatures been about 5 degrees colder, it would have been a major snowstorm and I would have been looking for a motel.

The ventilation and air was very good until the feature when numerous non-stop laps were run, but much better than the indoor races I attended at Toledo and Columbus. The lighting and p.a. system were excellent.

I thoroughly enjoyed the show as it was probably one of the best all around events I have seen in some time. It was well worth the near 600-mile round trip and $21.50 for the ticket and parking as it will be a show I won't soon forget.

The Allen County Memorial Coliseum Expo Center made for my 17th new track of the year (16 of which that have come in the last 4 and half months & 1 off my record of 18 last season) and 105th overall. It was my 6th career Indiana track- 3 of which have come in the last 2 months and all in the last 2 years. It was also my 3rd indoor venue.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA
94. 9/9 Lake Erie Speedway (figure 8), North East, PA
95. 9/11 Thunder Moutain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA
96. 10/8 Columbus Motor Speedway, Obetz, OH
97. 10/9 Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, IN
98. 10/15 35 Raceway Park (new 1/5-mile), Frankfort, OH
99. 10/16 Winchester Speedway, Winchester, IN
100. 11/5 New York State Fairgrounds, Syracuse, NY
101. 11/5 Greenwood Valley Action Track, Millville, PA
102. 11/6 Five Mile Point Speedway, Kirkwood, NY
103 11/19 Jackson County Speedway, Jackson, OH
104 11/20 Ohio Expo Center (O'Neil Building), Columbus, OH
105 12/30 Allen County Memorial Coliseum Expo Center, Fort Wayne, IN

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Back to the Buckeye State for 2 more!

2005-11-22T14:18:00.000-05:00

#103 Jackson County Speedway, Jackson, OH (3/8-mile dirt), 11/19/05...

The autumn season in the Northeast/Midwest/Mid-Atlantic regions has been simply gorgeous this year. We've been blessed with so many nice weekends one right after another. Not only has the weather been fair, but there has only been one that was pretty much a washout and that was the third week of October even though a few races like the Eastern States at Orange County and Potomac, MD that I know of were able to sneak in somehow.

This past weekend was no different and it gives you so much more incentive to go to races when the weather is nice. I had considered going to Summit Point, WV on Saturday or Sunday, but when Jackson County rained out last Sunday and rescheduled for Saturday coupled with the fact that I found out there was going to be races at the Ohio Expo Center on Sunday and I decided on the Ohio double.

Back in early October I came across Jackson County's website and noticed an aggressive fall schedule as they were scheduled to race right through the end of November. I had Jackson County down as a backup to 35 Raceway on October 9 following the afternoon Columbus races, but both 35 & JCS cancelled in the morning due to the cool temperatures. I planned to get to JCS for one of the November races.

At the end of October all of the November races were cleared off the schedule and they just posted an enduro race scheduled for November 6 and their banquet on November 20.

I e-mailed the webmaster to try and get a little more info on Sunday's rescheduled race, but he said to call the promoter. I tried the phone #, which according to the website says to try after 7 p.m. Finally on Friday night a message was on the phone that they were indeed racing with gates opening at noon and racing at 2 p.m. I tried again on Saturday morning before I left only to get the same message.

I departed at about 8:45 for the four hour drive. Southern Ohio and Northern Ohio are like two vastly different states. Once you get not too far below Columbus the scenery, people, and their accents all begin to change. Gas was selling for $1.92 at a BP station on Route 23 right off Interstate 270 on the south side of Columbus. It wasn't long ago people were saying we'd never see gas below $2.00. The common price throughout much of Ohio seemed to be $1.99. The drive down Route 35 from Circleville to the track is pretty barren. The town of Richmond Dale just popped up and looked like something out of the movies. Looks like things haven't changed there much in the last 30 years or so.

An old orange Jackson County Speedway sign was along Route 35 where you made the right onto Roberts Road. A narrow, rough road and one lane bridge lead you about a mile and a half to the speedway. I could seen dust billowing as I approached the speedway. It appeared to be a late model on the track. I got nervous when I didn't see any people.

There is a sign for speedway parking to both the left and right sides of the road. The left side I assume is the owner's house which overlooks the track. The parking to the right is behind the backstretch of the speedway. One road leads into the speedway which takes you to the only ticket booth for both the grandstands and pits.

Admission was $10 and the pits was $25. There was no release to sign for the pits, only a tablet to sign. The lady that worked the booth turned out to also be the one that registered the cars (if you want to call it that) and scored. She probably did payoff and a bunch of other tasks as well.

When I arrived about 70 minutes prior to race time there were a few "officials" standing around and 7 race cars, which included the late model. I wasn't sure if they were going to let him run or not with the 4-cylinder, compact-type cars. You never know at places like this! Guys just went out and practiced on their own. One car blew up and loaded up in an enclosed trailer. Another lost a wheel and didn't have a replacement. When he came back in one of the crew members yelled "I told you you should have saved it for the race."

The driver of the car that lost wheel asked, who I assume was the promoter/owner, if there were any wheels down there and the owner said "yeah there's one down there in the weeds I think." He took him down on his four-wheeler and came back with one. Apparently it didn't fit. So now I was thinking if he doesn't find a tire we're going to be down to four cars not counting the "late model".

A couple fans strolled in and more cars begin to roll in. This continued until about 2:20 or so when the last car arrived bringing the total to 18 including the car the loaded up, not including the late model that left, and yes the one driver did find a replacement wheel and tire to compete.

This was the first track I have been to where the pit bleachers are larger than the general admission stands. There were about 15 people in the stands that I estimated could pack about 450 in. It appeared to me that even the stands were moved or any old set were torn down as posts remained in the ground in the grassy area behind the bleachers.

Rain earlier in the week left for some muddy conditions. Two of the five women that were in the stands fell as the came in on the muddy small bank. The older lady didn't even attempt to get up, while the younger one struggled to get enough traction as she kept falling back down. Three people near the scene (no I was standing nearby laughing and not helping) came and held hands dragging them up. They were covered in mud, but it wasn't like too many were going to notice.

The announcer/scoring stand was an open-air old wooden stand up on stilts. Surprisingly they did have an announcer that gave lineups. The restroom and the concession building were separate from each other but both buildings took care of the pit and grandstand side with windows and doors on each side of the fence. You could tell the restroom building had been around for awhile.

The field was split into two nine-car heat races that began at 2:42. The finish determined the starting lineup and were won by #0 Hershell Wells and #53 Tom Largent 12 minutes later. They announced an intermission to give the drivers time to work on their cars. It looked like nothing had been done to the track since the last time they raced. It was pretty smooth with the exception of a hole going into turn one.

About 15 minutes into intermission they decided they were going to water the track. Two things you need for that are a water truck that runs and water! Well needless to say the water truck needed "jumped" and of course there was no water in it. The water truck headed down the road and probably 15 minutes later finally came back and entered the track from the backside where the three or four spectator cars were parked. After they finished watering the track they called for the cars to come out and pack the track down.

Once this process was finished the cars lined up and 17 of the scheduled 18 came trackside for the 50-lap race that paid $250 to-win plus a 4-foot trophy. The flagman was probably in his early 20s or so. There was only one "official" on the track for lineups. He was an older gentlemen probably well into his 60s and stood in the infield with a yellow flag.

The cars came onto the track and took the green flag from a stand-still position. The yellow came out and it was then after some discussion with the flagman and whoever he was talking to on the radio that he wanted to give them a pace lap and then turn them loose coming off turn four. The flagman yelled down to the official on the frontstretch and said "tell them I'm going to give them a lap and then throw the green in turn four". The lineup guy told the second row instead of the first. The flagman yells while he's pointing to the pole-sitter, "hey tell him". The lineup guy yells back "he knows". You can just picture this backwoods racing at its finest!

It was a decent race with five lead changes. Freddy Carpenter in car #49 ended up taking over from Largent on about lap 24 and then survived the endurance that had only five cars finish. Most of the attrition was due to flat tires. Carpenter was the last remaining front runner as all of the other ones dropped from the event and he had at least two laps on the second place car. The race was stopped five times and ended just before 4:40 p.m. It was a very pleasant day with sunny skies and temps around 55.

Note: On JCS's website www.jacksoncountyspeedway.net they have "2006 is just around the corner! Check back soon for our annual January 'Snow Bowl' race." I was not aware of this in the past and wondered if anyone else was.

#104 Ohio Expo Center (O'Neil Building), Columbus, OH (1/10-mile paved indoor oval), 11/20/05...

After staying in Columbus and breakfast at McDonald's, I made the 5 mile drive to the Ohio State Fairgrounds Sunday morning. It was another spectacular day with sunny skies and temps around 60, which was conducive for outdoor racing. Pulling into the fairgrounds I realized it was going to cost me $4 to park. Just before pulling away I figured I should ask where to park for the races and he hesitated and then said, "straight back and to the right".

I drove around and really didn't see any "racing people", trailers, or anything that gave me a hint to where I should be going. Finally I parked and followed people where there were three large-sized building that I thought possibly could house the racing. One building appeared to have no activity going on. The second was a craft bazaar and the third was some type dog show convention that smelled like a barn. I asked the gentlemen that was selling tickets if he knew where the racing was taking place. He didn't know nor did anyone around. He couldn't find security or anyone to help so I quickly dashed out for some much-needed fresh air.

So I decided to walk and walk I did. The next building I came upon that people were entering housed a hockey rink where young boys were competing. At least this building had a sign to what was going on. I went in hoping there would be someone around, but to no avail as apparently it was open to the public for free and no security to fairground personnel were present.

I came across a couple other buildings, but no activity was taking place. I walked to the end of the fairgrounds and to my joy came upon the race trailers. I finally felt like I found some evidence! But it still wasn't that easy as the hunt wasn't over.

Finally I heard the sound of racing and knew which building it was in. The next part was getting in. I walked clear around the building and saw no clearly marked entrance or even a main entrance. I began trying doors all which were locked. "How hard could this be?" as I thought I was going crazy and was quickly losing my patience.

I finally came upon "life" as guy and his son who were trying doors and opened the lucky door. When I entered it was around 11:30 and practice was taking place. I was told no general admission was on sale simply hot pit passes, which were $13. I watched some of the practice and then figured I should go find my vehicle and move it considering now I really had no idea where it was at. I found it after searching for awhile and moved it closer. I had no real reason of waiting inside until the 12:30 starting time as the fumes were strong. At 12:10 I heard the sounds of racing again so I figured they must have started earlier than scheduled.

I walked back to where I exited at, which was a door beside the entrance for the women's restroom. Yes that's right the main entrance was the entrance for the women's restroom and the racing was held in the pig building I was told. The next problem was the door that I entered (at least I thought as everything looked a like) was now locked!

Luckily a janitor was near by and had the key. Can you believe this? What an operation I thought! After talking to another family, whose son was going to be racing, they said they had trouble too and couldn't understand why there weren't any signs or markings and how no one seemed to know what was going on. Earlier I watched as other people struggled to know how to get in from my vehicle.

The gentlemen that told me the O'Neil Building was the pig building was someone I knew from home. He and his son were big into go-kart racing before moving into sprint car racing and kidded that you had to be invited to come here because people don't come to watch go-karts. He said once you come you just know about it. He also went out to his car to get something to drink and did so because he knew about their concession prices. Drinks were $2.50 (the smallest size and I think the only size) and sandwiches were generally $5 or $6.

