Racin'
Stuff:
By
Tom Avenengo
First things, first:
I was able to watch some of the activities from
Next, there was some rather disturbing news that came out on the Dirt Track Digest’s Forum about a possible problem coming up for the Accord Speedway – a problem similar to the one that the now closed Mok-A-Tec track had a few years ago, and forced it to close down. Folks, we don’t need to lose another track, believe me!
Link: http://www.dirttrackdigest.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=29175
Going
back, in time:
Effective this week, I’ll be cutting way down in this section. What has happened on the date that my column comes out. Hope ya don’t mind!
On
June 4th:
In
1950:
Troy
Ruttman won the AAA Sprint Car race at the Dayton Speedway,
Tommy
Hinnershitz won the AAA Eastern Sprint Car race at the Trenton International
Speedway,
In
1953:
Jud
Larson won the AAA Midget race over Jimmy Bryan, Jimmy Knight, Ray Courtney and
Bill Homeier at the Sharon Speedway,
In
1960:
Tony
Romit won the ARDC Midget race at the Danbury Fairgrounds,
In
1961:
Rodger
Ward won the 100 mile Rex Mays Classic USAC Indy Car race over Al Keller, Dick
Rathmann, Len Sutton and Jim Hurtubise at the Milwaukee Mile,
In
1967:
Gordon
Johncock won the 150 mile Rex Mays Classic USAC Indy Car race over Lloyd Ruby,
Roger McCluskey, Jim McElreath and Wally Dallenbach at the Milwaukee Mile,
In
1976:
Pancho
Carter and Larry Dickson each won one of the Twin 50's USAC Sprint Car races at
the Indiana State Fairgrounds,
In
1978:
Billy
Cassella won the 40 lap USAC Sprint car race over Gary Bettenhausen, Dana
Carter, Jerry Weeks and Billy Engelhart at the Terre Haute Action Track ,
Rich
Vogler won the USAC Midget race over Sleepy Tripp, Tom Steiner, Lonnie
Caruthers and Jeff Heywood at the Columbus Motor Speedway,
In
1989:
Rick
Mears won the Miller High Life 200 CART Indy Car race over Michael Andretti,
Teo Fabi, Raul Boesel and Scott Pruett at the Milwaukee Mile,
Dale
Earnhardt wins the Budweiser 500 over Mark Martin at the Dover International Speedway ,
In
1995:
Paul
Tracy won the Miller Genuine Draft 200 CART Indy Car race over Al Unser, Jr,
Michael Andretti, Teo Fabi and Robby Gordon at the Milwaukee Mile,
Kyle
Petty wins the Miller 500 over Bobby Labonte at the Dover International Speedway ,
In
2000:
Tony
Stewart wins the MBNA Platinum 400 over Matt Kenseth at the Dover International
Speedway ,
In
2007:
William
Martin
Truex Jr. wins the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Autism Speaks 400 presented by Visa over
Ryan Newman at the Dover International Speedway ,
Coming
up – race wise:
A 100 lap Super Dirt Series race is scheduled for this Saturday night at the Lebanon Valley Speedway. We usually go up to the “Valley” for their annual 200, but they’re not having that race this year, so, with our racecar still not ready, it looks like we’ll be heading north this coming Saturday.
Next Wednesday, June 17th, is “The Big Show” – a Super Dirt Series 100 lapper at OCFS, that’s being promoted by Brett Hearn. Info on that race can be found, here: http://www.thebigdirtshow.com/
Coming up – family wise:
June is a pretty busy month for my household. This coming Saturday, the 6th, granddaughter Marissa Avenengo will be 9 years old. On Sunday, the 7th, well, that was the date that we lost both my mother and my wife’s mother – in 1991- yes, both on the same day. We still think they connived on that one!
On Monday, the 8th, Marissa’s mommy and daddy, our son, Tom, Jr. and his wife, Penny, celebrate their 13th wedding anniversary.
On Friday, the 12th, granddaughter Cheyene Kehlenbeck will hit “Sweet Sixteen”, while my brother-in-law, Henry (Hank) Trebeneck celebrates his birthday. Somehow I think he’ll hit the ¾ century mark.
Granddaughter Leighann Goodchild will celebrate her 20th birthday on the 18th of June.
I smoked my last cigarette on Wednesday, June 26, 1996,
as I walked into
On June 28th, some surgeons did by-pass surgery on me, and as you can figure out, it was successful.
To the best of my memories, I went home that following Monday, July 1st, but my memories will not let me actually remember that I was in the hospital for over an entire week, and that my wife did, in fact, visit me every day. Damn anesthesia!
