Racin'
& Internet Stuff:
10/20/2011
First:
I originally started this column around mid-day on Sunday, with the
first item about an article that “Doctor
Dirt” Bill Boyle had written, followed by some more about the new ¼ mile track
that will be making it’s appearance at the Orange County Fair Speedway,
sometime in 2012. However, the tragedy –
the death of Dan Wheldon during the Indycar race at
I have to imagine that most everyone reading this has seen that 15-car
accident over and over, already. Scary –
yes. Tragic – yes. Unavoidable – no. No because there just is not enough time for
driver reaction at high speed – whether it’s 100 MPH or over 200, as was the
case on Sunday. I’ve seen massive
pile-ups at the start of aces at OCFS, and even with somewhat slower speeds,
there isn’t much that a driver can do to miss being involved. It is what it is, unfortunately.
There are a ton of threads about this tragedy out on the Internet, some
of which will be linked to, below. I’ve made my thoughts known about the catch
fences – how I think it would be better if there was a clear Lexan covering on the track side of the catch fences,
giving a smooth surface for the cars to contact, if and when they get up that
high, rather than the rough wire fencing that seems to cause most of the
problems with cars getting torn apart.
Some have agreed with that, but a majority thinks it wouldn’t work.
One poster to a thread was wondering why, with all the safety features
of today, which the Indy cars still do not have some type of roll cage to
protect the driver, rather than the small little roll bar that is presently in
use. It seems like they would – or
should have them, I’d say. It was said
that the roll bar on the Wheldon car was taken right
off.
Over my lifetime, as a race fan, I’ve seen my share of fatal accidents,
in person. Never once was a race stopped
and considered to be official due to the death of one of the competitors. Oh, there have been some – but not many. Think back a little – Bill Vukovich in 1955, at
It’s been said, and being said again today, that “Back in the day” the
race drivers more or less shied away from getting very friendly with their
competitors, since that fatality rate was so much higher, back then. Today, what with all the safety improvements,
fatal accidents to drivers are a rarity.
And, today, it seems that emotions have somehow changed from days gone bye. That
could easily be seen with drivers, and people associated with them, when it was
known that Dan had passed on.
Has a precedent been set with the stopping of that race on Sunday? True, it’s been reported that the track,
itself, had some damage – was that one of the reasons for the stoppage? One person made mention of how maybe things
might have been different – the stopping of the event, if the driver that was
fatally injured wasn’t a “name” driver, but maybe a “ride buyer”.
Yes, our hearts go out to the surviving Wheldon
family members. All we can do is hope
and pray that he’s the last driver to be fatally injured while racing.
Second:
Some links to various websites/forums and/or message boards that have
things about the passing of Dan Wheldon:
Driver Paul Tracy video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HNLA9yAB5M
Note # 1: I didn’t see the above
video until Monday night around 8:30.
Many, many times I’ve suggested that clear Lexan
be put up on the track side of the catch fencing – giving the cars something
smooth to glance off of. Many, many
times I’ve been shot down on that thought.
Plexiglass will break, so that is not an
alternative. Lexan,
in most cases will not break if left clear.
If painted, only certain types of paint are ok. The wrong kind will have a chemical reaction
to the Lexan and it will break and shatter. Been there – done that with a clear then
painted Lexan body for our Kart, many years ago.
Note # 2: Oh, I know if anyone
from Open Wheel racing reads this column, they’ll think I’m some kind of a nut
case, but there’s talk about slowing the cars down. Well, you won’t slow them down as long as
you’re going to turbo charged V-6 engines and still keep the damn wings on the
cars. Get rid of the wings, and you’ll
slow them down. Don’t think so? Think about it!
As I would expect, a ton of things being said on the Track Forum, with
many threads:
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?3-rev-ed-s-IZOD-IndyCar-Series
http://sports.yahoo.com/irl/news?slug=jh-hart_dan_wheldon_crash_las_vegas_101611
From Jayski:
Sad News - Dan Wheldon:
Dan Wheldon, the 2011 Indianapolis 500 winner
and one of the most popular drivers in open-wheel racing, died Sunday at Las
Vegas Motor Speedway in a horrific multi-car crash only 11 laps into the IndyCar Series season finale. Officials decided to call the
race, but the drivers did a five-lap tribute to Wheldon.
IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard made the officials announcmeent of Wheldon's death
without further comment. "IndyCar is very sad to
announce that Dan Wheldon has passed away from unsurvivable injuries," Bernard said. "Our
thoughts and prayers are with his family today. IndyCar,
its drivers and owners, have decided to end the race. In honor of Dan Wheldon, the drivers have decided to do a five-lap salute
to in his honor." Wheldon, 33 and the 2005
series champion from
Tribute:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MITJmdeYStY&feature=youtu.be
Third:
As I said, I was going to start this column off with an interview that
was held recently with Mike Gurda owner and General
Manager of OCFS, by “Doctor Dirt” Bill Boyle.
Here it is:
ANOTHER CONVERSATION
WITH MIKE GURDA
By Bill Boyle
Last year we had a conversation with Mike Gurda, the General Manager and owner of the Orange County
Fair Speedway in Middletown, NY, concerning the history of the hard clay oval
and the possible sale of the speedway and the surrounding fair grounds. We are
pleased to announce that the status of the estate hasn’t changed, and all plans
for current and future racing remain intact.
As we approach the 50th running of the Eastern States
classic, a 200 lap season ending event for Modifieds,
we once again sat down with Mike Gurda to discuss the
status of racing at the 5/8th mile oval.
Q - In 2010, we had a controversial ending to the ES
feature. What assurances do we have that it will not happen again!
A – We made a bad call last year, but once the driver exited
the car and climbed up the starters stand, and then parked the car on the
track, any chance of reviewing the situation was gone. Had he stayed in the car
and discussed his protest with the officials, everything would have been
reviewed.
For this year, we are adding more scorers for the race. This
means we will have more people watching the race, not only the leaders, but
further back in the field too. The middle of the pack runners are just as important as the front runners, and we don’t
want anyone jumping positions on restarts, regardless of where they are
running.
We’ve also hired a professional to run and monitor the
transponder system. This is where we had our initial problems last year.
Lastly, we will coordinate all reviews prior to any restart.
That means checking with the manual scorers, the transponder operator and a
review of the video to insure at ALL drivers are in their respective positions.
If it takes and extra lap under yellow, then so be.
Yes, we made a mistake
last year, but I assure you it won’t happen again.
