Racin'
& Internet Stuff:
By Tom Avenengo
12/02/2010
First:
This weeks column is being dedicated to someone I had the opportunity to have met just one time, sad to say – The late Lenny Calinoff. Lenny left us back on December 1, 2004. Lenny is the one that really pushed me into writing. Yes, it’s his fault! More about Lenny, further down in the column, in “Going back, in time”.
Next
- # 1:
I hope every one of you had a Happy and filling Thanksgiving. Ours was somewhat quiet this year with only seven for dinner. What I can’t figure out is how come we don’t get much meat on turkeys, anymore? And who in the heck is the idiot that changed the design of the cranberry sauce cans so that they can only be opened at one end? It was so much easier when one could open them at both ends, and then push the sauce out.
Next - # 2:
In a press release
I got on Monday, it said that its only 80 days until the northeast dirt
modifieds start racing again – down in
Strange, but back in the late 50’s, when
my future wife and I would head to the
Correction Department:
Stupid, stupid, stupid. Yep, that’s me! Man did I screw up – BIG TIME!
From my last column:
“Again, as in the
past, I’m dedicating this week’s column to my friend, the late John LeVan.”
And:
“2008 – Continued:
It was on November 18, 2008, when I lost a close personal friend –
maybe some of you knew of him, or knew him – John LeVan.
John, along with the late Lenny Calinoff, was very instrumental in
getting me interested in writing about motor sports. After Lenny passed away, and he and John ran www.openwheelracing.com, John took
the website over. Later on, things got
messed up so John came out with www.openwheelracers.com. Via personal discussions between John and I,
I could see how big OWR had become, and how much it was valued by other motor
sports people on the Internet. After
John passed on, his son, Craig, continued with the website, but some problems
arose and from what I can tell, help that could have saved the website really
didn’t come to Craig, even after he requested it. To me, that is really a great big shame. True, Craig did confide in me that “He had to
be the dumbest 22 year old that’s on a computer”, still he made an attempt.”
The screw up? John left us
on DECEMBER 18th, Not November.
You think that’s bad? I
also did that same dumb thing in a short obituary I wrote up on him! No, no excuses – just plain dumb!
Going back, in time:
Note: Most of the following information was found
here:
http://www.wheelsofspeed.com/history.html
Covering the days of
November 19th to December 2nd:
NOVEMBER 19
1925
Eddie Russo ... Born ... A retired American racecar driver. Russo
won the midget car racing track championship
1954
Spike Gehlhausen ... Born ... A former driver in the USAC and CART
Championship Car series. He raced in 11 seasons (1975-1982 and 1984-1986), with
79 combined career starts, including the
1961
Al Keller... Died ... Keller ran midgets with the ARDC, and also
participated in the NASCAR "Strictly Stock"/"Grand
National" (predecessors to the current NEXTEL Cup) series from 1949 to
1956 with 29 career starts. He won two races during the 1954 season and was the
only driver in the history of NASCAR's top division to have won a race in a
foreign-built car, winning the 1954 Grand National road-race at the
2001
Bruce Craig... Died ...
He was a self-employed auto racing photographer, videographer, and historian
who was well known throughout the
1965
Jimmy Vasser ... Born ... An American racing driver and race team
owner. Vasser won the 1996 Champ Car champion with Chip Ganassi Racing, and
scored ten victories in the series. Vasser was the last American to win the
Champ Car championship.
NOVEMBER 21
1996
Elmo Langley... Died...
NOVEMBER 22
1947
David "Salt" Walther ... Born ... A former driver in the
USAC and CART Championship Car series. He also drove NASCAR stock cars,
unlimited hydroplane boats, and was a car owner in USAC. He is the son of
George Walther, owner of Dayton Steel Foundry, who fielded Indy 500 cars for
Juan Manuel Fangio in 1958 and Mike Magill in 1959. His brother, George
"Skipp" Walther III, was fatally injured while trying to qualify as
an Unlimited driver at
1961
It was on the 22nd of November in 1961 when our
first-born – a daughter, was born in the
1990
Stan Fox won the last race ever held at the legendary
NOVEMBER 23
1975
Van May won the Super Sprint Car race over Smokey Snellbaker,
Bobby Allen, Buck Buckley and Kramer Williamson at the Reading Fairgrounds,
NOVEMBER 24
1985
Billy Vukovich III won the USAC Supermodified race over Gary
Bettenhausen, Paul Durant, Chet Fillip and Lloyd Hemman at the Phoenix Int.