Racing on TV:
I’m just going to supply a link to this website: : http://www.racefantv.com/USTV.htm If, at times there’s something noteworthy, I’ll make mention of it.
Did you get to watch the “Prelude To The Dream” last night on HBO PPV? Neither did I, dammit. Wonder how long it will be before we get credit from the cable folks, since it was already ordered?
Ernie Saxton posted this on SJDR’s message board:
ROSSBURG,
The wet weather made it impossible to run the event that was slated to benefit
four military-themed charities – Wounded Warrior Project, Intrepid Fallen
Heroes Fund, Operation Homefront and Fisher House.
“We worked really hard to make sure everything was right for the drivers, fans
and viewers at home on HBO Pay-Per-View, but the weather was the one element we
couldn’t control,” said Tony Stewart, two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
champion and owner of Eldora Speedway.
Those who have
already purchased the Prelude to the Dream on HBO Pay-Per-View, which was
slated to begin today at 7 p.m. EDT, will be refunded.
Those who
purchased a ticket to the event can apply the value of their Prelude to the
Dream ticket toward any remaining event on the 2009 Eldora Speedway schedule.
To view the schedule, please visit www.EldoraSpeedway.com <http://www.eldoraspeedway.com/>
or call the track office (937) 338-3815.”
Note: Reports are that Marcos
Ambrose was going to replace Jeff Gordon, due to Jeff having those back
problems. Maybe the problems will be
fixed by September 9th? And
since there is a good three months to go now, maybe the IRL will wise up and
get one of its drivers to compete?
Nothing like some exposure, ya know?
Oh, right – C O N T R A C T S!
Funny, but the NASCAR guys don’t seem to have any contract
problems. How about – say – Sarah Fisher? She’s run dirt before!
Other
forums/message boards and websites:
From
the Track Forum - http://www.trackforum.com/forums/
Quite an interesting thread about Tony George being ousted as CEO of
the Indianapolis Speedway. Was he? Wasn’t he?
I imagine we’ll know in time, just what is what on this. As of now, it looks like Mr. George is still
pulling the strings at the speedway.
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=123951
When
NASCAR doesn’t “want” you, bad things happen.
Well, that’s what’s being said here:
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=123484
From
Jayski - http://www.jayski.com/
Long
loses appeal of penalty: NASCAR driver #46-Carl Long says he has lost his appeal of a 12-race
suspension and penalty. The National Stock Car Racing Commission denied Long's
appeal at a hearing Tuesday, the driver said. The commission isolated Long's suspension to the Sprint Cup Series, meaning he can
find work in one of the sport's lower levels. However, Long's full-time job is
working with the Front Row Motorsports #34 Chevy in the Cup series. The
commission also told Long the $200,000 fine levied against crew chief Charles
Swing would not fall to Long if Swing can't pay it. Long was penalized for
having an illegal engine at Lowe's Motor Speedway last month. The 12-race
suspension, 200-point penalty and $200,000 fine are NASCAR records. He said he
plans to research how to go about appealing the penalty further. "I'm now
suspended only from the Cup garage for 12 weeks," Long told ESPN.com.
"At the end of year, though, they're still sitting there with their hands
out. So my crew chief still doesn't get his 2010 license if it hasn't been
paid. I'm very disappointed in them."(ESPN/AP)
MORE: As the realization that the National Stock Car Commission on
Tuesday upheld the record 200-point, $200,000 penalty against him sunk in, Carl
Long became increasingly frustrated. Frustration turned to anger. In minutes,
he was livid. "Big Bill [France, NASCAR founder] and Bill Jr. ruled the
sport like a father -- at the end of the day they took care of their
family," Long said. "These guys don't care. They don't have any
heart. Basically, it seems like they don't care about the sport, they just want
to make a dollar. I truly have a sour taste of the management in our sport.
They've forgotten the roots of how this sport was created, and who are the
people buying the tickets, sitting in the stands. The people in the stands are
me." Multiple calls to NASCAR for comment were not immediately returned.
When Long had to change engines prior to the Sprint
Showdown, NASCAR surveyed the first engine and determined it to be illegal. He
was confident entering Tuesday's appeals hearing. He thought he'd go in, plead
his case, and come out with nothing more than a revamped concept of the
lucrative engine-building-and-selling business in NASCAR. Not so. More at ESPN.com.(6-2-2009)
Then
there was this, in part, by Marty Smith - about Carl Long:
“Long was penalized
two weeks ago after NASCAR discovered the engine in his Dodge to be 0.17 of an
inch larger than the maximum-allowed 358.000 cubic inch displacement during
pre-race inspection for the Sprint Showdown.