Q – You have made major changes to the Friday and Saturday
shows. How will they benefit the participants and fans?
A – The changes are threefold:
- Create a better track for racing.
- Be more fan friendly.
- Respect for the drivers and crews.
The Friday show in the past began in the early afternoon
with 358 time trials followed by heats. There were also time trials and hot
laps for the Modifieds. Normally, the Friday show was
finished by 4:30pm and the speedway would shut down for the evening. This put a
lot of pressure on the race teams to get to the track early in the morning to
prepare for the early start.
With the afternoon sun beating down on the racing surface,
it beat the heck out of the racing surface, and put a lot of pressure on the
track preparation team to prepare for Saturday’s racing. Now with the start of
the show moved back to 5:30pm, racing teams from the area no longer have to
head to the track on Thursday to prepare for an early start on Friday. In
addition, fans no longer have to take a day off of work to catch the
activities.
Friday’s Modified time trials and qualifying heats will now
kick off at 5:30pm, just as the sun is starting to set. We’ve also expanded
Friday’s racing card to include a 25 lap feature for the Street Stocks, and a
complete Open Sportsman show of heats and a 50 lap feature. The Street Stock
and Sportsman features will also be run under a strict time limit to insure an
early completion of the activities. No more midnight racing.
Saturday was always the longest day of the weekend,
beginning at 10am and running close to midnight. There was always a 2-3 hour
break in the middle of the activities to move the Modifieds
and 358th out and to bring in the Sprints and Sportsman cars.
To make things easier for everyone, the starting time has
been moved back five hours to 3:30pm. At that point, there will be a complete
show for the 358’s including time trials, qualifying heats and a 100 lap
feature. The Crate Sportsman class will also be in action, capping off their
night’s activities with a 30 lap feature event.
The finale of Saturday’s activity will be 20 lap feature for the 305 Sprint cars. Like Friday night, the
Crate Sportsman and 305 Sprints will also be under a strict time limit.
Sunday’s schedule really hasn’t changed much. Heats for the
Pro Stocks and the Modified consolations will kick off at 12:30, followed by a
feature for the Vintage Modifieds and the Pro Stocks
30 lap event. Again, strict time limits will be enforced.
There will not be a
late start for the Eastern States 200 like last year. Driver introductions will
convene at 2:45pm, and the 44 car starting field will take the initial green
flag at 3pm. In place will be double file restarts until lap 190, when single
file restarts will be mandated,
Q – I heard a rumor that a quarter mile oval
will be erected in the infield.
A – You heard correctly. We recently obtained
Once ESW in completed, we will begin
construction of a quarter mile race track with the remaining
Our plans are to operate the track on Sunday
afternoon. What type of racing will be held, you ask. That hasn’t been fully
qualified yet. My answer is…anything with wheels, as long as there a 5 or more
people that want to participate.
Mini-Sprints, Legends, Go Karts, Motorcycles,
Quads, Slingshots and yes, even school buses and trailers if they want to bring
them in.
The track will have no effect on infield parking
for a regular Saturday night show.
We’ll have to add some lighting, that’s for sure.
It’s really a time and labor effort more so than anything else, so there won’t
be much in the way of out of pocket expenses. Clay for the surface is not an
issue. Anyplace you dig in the infield, you’ll find at least six feet of good
quality clay that has built up over the past 60 years. It’s not the river
bottom sandy clay.
We’ll be in a better position to announce our
plans next spring depending on how mild the winter is to us. There is no time
frame for the project, so there are no deadlines.
Once again, I would like to thank Mike Gurda for spending the time with me, and answering my
questions. Now, where can I find a half dozen automated bar stools for the
Quarter mile track. He did say ANYTHING with wheels. I
hope he doesn’t invite the local Roller Derby teams to participate.
Fourth:
OK, some things about the preceding:
Maybe it’s none of my business, but I posted about this on the ARDC’s message board.
The big 5/8-mile track at OCFS, per some members of the ARDC, is too
big. Heck, if the new ¼ mile track was
good enough, I’d love to see some “Wingless Open Wheel Sunday” racing at
OCFS. I don’t know how the ¼ mile track
at
The one possible drawback on the whole deal is that it would be racing
on Sunday – a day not too very good for getting butts in the stands, and OCFS
has had a problem with that on Saturday nights.
ADVERTISE the hell out of it, maybe?
Some of the comments about this track, from the ARDC’s
message board:
“
“
I hear rumors going around about ocfs building a 1/4 mile inside the 5/8
mile like the old track of years ago. Does anyone have info or is this just a
rumor. Any info on classes supposed to run on sundays.”
“There is no way I can see this
happening. The place has been for sale for approx. a year and a half and if
Gurda has the money to build a 1/4 mile track in the infield, why doesn't he
put that money into the place to fix it up. Plus, what happens to the parking
for regular saturday night haulers and also what
happens to pit road for ESW. I know
“There's little more in racing
that excites me more than going to a new track - whether it be brand new to
everyone, or just new to me. And my interest in the lost and forgotten
speedways just keeps getting stronger and stronger. If this 1/4 mile track is
going to be built as a replica of what was once there years ago, this would be
like Christmas to me.
But there's always a BUT... when I first read this, my
thoughts were exactly the same as Ravens and are all valid points. As
much as I'd love to see it happen, there's a part of me that is skeptical. Can't wait for your article, Tom. And I have my fingers
crossed.”
“The new 1/4-mile circuit will
differ from the old "Little Track" in that it will use the existing
racing surface as its front stretch.
The "Litte Track," built in 1942, was originally a 1/5-mile dirt
track. An ARDC race was scheduled for the summer of '42 to inaugurate this
track, but there are no records to indicate that it was held.
A few weeks after the announcement, the government halted all motorsports
"for the duration" due to shortages of steel, aluminum, gasoline and,
especially, rubber.
Sometime during WWII, the "Little Track" was paved. It is said that
high school track meets were run on it.
After the war, Midget races were run on the track on Wednesday nights.
The first official Stock Car race was run on the 1/2-mile oval, but many stock
car races were held on the paved 1/5-mile little track.
No one seems to know exactly when the Little Track was bulldozed to make room
in the pits for Modifieds and Limited Sportsman racers, but many people
remember it being there in the early 60's.”
“Why waste
money on another track when the current track doesn't draw that well?
If Gurda wants to sell the place he should put some money into making the whole
property better.
Now the place looks like a worn-out old has been, just a shell of it's former glory days.
I've been going there since '65 and when I go now it's very depressing.”