Raceway,
Stan Fox won the USAC Midget race over Joe Corrigan, Mel Kenyon,
Randy Roberts and Steve Lotshaw at the Phoenix Int. Raceway,
NOVEMBER 25
1908
Jimmy Wilburn... Born ... He won a non-points Championship Car
race at Lakewood Speedway in March of 1946 which is the first known Champ Car
race to be held after the end of World War II. Later that year he drove in the
1946
Otis Stine... Born ... Otis was a Pennsylvania Sprint Car driver
who was a founder member of the York County Racing Club in 1979. He drove his
first race in 1934. His main claim to fame is that he was the first ever driver
to turn a racing lap of the legendary Williams Grove speedway in 1934. He
attempted to run at Indy in 1952 in a Scopa-Offenhauser, but failed to qualify.
Stine once finished second in the AAA points and when he retired in 1954, he
held numerous track records.
1920
Gaston Chevrolet... Died ... He was the younger brother of famous
automobile designer and racer Louis Chevrolet, was killed during a race at the
Los Angeles Speedway board track in Beverly Hills, California.
1940
Joe Gibbs... Born ... The former NFL football coach and owner of a
NASCAR stockcar team.
1948
Bill Vukovich won the Turkey Night Grand Prix 150 AAA Midget race
over Walt Faulkner, Karl Young, Allen Heath and Bill Zaring at the Gilmore
Stadium,
1982
Walt Ader... Died ... AAA driver from the 1930's to the early 1950's.
1990
Billy Vukovich III... Died ... He was a three time starter of the
Jeff Gordon won the CRA Sprint Car race at the Mesa Marin Raceway,
NOVEMBER 26
1956
Dale Jarrett... Born ... He is the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup
Champion and the son of two-time NASCAR Grand National Champion Ned Jarrett. He
is the younger brother of Glenn Jarrett, a former NASCAR driver himself and pit
commentator. He is also the father of former Busch Series racer Jason Jarrett.
1980
Pete DePaolo... Died ... AAA driver from 1922 to 1934.
NOVEMBER 27
1965
Dick Atkins won the Turkey Night Grand Prix 150 USAC Midget race
over Bob Wente, Tommy Copp, Lowell Sachs and Bill Mehner at the Ascot Park
Speedway ,
NOVEMBER 28
1963
Lee Wallard ... Died ... AAA driver from the 1940's and 50's. Lee
ran the Indy 500 four times 1948 - 1951. Wallard retired from racing after
being burned in a racing crash, shortly after winning the 1951
NOVEMBER 29
1944
Lee Kunzman ... Born ... A former driver in the USAC Sprint , USAC
and CART Championship Car series. He raced in the Champ Series in 1969,
1972-1973 and 1975-1980 seasons, with 48 combined career starts, including the
1971-1972, 1977, and 1979
1975
Graham Hill... Died ... British racing driver and two-time Formula
One World Champion. Graham Hill is the only driver to win the so-called Triple
Crown of Motorsport, which is alternatively defined as winning either: the
Indianapolis 500 (won by Hill in 1966), the 24 Hours of Le Mans (1972) and the
Monaco Grand Prix (1963, 1964, 1965, 1968, 1969) or the Indianapolis 500, the
24 Hours of Le Mans and the Formula One World Championship (1962, 1968). Using
either definition, Hill is still the only person ever to have accomplished this
feat. Graham was killed when his Piper Aztec aeroplane (which he was piloting
at the time) crashed in foggy conditions over Arkley Golf Course in
2002
Tony Stewart won the USAC Sprint Car race at the Las Vegas Motor
Speedway (1/3p),
Tony Stewart won the USAC Midget race at the Las Vegas Motor
Speedway (1/3p),
DECEMBER 1
1963
Marco Greco ... Born ... A Brazilian race car driver who competed
in the Indy Racing League from 1996 to 1999. His best finish in the season
points was 4th in 1997. He made four starts in the
Wendell Scott took first place in the Grand National race at the
one-mile dirt track
1972
Stanton Barrett ... Born ... A NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide
Series driver and
2004
Lenny Calinoff, he of www.openwheelracing.com
left us on that date. We were visiting
our daughter, Sandra, in
DECEMBER 2
1910
Lou Volk ... Born ... A former ARDC driver who also had a driving
school for midget drivers, and a NASCAR driver from Patterson, NJ. He competed
in two Nextel Cup Series events in his career, earning one top-ten. He debuted
in 1949, running in the inaugural event at Langhorne. Starting 34th in the
field of forty-five, Volk completed all but eighteen laps in route to a solid
10th place effort. He returned to the track in 1951, racing at Morristown.
Though he wasn't able to match his Langhorne finish, Volk still drove his Henry
J to a respectable 17th place showing.
1960
It was on this date that “Uncle
Sam” decided to take my butt away from my wife of a little over 3 months, and
send me to Ft. Dix, N.J. for basic training.
From what I can recall, there was quite a bit of snow on the ground.