Long maintains he
purchased the engine from "a reputable builder," i.e., longtime engine
man Ernie Elliott. It was a former Chip Ganassi Racing motor, which was
expendable in the wake of Ganassi's merger with Dale Earnhardt Inc., and
subsequent move to Chevrolet. Elliott bought it, then sold it to Long.
When Long had to change engines prior to the Sprint Showdown,
NASCAR surveyed the first engine and determined it to be illegal.
He was confident
entering Tuesday's appeals hearing. He thought he'd go in, plead his case and
come out with nothing more than a revamped concept of the lucrative
engine-building-and-selling business in NASCAR. Not so.
What he got was an
amendment. His suspension now applies only to the Cup garage. But he still owes
the money. If the crew chief can't pay it, he says he has to.
And he can't.
"Brian France
didn't have to do the things I have to do. Mike Helton, years ago, when he
promoted Atlanta Motor Speedway, he'd cut you a deal. He'd work with you. I
don't know what happened to that guy.
"Nobody's
cutting deals. Not with the TV [networks], not with race teams. I could be
speaking out of turn, but it seems pretty uniform. As long as everybody's
making money they're all fat and happy."
Long then mentioned
the May 26 "town hall" meeting.
"Our business
is going downhill. It needs help," he said. "We need fans in the
stands. When something isn't selling, Wal-Mart puts things on sale. I haven't
seen NASCAR do that. License percentages have gone crazy.
"It's a big
cannonball going on. For years you could see -- everybody wants NASCAR, everybody wants NASCAR, so they'll pay this much.
Keep going up [in price]. Well, hell, that's over with."
To conclude, he
questioned NASCAR's motive.
"We're the
only professional athletes in the world that pay to play," Long said.
"But they're looking for help. They just had that meeting. They want to
know what they can do, but when they look where the help will come from --
small guys like me -- they're turning their nose up at us.
"They want
somebody to come and start four teams. Or, maybe they're just trying to weasel
all of us out so they can franchise. I don't know. I'm not a part of their
kings of the round table."
Marty Smith is a
contributor to ESPN's NASCAR coverage. He can be reached at ESPNsider@aol.com”.
I also found this
on Jayski’s website:
National Stock Car Racing
Commission Statement on Carl Long: On June 2, 2009, the National Stock Car Racing
Commission heard and considered the appeal of 3 penalties issued by NASCAR
relative to the #146 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car following inspection of the
car’s engine on May 16, 2009 for an event at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
The penalties concern Section 12-1 of the NASCAR Rule Book “Actions detrimental
to stock car racing”, Section 12-4-I “Any determination by NASCAR Officials
that the Race Equipment used in the Event does not conform to NASCAR rules”,
and Section 20-5.4A “Engine exceeded the maximum engine size of 358.00 cubic
inch displacement.”
The penalties assessed were:
-A loss of 200 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Car Owner Points;
suspension from the next 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Events;
suspension from NASCAR until August 18, 2009; and probation until December 31,
2009 for owner, Danielle Long
-A loss of 200 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Driver Points; suspension
from the next 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Events; suspension from
NASCAR until August 18, 2009; and probation until December 31, 2009 for driver,
Carl Long
-A $200,000 fine; suspension from the next 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship
Events; suspension from NASCAR until August 18, 2009; and probation until
December 31, 2009 for crew chief, Charles Swing
The Appellants requested and were granted a deferral of the fine and suspension
penalties until such time as this hearing could be convened. The Appellants did
not contest that the engine was oversized. They argued that the engine had been
supplied by a third party and that the infraction may have been due to an error
on the part of that supplier, or to expansion due to overheating, or to general
wear and tear on the engine. The Appellants further argued that they are a very
low budget team incapable of bearing suspensions and a fine of this magnitude.
The NASCAR representative argued that NASCAR has and continues to consider an
oversized engine to be one of the most egregious of rules violations,
warranting the harshest of penalties. The last penalty notices issued in
NASCAR’s top series for an oversized engine were in 1991 and included 12-race
suspensions in the series and a sizeable fine for its day.
The Rule Book provides 8 cubic inches of flexibility in engine construction
from a minimum of 350.000 cubic inch displacement to a maximum of 358.000 cubic
inch displacement. Measurements on the engine in question calculated to a total
cubic inch displacement of 358.197. According to the NASCAR representative,
even the largest amongst the many, many engines inspected over the years
usually allowed ample buffer below the 358.000 c.i.d. line.
The Commission reaffirms that the race team is ultimately responsible for all
components on the race car, including any supplied by third-party vendors. The
Commission notes that during the hearing, the driver expressed a strong love of
racing and a desire to compete at the highest levels of the sport. His
testimony came across as genuine and heartfelt.