“I think the 1/4 mile is a smart
move...lots of racers these days are getting their start in small car
divisions like Slingshots. OCFS has been missing out on many of those racers
when they begin and even when they "graduate" to full size cars.
Since they don't get exposed to OCFS, they are more likely to end up at Accord
or other tracks that have races for the small cars.
A bare-bones 4 cylinder Pure Stock/Enduro class would probably be smart
too...for getting new people broken into the sport with very minimal
investment.
I hope this new venture is a success for OCFS. The place still has tremendous
potential and could return to the popularity it once had if new ideas are
properly implemented.”
“I completely agree with you John, this is a smart
move...although I'm wondering how they are going to do this with the pit
configuration. (One of my big gripes about OCFS is the infield pits that makes it so hard to see the other half of the
track).
But think, Sunday nights: Slingshots, 4-cyls & 6-cyl Enduro entry levels,
Micro Sprints (tons of them at
Add in a couple of ARDC and 305 Sprint shows...the occasional Sportsman or 358
Special (either on the small track or the big track)...add in some racing with
some of the "Night of Destruction" freak shows, keep the price
affordable...
This could, if promoted properly, be a big shot in the arm for OCFS.”
“With the cost of insurance and what it would take to
build this track, I just dont see it happening. Just like everyone else has
said, he hasnt spent $#!+ on this track in a decade,
why would he build another track?”
Fifth:
This past racing season, the
race track known as Albany/Saratoga, was paved.
From what I can recall, a new business has moved next door to the track
– some kind of micro-chip business, I think it is. Dust, from the track was going to be a big
problem, so the track was paved, as was it’s sister track, Devils’ Bowl.
Well, it seems that A/S will
have a dirt racing surface again in 2012.
I’m not sure about the Bowl, however, at this time. I’ve read that Howie Commander is behind this
deal now. Somehow, I think Mr. Commander
was still kind of involved with OCFS last year, too, along with his track –
Lebanon Valley. Racing would still be on
Friday nights. Dammit! OK, being honest here – I’m a big fan of one
Brett Hearn, and I was really thrilled to see him run at the Accord Speedway
this past season – heck, he even won the track championship in the modified
division. But, Brett has, in the past
run at A/S when it was dirt – since it was so close to the Valley. Yes, I can see Brett leaving Accord in 2012
for A/S. Face it, Brett races for a
living – why do you think he would drive past OCFS on Saturday to run at the
Valley – some almost three hours away?
Mr. Commander is no dummy. He
knows what has to be done to get fans in the stands. And, he knows what has to be done to get some
of the best drivers at his track (s).
Well, except for OGFS, that is, IF he’s still involved there. Yup, I can see Hearn at A/S on Friday and the
Valley on Saturdays. Dammit! There have been rumors floating around that
A/S might run on Thursday nights. Time
will tell.
Sixth:
I take it you’ve seen where Dan
Wheldon really had no permanent ride for the 2011 season, even after winning
the Indy 500. It’s been reported that he
did secure a permanent ride for 2012 – with the Andretti race team. Sad, that he’s now
gone. Dan was the “test driver” for the
new car that is due out, to an extent, in 2012, and was trilled as to how
progress was being made on it. I say
“extent” because the “Side pod” thing that was supposed to be more or less
something available to other than the chassis makers, has been put off for a
while.
Seventh:
Here’s a Press Release from
Brett Deyo regarding the “King of the Can” race:
News
from The King of the Can - 'It's Good To Be King'
Media
Contact: Brett Deyo - 845.728.2781 or Deyo99H@aol.com
For
Immediate Release/Oct. 17, 2011
Penn
Can
SUSQUEHANNA,
PA - The outdoor Modified finale of 2011 in
Following two consecutive rain-outs on Oct 14 (Friday) and Oct. 16 (Sunday) respectively, the 'King of the Can' 50-lap event paying $5,000 to the big-block/small-block Modified winner in addition to lap money and contingency awards plus GM 602 Crate Sportsman (25 laps - $1,000 to win) and Trackside Products Street Stocks (25 laps - $500 to win) will take place on Sunday afternoon, Nov. 13.
Gates open at 1 p.m. with hot laps at 3 p.m. and racing at 4 p.m.
Wristbands
and ticket stubs from the Oct. 16 event WILL BE HONORED at the make-up date.
When
rain intensified over the
"We
knew there were teams that had already paid an entry fee for the
Draw
numbers will be held for the drivers already in attendance at the original
date. Additional drivers can participate in this event and will draw from the
numbers remaining in the bucket.
Registration is $20 for the Modifieds. There
is no registration fee for the GM 602 Crate Sportsman or Street Stocks.
A
field of 40 Modifieds had signed in for competition
on a threatening Sunday, including inaugural 'King of the Can' winner Brian
Weaver of Windsor, N.Y., Alan Johnson of Middlesex, N.Y., Stewart Friesen of
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., Duane Howard of Oley, Pa., Jeff Strunk
of Bechtelsville, Pa., young lion Danny Tyler of Cottekill,
N.Y., and many more.
The
'11 big-block/small-block Modified 'King of the Can' event pays $5,000 to the
winner with a $20 "gambler's fee" at Penn Can. That is an increase of
$1,000 over the 2010 event. Additionally, lap money has been collected to boost
the possible cash take even higher! All laps have been sponsored at a $25 per
lap minimum - for a total of $1,400.
'It's good to be king' at Penn Can Speedway in 2011. There are special
awards and bonuses posted by Manmiller Electric,
American Racer/Lias Tire, ERK Steering, S&D
Bodyline, BFP Specialty, Selinsgrove Speedway/JGK Motorsports, Shiley Fabrication and more.
The
'King of the Can' has been the signature Penn Can event since 1999 when Brian
Weaver took the inaugural victory. Kevin Bates of
The
2011 King of the Can is presented by Don's Automotive Mall,
Eighth:
A couple of things said about Indy car racing that were sent out to members of the Yahoo! Race History Group:
“What no one has mentioned, is the experience level of these drivers. You have young girls with only an Indy Lights background and James Jakes, I don't know where he came from? These guys have been running so many of those "Parking Lot" Street and Road course where the really never get going very fast and never run more than two abreast. They should all be sent to Midget, or Sprint Car series to learn how to race in close quarters and in close competition. This is where the old Ladder of Progression from USAC Midget, Sprint Car and Dirt Champ Car racing has broken down, plus all the young Open Wheel graduates now head for the NAPCAR Taxi cabs.I know we will never be able to return to the Glory Days of Jud Larson, AJ Foyt and so on, but something need to be addressed and quickly. They could start by getting a whole bunch of Qualified American Drivers. I know this sound calloused but Randy Bernard has done a lot of Good Things for Indy Car Racing, but he
is
not a True Racer, he is s Showman. His decision not to finish the race
yesterday was, in my Opinion, a Big Mistake. That would have been Unheard of
back in my day. I personally saw Bill Vokovich buy
the farm at Indy. They just threw a tarp over his body and kept on racing. The
Show Must Go On”
And,
in response:
“Subject:
Re: Observations
You're
right - training is inadequate. And the managment guys are not racers.