The 17 classes of go-karts were split into two sessions with 9 going in the first. Each session ran two sets of heat races. The feature was lined up on points earned from the two heat races each car ran. Car counts for the first sessions were Senior Stock Lite (36), Senior Stock Medium (18), Junior Stock Lite (18), Senior Caged (8), 5HP Flat Head (7), Kids Karts (5), Junior Caged (4), Super Stock (3), and Gas Class (2).

Ohio 410 Sprint Car racer John Ivy, who runs a lot of the indoor winter races all over, won the Sr. Stock Lite class and finished second in the Sr. Stock Medium class. I enjoyed watching him race as he's always been one of my favorite sprint car drivers. I always liked his green #5i (yes that's a lowercase i) car that dominated the 305 ranks throughout Ohio & PA back in the 90s.

The Senior Caged division was the only countable division according to Trackchaser rules. The 12-lap feature saw the #07 kart lead all the way for the victory. I watched the entire first session and they announced they would be taking an intermission. I waited about 10 minutes and the lineups were still not posted so I decided to head home at about 2:40 p.m.

The second session included the Senior Stock Heavy, Junior Stock Heavy, Rookie, Senior Super Heavy, Kids Karts, Over 35 Stock, 400# Class, and 4 Combined.

I will give them credit for running a fast, efficient show as the first session ran two sets of heats, B mains, and 10 features (including a B trophy feature) in two and half hours. One race quickly followed another and lineups were very quick.

I just really didn't understand why they didn't have any signs posted for which building the race was being held in and the entrances marked. With the exception of the one janitor I found, I didn't see one person inside the grounds associated with the fairgrounds anywhere.

The Ohio Expo Center's O'Neil Building made for my 16th new track of the year (2 off my record of 18 last season) and 104th overall. It was also my 23rd career Ohio track.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA
94. 9/9 Lake Erie Speedway (figure 8), North East, PA
95. 9/11 Thunder Moutain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA
96. 10/8 Columbus Motor Speedway, Obetz, OH
97. 10/9 Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, IN
98. 10/15 35 Raceway Park (new 1/5-mile), Frankfort, OH
99. 10/16 Winchester Speedway, Winchester, IN
100. 11/5 New York State Fairgrounds, Syracuse, NY
101. 11/5 Greenwood Valley Action Track, Millville, PA
102. 11/6 Five Mile Point Speedway, Kirkwood, NY
103 11/19 Jackson County Speedway, Jackson, OH
104 11/20 Ohio Expo Center (O'Neil Building), Columbus, OH

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Upcoming Schedule V

2005-11-11T13:15:00.000-05:00

These are some possibilities for me as we head through November and into December. I'm really not sure at this point.

11/12 Lake Cumberland Speedway (Burnside, KY)?
11/13 Jackson County Speedway (Jackson, OH)?
11/19 Summit Point Raceway (Summit Point, WV)?
11/26 Wall (NJ) Speedway for the Turkey Derby?
12/17 DeVos Center (Grand Rapids, MI) for Auto Value Super Sprints
12/30 Allen County Memorial Expo Center (Fort Wayne, IN) for USAC Midgets

Spectacular weekend with 3 new tracks and great weather!

2005-11-08T23:33:00.000-05:00

What a spectacular weekend with unbelievable weather as I was able to catch three new tracks in two days hitting and eclipsing the century mark. I never realized how beautiful the sights at this time of the year are in northeastern Pennsylvania and the Southern Tier of NT. Ironically all three races I attended were rained out at least one other time from October and were run under ideal weather this past weekend.

#100 New York State Fairgrounds, Syracuse, NY (1-mile cinder), 11/5/05...

On October 9, rain showers came in and postponed the running of the "Eckerd 200" with 52 of the scheduled 200 laps completed. After some days of questions of when and would it would be finished due to numerous other events throughout October and November and rescheduling concerns at the fairgrounds, Saturday, November 5 was picked with a noon start time. In no one's wildest imaginations would anyone expect the weather that graced the event to have temps in the low 70s and sunshine.

This was one of these tracks that always seem to elude me partly because I never had much desire to see bits and pieces of the week-long event, endure the weather elements that always seem to plague it, fight the large crowds and expense of the event. With a rain check given to me in hand, a short mild day, and the opportunity to hit two other new tracks I made the four hour and 15 minute journey northeast.

I followed the stream of traffic into the fairgrounds and parked. Little did I realize I was going to be on the backstretch as buses waited to take people to the grandstand area. Not being one for waiting on others I took off on foot and realized it wasn't too bad of walk through the infield and to the main grandstand area. It didn't appear to me that they were selling tickets, but only checking what was being brought in as food and beverages are not permitted. I can see why as a hot dog (only slightly bigger than a regular hot dog) and small cup of Pepsi cost me $5.50. They pretty much waved everyone else on in.

Checking on past times of the race for the 200-lapper, it looked like most of the events were completed in about 2 hours and 30 minutes. With 52 laps already completed, I was hoping for a two-hour race and be on the road and headed to Greenwood Valley Action Track by 2:30.

When racing resumed on the Moody Mile about nine minutes past 12 noon, Billy Decker picked up where he left off at the helm of the Northeast's most prestigious short-track event. All eyes were on Richie "Tobie" Tobias, Jr., who used the outside of the speedway to race from where he restarted in 18th into the top five on lap 82 past Jimmy Phelps and then past Pat Ward into fourth on lap 84 to the delight of the big crowd. Decker, Danny Johnson, and Todd Burley pulled away from the pack by lap 85. Decker made sure he got to lap 100 before pitting as he picked up the $5,000 halfway challenge.

On lap 106, Decker and Johnson pitted while Burley got caught behind them on the inside of turn four. By the time, he got his speed picked back up Tobias roared past into the lead. Burley, who clearly had the faster car, worked on Tobias before finally getting by for the lead on lap 115. Eyes now shifted to Bobby Varin, who passed Ward for third on lap 124 then one lap later shot past Tobias for second.

By the time Varin got to second at the three-quarter mark of the event, Burley had more than a half-straightaway lead built up. Varin quickly chopped into the lead every lap and ran down the leader. After hounding him for about five laps, Varin got under Burley for the lead on lap 133.

Tobias' fine run ended when he slowed on lap 143, while Johnson hit the turn one fence after blowing a tire bringing out the caution. After pitre-shuffledhuffled the field, Decker, who was about to get lapped before the caution, was back in charge as the early pit stop paid off. Teammate Ward restarted second with Ronnie Johnson.

World of Outlaw Late Model "Dirty Dozen" member, Tim McCreadie passed Johnson for third on lap 167 then one lap later took over runner-up from Ward. Just after losing second to McCreadie, Ward slowed while Burley flew past Johnson and Ward for third.

Burley ran down Decker and McCreadie as the trio pulled away from the pack with 15 laps to go. After pressuring McCreadie for numerous laps, Burley finally made the pass stick for runner-up on lap 191. Burley though was never able to mount a serious bid at overtaking the leader. Decker crossed the line first for the minimum $50,000 base payoff and was his fourth Eckerd 200 win all of which have come in the last eight seasons.

Burley's impressive $25,000 runner-up finish definitely stole the sub-headlines as he also earned the $2,000 Rookie of the Race becoming the highest finishing rookie in the history of the event. Ronnie Johnson was a career best third in the event, Kenny Tremont was fourth after restarting 15th, and Varin dropped to fifth.

The racing was much better than I anticipated and I also could see more of the track than I expected. The race concluded at 2 p.m. and I ran back across the infield and to the backstretch parking area. I was about the third one into my vehicle and first that came from the front stretch, I quickly exited the grounds and was on my way south back into Pennsylvania toward Greenwood Valley Action Track.

#101 Greenwood Valley Action Track, Millville, PA (1/5-mile dirt), 11/5/05...

According to the track's website racing was starting at 4:30, one hour earlier than their normal 5:30 starting time. I wasn't exactly sure what was racing as all the website said was the Blaise Alexander Memorial for Micro Sprints. An e-mail I sent from a link on the old website came back from the webmaster said he wasn't sure, but to contact the track. I called about 10 AM on my way to Syracuse and didn't get answer nor a recording. As soon as I left the track I called and a lady said they were indeed racing and that the gates were open, hot laps were going to start at 3:30 and after the "go-karts" they were going right into their micro sprint program. Now I was a little concerned how much I was going to miss.

The drive down from Syracuse to GVAT was a little more than I bargained for, but nonetheless, I pulled in at 5:30 at the exact time I planned on at the onset. I could see micro sprints on the track and heard nothing over the p.a. system so it appeared they were still hot lapping.

One odd thing was the track's admittace gate. It was a little old mini shed with no lights and two people were standing there. This was the same gate where the race cars entered the track behind the grandstands and anyone could walk into the pits as no one manned the pit gate.

About 30 people or so were in the grandstands as hot laps concluded. I headed into the pits and checked the line-up board. The go-karts were running features only. The first of seven features took to the track at 5:50, one hour and 20 minutes past the starting time. There were only a total of 30 karts amongst all the classes.

I also came to find out there were five classes of micros racing. There were still race cars coming into the track after 5:30. After worrying about getting to the track on time and how much I would see, the first micro heat didn't hit the track until 6:35 over two hours after when I was assuming they would start (if not earlier).

Car counts were 45 270 micro sprints, 13 rookie micros, 10 600 mini sprints, 9 125 mini micro sprints, and 5 sportsman micros. The Blaise Alexander Memorial was rained out on October 22 and rescheduled for Saturday. According to the track's press release, "On October 4, 2001, Alexander lost his life while going for a win in an ARCA race at Charlotte. Alexander competed in the NASCAR Busch Series full time in 2000, while also attempting a handful of Winston Cup events. He was the ARCA Rookie-of-the-Year in 1996 finishing fifth in points, and won two series events in 1999. His racing career began in go-karts in 1989 and he was the WKA champion in for the Eastern Regional Series in 1992. From 1992-1994 he raced micro sprints winning 48 races at tracks in Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York." I remember watching Alexander race micros in the early 90s throughout PA.

The Blaise Alexander Memorial was a 40-lap feature for the 270 micros that ended GVAT's season. Twenty-six cars started the event, which was dominated by Ross Perchak. Perchak took over from pole-sitter Brian Kishbaugh on the opening lap and survived eight cautions and quite a bit of lapped traffic for the victory. The $1,000 win came just one week after he earned over $3,000 for winning the Linda Speedway National Open. Kishbaugh was a close second over Pete Skias, who won the 600 mini sprint feature last weekend at Linda's, came from seventh to finish third.

Sean Stoltz won the 20-lap feature for the 600 mini sprints, Mike Koehler took the 20-lap rookie micro sprint feature, Brayden Winters led all 12 laps of the non-stop sportsman micro main, while Ben Foss did the same in the mini micros. It was announced in the press release that GVAT has added the 600s to their weekly card in 2006 and dropped the sportsman.

The headlining 270 feature was run last and didn't end until 10. Two seemingly unneeded long intermission were taken, one was 35 minutes and the other was 30 minutes. GVAT did have very good and reasonably priced food as I had a cheese steak sandwich, french fries, and a slice of homemade pizza. The flagman was one of the most lackadaisical flagman I have ever seen. Instead of waving the flags, he simply just held them and many times didn't even decide to go green until the cars were approaching the cone when he simply turned the green light on, which seemed bizarre. GVAT made for my 43rd Pennsylvania track.