While it is tempting to consider penalties that this driver and team can
more-readily bear, the sport would not be well served by having a sliding scale
of penalties calibrated to a given team or member’s resources. Penalties of
this magnitude for this type of infraction are warranted in the NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series.
Upon reviewing all the testimony, the National Stock Car Racing Commission has
decided to amend the penalties as follows:
-in each of the three Penalty Notices, the statement that reads “Suspended from
NASCAR until August 18, 2009” shall be rescinded.
-all other elements of the penalties (points, suspensions from next 12 NSCS
events, fine and probations) remain in force.
-the periods of suspension shall be adjusted from the date of this hearing.
The Appellants have the right under Section 15 of the Rule Book to appeal this
decision to the National Stock Car Racing Commissioner.(NASCAR)(6-2-2009)
Note: to me, it sure seems that NASCAR is really acting like a “class bully” here. Quite a lot being said on the internet by a lot of fans that are behind Long on this deal, and I’ll include myself as backing him, too. Check out the link that I have in the Track Forum section of this column.
Dodge
support "on hold" Team owner Richard Petty says the Chrysler bankruptcy has put cash
flow from the manufacturer to the Richard Petty Motorsports organization he
co-owns with George Gillett "in a holding pattern." From the point of
view of the Dodge Motorsports program, however, the commitment to racing is
undiminished. "They've stopped everything," Petty said in the garage
at Dover International Speedway this past weekend. "They went into
bankruptcy, and they're sort of in a floating stage right now. They're trying
to see where they come out of this at. If they've got new people running the
show, are they still going to continue to back everything exactly like they
are, or whatever? They're in a holding pattern right now. I think GM's that way
-- I don't know about Ford -- and I know Chrysler's that way. The rest of them
I don't know. I don't deal with them." Walter Czarnecki, vice chairman of
Penske Racing, which has three Dodge teams, said the legal proceedings also
have held up payments to his organization. "In the legal procedure, you
have to file what's called a 'Cure Letter' that lists all the things that you
are owed. And when it's submitted and approved, they'll pay. We have money that
was due April 30 that has not been received yet and probably won't be received
for several weeks." Mike Accavitti, director of brand marketing and
strategy for Chrysler, acknowledged the reorganization has affected the flow of
cash from Chrysler but affirmed the company remains committed to Cup racing and
that at-track services provided to the teams continue to be available.(NASCAR.com/Sporting
News)(6-2-2009)
Note: I’m not surprised with this. I would be more surprised if it doesn’t go
further into cutting into what’s being spent towards racing by the big three.
General
Motors to stay in auto racing: For now, bankruptcy won't park General Motor
Corp.'s long and successful involvement in auto racing. As the Detroit carmaker
began retooling after filing for bankruptcy protection, a company spokesman
said Monday he did not expect further cuts to GM Racing's budget, which
supports NASCAR, NHRA, ALMS and short-track racing activities around the
country and adheres to the "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" mantra.
"Racing equals good ROI (return on investment)," said Steve Janisse,
group manager for Chevrolet Communications. "There are no expected budget
cuts right now."(Detroit
Free Press)(6-2-2009)
Note: Is GM for real? Check out what has happened with
Chrysler. I’m willing to bet ya that GM
will cut back, too, and if so, it will hurt a lot more, than what Chrysler is
doing, for sure.
NASCAR asks to move Mayfield
case to federal court: NASCAR on Tuesday moved Jeremy Mayfield's challenge of his indefinite
suspension to federal court, a move that could keep the driver out of his car
another week. The notification came a day before a North Carolina Superior
Court was scheduled to hear arguments pertaining to Mayfield's suspension for
failing a random drug test. NASCAR's action automatically stayed that
proceeding. Mayfield had hoped a judge would reinstate him in time to compete
this weekend at Pocono Raceway in
The Mayfield lawsuit
link: http://media.charlotteobserver.com/images/pdf/mayfield.pdf
NASCAR drug policy
link: http://media.charlotteobserver.com/images/pdf/nascarpolicy.pdf
Note: Again, the “class bully” strikes! And they wonder why they are losing fans and
getting poor TV ratings? Really?
Double-File restarts at
Pocono?