I
don't think the technical experience you gain in oval track, open-wheel racing
applies to the cars that IRL/Indycar/IZOD/whateverthef*ck
runs. The downforce
cars are identical and they don't oversteer, like
midgets and sprints (and even silver crown cars, on dirt).
And
they (the IRL) run road courses. Ain't no openwheel road racing
where training occurs, except for gokarts and small
formula cars which are a bigger deal offshore than here in the US of A. I don't think that background transfers or
prepares you in any way for running cars on ovals that are dead even, wheel to
wheel, flatfooted, clustered like bees, at 200+.
I have
done simulator time in an IRL car - an IRL buddy has one. I will just say that the car is on the edge
at a speed where no errors are tolerated.
Mistakes end up with Looooong slides and
impacts. It's quite different than
hanging the ass-end of a roadster out at 130-150 mph.
Mario
says the IRL cars aren't going to fast - I disagree. Currently, there's too much kinetic energy in
play*. He says they're too evenly
matched, which results in clusters on the ovals - that shortens up reaction
times. I agree with him there.
The
IRL is a spec car series with the primary purpose being profits. The current
cars are technological wonders that don't draw fans and are the antithesis of
what racing used to be all about - guys building cars and competing. You cannot build a car for the IRL. WTF???
I
feel like a broken record. Chuck Schultz
is right. I'm done watching "champ
cars" until the format changes.
That includes next year's new and improved IRL version - a different
package, but the same crap inside. Gotta get to the
garage. I got vintage cars to
work on....”
Ninth:
Utica/Rome Speedway for sale:
Found this on DTD’s forum:
“
Gross Revenues: Seller Will Provide
Cash Flow: Seller Will Provide
Cash Flow Type: Sellers Discretionary Cash
114 Acres - Plenty of room for expansion!
"Turn Key" Race Track For Sale
Just open the gates and collect the money!1/2 Mile Banked Clay Oval
Rt 5 Vernon, NYRacing Season: April - SeptemberLocated in Central NY, Utica
Rome Speedway has been home to exciting racing action for 50 years.
Our speedway has been coined "The premier racing facility in the North
East".
We are more than racing!
- Concerts - Corporate Events - Winter Snow Mobile Racing - Flea Markets
Our Facility can handle any occasion!
This facility is priced right and ready for racing action.
Please take a moment to browse our section for information and photo's”
Tenth:
Dan
Wheldon Tragedy: Racetrack Officials Fire Back
In
part:
"Officials
in charge of the
Las
Vegas Speedway President Chris Powell spoke after comments were made by critics
and drivers that the track was unsafe leading to Sunday's 15-car pileup.
"We
as a speedway make sure we provide a venue that they come in and make an
assessment when they're ready to race -- and they did that exact thing,"
Powell said late Monday. "Our speedway conforms to every regulation that
any sanctioning body has ever held it to, and we're very proud of that."
"As
for the
"This
is not a suitable track, and we seen it today its nowhere to get away from
anybody. One small mistake from somebody and there's a massive thing," Franchitti said.
"Things
happen in this kind of racing," said Cunningham. "It's so close. Not
much room for error. I was near the front of what caused all this, so I'm not
thrilled about it. At this point, whose fault it was is kind of
immaterial."
More
can be seen, here:
http://gma.yahoo.com/dan-wheldon-tragedy-racetrack-officials-fire-back-081212695.html
Eleventh:
Quite an interesting thread over on the Track
Forum about the Indy cars and wings. Personally,
I’d love to see the wings go away. It
would be one way of slowing the cars down and also put more of the driver into
the equation. It wasn’t all that long
ago when even rear engined Indy cars didn’t have
wings.
Leave it open
wheel, get rid of the wings.
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?156632-Leave-it-open-wheel-get-rid-of-the-wings.
Twelfth:
Social Security to hand out first raises since '09
In part:
"Social Security recipients will get a raise in January — their
first increase in benefits since 2009. It's expected to be about 3.5 percent.
Some 55 million beneficiaries will find out for sure Wednesday when a
government inflation measure that determines the annual cost-of-living
adjustment is released."
Of course, you just know what follows, right?
"Some of the increase in January will be lost to higher Medicare
premiums, which are deducted from Social Security payments. Medicare Part B
premiums for 2012 are expected to be announced next week, and the trustees who
oversee the program are projecting an increase."
Only twice since 1975 — the past two years — has there been no COLA.
http://news.yahoo.com/social-security-hand-first-raises-since-09-164904352.html
Note: It will be 3.6% per this:
http://news.yahoo.com/social-security-recipients-3-6-percent-more-134252817.html
Thirteenth:
Eventually, one of these days I’ll check out what I have to do to post
photos in my columns when they appear on Dirt Track Digest. I have had photos in some of my columns on
the New England Tractor website - http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/
with special thanks to Jeff Johnson for posting them.
I’ve also had some photo articles on New England Tractor, mostly about
“Back in the Day”, and Open Wheel racing, and they can
be seen if you go to these links:
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/ta/loudon11/pg1.htm
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/ta/backintime11-2/pg1.htm
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/ta/backintime11-1/pg1.htm
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/3daysatlanghorne/Langhorne.htm
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/backintime3/pg3-1.htm
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/backintime2/backintimevol2-1.htm
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/goingbackintimevol1.html
Note: I’ll have to check with
Adam Ross at DTD to see how it might be possible to be able to just click on
any links I have in my columns, to bring up the linked to item, rather than
having to “copy and paste” the links, as it is now.
Fourteenth:
After what Jimmie Johnson had to say about Indycar racing on ovals:
A.J.
Foyt, Mario Andretti defend IndyCar
oval racing
In
part:
With
the Izod IndyCar Series
facing scrutiny after Dan Wheldon's fatal crash
Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the series' two greatest legends staunchly
defended its oval-track tradition Tuesday.
A.J.