#102 Five Mile Point Speedway, Kirkwood, NY (1/4-mile dirt), 11/6/05...

Sunday dawned another warm and sunny day as temps were already in the mid 60s when I left my motel room at 10:30 in Wilkes Barre and climbed into the low 70s by afternoon.

The story of the day was the weather. This was expected as thunderstorms were predicted all week to strike in the afternoon. Checking the radar before I left the motel showed one thin line in central Pa. that was heading north, but was breaking up. Scattered thunderstorms were developing throughout central Ohio eastward to western Pa.

My hope was to at least see some racing so I could log the track. I called the track just to confirm they were racing and to my delight said they were going to start at 1:30 if everything was in place. It looked like there wouldn't be any problem of seeing quite a bit of racing before the rains came in.

After stopping at McDonalds for a quick breakfast I took my time making the hour drive up from Wilkes-Barre enjoying the beautiful sights on this perfect Sunday morning. I arrived at the track at about 11:45.

Five Mile Point Speedway is located just off Interstate 81 in Kirkwood, New York just minutes from Binghamton. The facility is somewhat rundown and reminded me of a smaller version of PA's Sportsman's Speedway. At noon they were already making the weather announcements that they were going to push the show along. Hot laps were going to start at 12:30 and they did. After hot laps a drivers meeting was held reiterating the weather situation and that they would need everyone's cooperation and that it was ultimately in the driver's hands to get the show in.

On the card was the twice rained out opening night portion of the National Quarter Mile Dirt Track Championship from October 14 & 15. Three sanctioning bodies came together for their championship events for the T3 All-Star 358 Modified Series, the Race of Champions Sportsman Modified Series Championship, and the BRC Late Model Series Championship. Car counts were strong with 41 358 modifieds and 37 sportsman modifieds, but only 12 late models and only a few hundred people in the stands.

Racing got underway just a couple minutes past 1:30. I was thoroughly impressed with the track officials and the entire operation, which takes a lot to do. They ran a tight-run show starting on time, no breaks between races, quick clean-ups of accidents, and line-up restarts. The flagman was the best I've saw all year. He did everything in his power to keep the show moving by not throwing quick, unnecessary yellows and counting laps before throwing the caution. The next race usually went green the next lap after coming out of the pits and lineups usually only took one lap before racing resumed.

The announcer was also very good and teamed with T3 Series coordinator Kenny Shupp, who is the announcer at Woodhull made for a good tandem. The announcer said they had four and half inches of snow a few weeks ago. On this first Sunday of November, people were out in short-sleeves and enjoying ice cream! They also had Papa John's Pizza, which I sampled.

Clouds rolled in during the heat races. A couple sprinkles fell during the 358 heats, which were run second. Some light rain began to fall during the late model heats but racing continued on without any delays nonetheless. Two B mains were scheduled for both the sportsman and 358s before they were going right into the features. The intenstity of the rain picked up during the first sportsman B main, but they were able to get it in. The cars came on the track for the second sportsman B main and they tried to keep them out there in order to not "lose the track," but the rain was too hard. The track monitored the radar all day. They said this band popped up unexpected and it would end shortly and there was a pretty big window before the front would come in.

Though it only rained for about 15 minutes after the cars were sent off, it was another 40 minutes or so before racing resumed. The rain did help provide a racy surface for the features as the sun and strong winds did a good job drying the track out in the heat races. The sun did return and the wind along with the help from the race teams got the track back to race ready at 3:50.

The B mains were completed, though the 358s took some time, and word was coming in that severe weather watches and warnings were being posted. The R.O.C. Sportsman feature took the green flag at 4:27 with 26 cars taking the green. I figured with that many modifieds on a 1/4-mile there would be a lot of bumping, banging and cautions, but to my delight the first 17 laps went non-stop. Another caution was displayed when racing resumed before seven more laps went green. The fourth and final caution came out with 32 laps in as the last eight went green-to-checkered. Mike Ketcham pulled off an upset to win the event as he led all the way for his first ever win, which was worth $1,000. Brett Tomkin challenged Ketcham throughout the event racing side-by-side at times, but didn't have quite enough to make the pass work. Danny Creeden, Brad Grim, and series champion Jason Hamilton rounded out the top five.

The 40-lap feature for the T3 All Star 358 Modified Series took the green flag just nine minutes after the start of the sportsman feature. The feature was a good one, but didn't run off so smooth as it was slowed eight times for cautions. The cautions were also much more lengthier than the sportsmans. Just past halfway of the event you could see the clouds rolling in, the wind really picked up, and lightning was evident in the distance.

Mitch Gibbs made it two-for-two as he swept both T3 events at Five Mile Point and became the series's only repeat winner of the season. Gibbs made the winning move on lap 31 after racing side-by-side for numerous laps with Rich Keehle, Jr. The victory was worth $2,000 for Gibbs. Keehle edged track champion Brian Weaver for second. J.R. Hurlbert had a strong run coming from 16th to place fourth over Glenn Knapp.

I gathered my stuff up and stood and watched the final three laps before making my getaway to the vehicle just before 5:30. I got just out of the track's parking lot and the rain began to fall and really picked up when I got on the interstate. I later found out they did complete four laps of the scheduled 25 for the late models before it rained out and it will be made up next year.

The wind and rain on I-81 was the strongest I have ever drove through. Luckily by the time I got on I-80 it tapered off and skies cleared for the trip home. I even saw a falling star land not too far off the interstate.

FMPS made for my eighth Empire State track of which half of them have been logged since June 2004. It was my 14th new track of the year with 13 of them have coming in the last three months. Though the facility itself left little to be desired for, I really enjoyed the show as the racing and operation of the event was some of the best I've witnessed all year.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA
94. 9/9 Lake Erie Speedway (figure 8), North East, PA
95. 9/11 Thunder Moutain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA
96. 10/8 Columbus Motor Speedway, Obetz, OH
97. 10/9 Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, IN
98. 10/15 35 Raceway Park (new 1/5-mile), Frankfort, OH
99. 10/16 Winchester Speedway, Winchester, IN
100. 11/5 New York State Fairgrounds, Syracuse, NY
101. 11/5 Greenwood Valley Action Track, Millville, PA
102. 11/6 Five Mile Point Speedway, Kirkwood, NY

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Great Weekend - Thanks All!

2005-10-31T11:56:00.000-05:00

I have to thank Andy, Gary, Kotie, Scotty, Hoagie, Ripper, Jody, Sue, and Jay for a great weekend in Hagerstown, Maryland. It was the most fun I think I've ever had and probably the most I have ever laughed.

It was great to see Andy qualify for both features and get some exposure. Too bad the breaks went out in the modified giving him 23rd at the finish and the motor wouldn't run all weekend in the sprint. but he managed to get in and run the whole race to finsh 14th.

Can't wait to do it again! Too bad the year is over :(

It used to be the racing that I loved and I still do, but now it's the people and memories that last. Thanks guys.

Great Quote

2005-10-28T15:24:00.000-04:00

From Ben Franklin...

"Our limited perspective, our hopes and fears become our measure of life, and when circumstances don't fit our ideas, they become our difficulties."

Upcoming Schedule IV

2005-10-27T15:41:00.000-04:00

No racing for me last weekend that was probably a first since February or March. Saturday was a total wash everywhere and I just wasn't up for a long drive on Sunday in somewhat questionable weather to freeze then a long drive home with the heat on. Those deals spell grogginess.

I'll see everyone at Hagerstown this weekend. Not real happy about all the circumstances, but I'll deal like I always do and keep my mouth shut. I'll keep writing my stone and accept and move on. Sometimes I just do wonder.

I'm planning on Syracuse and Five Mile Point next weekend. I can use a rain check from the original show and FMP has granted me credentials. The rest are all possibilities.

10/29-30 Hagerstown (MD) Speedway for "Octoberfest 350"
11/5 New York State Fairgrounds (Syracuse, NY) for the "Eckered 200"
11/6 Five Mile Point Speedway (Kirkwood, NY) for T3 358 Mods & ROC Sportsman Mods
11/12 Jackson County (OH) Speedway for a regular show?
11/19 Summit Point Raceway (Summit Point, WV)?
11/26 Wall (NJ) Speedway for the Turkey Derby?
12/17 DeVos Center (Grand Rapids, MI) for Auto Value Super Sprints
12/30 Allen County Memorial Expo Center (Fort Wayne, IN) for USAC Midgets

BTW...Ashley is now talking to me everyday again and I'm still itching.

###

Upcoming Schedule III

2005-10-20T09:41:00.000-04:00

I'm really not sure about this weekend. I was hoping to go to Lincoln for the Kenny Weld Memorial Saturday and then to Orange County Fair Speedway for the Eastern States Weekend on Sunday, but the weather doesn't look good out east. Back-up plan was Challenger maybe Friday or Sunday, but that doesn't look good. Jackson County & Good Hope both cancelled their racing for Saturday so that is out. Kartington has go-kart races Saturday, but they are only calling for low 50s with a 40% chance of rain.

10/21-23 TBA
10/29-30 Hagerstown (MD) Speedway for "Octoberfest 350"
11/5 New York State Fairgrounds (Syracuse, NY) for the "Eckered 200"
11/6 Five Mile Point Speedway (Kirkwood, NY) for T3 358 Mods & ROC Sportsman Mods
11/12, 19 or 26 Jackson County (OH) Speedway for regular show
12/17 DeVos Center (Grand Rapids, MI) for Auto Value Super Sprints
12/30 Allen County Memorial Expo Center (Fort Wayne, IN) for USAC Midgets

Oh btw...Ashley called me last night after I sent her a text message saying hi and hoping all is well and that I missed her. It was nice and nothing was said about the past or her statement that I'm such an ASSHOLE and she wanted NOTHING to do with me.

Similar Path Yet Two New Tracks

2005-10-18T23:00:00.000-04:00

#98 35 Raceway Park, Frankfort, OH (new 1/5-mile dirt), 10/15/05...

On Saturday I headed back to the Buckeye State and through Columbus again, but this time to the 35 Raceway. Located about an hour southwest of Columbus bordering the small towns of Frankfort and Roxabel (I noticed only one "l" on the sign yet two on the maps), the track is the second coming of 35 Raceway. I was told by the gate man that the Boettcher Family sold the land where the former 35 Raceway was and built the new track about three miles from the old location. and this was the sixth or seventh event for the new raceway. You can tell there is a strong opposition to the track with signs protesting the track and the announcer made a comment that the locals put lawnmowers beside their nose meters.

Notice the garage in the background

The track itself is a 1/5-mile slightly-banked dirt oval, and other than a choppy spot between turns three and four the track was smooth and racy without any dust. Car counts were 22 four-cylinder stocks, 20 600cc mini sprints, 14 pro dwarf cars, 12 sportsman dwarf cars, and 7 modified stocks.

The announcer, who sounded like NASCAR’s Buddy Baker, gave out very little information and the track owner handled the brief victory lane interviews. Racing began about 10 minutes after the scheduled 6:30 p.m. starting time and ended about 10 minutes before 11 p.m. A 45-minute intermission was taken to give kids rides in the race cars and kids foot races for candy on the frontstretch.