On
Television:
Friday,
December 3rd:
7:00
PM to 9:00 PM on SPEED: NASCAR Award
Ceremony - Nationwide and Camping World
Series – From November 22nd
9:00
PM to 1:00 AM on SPEED: NASCAR Sprint
Cup Championship Awards Ceremony - live
Looking ahead, in time:
In 23 days from the day this column comes out, it will be Christmas Day. Looking for some kind of gifts? You can check out these places:
http://www.roseracingpublications.com/
http://www.pitstopbooks.com/videos-snyder.html
http://www.thomasracingvideos.com
No, I don’t get any commissions form any of those above!
The History of the Sport:
If you remember,
a few weeks ago, one of the members of the Yahoo! Race History Group sent out
some links (35 of them, to be precise) to some auto racing articles that
appeared in Time magazine, many years ago, via e-mail. So, if you don’t mind, here are the next five
links. Hope you get some enjoyment out
of reading them.
Some bad times
in qualifying for the 500:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,883409,00.html
Some
Turbine history:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,843892,00.html
One of the greats, Jim Clark:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,833727,00.html
That
fateful day – May 30, 1955:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,861540,00.html
Lee
Wallard:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,814900,00.html
Coming up:
Indoor Kart
racing in Syracuse, N.Y. on Friday, December 10th and Saturday,
December 11th. We always had
a blast when we went up there to race.
Yes, Syracuse in December and “Mother Nature” sometimes don’t always get
along. One time, we cancelled our trip
at the last minute when two feet of snow was forecast for the Syracuse
area. Yeah, right! It didn’t snow.
Friday, in the
past, has been a practice session at night.
I really didn’t find anything about Friday, the 10th,
mentioned in the first link, below, but it is mentioned on the 4-Cycle forum.
Syracuse Indoor Karts
http://www.cnyroadrace.com/indoor/
http://karting.4cycle.com/showthread.php?t=345635&page=1&pp=35
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZGjLyA8IrY
More racin’ stuff:
From Jayski on November 21st:
http://jayski.com/cupnews.htm#20101121z
Evernham back to Hendrick? - Hornish plans up-in-the-air, could run 1st five races - Ford wants to race the Mustang - Petty says RPM will compete in 2011 - Evernham no longer legally bound to RPM - Looks like some changes coming to the Chase - Volkswagen to NASCAR?
And if the
“Chase” was in effect from 1975 until 2003/2010: http://jayski.com/teams/chase2010.htm#75-03
From the Track
Forum and Robin Miller’s Mailbox:
Talking about the
coming changes for Indy cars in 2012
“With the current
version of the Dallara becoming worthless at the end of 2011 what are the
chances that we will see all of the extra chassis being rolled out to
"one-offs" this May at Indy?
TJ, Athens,GA
RM: I would think we have a good shot for at least 45 cars going for 33
spots, maybe more, because they're all boat anchors in another year. If the
engine leases are reasonable, it could almost look like the old days in
qualifying (provided they don't give each car three chances a day)."
Note: Should be interesting to see if what Mr.
Miller had to say bears fruit.
Some Racin’
stuff from the AARN:
From
the November 16th issue:
Even
though there were some dirt modifieds that tried out the mile+ track at Loudon,
it’s the NASCAR modifieds that will be a part of the IZOD IndyCar Series event
next year, on Saturday, August 13th.
Note: While at the Lobitz affair a couple of weeks
ago, I spoke with Eddie Sachs, Jr. about maybe having a USAC Silver Crown race
at Loudon. He seemed interested. Might there be?
That
little ¼ mile paved speedway a few miles from my home, Bethel Motor Speedway,
has gone ahead and re-paved the whole track.
I wonder how much that cost?
Would it cost more than say – getting some clay for OCFS?
Five
Mile Point Speedway has added more clay – 70 loads, to their surface. It’s been pretty well proven that when a
track adds to it’s dirt/clay surface, it’s always best to do it right after a
racing season ends.
Utica-Rome
Speedway had their banquet. They gave
out over $100,000.00 in monies. Track
champion, Stewart Friesen received a check for $8,000.00. What I find kind of strange is that there are
some tracks that come right out and say how much they’ve given out, money wise,
at their banquets, while other tracks don’t mention any monies, at all. And speaking of monies awarded, just how do
the tracks get those monies? Tire deals? Sponsors?
50/50? If tire deals, then I’d
have to say that every car at the track has to buy the “track tire”, but I
imagine that only a small percentage of those actually share in the point
monies?
Do
you have any idea as to what driver was the very first to drive an Eric Koster
built car? It was built in Gasoline
Alley in Paterson, N.J. Every piece was
hand built, and the entire chassis was tig-welded. It won right out of the box – so it says in
an article about Koster. Oh – the
driver? Brett Hearn.
In
my last column, I believe I made mention of the Tobias SpeedSTR’s not drawing
all that many cars to their events.
Usually I only see a dozen or so names.