Foyt and Mario Andretti condemned five-time NASCAR
champion Jimmie Johnson and others for calling on IndyCar
stop racing on ovals because it was too easy for cars to get airborne.
"I
don't think Jimmie Johnson knows what he's talking about," said Foyt, a four-time
Andretti
said Wheldon's crash was "a fluke, freakish
accident" that would be addressed next year with a new chassis designed to
keep cars on the pavement by preventing wheel-to-wheel contact.
"We've
come a long way," said Andretti, who, along with Foyt,
won the Daytona 500 and the
More
on this, with additional links and videos, can be found if you go here:
Fifteenth:
In last weeks column, when I made mention of
the passing of singer John Denver, I had this link included: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uYag4yPdlA
Back last week, when I put that link into my column, that video had
been seen by 97,374. Yesterday,
Wednesday, I see it has gone up to 97,484 views. Now, I wonder – did my link send any viewers
over to that video?
Sixteenth:
I found this on the ARDC’s forum:
Coming up:
OCFS:
All the
info for Eastern States Weekend should come up if you go here:
http://www.orangecountyfairspeedway.net/
Their Novemberfest races are scheduled for November 4th,
5th and 6th.
For more info, please go here: http://www.oaklandvalleyspeedway.com/schedules-fees/
Lobitz Movie
Party/Auction:
Sunday, November
13, 2011. Lots of fun, plenty to
eat/drink, racing movies are shown, and an auction to raise money for the
Eastern Museum of Motor Racing. You’d be
surprised as to what gets put up for auction!
One never knows
who might show up.
Things get started
around 9:00 in the morning, with a swap meet, followed by most anything
else. Quite a few vendors selling race
related items, too.
Sit down dinner at
around 5:30 in the afternoon.
Lobitz Catering
Hall
Rt 940
(Located directly
behind the Fairway Chevrolet dealership on Rt 309
North)
Note: One can usually visit the barn, out back, to
see a ton of old racecars, too.
Found
on Jayski’s website:
Teams test
electronic fuel injection At Charlotte:
Teams representing
11 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars turned upwards of 400 miles Monday during a
test of Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Both
NASCAR officials and drivers were optimistic about the continued development of
the system. Plans call for the full implementation of EFI in the NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series beginning with the 2012 season. Four Hendrick
Motorsports teams, two Stewart-Haas Racing teams, one team from Richard
Childress Racing, one team from Michael Waltrip
Racing, one Earnhardt-Ganassi team, a team from Joe
Gibbs Racing and one team from Roush-Fenway Racing participated in Monday's
test session. The #6 Roush Fenway Ford, driven by Trevor Bayne, turned in the
day's fastest lap with a speed of 189.793 mph. Ricky Stenhouse
Jr. also tested the #6 Ford on Monday. Another NASCAR EFI test is scheduled for
Thursday, Oct. 20 at Talladega Superspeedway. The test is set to run from 10 am
- 4 pm/ct.(NASCAR)(10-18-2011)
Kahne gets in Hendrick
#5 for first time:
Kasey Kahne climbed from the non-descript gray car, dusted off
his non-descript firesuit noticeably lacking in
sponsorship decoration, and smiled. His first day in the #5 Chevy for Hendrick Motorsports had gone well. One of 11 drivers
permitted to participate in an electronic fuel-injection (EFI) engine test for
NASCAR on Monday at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kahne
said he thoroughly enjoyed his time behind the wheel of the car he will begin
driving full-time in the Sprint Cup Series next season. "There were more
differences than I expected. But then I thought back to Red Bull, and how much
different that was from the prior year [at Richard Petty Motorsports], and how
the cars are. It's all little things, but they keep adding up and it kind of
takes time to kind of figure out that feel."(NASCAR.com)(10-18-2011)
2012 Nationwide
schedule:
Highlighted by an
inaugural visit to one of the most historic race tracks in motorsports, a
return trip to
· Daytona International Speedway again opens the season, on Feb. 25, a week
later than past years.
· Iowa Speedway hosts the series' first stand-alone event on May 20, with a
second date on Aug. 4.
· Homestead-Miami Speedway will once again host the season-finale, on Nov. 17.
· For the first time, Kentucky Speedway will have two NASCAR Nationwide race
dates, on June 29 and Sept. 22.
· Chicagoland Speedway also returns with two dates,
one a stand-alone affair on July 22.
· Daytona's summer event and Kentucky Speedway's race will swap weekends in
2012, as the July 4th holiday falls mid-week next year. Daytona will run on
July 6.
· In conjunction with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' schedule shift, Kansas
Speedway's date moves to Oct. 20 to accommodate the track's repave, scheduled
for April of 2012.(NASCAR) See the full schedule on my
2012
Nationwide Series schedule page.(10-19-2011
The schedule:
http://www.jayski.com/nationwide/2012/2012nationwideschedule.htm
Former
Not much to report
on this week, however, at Accord in the “Wreckage in the Catskills” races,
Anthony Perrego won the ROC Sportsman feature with
Brad Szulewski 7th and Tyler Dippel 17th.
At Penn Can in the
“King of the Can” races, Perrego was 4th
and Brad 9th in the ROC Sportsman feature. Yes, both raced at Accord in the afternoon,
and then headed to Penn Can for their second show of the day.
At Penn Can, in the
CRSA 305 Sprint Car feature, John Virgilio was 4th,
Brian Pomponio 14th and Josh Pieniazek 17th.
Emily VanInwegen, her brother, Billy and Chuck
Alessi were DNQ’s.
Brian Krummel, Michael Storms, Jason Roe, Joe Kata,
III and Brittany Tresch all made a return visit to OVRP’s Dirt Oval and ran Karts. Krummel was 2nd,
Storms 6th and Tresch 7th in
the Mediums feature, Roe was a DNS in the Lights feature, Kata
was 3rd in Junior 3.
Hoping I didn’t
miss anyone!
Going back, in time – in
racing history:
Note# 1: Most of the following information was found
here:
http://www.wheelsofspeed.com/history.html
Note: 2: Yes, most of this info is from Open Wheel
racing from “Back in the day”.
Covering the days from
October 21st to October 27th :
OCTOBER 21
1951
Jimmy Bryan won the Ted
Horn Memorial AAA Eastern Sprint Car race at the Williams Grove Speedway (1/2d) ,
Note: I was there that day, with my father,
brother, and others, to see if Bill Schindler could win the Eastern AAA Sprint
Car championship from Tommy Hinnershitz, not knowing
that there was to be a couple more point races down in the
OCTOBER 22
1941
Gus Schrader ...Died ...