If you’ve never seen the mini sprints race, they put on a quite a show as they really fly. They are between the micro sprints and the midget cars running with wings using motorcycle 600 cc engines. They were running between 10 and 11-second laps. Kurt Jeffries of Westerville, Ohio led all 20 laps of the feature making it three wins a row in his #59 over Dan Lewis.

The mod lites/dwarf cars were spilt into two divisions a pro and sportsman division with the only difference apparently coming under the hood. The pro division was won by John Evans, who put on the race of the night. After getting crashed out of his heat race, the Washington Court House, Ohio racer charged from the 14th starting spot and made a last lap pass for the win. The 20-lap victory was Evans’ fourth of the season as he celebrated his 58th birthday.

Despite just 12 cars, the sportsman class 20-lap feature was slowed six times by caution. Jimmy Moss came from fifth, took the lead on lap eight, and raced on to his second win. Just one caution slowed the modified stock feature, which I believe were souped-up four-cylinder cars with late model-type bodies. Ernie Arndt made it three in a row in his #65 after taking charge on lap four.

The four-cylinders completed the racing program and while it was probably the best race of the night it was ruined and overshadowed by six cautions before finally being checkered with 15 laps completed. John Paul, Sr., who won the B main, came from the 13th starting spot and just made what turned out to be the winning move before the final caution ended the event five laps pre-maturely. One surprising item about the class was they were allowed racing tires, which I don’t believe I have seen on this division.

35 Raceway made for my 21st Ohio track tying me unofficially for 26th. They end their season this Saturday with another five-division program plus an enduro with racing starting at 4 p.m.

#99 Winchester Speedway, Winchester, IN (1/2-mile asphalt), 10/16/05...

After staying at the intersection of Route 35 and I-71 Saturday night and breakfast at Waffle House (love those!), I crossed back over the Ohio border into Indiana for the second straight Sunday. This time it was north to Winchester for my much-anticipated first visit.

While there is strong opposition to 35 Raceway, the opposite is true in the city of Winchester, Indiana as banners line the light poles of the streets in downtown welcoming race fans to the speedway. The track is located 10 miles from the Ohio border west of Winchester on Route 32. Winchester is one of those tracks as soon as you enter you can feel the history and nostalgia. One thing that did catch me off guard is Winchester is located in one of the counties of Indiana that do not observe daylight savings time meaning they are one hour behind EST this time of the year despite not being in CST. I do hear that may be changing.

While 35 Raceway's motto is the "Midwest's fastest 1/5-mile," Winchester’s is the world’s fastest ½-mile. Having seen the asphalt track throughout the years on television it always seemed scary fast. After taking in the races the speeds are truly breathtaking. After not operating in 2004, Winchester reopened under a new promotional team and had experienced success throughout the year with their four previous events.

After losing the first scheduled USAC National Sprint Car event to weather back on June 12, the series returned to end the track’s season for the “Rich Vogler Classic”. A huge crowd jammed-packed the big grandstands along with 18 USAC Sprints, 35 American Series (E) Modifieds, and 17 open sportsman cars, which was a “run what ya brung” type class with late models, street stocks, and trucks. I never expected the turnout of people as they announced for people to move in as they were running out of room.

Qualifying for the three divisions got started about 20 minutes late from the scheduled noon start time, but the heats started right at the scheduled 2 p.m. start time. USAC ran three 6-car 8-lap heat races that were all but meaningless unless they award points. The top 16 modified qualifiers were locked in. The fastest 10 ran a 10-lap dash that was inverted with the finish determining thefirst 10 starting spots of the the feature. Drivers that timed 17-35 ran a 20-lap last chance race that set the remaining positions. I did like the format. The sportsman class ran two 8-lap heat races.

Dave Darland topped the 30-lap USAC main even. The Lincoln, Indiana veteran racer passed pole-sitter Levi Jones on lap three for second, while Ron Gregory set the pace out front. Gregory opened up a big lead, but Darland and Dave Steele chopped into it every lap making it a three-car race for the lead on lap 15. Darland’s winning move came on the 18th circuit when he ducked under Gregory for the lead. It took Steele until the 27th circuit before he finally made the pass for second in lapped traffic. By that time, Darland was long gone and collected the $4,000 win in a race that went non-stop in 7:33.59 less than five seconds off the track record set by Steve Butler on June 16, 1990. Darland mentioned in victory lane how it was great to come back to the speedway and how the non-stop event took the wind out of him as he was literally holding on.

Floridian Steele was second over an impressive run by Gregory in third. Point leader Jones dropped to fourth over USAC National Midget point leader and Californian Josh Wise, who drives for NASCAR’s Tony Stewart. Tracy Hines, who set fast time with a lap of 14.045 just missing the track record .019 set by Steele on July 5, 2002, surprisingly failed to advance any positions finishing sixth.

It was dissappointing that only 18 cars turned out, but it was a good show nonetheless. It's amazing how many non-winged cars there are in Indiana yet many of these USAC National events don't draw that many cars. They had 22 last Wednesday night at the dirt track at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

The 40 lapper for the e-mods went to Mike Stacy, who led all 40 laps. Stacy’s win was far from easy as he had Jason Dietsch and Rodney Scott all over him in the closing five laps. The event was slowed only two times by caution; however, one of the stoppages was a nine-car melee in turns one and two that delayed action for 35 minutes. The only drawback to the show was only two wreckers and thus why such a long delay. That really is unexcusable for such a major event.
The open sportsman completed the show with their 40-lap main and it was Scott Henshaw in victory lane in a race that had just nine cars finish.

Winchester is one of those places you need to see for yourself at some point in your lifetime. Winchester made for my 11th new track of the year after only having one through August 11, and my 99th career track. It also marked Indiana track #5 for me all of which have come in less than the last year.

One note from the trip was how gas prices varied throughout Ohio. I saw it for as low as $2.33 regular unleaded near Celina, OH and as high as $2.89 where I stayed Saturday night and prices just about everywhere in between.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA
94. 9/9 Lake Erie Speedway (figure 8), North East, PA
95. 9/11 Thunder Moutain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA
96. 10/8 Columbus Motor Speedway, Obetz, OH
97. 10/9 Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, IN
98. 10/15 35 Raceway Park (new 1/5-mile), Frankfort, OH
99. 10/16 Winchester Speedway, Winchester, IN

Upcoming Schedule II

2005-10-15T10:08:00.000-04:00

Of course this is only tentative because I never know where I'm headed...

Tonight (10/15)...(New) 35 Raceway (Frankfort, OH)
10/16...Winchester (IN) Speedway for USAC Sprints
10/21 Challenger Raceway (Jacksonville, PA)? for "Fall Fest" late models
10/22 Lincoln Speedway (Abbottstown, PA)? for the "Kenny Weld Memorial" for sprints or Good Hope Speedway? for champ karts
10/23 Challenger Raceway (Jacksonville, PA)? for "Fall Fest" MACS Late Models
10/29-30 Hagerstown (MD) Speedway for "Octoberfest 350"
11/5 New York State Fairgrounds (Syracuse, NY) for the "Eckered 200"
11/12, 19 or 26 Jackson County (OH) Speedway for regular show
12/17 DeVos Center (Grand Rapids, MI) for Auto Value Super Sprints
12/30 Allen County Memorial Expo Center (Fort Wayne, IN) for USAC Midgets

Freedom Raceway cancelled their shows on October 22 and 29 so that's out.

So this is my problem....

2005-10-11T10:51:00.000-04:00

Here Are The Top Ten Reasons Why Men Fail With Women... http://sotheycallmecherrypie.blogspot.com/2005/09/ten-most-dangerous-mistakes-you-make.html

Crossing the Buckeye State for two new tracks

2005-10-10T15:50:00.000-04:00

#96 Columbus Motor Speedway, Obetz, OH (1/3-mile asphalt), 10/8/05...

Since early in the year a banner for for the inaugural “Open Wheel Octkoberfest” was on hoseheads.com, I site a frequent every day to keep up on the latest sprint car news. October is pretty open for me so with USAC Midgets and 305 Sprints on the same card at a new track for me within about three hours was a can't miss show.

The show was being promoted by Tony Barhorst, who is president of the Rumble Series that puts on the indoor midget races in the winter months. This was Barhorst's first outdoor promotion.

Western PA and central and eastern OH weather is not the greatest even in the summer months. Usually after the third week of September anything goes. The forecasts all week called for a little rain on Friday, clearing on Saturday, and sunny on Sunday. It rained all day throughout Ohio and PA on Friday. The forecasts changed to just a 20% chance of rain early Saturday with clearing skies for the rest of the weekend. That never happened.

I called the track numerous times before I left and in route and they said the rain ended at 8 AM and everything was on. The radar showed a patch of rain to the north so I gambled as I figured the weather could only get better.

Despite showers until about 30 miles from the speedway, skies were just overcast and temps were chilly in just the low 50s at the speedway as the show went off without a hitch. CMS is located on the southeast side of Columbus in an industrial area in Obetz. It began in 1946 as a flat track dirt motorcycle track. It was paved in the 1950s and ran USAC midgets beginning in 1957. The track holds claim to being the site of the first use of a wing on a race car.

Three classes were on tap highlighted by the first USAC National Midget Car event since August 20, 1978 along with the Winged Sprints on Asphalt Series and the Kentucky Legend Cars. A great field of cars were on hand including 35 midgets, 35 legends, and 27 305 sprints. The midget field was represented by 11 different states including California, Arizona, Florida, Wisconsin, Missouri, Illinois, New Jersey, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Ohio!

The late Rich Vogler held the previous one-lap midget track record with a lap of 14.741. That mark was shattered by all but three drivers as Bryan Clauson set the new standard with fast lap of 13.655. Four heat races and a last chance race set the 22-car starting field for the 40-lap main event.

Dirt track racer Bryan Clauson of Nolblesville, Indiana made his first ever asphalt start and came away with the impressive win in a race that went non-stop in 10 minutes. The 40 lapper was probably the best race I have seen all year as five drivers battled for the win for the entire race and put on an amazing race through lapped traffic.

An invert six from qualifying put NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series racer Tracy Hines on the pole with Clauson lining up sixth. Hines raced into the early lead with Californian Josh Wise driving Tony Stewart’s #20 taking second from Teddy Beach. Clauson entered the picture on lap six taking third from Beach. The leader caught lapped traffic on lap 18 and one lap later Clauson had second from Wise.

Beach stormed back to passed Wise for third on lap 20 then got back around Clauson for second on lap 23. Clauson and Wise re-passed Beach for second and third on laps 30 and 31 respectively. Clauson’s winning move came on the 32nd circuit when he worked his way under and by Hines for the lead on lap 32. With five laps to go Wise disposed of Hines for second. Clauson though was able to hold off Wise for his first career USAC National Midget Car win. Cole Carter made a late charge passing both Beech and Hines for third on lap 36. Beach was fourth over Ron Gregory and Hines, who dropped all the way to a disappointing sixth.

Of note, 72-year-old legend Mel Kenyon won the fourth heat race and received a standing ovation from the crowd. Kenyon was the only driver in the field that competed in the 1978 USAC event and was only one of seven drivers who were even alive.