An article about the Tobias build Slingshots and SpeedSTR’s says that
there are 26 SpeedSTR cars in the states, and 18 in Canada. Ok, fine, but still I question – why only
about a dozen or so per event?
There’s
an article about the new Ray Evernham designed Legend Modified racecar – one
designed to run mainly on dirt tracks.
It should be interesting to see how many of these news cars make it onto
the dirt tracks, since the selling price is between $13,500.00 and
$20,000.00. And if one looks at an add
for the Legends cars, like that one that appears on the whole back page of the
AARN, out of the ten tracks listed, only two, Accord and Bridgeport , are the
only two dirt tracks – in the Northeast, as of now. Kind of makes it a hard sell, I’d say.
In
Jerry Reigle’s column, he says that Sprint Cars have been dropped from the
weekly card at Sharon Speedway. Along
with that, he makes mention of the average pay, for the winner of a regular
25-lap handicapped feature at Williams Grove to be $4,010.00 – that’s $3,600.00
plus bonus monies. Note: Even though that’s a nice amount of cash, I
wonder how many features one would have to win to be able to afford one of
those 410 engines – before any re-freshing is done?
Jerry
does make mention that Tony Stewart ran a 360 sprinter at Southern New Mexico
Speedway. The result: Tony flipped it out of the ballpark.
Note: Did you read about that anywhere on the
Internet?
For
quite some time I was a member of the Eastern Motor Sports Press
Association. A couple of years ago I
chose not to continue my membership. But
it was very nice to see an article about both Ernie Saxton and his wife,
Marilyn, that both will be inducted into the EMPA Hall of Fame. Certainly those two are well deserving of
that award. Ernie, up until this year,
has been the President of the EMPA.
David
Pearson, one of the drivers that’s in the NASCAR Hall of Fame, is scheduled to
make an appearance at the Motorsports show on Saturday, January 22nd,
at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, PA.
Note: It should be interesting to see how the
attendance will be at this show, since it has been held these last few years
down in Atlantic City. Will also be
interesting to see how the attendance will be at the indoor TQ/600
Micro/Slingshot/Champ Kart races that will be held in Atlantic City the week
after the Motorsport show – January 28th and 29th.
Most
of us have seen the antics that have been put on by Kyle Busch. I, however, did not see the footage of him
showing a NASCAR official that he was “Number one”, while his in-car camera was
on him. But the folks at the M&M
corporate office either did, or were very well informed of it, since they did
send an e-mail to Gibbs Racing, about it.
Note: One must realize that when you have a
sponsor, no matter how big or how small, YOU are an extension of that sponsors
business/company. How you act, could,
and more than likely would, reflect back towards said sponsor.
There
was quite a large article about the state of New Jersey and it focusing on a 3”
roll bar/helmet gap that will now be required.
In Jersey, when you race now, the top of your helmet must be at least 3”
BELOW the roll cage. That’s the BOTTOM
of the roll bar. Photos showing a new
tool designed for measuring this actually show the tool being placed on the TOP
of the roll bar, not underneath. I’m
waiting to get info to see if that tool takes into consideration the thickness
of the roll bar, itself. Looking a the
photos, I’d say no, it doesn’t.
Damn! I was almost done with this part, below, –
doing it by itself in Microsoft Word, when I hit the wrong thing and erased it
all. Someday, I’ll learn!
From
November 23rd:
I
wonder why Cory Reed has left WRG (DIRTcar) to go to work for the Brewerton and
Fulton Speedways? Might Mr. Reed have
some inside info on what might be down the road for WRG, and not want to be
part of it?
Brian
Grisel has left the CRSA as it’s CEO, and turned the job over to Mike Van
Dusen. The outlook for 2011 is pretty
good, so they’re saying, with four tracks already signed up and thirteen races
on those tracks. I can see them
returning to OCFS for some events, and from what I’ve been privy to, not having
any shows at the Accord Speedway.
Does
it confuse those involved in motor racing when tracks change names? Ernie Saxton makes mention of the track
formerly known as Mountain Speedway changing it’s name to Sundance Vacations
Speedway, then no losing that “naming right” due to both parties not coming to
an agreement. So now it will again be
known as Mountain Speedway. The same for
Charlotte losing the “Lowes” name, I suppose.
Might
we see an influx of more of the Roush/Yates Small Block engines in the
modifieds here in the Northeast? I’ve
heard they are quite reasonable, money wise.
At the last ESW, Jerry Higbie had the fastest time trial lap of all the
Small and Big Block modifieds. Last
weekend, they too the Petruska owned Small Block, with the Roush/Yates Small
block in it down to Bridgeport to run it against the Big Blocks. With their normal driver, Jerry Higbie on
vacation, they had Danny Johnson fill in.