Schrader would become known as "King of the OUTLAW Dirt Tracks"
during his storied career. Gus was the IMCA "big car" (sprint) champ
from 1933-1941 except in 1938 when Emory Collins broke the string. He ran the
Indy 500 in 1932 and finished 39th.
Note: They started 40 cars in that race, not 33, as
was the case later on.
1958
Johnny Unser ... Born ... A
former CART and IRL racecar driver. He is the son of open wheel driver Jerry
Unser, cousin of Al Unser, Jr. and Robby Unser, nephew of Al Unser and Bobby
Unser, and first cousin once removed of Alfred Unser.
1965
Earl Cooper... Died ... AAA
driver 1911 to 1927
OCTOBER 23
1920
Nick Fornoro
Sr... Born ... Nick was the American Racing Drivers
Club (ARDC) driving champion in 1950, and he was the first NASCAR Midget
driving champion in 1953. After retiring, he went on to be one of the best
starters (flaggers) ever, starting out here in the Northeast and eventually
ending up as the flagger for two hundred consecutive Championship Auto Racing
Teams Indy Car Series races (CART), serving in that position from 1979 to 1992.
In 1993 he was the honorary starter for the
1926
Larry Crockett... Born ... AAA driver who ran the Championship series in 1954.
He was killed in a sprint car accident at Langhorne Speedway on March 20, 1955.
1966
Alex Zanardi
... Born ... An Italian racing driver. He won two CART championship titles in
Larry Dixon ...Born ...
NHRA Top Fuel driver.
1970
Gary Gabelich,
driving the Blue Flame, set at new Land Speed Record of 622.407 mph on the
1973
Ralph Mulford...
Died ... AAA driver 1910 to 1926.
2000
Bob Hurt... Died ... USAC driver from the 1960's.
OCTOBER 24
1924
George Amick...
Born ... AAA / USAC driver 1954 to 1959. He was killed
in a crash in a USAC 100-mile Indy car race at Daytona International Speedway
on April 4, 1959. Major open-wheel racing would not return to the track for
many years.
1985
Richie Evans... Died ...
Richie from
OCTOBER 25
1950
Bob Frey ... Born ...
Sprint Car and CART driver from the 1970's and 80's.
1972
Johnny Mantz
... Died ... AAA / USAC and NASCAR driver from the 1940's and 50's. He made 17
starts in the AAA Championship Car series from 1948 to 1952, capturing a
victory in his rookie season at the Milwaukee Mile as well as winning the
Indianapolis Sweepstakes at Williams Grove Speedway. He was the first USAC Stock
Car national champ in 1956. Mantz also made 12 NASCAR
Grand National starts from 1950-1951 and 1955-1956. He won his third race, the
first Southern 500 held at Darlington Raceway using truck tires, which did not
wear while his competitors had to stop and pit for new tires. It was his only
NASCAR win.
2010
Charles "Sonny" Ates ... Died ... Ates raced in
the USAC Championship Car series in the 1968-1970 seasons, with 15 career
starts, including the 1969
OCTOBER 26
1915
Ray Crawford... Born ...
AAA & USAC driver from the 1950's & 60's
1955
Sammy Swindell...
Born ... A three time World of Outlaws champion, winning the
title in 1981, 1982, and 1997, with hundreds of A-main victories to his credit.
He also competed in the CART series in 1985 and 1986 and failed to qualify for
the 1987
1975
Jimmy Caruthers... Died ...ARDC Midget & USAC midget, sprint and Indy car driver
from
OCTOBER 27
1910
Mark Light... Born ... Mark
Light drove Sprint Cars, Stock Cars and Midgets at tracks mostly around
1964
Art Arfons
topped Craig Breedlove's twelve-day-old Land Speed Record by running 536.71
MPH/858.73 KPH in the Green Monster on the
1967
Brian Tyler... Born ... He
was a back-to-back USAC National Sprint car Champion for Larry Contos Racing in 1996 and 1997. He made 10 starts in the
Indy Racing League in 1998 and 1999 for 3 different teams with a best finish of
6th at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
1968
Andy Michner...
Born ... USAC and IRL driver from the 1990's.
1971
Bob Tattersall...
Died ... The 1969 USAC National Midget Champion also raced in Australia and New
Zealand for thirteen winters, winning over fifty percent of the races he
competed in, as well as the World Championship at the Sydney Showgrounds on seven different occasions. He also drove
sprint and championship cars and passed his rookie test at the Indianapolis
Motor Speedway in 1966. Bob started his career in stock cars and switched to
midgets in 1950. He won the UARA Midget Championship twice and consistently
beat the Offies with Frank Pavese's
famous Ford 60 V-8. In 1955 he won a heat race at
1977
Anton "Tony" Hulman... Died ... Indianapolis Motor
Speedway owner. Born into wealth, Anton Hulman
Jr. embellished his personal resources with courage, foresight and a passion
for automobile racing to become the savior of
2003
Johnny Boyd ... Died ...
Boyd drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series from 1954 to 1966 with
56 starts. He finished in the top ten 31 times, with his best finish in 2nd
position, in 1959 at
News
from the AARN:
From
their October 11th issue:
Wow! Checking over the AARN, I think I could
easily do two or three columns to cover what was in this weeks
issue.
Roger
Slack has left the WRG to go to work for Tony Stewart at Eldora.
In
Lenny Sammons column, he talks about the cost of going to
There
was ¾ page just about Friesen winning the 200 and
being fined $25,000.00.
Many
more articles about the racing at
Ernie
Saxton, in his column says he gets upset when he sees how poorly many racers
handle their sponsorship efforts and then after securing a sponsor. He did make mention of not being able to
attend races at Volusia Speedway, down in Florida, what with the track closed
now until probably next February. Mr.
Saxton reports that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. ranks 7th in the worlds most
valued athletes brands list, and that “Joonyer” (my spelling, folks) is the only one from racing
on that list.
Earl
Krause had a lot in his column about how he used to go to the races with his
father, when he was a young kid – mainly to the races at the Old Bridge New
There
were a couple of articles in the paper on the late Smokey Snellbaker.
Brett
Deyo, in his column, had a lot about young Danny
Tyler and also quite a bit about Duane Howard.
Todd
Heintzelman was making mention of Fred Rahmer qualifying 3rd fastest in time trials,
qualifying via his heat to make the feature, then having to start 13th
in the feature at the National Open at Williams Grove. Lance Dewease, with
his 6th place finish at the Grove earned him the Grove
championship. Lance, and his car owners,
Donny and Lisa Owens, split the $20,000.00.