The 305 sprint cars put on quite a show as fast timer Bryan Scott, who turned a quick lap of 12.180 in qualifying, charged all the way from the 10th starting spot making a last lap pass for the win. The 25-lap feature appeared to belong to Danny Brown as he led the first 24 laps. On the final lap (though the white flag was never waved and the flagman didn't have the checkered in hand), Brown went to the outside of a lapped car in turn three and jumped his wheel sending his car head-on hard into the retaining wall.

Brown was momentarily knocked unconscious as his throttle stuck wide open. While track crew personnel appeared to stand froze including the flagman that didn't know what to do, an individual came out of the pit area on a 4-wheeler and hit the kill switch. Brown did regain consciousness and was taken for observations. He was shaken, but was otherwise appeared to be okay. I couldn't believe the ineptness by some of the track personnel. Everything was in slow motion as I really can't say how long his engine was running wide open, but it seemed like an eternity. It was one of the scariest things I have seen in a while.

When racing resumed, Doug Berryman was handed the lead with Scott now in second. On the restart, the dirt track regular went to the outside and drove around Berryman in turns one and two for the winning move. Berryman was second over Trent Stephens, Ohio 410 dirt sprint car start Mike Linder, and Bryan Nuckles.

Rounding out the program was the 30-lap legend feature. Tim Davis wired the field leading all the way surviving five cautions for the victory. In a great gesture, Davis gave his trophy cup to a young boy sitting beside me in the grandstands. The young boy, who I would guess was about 10 and knew his racing, held on to and admired it for the rest of the night. He and his dad were heading to the pits to find Davis when the races ended. I'm not sure what it was that made Davis pick that youngster, but it definetely made this young boy's day and it's something I'm sure he won't forget.

All in all it was a great show with excellent racing, much better than I would have imagined. I felt bad for Barhorst, who is a native of Columbus. Barhorst leased the track and did have a rain date for two weeks, but was put in a tough no-win situation with the weather. I'm guessing there was maybe 600 in attendance. Adult admission was $16 and the pits was $30. I'm sure he took a pretty good hit and what a shame that more people didn't get to see it.

The downfall was a somewhat of an unorganized show. Racing started 45 minutes late at 2:45 and ended at about 7, and what usually happens when you get mutiple sanctioning bodies involved on the same night it becomes a case where's who's in charge. Not only were there three sanctioning bodies involved, regular track officials, plus Barhorst's own crew.

A nice touch was the free programs and Mel Kenyon posters that were available when you entered the track. CMS is well maintained with the green grass in the infield, scrubery lining the frontstretch, cement foundations on the bleachers, modern restrooms, and nice entrance are attractive. Though you can tell the facility is aging, I'm sure at one time it was state-of-the-art.

CMS made for my eighth new track of 2005 and 20th career Ohio track ranking me unoffically 27th in the Trackchaser standings.

With the scheduled 2 PM start, the plan was to head to the new 35 Raceway following the races, which was scheduled to start at 6:30. On the way to CMS, I called the track number numerous times without an answer before trying the home number where a lady did answer and informed me they cancelled. Why a message wouldn't be left on the track's # is beyond me.

The alternate plan was Jackson County Speedway, which wasn't supposed to 7:30. After calling 35 Raceway, I received a message on Jackson County's phone that they too had cancelled. A call to Shady Bowl Speedway and 201 Speedway in Kentucky yielded the same bad news. At that point I threw in the towel and headed west to Cincinnati, where I would stay Saturday night.

#97 Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, IN (1/4-mile dirt), 10/9/05...

Lawrenceburg Speedway was a track I have heard so much about with rave reviews from my sprint car pals. The track is high-banked and located one mile east of the city of Lawrenceburg, at the fairgrounds on Route 50 just across the Ohio and Kentucky border in the shadow of Cincinnati.

Saturday tracks are hard for me to get to with my commitment at Mercer Raceway Park. With us finished up last week, this Sunday event would fit the bill perfectly. A check of the website showed racing at noon with features only and good weather was predicted so I figured I was "In Like Flynn".

On tap was the third and final day of the 10th annual “Fun Fest”. The weather dawned cloudy and breezy once again with temps struggling to get into the mid 50s. Obviously the forecast was blown again with no sun to be seen and sprinkles and drizzle even fell later in the day.

When I arrived at 10:30, I had no idea what I got myself into. I proceeded to put my blanket down and asked a track official, who just made an announcement about breakfast being served and church service, what time the races started. He confirmed the noon start. I got a pit pass, which I was surprised were only $20 for being that final day of a special event.

All you see were a sea of race cars and I do mean race cars. Pit parking was used at the go-kart track, the track's regular pit parking, the backside of the speedway at that exit, and even a few cars inside the speedway grounds at the camp sites. Cars were crammed in every nook and cranny. The other obvious fact was that it was now 11 AM and most cars weren't unloaded and there was little activity. I found that order of event which showed 11 classes of cars including B mains before the features. There was also to be a rollover contest beginning at noon. I had had enough walking at 11:30 and went back to my vehicle realizing racing was no way going to start anytime remotely near noon.

Upon walking back into the grandstand area shortly after noon a rollover contest was beginning. It was the first one I have ever experienced and I can say I did enjoy it. After it ended they made the announcement that they were going to be holding an auction for the Shriners Club. They acted like it wouldn't take long. Over an hour later in wrapped up.

Finally at 1:45 PM (one hour and 45 minutes late) the first race hit the track with the announcement of the first of three D mains. That's right D mains! Three D mains, six C mains, and nine B mains later the first feature event took the track at 6:10. Yes 6 hours and 10 minutes later than what I was under the assumption to.

The last chance races took forever to run as you can see. It was quite expected when I saw how small and high-banked the track was compunded with the fact that the track was never touched from the previous night's racing. That all equals lots of cautions for inexperienced racers trying to get into the features. I'm not even sure if those races could even be called races as it seemed like they could't run more than one lap without a caution. All of the events did thankfully have time limits, though I think only the three-car, three-lap mini stock C main was the only race that went without a caution.

Included in the event were the non-winged 410 sprint cars plus late models, UMP e-mods, street stocks, pure stocks, bombers, mini stocks, chevettes, 1200 cc mini sprints, 600 cc mini sprints, and 250 cc micro midgets. While I never got an official car count, my estimate would be that 450 plus cars competed.

Some 45 sprint cars were whittled down to 20 cars for the 25-lap feature. The event belonged to veteran well-known racer Indiana racer Kevin Briscoe, who took over from Mitch Cunningham on the opening lap and drove a great race through lapped traffic to secure the victory. 2004 track champion Kevin Besecker passed Cunningham for second on lap 22 to finish second.

The late model 25 lapper was dominated by Steve Godsey. The driver of the #14 led from start-to-finish surviving five cautions. With some 64 street stocks in the pits, Randy Petro finally passed Troy Clark on lap 16 and went on for the 20-lap win in his #95X after the two battled nearly side-by-side for the majority of the race. Lynn Ambrose led from green-to-checkered in the 15-lap 1200 mini sprint feature for his fifth win in his #36 over Doug Jones, who came home runner-up in a race that had only one caution.

The sprint feature was run fourth and I made my exit at 7:30 PM, nine hours after I turned into the speedway. I was thankful that the four features I watched ran off in less than an hour and a half as I seriously was debating whether I could withstand much more at 5 o'clock. Little traffic delays as I raced through four of Ohio's big cities of Cincinnati, Columbus, Akron, and Youngstown allowed me to be back in PA in just under four and half hours.

Lawrenceburg has to be the nicest fairground speedway I have been to with a huge grandstand with aluminum seats and backs that offer a great view of the racey speedway. Nice, modern concession and restroom facilities along with Musco lighting and a great p.a. system makes for an enjoyable experience. Lawrenceburg does have a female announcer, which is just the second I have experienced with the only other being in Hawaii.

Lawrenceburg made for my ninth new track of 2005 and fourth career Indiana track, but first dirt track.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA
94. 9/9 Lake Erie Speedway (figure 8), North East, PA
95. 9/11 Thunder Moutain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA
96. 10/8 Columbus Motor Speedway, Obetz, OH
97. 10/9 Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, IN

"Little Guys, Vinny, & Duffster"

2005-10-05T09:53:00.000-04:00

It's so nice to be still be in the 80s and sunny in October. Do you know how much better moods people would be in if it didn't snow and wasn't dreary?

"Back in the Saddle Again!"

New York Jets head coach Herm Edwards announced Wednesday that 18-year veteran Vinny Testaverde will start on Sunday versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Little Guy Nationals at Mercer Raceway Park were amazing this year. Great weather and record car counts. We had 205 cars Friday night with 101 stocks, 48 micro sprints, 33 mod lites, and 23 strictly stocks. We came back with 193 cars in just 3 divisions Saturday with 92 stocks, 51 358 mods, and 50 e-mods. There were also 23 demo derby cars. The pits were overflowing both days. The speedway turns into a village for two days, it's pretty neat talking with drivers from all over. Everyone comes together nicely and we've hardly ever had any problems with that many cars.

The Sleeper House car (#S1) driven by Bill Henney made his first ever appearance and finished 2nd on Saturday.

Here's an update on my schedule:
Oct 8 (day): Columbus (OH) Motor Speedway, USAC Midgets & WSOA Sprints
Oct 8 (night): 35 Raceway (OH)
Oct 9: Lawrenceburg (IN) Speedway, Non-Wing Sprints
Oct 15: Grandview Speedway, Bechtelsville, PA, "Thunder on the Hill" 5-25s
Oct 16: Pocono or Williams Grove Speedway
Oct 22: Freedom Raceway (NY) or TBA
Oct 29-30: Hagerstown (MD) Speedway, "Octoberfest 350"
Nov 5: Jackson County (OH) or TBA

"The Duffster!"

My favorite!

Upcoming Schedule

2005-09-27T15:47:00.000-04:00

Here's where I'm planning to be through October:

Sept 30: Mercer (PA) Raceway Park, "Little Guy Nationals" Night 1
Oct 1: Mercer (PA) Raceway Park, "Little Guy Nationals" Night 2
Oct 8: Columbus (OH) Motor Speedway, USAC Midgets & WSOA Sprints
Oct 9: Lawrenceburg (IN) Speedway, Non-Wing Sprints
Oct 15: Grandview Speedway, Bechtelsville, PA, "Thunder on the Hill" 5-25s
Oct 16: TBA or Williams Grove Speedway
Oct 22-23: TBA
Oct 29-30: Hagerstown (MD) Speedway, "Octoberfest 350"

Excitement & Rewards - Quotable

2005-09-19T18:16:00.000-04:00

"Excitement and reward exist only outside your comfort zone. You'll experience neither of them until you make yourself do something you really don't want to do. So what is it that scares the hell out of you?" Roy H. Williams, Wizard of Ads

2 New Tracks: PA's Nicest to PA's Newest; Figure 8s & Rednecks

2005-09-12T15:58:00.000-04:00

#94 Lake Erie Speedway (Figure 8 asphalt), North East, PA (9/9/05)

It was a gorgeous weekend here in western PA- a rare one with wall-to-wall sunshine, little humidity, and a slight breeze. September generally is a fair month weather wise. For two Fridays in a row the weather has been outstanding and that trend is to continue this weekend.