Danny own his heat, and had the feature won until the last lap, when I
believe he slowed for a lapped car and Richie Pratt, Jr. passed him for the
win.
Some
monies won – Chad Sinon, the car owner, and Duane Howard, his driver, picked up
$10,000.00 for winning the championship at the Grandview Speedway.
Matt
Sheppard won $50,000.00 for being the DIRTcar Big Block Championship. Nearly another $50,000.00 was handed out to
other track champions at the DIRTcar Banquet.
I
guess one can see why Brett Hearn bypasses OCFS, an Independent track, not a
DIRTcar member, and travels over two hours North to Lebanon Valley. Yep, it’s all about the money today. Can’t blame him I’d say.
There
were a couple of places in this weeks AARN that made mention of the Bridgeport
track being the largest track here in the Northeast that runs weekly, with it
being said that the track is 5/8 mile.
Well, OCFS (now a red-headed stepchild?) is also being billed as 5/8
mile. How can one figure this out – size
wise? How about track times? Last week, at Bridgeport, it’s said that
Travis Hill turned a lap in 21.772 seconds for an average speed of 103.3 MPH. Checking out the times for this past Eastern
States Weekend, I found that Rich Lauback turned a lap at 21.774 and an average
speed of 103.334. So per “MyLaps”, it
seems that both tracks are the same size?
It
looks like another Speedway will be “NASCARized”. Work was supposed to start right after the
last race at the Phoenix International Raceway in Phoenix, Arizona. “Progressive banking” and widened turns is
what will change it from a “drivers” track to another so-so track, in my
opinion. Question is – why?
Remember
earlier this year when DIRTcar (WRG) was entertaining thoughts of having
different bodies for their Big Block Modifies?
They had a meeting with Troyer, Bicknell and TEO on that. I was sunder the impression that about the
only change one could make would be to add “side panels” as a possible
change. Reading in the AARN, I now find
that they really didn’t want to go that route.
So guess what? Nothing was
resolved.
In
DIRTcar, just what is a “Platinum” or “Gold” contracted driver? Seems that both of them will now have to wear
head and neck restraints for 2011, and in 2012, ALL their drivers will have to
do the same.
Also,
for 2011, engine builders may not lighten engine blocks for those cars that run
with DIRTcar. I imagine that that could
be a sticky problem with “tech”.
The
track in Evans Mills, New York, is for sale.
Thunder Valley Speed Park is a 3/8 mile that’s gone between a dirt
surface and paved.
Big
safety changes are coming to the American Three –Quarter Midget Club (ATQMRA). Starting in 2013, roll cages must be at least
1 & 1/8” thick instead of the current 1”.
It’s said that there could be quite a few of the TQ’s that would be
“illegal” once this goes into effect.
The
600 Modifieds will be a weekly feature at the Paradise Speedway in Geneva,
N.Y. Ok, fine, but will they draw enough
cars to make it worthwhile?
The
Slingshot cars will have a new body design for 2011. This happens with this class every three
years, it says in the AARN. The previous
body style can still be used, but not the ones from the past.
Also,
the Tobias SpeedSTR cars will now be able to use a softer compound Goodyear
tire. This will supposedly allow more
“aggressive” driving. Huh?
It’s
hard to believe that the late Mike Grbac left us back in 1978 when fatally
injured in a stock car crash at the Reading Fairgrounds. If I’m not mistaken it was a week after ESW,
and Mike ran ESW that year in the black # 47, the same car he drove at Reading. Wow – 32 years ago. I can still remember that they were camped
out at ESW way up off of the 4th turn.
2012
should be a great year for the IZOD IndyCar Series. As of now, engine wise, there will be
Chevrolet, Honda and Lotus. If I’m not
mistaken, they’ll all be V-6’s and Turbo charged. Various “manufacturers” will be coming out
with “aero kits” too, it’s being said.
More racin’
stuff:
I’ve always rooted
for Sarah Fisher while she was running Indy cars. She’s one of the few that has run with the
IRL that came up via the short tracks, running midgets and sprint cars. With this latest news, below, from her
website, it now appears that she will hang up the helmet and retire. Ed Carpenter will take her place in the seat. You’ll notice there’s no mention of a second
car, and no mention of a “road racer” either.
Ed wasn’t all that good on road courses.
Maybe that’s why they’re only entering a certain amount of races?
The news:
DOLLAR
GENERAL TO SPONSOR SARAH FISHER RACING IN NINE RACES IN 2011
Ed Carpenter to take the wheel of the Dollar General No. 67
INDIANAPOLIS, IN. and GOODLETTSVILLE, TN. (November 29, 2010)
Sarah Fisher Racing (SFR) and Dollar General announced today that Dollar
General has renewed its support of SFR for the 2011 IZOD IndyCar (R) Series
season. The schedule will include competition in nine events, consisting of
both road course and oval venues.