Dewease has won Grove championships with cars
owned by Walt Dyer, Joe Harz and Al Hamilton.
Then the next night, at the Lincoln Speedway, Dewease
received a broken neck while racing. He
had surgery to repair the breaks. That
was the third neck injury in the past month in Sprint Cars – Aaron Ott broke his neck at the Grove on 9/14 and Chad Criswell
broke his at
Jason
Meyers won $58,000.00, Daryn Pittman $13,300.00,
Steve Kinser $9,000.00, Greg Hodnett
$5,000.00, Jason Sides $4,800.00 and Fred Rahmer
$4,700.00 at the National Open at Williams Grove.
I
really can’t comment on the deal with Rick Lauback at
Note: Would be interesting to see if Lauback comes to OCFS for ESW this coming weekend. He usually runs pretty good
at OC.
There
were over two pages covering the Short Track Supernationals
at 5 Mile Point.
It
was said that Billy Pauch, Sr. ran the Big Block time
trials at
Note: Kinda unbelievable,
isn’t it? I mean – what the h*ll?
Joe
Johnson, in his column, pulled no punches in what he thought about certain
happenings at
He
goes on to say that when you have your premier event, everyone should be on top
of their game. Drivers, crews, track
crews and most everyone else were, but the officials were not and it was
unfortunate because it tarnished one of the best Dirt Weeks in years.
John
Snyder reports that 11 drivers have won SDW and also ESW. Only three have done it in the same year. (I
have to add technically, here, about Balough) Buzzie Reutimann in 1972, Gary Balough in 1977 and Danny Johnson in 1997. The Balough win
really wasn’t in 1977, but in the spring of 1978, after SDW was rained out in
1977, so there’s the possibility of different and newer cars.
Mr.
Snyder makes mention of Doug Hoffman, Brett Hearn, Bob McCreadie,
Billy Pauch, Jimmy Horton, Jack, Alan and Danny
Johnson – all big winners in modified racing here in the northeast, and they
all won big at almost the same time.
Guy
Smith hit track # 1,409 when he visited the Western Fairgrounds in
Phil
Smith had a nice column about Langhorne’s Race of Champions – races that were
held form the 1950’s to the early 1970’s.
SAFER
barriers will be installed at Rockingham after the running of the American 200
doubleheader, November 5th, and the Polar Bear 150 on the 6th. The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series make
sit debut at Rockingham on April 15, 2012.
The
Mazda “Road to Indy” teams will get an early start on 2012 when Indycar hosts a two-day test open to USF2000 Star Mazda
Championship and Firestone Indy Lights teams at the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway’s road course on October 28th and 29th.
Dave
Moody, in his column, makes mention of Travis Pastrana
saying that he will compete in Rally Car events at the 2012 X Games and cold
also return to Moto X Freestyle competition in addition to his approximately 20-race
NASCAR schedule with Michael Waltrip Racing.
One
thing I didn’t see, in this weeks AARN, were any photos of the Stewart Friesen
bulged out fuel cell, as was seen on Dirt Track Digest.
I’d
estimate that it would easily take five or six hours just to read most of what
was in this last issue of the AARN. Then
to look at the many photos, takes some time, too.
Prior to finishing up this weeks column, I ventured over to the AARN’s website, and for this weeks issue, due to be mailed out on Tuesday, 10/18, I found these items to be covered in the paper:
Paved Track Goes
Dirt,
Dirt Track Back To Pavement
Richards A Rocket In Charlotte
Decker, Doctor
Brockville 358 Stars
Weather Upsets
Weekend Specials
Curt Michael
Clinches URC Title
Wild NASCAR Mod Finish
At Thompson
Orange County's Michael Gurda
Previews Eastern States 2011
And
I found out that the following is on page 46 of this weeks
AARN – an article about Eastern States by Ralph Stevens.
50th
Annual Eastern States a True Happening
By:
Ralph Stevens
Today
you are part of an historic event that is a true ‘happening’ and has been for
fifty years now.
What
do I mean by a ‘happening’? In sports and in particular motorsports, there are
certain events that have evolved into true ‘happening’ events. Just mentioning
a name or certain words evokes an immediate emotional response to the
initiated.
Indy,
Daytona, The Glen, Knoxville, The Grove Open, Manzanita, Tampa, Eldora,
Laconia, Bellville, Flemington 100, Reading Fair, Syracuse, Seventy Sixer, Fonda 200, Race of Kings, Nazereth
(the ½ mile) and the grand daddy The Eastern States. Ring a bell? These are
events that are/were always on the calendar, they have/had history, character,
and traditions. Some are gone now and some new events are making the attempt to
become a ‘happening’, we’ll have to wait and see.
So
who makes an event a true ‘happening’?
Not
the promoter. He can only dream of his idea for an event to evolve into a
‘happening’. There is no recipe or sure fire plan to create an event that gains
‘happening’ status. The ‘World 100’ is a true ‘happening’ in the late model
racing world, but the ‘Dream’ remains a pre-packaged, made for TV wanna be. The size of the purse doesn’t make it, although
it can help. The MOPAR Million didn’t last long now, did it? But they run the
Kings Royal every year the last I checked.
Many
promoters try to create a ‘happening’ today by providing all sorts of
peripheral entertainment, headline music acts, Hollywood stars, thrill shows,
fireworks, you name the side show Dejur. But, for me
it all comes off as a scripted entertainment agenda that is about as exciting
and tasteful as a frozen TV dinner.
So,
who raises an event like Eastern States to the level of a true happening? You
do! The fan, the racer, the mechanics, the wives and husbands, the girlfriends
and boyfriends, the families, all who attend the event because it is THE place
to be.
We
come to see, or participate in, the race, to reunite with old friends, to
party, to laugh, to relive times past, to retell stories of past events, to
speculate on this year’s outcome, we come just to see just who shows up. We
make our own entertainment, our own music. It is the gathering of the modified
racing fraternity.
We
come just because we want to be part of it all. It is a spontaneous thing that
has repeated itself year after year. And it is that repeatability, that sense
of constancy that keeps us coming back. It is tradition, in many cases passed
from generation to generation.
Fifty
years ago, a promoter at Victory Speedway (now known as Orange County Fair
Speedway) had an idea to stage a season ending race to bring the modified
racing fraternity together one last time for the year to see who was best just
before winter set in and before many of the racers of the day headed for their
winter quarters in Florida.