Friday nights in September though in western PA and eastern Ohio is generally slim pickings when it comes to racing. High school football is big and kids are just back to school so unless it's a special events the few Friday night tracks either shutdown or switch nights.The only racing I knew of was Raceway 7, Motordrome, and Lake Erie. Having been to all three tracks before and with my intention of going to Raceway 7 next week and not being an asphalt fan, I realy wasn't excited about going to any of them.

With no late models at 7, I checked Lake Erie's schedule and to my delight figure 8s were on the card. When I went last May for the first time they were not and only a couple hundred people were in the grandstands. Management changes over the offseason has apparently resulted in larger car counts, numerous special events, and larger attendance. Friday's crowd was nothing to write home about, but definitely better than when I went last year at probably double the size.

Car counts were still low to modest at best. The headlining late model division were featured in a 75 lapper and increased purses were announced for the other divisions. Admission was $15. They did have a full field of late models. The other car counts were 22 legends, 10 bandoleros, 10 street stocks, 7 figure 8s, and 5 4-cylinders.

They started only a few minutes late and took a brief intermission to allow the late model crews to bring their equipment into the infield, did some giveaways, then a did quick driver introductions. Just after 10:30 the late model, bandolero, legend, and street stock features were completed. The flagmen moved from the oval flagstand to the one the one exiting turn four for the figure 8 race. LES F8 made for my 4th figure 8 track. The plastic-type jersey barriers that were set up for the late model pit area in the infield were removed where the cars crossed into the infield.

Despite just 7 cars they did put on an entertaining and exciting race that the majority of the crowd stayed for and then left before the final event which was the 4-cylinder feature. Lots of passing and some bumping. The top four cars stayed in a pack for the entire 15 laps swapping positions. The next two cars raced a good distance back and the last place car simply seemed to be out there just to be out there. He stopped and let cars cross when he could have easily made it by the X and got out of every ones way. He even "earned" some boos and chicken calls from the crowd! Bob Morgan was the winner of the event.

Lake Erie is a wonderful facility. I still wonder how they operate it on a weekly basis. Their overhead has to be tremendous. They must do well enough on their special events because I know they are taking big hits for all the more they draw on weekly events. You can tell their fan base is very different than the typical dirt tracks in western PA. It's a very laid back atmosphere. Very little if any racing shirts and the one's that are are NASCAR. In my two visits I've noticed many older couples and not the low-income, beer-drinking, "redneck"-type crowd.

On a side note, I stopped and ate at the Golden Corral on the way to the track in Erie. We're getting one in Hermitage, PA by the new Super Wal-Mart that is being built. It's been a long time since I've eaten at one as there aren't any that I know of around my area. It was well worth it. I forgot how much selection and the quality of the food is excellent for I think it was $8.99. Some buffets aren't appealing at all, but that's the total opposite here. The food looks good and is good! I ate like I had been stranded on a island. I probably ate at least $30 worth. I was really amazed at what they had to offer.

#95 Thunder Mountain Speedway (3/8-mile dirt), Knox Dale, PA (9/11/05)

From one extreme of western PA racing at one of the nation's top short track facilities on Friday night to western PA's newest facility on Sunday afternoon. About the only thing in common with the two facilities is that they both have Speedway at the end of their name and present auto racing.This track was basically built because nearby, and I do mean nearby, Hummingbird Speedway dropped the truck division. The Geer Family had trucks and raced at Hummingbird before the track dropped the divisions.

TMS opened up late last year (I believe early September) running some Sunday shows then switched to Saturdays in October basically forcing Hummingbird to close early even though October isn't early for western PA. In the past, Hummingbird had run right through the end of October. I believe they only got one or maybe two Saturday shows in before calling it quits and announcing Saturday nights in 2005 against Hummingbird, which is about 10 miles or so down the road.

I had planned on hitting one of their late October shows, but as stated they called it quits. Working at Mercer Raceway Park on Saturday nights severly cuts down trackchasing opportunities as the majority of tracks operate on Saturdays. It's one reason why it took me so long to get to many Saturday night tracks and tracks like McKean County, Hesston, Painesville (OH), Midvale (OH), and Barberton (OH) are still on my "hit list".

With Thunder Mountain's schedule showing their final show on September 24 it was questionable if I was going to make it to the region's newest track. The 17th and 24th would have both been possible options as we are not racing at Mercer those days, but it would be likely that I would have found somewhere else to go.

Following the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and in the wake of the upcoming fourth anninversary of 9-11, TMS decided they would hold a "Race for Relief" with all donations from general admission going to the Salvation Army. The drivers would race for pit pass proceeds.Sounded like a good cause and with the only other race being Tri-City's 100 lapper for Stock Cars I decided on TMS.

Once you get off Interstate 80 and get away from nearby Brookville you've basically left civilization as it's "Backwoods USA". Winding roads finally came to Knox Dale, PA as I felt I had gone back in time about 50 years. The newest thing in "town" was the post office. The sights were worth the trip alone as I had never been in Knox Dale or the surrounding roads that led to the speedway. I arrived at just shy of 2:30 PM with the scheduled start time of 3. I assumed hot laps were finished. I walked up the steep bank and paid the $5 donation to the Salvation Army.

Reminded me off an entrance to an old stadium as you walked under the scoring tower/concession stand. To the left was all lawn chair seating. To the right were bleachers and a small "walkway" up to the crowded area to the entrance to the small concession stand. For me it's very odd not to recognize people at a track that is so close to home. There were two guys (brothers) that used to own a sprint car that does engine work in nearby Brookville and one fellow "Fred" as is identifiable from his work outfit he always wears, who is always at races in this "area". Other than some of the drivers I recognized, that were the only familiar faces.

The grader was cutting the speedway and run in vehicles were on the track. There was no announcing prior to 3. At about five minutes after 3, the pace truck carrying the American flag in its bed came onto the speedway leading about 6 races amongst the various classes then more followed so I assumed they were going to either be bringing out a car from each division or bringing all the cars out for some type of tribute.In the end it turned out to be just hot laps as they put the cars from the other divisions in the infield as the steel block late models hot lapped first.

After hot laps were completed at just before 3:30 the announcement was made that they were going to do something that had never been done in the history of TMS. My mind was "racing" and all the various imaginable thoughts of a track of this sort in this area saying something like that. It turned out that they had someone to sign the anthem and it was a 14-year-old girl that did a respectable job. Boy was I relieved!

For such short notice as basically the only way anyone knew about the show was from the message board or their website, and they did race the night before, a very good crowd was on hand for all the bigger the facility is. I'm guessing somewhere in the neighborhood of 400-500. It was a very warm day for almost mid-September standards especially in one of the cooler areas of the state with temps in the 80s.

The facility reminds me of Dog Hollow Speedway in Strongstown, PA as it looks like it was cut from the same mold. Both have a similar scoring/concession stand, rocky grandstand area with both seating and lawn chairs (although Dog Hollow can hold many more), relatively same size track (Dog Hollow is a hair bigger) and surface composition.

Car counts were low to modest at best with 65 cars amongst 6 divisions with 16 4-cylinders, 15 super stocks, 12 steel-block late models, 12 micro sprints, 6 trucks, and 4 pure stocks. Pit passes were $20 and I'm guessing there would have been about 250 in the pits meaning the six classes were racing for $5,000. It said this was a non-profit event for the track. The concessions may have paid for their insurance (assuming they do have it), but unless the employees worked for free, plus ambulance, fire, fuel, wreckers, and other various expenses I wonder how they didn't lose money unless all the pit money did not go toward the purses.

Heat races took about an hour to run and they announced they were taking an intermission to water the track and work it back in. They called for all the drivers to come out for a picture on the frontstretch and a Chinese auction was going on in the grandstands with the proceeds going to the salvation army.

They interviewed a guy that was from NJ filming the races who sends footage to Speed Channel. He was with Lynn Shaffer (sp?), who produces the popular "Thunder in the Mountains" tapes. I'm guessing they were at Port Royal Speedway on Friday and Saturday for the Tuscarora 50, stayed over, and made the two hour jaunt over to add to their track list. Following the interview, the auction had ended and the announcer began giving away all the prizes off the tickets purchased. This seemingly went on forever. The crews did work on the speedway as it was graded again. The only water put down was above the cushion and on the edge of the infield.

At about 5:30 cars were lining up and the announcer said the flagman was ready and all the remaining winning numbers would be on the table at the auction to claim. I believe they announced over $4,000 was raised during the day, which would seem about right as the auction was at around $2,000. 400 people times $5 would be another $2,000.

The 25-lap steel-block late model was first and 11 if the 12 cars took the green. The race was decent as Jason Witherite passed Ted Gallaher on lap 10 of the 25-lap race and survived 6 cautions. One of the cautions seemed to be a mystery as no cars stopped, no debris was picked up, and nothing was said though people were wondering.

Following the race something transpired that I can't recall ever happening in the some 1,100 races I have attended. Witherite, who won the race, crossed the scales and instead of coming out for victory lane, flew into the pits. People in the stands thought he was light, but the announcer said something about the car being hot. They waited and waited on him to come out, finally the next division came out on the track and the announcer, flagman, photographers, etc. headed back to their posts like people leaving dejected after waiting on an athlete or movie star that never showed.

The micro sprints started 10 of the 12 cars and just 2 cautions slowed the feature won by Jeff Bacha, who led all 15 laps.The super stocks was another story. Watching many stock races away from far western PA, I knew what to expect lots of banging, lots of cautions and lengthy ones, slow lineups, etc. It came to fruition. The 15-lap race started 13 of the 15 cars, but had 6 cautions in just 15 laps. Jamie Barber led all the way. The race seemingly went on forever. Long and I do mean long cautions. One car went over the backstretch into turn three all by itself. I have no idea what took so long. When they finally got the car on the wrecker and they brought it across the track into the infield the car came crashing off the hook. Two cars tangled in turn two and were hooked together. Just the typical type of stock racing as the cars look like they went through a meat grinder.

At 6:45 nearly four hours after the scheduled start time I had enough. I'm just glad they ran the top three classes first. Three features still remained for the lower classes. These tracks just amaze me how they could never handle a large amount of cars and run off any semblance of an efficient show. I get frustrated and antsy very easy. While it was good to add a new track, I doubt I will return unless there are sprints or modifieds scheduled.

The crowd of fans were expected for this type of track and I also get very uncomfortable and am always looking for a different place to sit. It's scary to see our future generation of children when you look at their parents. Considering it was a special Sunday afternoon program, I'm sure their Saturday night crowd is much worse and I can believe that from the stories I've heard. TMS did make for my 42nd Pennsylvania track, which according to the Trackchaser PA standings ranks me "unofficially" tied for 24th.

I stopped at an Arby's on the way home and as usual as I quickly got disgusted. What is supposed to be "fast food" sure wasn't. There was one girl waiting on her food when I entered and a guy and I think his son ahead of me. I went to the restroom and cleaned up and waited on them to order. I placed my order with a girl that wore a name tag in training. It seemed like everyone else in the establishment was also in training.

One of the girls even made the comment that they were really busy for 8 o'clock. There was one other couple eating in the restaurant, the girl waiting on the food, the father-son, myself, and a family of three that just came in after I ordered and they were really busy?

This was Grove City now keep in mind- a town of about 9,000 plus it's a college town and the Arby's is right beside a 24-hour grocery store and Wal-Mart. The girl's food finally came. She just got out the door and came back in when there was a mistake on her drink order. The father-son got their order, which was just a sandwich and drink each. I just ordered a roast beef, curly fry, and a Dr. Pepper.