"SFR has been a great partner for us and our brand," said Rick
Dreiling, Dollar General's chairman and CEO. "We are excited about
extending our sponsorship for the upcoming racing season."
Sarah Fisher also announced today that after 25 years in
the driver's seat, she will be stepping out of the car to focus on being a team
owner. Well-known IZOD IndyCar Series driver Ed Carpenter will take the wheel
of the yellow, No. 67, Dollar General machine.
"This change in my career is a direction I have been thinking about very
hard. The timing is perfect for the strategy of SFR in its future endeavors. To
have the support of all our partners in this direction is incredible. I am glad
to have the support of our partners, including Dollar General, who have led us
to where we are today. I know this team has what it takes to perform and I am
hoping with the decision to put Ed in the seat, that we can do just that. By
stepping out of the seat, I will be able to spend more time growing this team
in the right directions both on and off track."
Carpenter,
the new driver of the Dollar General No. 67, is an Indiana native who began his
racing career in 1989 driving cars such as sprint cars, midgets, and silver crown
cars on the short tracks of America. This background, which is very similar to
SFR team owner, Sarah Fisher, was what started the friendship between Carpenter
and Fisher. He has captured a pole position, two podium finishes, and has
claimed 26 top-ten results thus far in his IZOD IndyCar Series career.
"I
am so honored to have to opportunity to come drive for SFR and Dollar
General," said an enthusiastic Carpenter. "I have been friends with
Sarah and Andy for a long time, and am really looking forward to working with
their team . Sarah and I come from such similar backgrounds; I know that it
will be a joy to work with her team. Sarah has had a great career and has done
an amazing job growing SFR each year. I am confident that together we can
continue to improve the results not only on the track, but off of the track as
well!"
SFR's
complete 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule:
Date Location Venue
Sunday, March 27 Streets of St. Petersburg, Fla. 1.8-mile street course
Sunday, May 29 Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile oval
Saturday, June 11 Texas Motor Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, June 25 Iowa Speedway .875-mile oval
Saturday, August 7 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 2.25-mile road course
Saturday, August 14 New Hampshire Motor Speedway 1-mile oval
Saturday, September 4 Streets of Baltimore 2.4-mile street course Saturday,
October 2 Kentucky Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, October 16 TBA TBA
Accord
Speedway:
I read that for 2011, the Lightning Sprints will be alternating weeks with the Legends cars. For what it’s worth – it was posted on a forum/message board. Still and all, it looks like it was a legitimate post.
For
Sale:
Reading on the South Jersey Dirt Racing’s message board, someone posted that they saw a brand new “For Sale” sign up at Wall Stadium, as they drove past.
Other forums/message
boards and websites:
You might find some
interesting reading if you go to the links below.
Track Forum: - http://www.trackforum.com/forums/
Frontstretch.com: http://www.frontstretch.com/
Jayski: - http://www.jayski.com/
Open Wheel Racers3: http://www.openwheelracers3.com/
Race Pro Weekly: http://raceproweekly.com/
Racing on TV - http://www.racefantv.com/USTV.htm
Syracuse forum: http://www.syracuse.com/forums/motorsports/
(must register to post)
South Jersey Dirt
Racing: http://theboard.southjerseydirtracing.com/Msgboard.asp?ForumID=27&Return=Msgboard.asp&D83jsd=True
(must register to
post)
Victory Speedway: http://s2.excoboard.com/VictorySpeedwayForum
(must register to post & no
nonsense allowed)
Yahoo Race History
Group: http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/RacingHistory/
(when one posts something on an
e-mail to the group, they do have what is called the “Len Sutton rule” – you
put in your name and where you live.
And, yes, things are “policed” too.
Some of my thoughts:
Well, it’s been confirmed that
one of the events to go along with the Indy Car race at Loudon next year will
be the NASCAR Whelen Modifieds, with them racing on Saturday. I’ve yet to see any mention of any other kind
of racing classes, like the USAC Silver Crown cars or even dirt modifieds –
which did have a few show up on a test day this past racing season. Believe it or not, I’ve only seen those
NASCAR Modifieds once – that being in Richmond when they ran in conjunction
with the IRL and USAC cars back around 2003, maybe it was? I’m pretty sure it was 2003 because for some
reason, Lenny Calinoff couldn’t make it.
It’s been said that the
modifieds have the best racing at Loudon when they’re there when the Cup cars
run. It looks like my two sons, Tom, Jr
and Eric and I will be in attendance next year when the Indycars race
there. I’m hoping that there will be at
least one more class, like the USAC Silver Crown cars, in action that
weekend. I’ve requested info from
Loudon, but I imagine I won’t hear much until later on, maybe by the spring?