He
planted the seed in the year 1961 and hoped his race would be a success. Then
year by year the race was held and the traditions and attendance grew, fans and racers alike. Soon, the competitor wanted
that Eastern States win to validate his status as a racer and the fans wanted
to be part of it all.
The
promoters have changed, races have been added, sanctioning bodies have come and
gone, there have been good times and bad, but through it all the Eastern States
has remained. That seed planted fifty years ago had blossomed into a true
‘happening’. An event where, for at least a few days, the outside world seems
to disappear as we are absorbed in this small world called the Eastern States,
which is our own. It belongs only to us, the fan and the racer, because it was
created by us.
There
is one thing a ‘happening’ needs these days now more
than ever, it is your stewardship. Only you can keep it alive, it is in all of
our hands to keep it going.
I
hope you thoroughly enjoy this year’s golden anniversary of the ‘happening’ we
call Eastern States. To the fans, have a great time. To the racers, hammer
down, it’s time to once again work for that classic win of a career at one
‘happening’ event.
The
Eastern States
Regards,
Ralph
Stevens
More
racin’ stuff:
From Frontstretch.com:
Five
points to ponder - by Bryan Davis Keith
Tuesday
October 18, 2011
ONE:
Who Can Blame Addington for (Possibly) Leaving?
TWO:
Danica…and Ryan Newman?
Note: I believe Mr. Keith has a "typo" as
far as the year (2011) goes, whereas it should be 2012.
THREE:
Ty Dillon’s Tarnished ARCA Title
FOUR:
Let’s Be Clear: The No. 48 Team Wasn’t Beaten
FIVE:
No One is to Blame for Dan Wheldon’s Death
All
of the above can be read about if you go here:
http://www.frontstretch.com/bkeith/36011/
Racing and
television:
Racing on TV - http://www.racefantv.com/USTV.htm
Note: Again - the
Some non-racing stuff:
What do these places have
in common?
Flagstaff, Ariz., Boone,
N.C., Traverse City, Mich., Walnut Creek, Calif., Ithaca, N.Y., Lincoln, Neb.,
Pittsburgh, Pa., Port Charlotte, Fla., Pittsfield, Mass. and Santa Fe, N.M.
Supposedly, they're the 10
Best Places to Retire in 2012.
Reasons can be found,
here:
Is
this true?:
More
from that e-mail that I received:
WEINER
FALLOUT – Continued:
*FROM
WITHIN!*
*Readers
tend to gloss over this, but it is as important as Mein Kampf
was to the burgeoning Nazi movement in 1930s
*The
process of settlement is a "Civilization-Jihadist Process" with all
the means. The Ikhwan [Muslim Brotherhood] must understand
that their work in America is a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and
destroying the Western civilization from within and "sabotaging" its
miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is
eliminated and Allah's religion is made victorious."*
*Conclusions:*
**
The Muslim Brotherhood - or its affiliations - has infiltrated the highest
levels of our government.*
**
Hillary Clinton is either in denial, stupid, naive or complicit in having such
a person with ties to the MB working within the highest levels of the State
Department. That goes for the president as well.*
**
There is certainly more to the story of the Weiner wedding, which we don't know
about. If Anthony Weiner, in fact, converted to Islam,
it
was done surreptitiously because it would have been a death knell to his
political career. And, if so, Weiner certainly knew of the
Muslim Brotherhood connections of his wife.*
**
If the Islamic community has approved of, or ignores the marriage between
Jewish born Weiner and Huma Abedin,
it can be logically concluded that they - the Islamic community - know
something we don't. An Imam from the Islamic Cultural center of New York, Omar
Abu-Namous, not only approved of the union, he has
encouraged Huma Abedin to
stand by her man during the cybersex scandal. Thus, it must
be
advantageous to the goals of Islamic jihad and the MB to have Huma Abedin inside the bowels of
the
Department of State with daily access to governmental intelligence. Therefore,
her "marriage" to a
*That,
folks, is an example of "Taqiyya"
which I've often written about. Taqiyya is the
Islamic
equivalent to using lies, deceit and concealment in order to advance the cause of
spreading Islam.
The
9/11 al Qaeda terrorists blended with American society for months prior to the
deadly attack, drinking alcohol, carousing with women and eating pork, in order
to conceal who they truly were, in order to carry out their mission.*
*Their
mission was to infiltrate and kill. The mission of the Muslim Brotherhood is to
infiltrate and conquer, even if it takes 100 years.
In the Muslim Brotherhood planning document, "The Project," it clearly states - among their strategies:* ** Maintain the appearance of moderation* ** Use deception to mask the intended goals of Islamic Action* *We know about these things, the government knows about these things, the highest of officials know, yet they are inexplicably ignored.*
*Forget
about the war in
Video time:
How about watching
some modified stock cars as they go down pit road at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ckzj-XdVwGs&feature=related
Closing with these:
These
are actual comments made by South Carolina Troopers that were taken off their
car videos:
1. "You know, stop lights don't come any
redder than the one you just went through."
2.
"Relax, the handcuffs are tight because they're new. They'll stretch after
you wear them a while."
3.
"If you take your hands off the car, I'll make your birth certificate a
worthless document." (My Favorite)
4. "If you run, you'll only go to jail tired."
5. "Can you run faster than 1200 feet per second? Because that's
the speed of the bullet that'll be chasing
you." (LOVE IT)
6. "You don't know how fast you were going? I guess that means I
can write anything I want to on the ticket, huh?"
7. "Yes, sir, you can talk to the shift supervisor, but I don't
think it will help. O did I mention that I'm the shift supervisor?"
8. "Warning! You want a warning? O.K., I'm warning you not to do
that again or I'll give you another ticket."
9. "The answer to this last question will determine whether you are
drunk or not. Was Mickey Mouse a cat or a dog?"
10. "Fair? You want me to be fair? Listen, fair is a place where
you go to ride on rides, eat cotton candy and corn dogs"
11. "Yeah, we have a quota. Two more tickets and my wife gets a toaster oven."
12. "In God we trust; all others we run through NCIC." (
13. "Just how big were those 'two beers' you say you had?"
14. "No sir, we don't have quotas anymore. We used to, but now
we're allowed to write as many tickets as we can."
15. "I'm glad to hear that the Chief (of Police) is a personal
friend of
yours. So you know someone who can post your bail."
AND THE WINNER IS....
16. "You didn't think we give pretty women tickets? You're right, we don't. Sign here."
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!
As usual, you can reach me
at: ygordad@yahoo.com