Of course when my order came, which had to be at least 10 minutes later the fries weren't done. I took my order and sat down, the sandwich that was waiting in the shoot was now almost cold. The family that ordered after me got their order which included fries and an employee came out and sat down with her meal that included fries. At this time I had just started to get up when I saw them coming out with my order. In a place like this it's almost useless to even bitch as it seemingly comes with the territory anymore.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA9
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA
94. 9/9 Lake Erie Speedway (figure 8), North East, PA
95. 9/11 Thunder Moutain Speedway, Knox Dale, PA

May God Bless!

Crazy 8 time

2005-08-25T13:55:00.000-04:00

#93 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA (8/24/05)

Yesterday had to rank as one of the nicest days of the year- sunny/clear skies, temps in the mid to upper 70s, no humidity, and a light breeze. I believe the Pittsburgh area has one of the least amount of sunny days in the nation at I think 65 per year average and I would bet the majority of those come in the winter, and usually in the summer time we're known for our humidity.

With that in mind and nothing planned for the evening, I decided to head to Westmoreland County for their 51st annual fair. My only hesitation is my disdain for the PA Turnpike and Route 30 is always horrendous with traffic and stoplight after stoplight.

Admission to the fair was $7 and another $5 for entrance into the Rolling Rock Arena for the Figure 8 races. Although I am a calm person, I really don't have much patients to wait in lines for anything. I hate heavy traffic, I'm not an autograph seeker, I'm not an amusement park person, and I always eat and shop at dead times.

I got an excellent hot sausage sandwich as no one was in line and found a bottled pop stand for $1 where I walked up and paid and grabbed my own out of the cooler. I was hungry for fries, but seemingly everywhere fries were sold was a line. I found a concession stand that had French Fries wrote all over the trailer yet oddly no price was posted. They sold the general greasy foods like fries, blooming onions, wings, chicken tenders, corn dogs, etc.

A price list was posted on the stand and fries were $3, which included cheese and I thought that was kind of odd. Generally cheese is always extra. Two people were in line and both had ordered so I didn't expect the wait to be long. That was until the one ladies and her son decided to keep adding to their order and asking way too many mundane questions for me. It seemed like a long wait for the others' order.

Two women worked the trailer and while their appearance wouldn't have predicted, the two's IQ level was lower than most of the demographic of fairgoers. It's pretty bad when customers are telling them the total of the bill.I was finally up and placed my single order of small fries with cheese. Then it was wait, wait, and more waiting.

In the meantime two other groups of people came up to place their orders. So now we had 4 orders in place. One person ordered the $6 bucket of fries, but the girl wasn't sure if they even had any buckets left. The other lady said she thought there was a couple left and she did find one. You can imagine what happened next as the orders were confused.Then the people behind me got their fries (without cheese) before me as the girl really couldn't remember who ordered what. Now mind you this was just nacho-type cheese that was pumped out. The kicker was that each order was cooked individually and cooked in front of you while you waited!

I found a quiet place to sit and enjoy the fries, which were excellent, but no where near worthy of the wait and aggrevation things like that give me. I would never have imagined how long it would have taken to get fries when it was just two people waiting on their orders. I can't even fathom what happens on the weekends when they are busy.

I entered the arena at 6:50 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. show. The crowd was slow to come in, but I would estimate 500 or so were in attendance as it was really hard to judge with the way their bleachers are.The grandstands are very steep aluminum bleachers, some of the steepest I have ever seen. When you enter, a walkway seperates the top portion (which are more like conventional stands) from the bottom section (which are the steep ones that make up 75 or % of the seating). I chose the top row in the bottom section. That way I had a fence to lean against, no one would be behind me, and nothing would obstruct my view.

A gentleman sang the national anthem and it was one the quickest renditions I think I have ever heard. The show started at 7:38. The 19 cars were split up into three heat races. Paul Miller, George Myers, and Mike Soliski (spelling?) were the names I gathered as heat race winners. The third heat race was opened up to any cars that ran in the first two heat races that wanted to race again. Three cars were scheduled and another five filled the lineup from the first two. They watered the track after each heat race and took about 20 minute intermission after the last heat.

The feature would be 15 laps and 13 cars were scheduled to start. 12 cars took the green flag of which I gathered the top 3 heat finishers and then they asked after each heat for the fan's choice by audience noise. A couple laps into the feature, about four cars go together at the intersection. Immediately the red flag was thrown as one of the drivers took a big hit and needed assistance.

I'm almost positive this wasn't a JM Productions event. Whoever put the show on wore orange shirts with a couple initials. They were like ants as I counted well over 30 at one point on the track. When the accident occurred all of the ambulance, fire, and orange shirts converged at the scene as there were well over 50 people standing on top of each other. A tarp was help up and the roof was cut off the car. The driver of the #84 car was transported, but no details (other than for precautionary reasons) were given just as Allan Brown has mentioned about the HIPPA Act.

The delay was nearly 30 minutes and when racing resumed 9 cars were left which went without a another hitch. Paul Miller, who won the first heat, in his #487 was the feature winner. The racing was good and the track was decent as they kept it watered. The sound system was good, but the announcer wasn't too informative or entertaining. He promoted the upcoming demo derby on Saturday, a couple of the sponsors, gave the lineups with hometowns, and a couple of the finishers. The one thing he did constantly promote was the two vehicles. He must have named 6 of them with the vehicle types, but one guy did nearly all the work and I think I only saw one other truck tow anyone off.

The event didn't seem real well organized to me as that's one thing that drives me crazy. I'm not sure how you serious trackchasers can put up with that at many of the rinky-dink-type operations you see. It was the case where there were seemingly too many people. The show ended about 2 hours after it started and they still had mini vans to race I guess though not much was said about it during the night or when the event ended and from what I could see into the pit area there were only a few of them.

I of course got behind a couple probably in the early 30s max that had four young children and three other friends with them. The one friend had no shirt on though he was carrying it, wore a white autographed cowboy hat, had tatoos, and reeked of beer. The other two young teen friends were up and down more times than I wanted to account for and thought they were very important. The one friend who I would surmise was about 16 or so wore a shirt that said "Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy". I question the fact that a guy would be wearing that type of shirt. Three of the kids were bad as it's more of the adults of the future we get to look forward to as the parents had their hands full and really didn't make a great effort to control them. They came during the second heat and left before racing resumed in the feature.

I grabbed another $1 20oz Mountain Dew and headed for the gates as my 40th Pennsylvania track and fifth new track of the year was recorded.

89. 1/2 Mountain Speedway, Saint Johns, PA
90. 8/12 Big Diamond Raceway, Minersville, PA
91. 8/13 Mahoning Valley Speedway, Lehighton,PA
92. 8/13 New Egypt Speedway, New Egypt, NJ
93. 8/24 Westmoreland Fairgrounds (Rolling Rock Arena), Norvelt, PA

When the weather's bad - head east!

2005-08-25T13:18:00.000-04:00

It was good to hit the road again for a little track chasing as I haven't been able to record any tracks since January 2 at Mountain Speedway in PA. Work, my Saturday commitment to Mercer Raceway Park, and a girlfriend have kept me pretty much to just attending weekly racing at Lernerville, Mercer, and Tri-City this year.

With Mercer not racing Saturday and no desire to see the World of Outlaws, I decided to take Friday and Saturday to track chase. My love has always been sprint cars so the plan was to find two tracks relatively close together. I decided early in the week for Lima, OH on Friday and Butler, MI on Saturday. The forecasts looked favorable with dry conditions on Fruiday and just a 20-30% for Saturday.

With every passing day, the forecast went downhill to where it was 50% on Friday and 60% on Saturday. At that point, I decided to go the other way of the storm (east) deciding on Big Diamond for Friday and New Egypt on Saturday. Northeast "DIRT" Modifieds are my second favorite class and with both tracks running two classes of them and URC at NES Saturday, I figured this would make for a wise choice.

At the last minute I sent an e-mail asking if anyone knew of any afternoon shows in the region that I could sqeak in between the two. I got a quick response from Mike (not sure of his last name) stating that Mahoning Valley Speedway was running an features-only program starting at 2 PM. This would fit the bill perfect!With MVS now in the plan for Saturday afternoon I decided to get a room in Pottsville for Friday night, which would make for just a quick jaunt on Saturday. The Pottsville Inn worked perfectly as it was only about a mile from Route 209 as I would head east to Big Diamond then west to MVS on Saturday.

#90 BIG DIAMOND RACEWAY (3/8-mile clay)- Minersville, PA (8/12/05)Living in western Pa. I had always heard about Big Diamond and it was always a track that I wanted to get to. I was finally able to knock it off my hit list. Hazy and humid conditions with temps in the 90s made for a sultry night. Always hearing about Big Diamond, I was surprised at all the better shape the facility was in; however, the well run show and the excellent racing more than made up for the facility.

I was surprised to see that they charge $11 for students, I believe the ages were 11-15. That has to be one of the highest amounts for that age group for a weekly show in the country. Adult admission is $13 and seniors were $12.Racing started a few minutes past their scheduled 8 PM start time.

BDR is a NASCAR-sanctioned track and the 358 Modifieds are their headlining division. The Sportsman Mods and Roadrunners are also part of their weekly card. On this night the 600cc Mods were also scheduled. Car counts were 30 Sportsman, 26 358s, 15 Roadrunners, and 10 600cc Mods. The crowd was fair at probably 600 or so and I'm sure it wasn't a moneymaking night as the 358s pay $2,000 to-win for their weekly pot.

The heat races ran off like clockwork. Though the pits are outside of turns one and two, the next heat was staged in the infield and hit the track as soon the previous one was completed and went green in one lap. Three 358, three Sportsman, two Roadrunner, and one 600 heat were finished in one hour with just three caution flags. BDR totally handicaps their heat races and then inverts 15 for the feature.

While the heats ran off nearly caution-free, the same could not be said about the features.The 600cc Mods were first up and just 3 of the 10 cars finished the event. The Roadrunners went non-stop in their feature then they took about a 15 minute intermission before the two Modified features.

The 358 main was a great race, but was ruined by 8 cautions over the course of the 25-lap race. Doug Hoffman came from 14th to score his 4th win of the season. Jeff Strunk was 2nd after starting 12th and Ray Swinehart was 3rd after starting 15th. The Sportsman main was drawn out with 8 cautions, but the winner Doug Hendricks put on a great show between the cautions coming from 12th.

Overall it was a very enjoyable show that was completed in just over 3 hours. BDR's surface held up very nice throughout the program producing 2 and 3-wide racing. The Mods really run hard and fast. The selection of food was impressive as well.

#91 MAHONING VALLEY SPEEDWAY (1/4-mile asphalt), Lehighton, PA (8/13/05)

Record heat was predicted and boy did it come true. This was the hottest weather I have experienced in I'm not sure how long and most likely the hottest at a race. With the temperature bubbling over 100 degrees and even higher stiffling humidity, it made for almost an unbearable afternoon.

Apparently Friday's 358 winner, Doug Hoffman, is either leasing the track, owns the track, or co-promotes it as he plugged the race in victory lane at BDR, and was visible throughout the day.Six classes plus an enduro was scheduled. Car counts were 22 modifieds, 20 street stocks, 15 late models, 13 pro 4 stocks, 13 4-cylinder stocks, and 13 factory stocks. There weren't many more fans than cars as probably only about 150 people braved the heat.