Couple of questions:
Will OCFS still be an
Independent track in 2011? I’m pretty
sure there were some talks late last season between OC and DIRTcar about them
maybe getting back together. Does anyone
know if some new clay has been brought in and put down at OCFS?
Professional
Football:
I’d love to see a change made
for overtime. I feel each team should
get the ball. It kind of sucks when the
team that wins the toss and elects to receive, gets close enough to score a
field goal and get the victory. From
what I’ve heard, there will be a change, similar to what I want, for the
play-offs.
Video time:
On the Track Forum, there’s a discussion about some of the tracks that
are no longer around, or some that might not be around, much longer. The main one of those mentioned is the track
that used to be in Nazareth, PA. Here’s
a video of the 2000 Silver Crown race:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrcQ1h9HlCg
And here’s a link to what’s being said about Nazareth and other tracks,
including some photos from the present days:
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?142044-Semi-O-T-Nazareth-Speedway-today
Non racing news:
“We all know the
mortgage securitization process is complicated.
But just how
complicated? The
chart below from Zero Hedge shows the convoluted journey a mortgage takes
as it morphs into a security.
Dan Edstrom, of DTC
Systems, who performs securitization audits, spent a year putting together a
diagram that traces the path of his own house's mortgage. "Just When You
Thought You Knew Something About Mortgage Securitizations," says Zero
Hedge, you are presented with this almost hilariously complicated chart.”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20101118/cm_huffpost/785315
Note: ya ain’t gonna believe that chart, folks!
2
million lose jobless benefits as holidays arrive
In part:
“Extended
unemployment benefits for nearly 2 million Americans begin to run out
Wednesday, cutting off a steady stream of income and guaranteeing a dismal
holiday season for people already struggling with bills they cannot pay.
Unless Congress
changes its mind, benefits that had been extended up to 99 weeks will end this
month”.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101201/ap_on_bi_ge/us_jobless_benefits_the99ers
Footballs Bowl
Games:
Looking at my local
paper on Wednesday, I found a listing of all the Bowl games that are coming
up. Remember when we just had The Rose,
Cotton, Sun, Orange, Sugar and Cotton Bowls?
Might you have any idea as to how many Bowl games there are this
season? How about 35? Some of the new ones are: New Mexico Bowl, New Orleans Bowl, Beef “O”
Brady’s Bowl, MAACO Bowl, Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, Champs Sports Bowl,
Insight Bowl, Pinstripe Bowl, Meineke Bowl, Chic-fil-A Bowl, GoDaddy.com Bowl,
BBVA Compass Bowl and Fight Hunger Bowl.
What’s kind of sad is that there will be some teams in Bowl games that
really shouldn’t be. Case in point: The Army team out of West Point, N.Y. Right now they have a record of 6 wins and 5
losses. They have one more game – on
November 11th, prior to the Armed Forces Bowl, which they have
already accepted an invitation to. That
next game – against Navy. Now should
Navy win, that means Army would be in a Bowl Game with a 6 & 6 record. That’s almost as ridiculous as the amount of
Bowl Games that are now scheduled. My
thoughts, of course.
Is this true?:
From an e-mail I got the other day, and this isn’t the first time I’ve
received this particular message, via e-mail.
Really quite disturbing, if true.
It’s about Jane Fonda. Maybe
you’ve also received this message?
Never Forget a Traitor
For those of you too young to remember Hanoi Jane is a bad person and did some
terrible things during the Vietnam War. Things that cannot be forgotten!!!!
For those who served and/or died
NEVER FORGIVE A TRAITOR. SHE REALLY WAS A TRAITOR!!
And now OBAMA wants to honor her......!!!! (Shame on him)
In Memory of LT. C.Thomsen Wieland who spent 100 days at the Hanoi Hilton
IF YOU NEVER FORWARDED ANYTHING IN YOUR LIFE FORWARD THIS SO THAT EVERYONE WILL
KNOW!!!!!!
She really is a traitor.
A TRAITOR IS ABOUT TO BE HONORED. KEEP THIS MOVING ACROSS AMERICA
This is for all the kids born in the 70's and after who do not remember, and
didn't have to bear the burden that our fathers, mothers and older brothers and
sisters had to bear..
Jane Fonda is being honored as one of the '100 Women of the Century.'
BARBRA WALTERS WRITES
”Unfortunately, many have forgotten and still countless others have never known
how Ms. Fonda betrayed not only the idea of our country, but specific men who
served and sacrificed during Vietnam.”
The first part of this is from an F-4E pilot. The pilot's name is Jerry
Driscoll, a River Rat.
In 1968, the former Commandant of the USAF Survival School was a POW in Ho Lo
Prison the ' Hanoi Hilton.'
Dragged from a stinking cesspit of a cell, cleaned, fed, and dressed in clean
PJ's, he was ordered to describe for a visiting American 'Peace Activist' the
'lenient and humane treatment' he'd received.