I was amazed all the bigger the track was as it really didn't have any straightaways- more of a circle. A seven-car B main was held to eliminate two cars for the Modifieds and thatwas followed up by the 20-lap 4-cylinder feature that went non-stop.

Up next was the Pro 4 feature that had only two cautions. At just past 2:30, I was happy that I was going to be able to see the late models and mods before my 3:30-3:45 departure time for NES.

The Late Model 25-lapper had only 2 cautions and the Modifieds hit the track at about 2:50. I figured no problem at getting out there on on the road for NES, who started at 6:30, at my scheduled departure time.12 cautions during the 30 laps and some 50 minutes later the Mod feature came to a merciful end and I was on the road. I felt like I lost 10 pounds as the sweat just dripped from just sitting.MVS made for my 39th track in my hometown state.

#92 NEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY (1/2-mile clay), New Egypt, NJ (8/13/05)

It honestly takes a lot to impress me at a race track. It's been a while since I've been to a new track or a race in general that I can say I was totally impressed with not only the facility, the racing, the food, the track, the general operation, etc. NES certainly fits the bill. This is one of these where do yo start first. From their very welcoming entrance, to their amazing selection of food, to a surface that never threw any dust, starting on time, quality, meaniful, and excellent races, Musco lighting, great bleachers that offer a great view of the speedway, pits outside the track to offer an unobstructed view, one of the highest catch fences I have ever seen, and I could go on and on. I thoroughly enjoyed my night and the racing was excellent.

very good crowd was on hand paying $20. Car counts were 36 Sportsman Modifieds, 29 URC 360 Sprints, 30 Super Stocks, and 27 Big-Block Modifieds. With those car counts that would be easily a four and half to five hour show. NES started a few minutes past 6:30. They split the field for the sportsman and stocks with timed dashes. Each driver gets three laps and the fastest 14 are locked into the feature. The remaining cars were split into B mains.

Like Big Diamond, NES totally inverted their heats. The top 6 cars from the Big Block heats transfered to the feature and were again totally inverted. This meant point leader Billy Pauch would start 18th in the feature!

To top off the night, URC was on hand. They also handicap and I personally believe is the best sprint group around. The quality of cars and racing is second to none. They didn't disappoint on this night. Brian Seidel rode the cushion stealing a win away from female racer Mares Stellfox on lap 23 with an outside to inside move off turn four. Stellfox thrilled the crowd with her runner-up.An opening lap crash in the big blocks took out top runners Pauch, Jimmy Horton, and Ryan Godown. Frank Cozze narrowly missed it and won from the ninth starting spot for his third win.

The sportsman main was a good one as Gene Stravinsky passed Lou Farina III on lap 9 and held him off as both racers were looking for their career first wins. The super stocks had the fans on the edge of their seats as Kory Fleming passed Pat Freiberger on lap 14 as the two battled side-by-side over the last four laps.

Four great features and the entire night done in about 3 and half hours. Even though NES is considered a 1/2-mile (more like a 4/10th) it didn't have that big track feel. It had the short track side-by-side type racing not stretch 'em out like the big tracks.

The only downfall of NES is where everyone has to park and walk because of it's close proximity to the highway all the parking is generally in turns one and two. The one announcer saying hell constantly got very old after while. It seemed like everyone did a "hell of a job".

Very happy with my weekend. Big Diamond and New Egypt were certainly worth the trip and I'd recommend both tracks to anyone.

I hit my weekly Sunday night track Tri-City Speedway in Franklin, PA then on Sunday night.

MVL

Roller Coaster

2005-04-22T23:40:00.000-04:00

It's Friday night and I'm at home, yes my real home, no I'm not at the races or my pad at the office. Kinda depressing in a way as it's raining and only about 50. I know it's just a race, but really it's more than just the racing- it's being around people you enjoying being around and it's a few hours that takes your mind off the daily grind.

It doesn't help matters that the rest of the weekend is a washout probably everywhere. It will be up early to send the cancellation press release. I hate those. Then what? Idk. I was hoping to go to Lincoln, but looking at the radar right now, I can't imagine even them being able to race.

Maybe I can see Ashley, it's been a week tonight since I've saw her. I know she's had a bad week. From her time of the month, to working four days, to seeing someone she knows have a mini-stroke and calling the ambulance in front of her at work, to Kayla's big mouth. Why do people try make other people's lives their business? I believe it's jealousy- one of the worst sins that can take over one's life.

I try and try to figure Ash out but I just struggle. She's so hot and cold, but it's a typical situation I'd be in. I'd do anything for that girl. I love her to death.

I kept pretty busy at work today, although it was primarily beacuse MB wasn't there and I did both jobs. I missed her. Her, Ed, and Doug are like my new family and provide a much-needed fellowship. They really keep me going as I think I'd be going insane otherwise. I was on a high for awhile, then it went away quickly.

I slept for an hour at the office and stopped and picked up my check at Ruth's. Tonight's supper was a mayo-soaked Italian sub from Pizza Joe's in New Wilmington. For some reason anymore I've lost my appetite. I used to be able to eat with the best of them, now I can barely get down a meal. I think most times I'm hungrier at lunch than supper.

I didn't get the call I wanted. Oh I got one alright from Mr. Lou, who was sitting at the Italian Takeout getting a stupid piece of pizza. He called me right when I was turning onto Evergreen Rd.

I got caught up on my mail at home. Wasn't too much. Read three racing mags. Not much new there.

I'm dreading even going to sleep. I'm not real tired. I know I'll be up early and it's going to be a long, miserable weekend. I know that's terrible to say, but I really have to figure things out. I just can't stand to have nothing to do. Sometimes I wish I could be a bear and just hibernate.

Guess that's it. Idk.

Peace. :(

Mood Change

2005-04-21T22:35:00.000-04:00

Ok yeah I'll admit it, I'm in a better mood. I can't really tell you why. It's sure not the weather as it's chilly and the sun is just now at 11:30 AM starting to pop out nor the impending weekend forecast.

I did get a text message from Ash at about 7 AM this morning. It was "Hi. I'm sick." It's the first I've heard from her since Monday night. I swear her rapidly changing moods have someone transposed to me. Sometimes I feel like I just want to be alone and other times I can't stand being be alone as I get "lonely". Vicki thinks my moods swings are worse than a woman and lately I'd probably have to agree.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do this weekend. I'll probably take Ash to Lernerville tomorrow night only to be rained out. Saturday is supposed to be in the mid 40s and rain and then rain/snow on Sunday and only about 40. I looked at some alternate plans, but it's supposed to be miserable everywhere in the Midwest and Northeast.

I've been off to a slow start racing wise this year. The weather was horrid late February and early March. Looks like we'll have our third cancellation in five weeks at Mercer Saturday. The last two Sundays have been beautiful, but now since Tri-City is to open Sunday the weather is going downhill. BTW...Tri-City is going to let Ash sign in with me. I've now managed to get her in free at Lernerville, Mercer, Tri-City, and Lincoln allows guests.

I asked Ash if she wanted to go to Aunt Karen's this weekend, but that was a negative. Maybe I'll go out and buy a TV on Saturday. I want to get satellite TV at the office. Vicki said she'd split it with me.

It's another quiet day here. Two youngins came in to fill out applications. Eva came in to see Doug and Sam and Cow were here to see Blaine.

I brought my leftover pizza from last night to eat for lunch. I can't believe it cost me $7.98 last night. One Tuesday I got the 8" pizza and a 20 oz. pop for just over $5.

Called Ash tonight and she called me back. We talked a few times. She's sounds sick, but was pretty upbeat even though and old lady she knew had a mini-stroke at the mall and she called 911. I'm so proud of that kid. I love her to death.

Went to Jay's Hot Dog's tonight. Got two cheddar dogs, a fry, a malt, and a water for $4.19. Can't beat their prices.

I got everything set to go for Saturday, though I didn't make all the copies because it's almost a sure bet we'll cancel. Ashley's dad is going to pump fuel.

That's all for tonight.

Peace.

Boredom

2005-04-20T22:38:00.000-04:00

Is it just me or is April going slow? Maybe it's just my recent spell with boredom lately. I think it's my ultimate fear in life and in all actuality is the reason I started this blog. Is it possible to busy yet be bored? I can't stand to be still and not be doing something. I always worry that I won't have something to do. It seems of late I can't even relax to eat. Maybe it's just that it's on my mind and I'm thinking too much about it.

Maybe it's time for a vacation or a getaway. Hawaii cured my ills last Novemeber. It was a trip of a lifetime, one I surely won't forget.

I just haven't gotten into racing yet this year. The few early shows I saw at Lincoln and Williams Grove Speedways were great, but somehow I lost the excitement in April when action got underway here in western Pa.

People that are in the service industry that can't service amaze me. Why has the simple tast of ordering food become a chore a chore anymore? On Sunday I ordered a hot sausage sandwich and when I asked the waitress twice that cheese was on it she said yes. I also asked for a side of ranch with the chips. Of course when my order came, no cheese or ranch. Then the waitress apparently decided that since it was closing time she didn't have to wait on me. She finally took the sandwich back and had the cheese melted and was again reminded about the ranch, but of course when it came back delievered by another person no ranch was to be found.

I hate having to wait on condiments when your meal is sitting there in front of you. After an extended period of time it just ruins your meal.

This weekend's weather forecast looks horrible with a chance of showers Friday afternoon and showers and low 40s for Saturday and Sunday.

5 pieces of pepperoni and sausage pizza was my supper. It was supposed to be well done, but wasn't- there's a surprise.

Haven't heard from Ash in two days :(

It's been an aggrevating day. I've had enough. I'm going to bed.

Ttyl,

Peace.

The Journey Has Begun

2005-04-19T22:37:00.000-04:00

Wow it's up and functional- a real blog just about its creator, Michael Vincent Leone, okay we'll just leave it as the 'great' Mike Leone. Welcome to my little nook and cranny on the web.

What a great stretch of weather we've had here in I swear one of America's dreariest region's- western Pennsylvania. It actually hasn't rained since April 7! Today is the warmest day of the year as it's pushing 80 and the yellow dandelions are sprouting up today.

I was saddened today to hear that ABC will no longer televise Monday Night Football. I felt that they had the best coverage between the other three networks (Fox, CBS, & ESPN). I sure hope that ESPN uses Al Michaels and John Madden. MNF wouldn't be the same without Michaels and since Madden joined as they have the most professional and enjoyable broadcast of anyone out there in any industry.

Today's food included Fruit Loops and a blueberry Pop-Tart for breakfast, chocolate chip muffins, crackers, and Mountain Dew for lunch, and ravioli, salad, bread and iced tea for dinner.

Today is my grandfather's 79th birthday. Sis King sent an e-mail to let us know that Rex's 40th birthday will be the night of the BRP race at Mercer on May 21.

Why do people not answer their cell phones? Is that not the point of having them?

The Catholic world is still upside down until a new Pope is elected.

Why do women wear clothes that are too small for them- especially overweight women? It sure isn't sexy to me.

Why can't women get along like guys can?

Today's usual suspects: Franty, Lori, Lucy, & Sam.

Ttyl,

Peace.