He spat at Ms. Fonda, was clubbed, and was dragged away. During the subsequent
beating, he fell forward
on to the camp Commandant 's feet, which sent that officer berserk.
In 1978, the Air Force Colonel still suffered from double vision (which
permanently ended his flying career) from the Commandant's frenzied application
of a wooden baton.
>From 1963-65, Col. Larry Carrigan was in the 47FW/DO (F-4E's). He spent 6
years in the 'Hanoi Hilton',,, the first three of which his family only knew he
was 'missing in action'. His wife lived on faith that he was still alive. His
group, too, got the cleaned-up, fed and clothed routine in preparation for a
'peace delegation' visit.
They, however, had time and devised a plan to get word to the world that they
were alive and still survived. Each man secreted a tiny piece of paper, with
his Social Security Number on it, in the palm of his hand.
When paraded before Ms. Fonda and a cameraman, she walked the line, shaking
each man's hand and asking little encouraging snippets like:
'Aren't you sorry you bombed babies?' and 'Are you grateful for the humane
treatment from your benevolent captors?' Believing this HAD to be an act, they
each palmed her their sliver of paper.
She took them all without missing a beat.. At the end of the line and once the
camera stopped rolling, to the shocked disbelief of the POWs, she turned to the
officer in charge and handed him all the little pieces of paper..
Three men died from the subsequent beatings. Colonel Carrigan was almost number
four but he survived, which is the only reason we know of her actions that day.
I was a civilian economic development advisor in Vietnam, and was captured by
the North Vietnamese communists in South Vietnam in 1968, and held prisoner for
over 5 years.
I spent 27 months in solitary confinement; one year in a cage in Cambodia; and
one year in a 'black box' in Hanoi My North Vietnamese captors deliberately
poisoned and murdered a female missionary, a nurse in a leprosarium in Ban me
Thuot , South Vietnam, whom I buried in the jungle near the Cambodian border.
At one time, I weighed only about 90 lbs. (My normal weight is 170 lbs)
We were Jane Fonda's 'war criminals....'
When Jane Fonda was in Hanoi , I was asked by the camp communist political
officer if I would be willing to meet with her..
I said yes, for I wanted to tell her about the real treatment we POWs
received... and how different it was from the treatment purported by the North
Vietnamese, and parroted by her as 'humane and lenient'
Because of this, I spent three days on a rocky floor on my knees, with my arms
outstretched with a large steel weights placed on my hands, and beaten with a
bamboo cane.
I had the opportunity to meet with Jane Fonda soon after I was released. I
asked her if she would be willing to debate me on TV. She never did answer me.
These first-hand experiences do not exemplify someone who should be honored as
part of '100 Years of Great Women.' Lest we forget....' 100 Years of Great
Women' should never include a traitor whose hands are
covered with the blood of so many patriots.
There are few things I have strong visceral reactions to, but Hanoi Jane's
participation in blatant treason, is one of them. Please take the time to
forward to as many people as you possibly can. It will eventually end up on her
computer and she needs to know that we will never forget. RONALD D. SAMPSON,
CMSgt, USAF 716 Maintenance Squadron, Chief of Maintenance DSN: 875-6431 COMM:
883-6343
PLEASE HELP BY SENDING THIS TO EVERYONE IN YOUR ADDRESS BOOK. IF ENOUGH
PEOPLE SEE THIS MAYBE HER STATUS WILL CHANGE.
Closing with this:
It is a slow day in the small Montana town of Pumphandle, and
streets are deserted. Times are tough, everybody is in debt, and
everybody is living on credit. A tourist visiting the area drives through
town, stops at the motel, and lays a $100 bill on the desk saying he wants to
inspect the rooms upstairs to pick one for the night.
As soon as he walks upstairs, the motel owner grabs the bill and
runs next door to pay his debt to the butcher.
The butcher takes the $100 and runs down the street to retire his
debt to the pig farmer.
The pig farmer takes the $100 and heads off to pay his bill to his
supplier, the Co-op.
The guy at the Co-op takes the $100 and runs to pay his debt to
the local prostitute, who has also been facing hard times and has had to offer
her "services" on credit.
The hooker rushes to the hotel and pays off her room bill with the
hotel owner.
The hotel proprietor then places the $100 back on the counter so
the traveler will not suspect anything. At that moment the traveler comes
down the stairs, states that the rooms are not satisfactory, picks up the $100
bill and leaves.
No one produced anything. No one earned anything... However,
the whole town is now out of debt and now looks to the future with a lot more
optimism. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how a Stimulus package works.
May “Guardian Angels”
sit on the shoulders of all of our race drivers and race fans, and guide them
safely around the tracks!
Drive safe!
Remember – My next column will be back on
December 16th.
As usual, you can reach me
at: ygordad@yahoo.com