NASCAR distributed proposals to crew chiefs regarding possible procedures for
double-file restarts which could be introduced as early as Pocono Raceway next
week. The proposal states all starts will be double file. The race leader will
have his choice of which lane to use for the restart. The third-place car will
always start in the inside lane. There will be no changes in the free pass or
"lucky dog," and cars that are one lap down can choose not to pit,
therefore regaining a lap during a caution. The new rule appears to be a work
in progress but Pocono is a 2.5-miler with plenty of space and opportunity to
figure it out.(FoxSports)(6-1-2009)
I wonder – who opened
NASCAR’s eyes? The only thing I object
to is that they will now put lapped cars to the rear – so I’ve heard. So, if the first car a lap down is 4th
in line when there’s a yellow, rather than re-start on the outside of the
second row, he’ll now have to go to the back.
I don’t like that. Then again,
who am I? Just a fan
that’s getting more and more away from what NASCAR is bringing to the table,
today.
Tire Testing at Indy: Goodyear is back at
Indianapolis Motor Speedway this week with several Sprint Cup drivers and
teams, conducting a sixth test since last year's tire meltdown at Indy during
the Allstate 400 at The Brickyard. The Allstate 400, seven weeks away on July
26, is NASCAR's second-biggest event of the year. Only the Daytona 500 ranks
higher in terms of prestige and importance. How serious is it? Serious enough that
Goodyear invited its biggest critic in the past -- Tony Stewart -- to make some
laps on Monday at Indy. As did #12-David Stremme, who was pleased with the
progress Goodyear has made. "They brought a tire that has really even wear," Stremme said. "We got to a full fuel run
[about 30 laps]. Goodyear has done their homework." Twelve Cup teams will
participate in a seventh test later this month. The three-day test this week is
closed to the media.(ESPN.com).
scheduled to test are #14-Tony Stewart, #42-Juan Pablo Montoya, #9-Kasey Kahne,
#7-Robby Gordon, #36-?, #12-David Stremme, #16-Greg Biffle, #21-Bill Elliott
and #31-Jeff Burton. The public can view the testing from the infield
grandstands in the South chute.(6-3-2009)
Note: Maybe we might see a half way decent race
from Indy this year – with the taxi cabs?
Dirt
Track Digest’s forum: http://www.dirttrackdigest.com/forum/index.php?
Quite
a few interesting topics can be seen if you visit the forum.
OCFS
- http://www.orangecountyfairspeedway.net/
I
received the OCFS June Press Release the other day, and it was making mention
of the up-coming “Nostalgia” Night on July 11th. In part:
“NOSTALGIA NIGHT 2009 SHAPING UP AS STARS BEGIN
TO CONFIRM
Buzzie Reutimann, Kenny Brightbill, Gerald Chamberlain,
Bobby Bottcher, Hank Goranson, Dickie Keiper, Tom Hager, Billy Osmun, Beverly
Pierce, Jackie Wilson Eddie Yonker and Frankie Schneider are just some of the
stars that have confirmed they will be attending our Nostalgia Night 2009.
Nostalgia committee chairperson Doug Dulgarian says things are really shaping
up and there will be a final count of well over 40 former drivers here, a new
2009 edition of our fan favorite poster will be available, drivers will once
again be signing autographs. So mark your calendars for July 11 for a great
trip down memory lane.”
Note: I was somewhat surprised that there was no
mention of “The Big Show” that’s coming up next Wednesday at OC, in this latest
press release. Wonder why?
The CRSA 305
sprinters are due to run at OCFS on June 13th.
Accord
- http://www.accordspeedway.com/
“Mother Nature” was the winner last Friday at the “Big A”. Last night (Wed) they were scheduled to open up their “Mid Week Madness” series, but as I’m working on this column, “Mother Nature” isn’t behaving to nicely, if you know what I mean.
The CRSA 305 sprinters are due to run at Accord on June 12th
OVRP’s
Dirt Oval - http://www.ovrpdirtoval.com/
Last week the Dirt Oval was closed. Racing resumes this Saturday with a regular show.
Note: I wonder why the Dirt Oval’s website doesn’t
put up the race reports that John Schoebel does? One would think ……….
Former
OVRP Dirt Oval runners:
Up
at
Down
at New Egypt, Johnny Guarino was 24th in their modified feature
At
Susquehanna, in the Tobias SpeedSTR feature, Billy VanInwegen (Billy V) was the
feature winner. Nick Pecko was 6th
and Jeff Gallup was 11th.
Note: I have concerns about the Tobias SpeedSTR’s
low car counts. Seems
like they are having a hard time getting more than a dozen cars – almost like
last year. I thought I had read
that there were a lot more made, and maybe that’s true, but with there being
three different series – Carolina, Canadian and the “local” Pennsylvania
series, low car counts still persist.
And as for the
At
Hamlin, in the wingless 600 Micros, Brittany Tresch was 11th, Cait
Chambers 23rd and Molly Chambers 24th.
Note: It sure looks like there are quite a few 600
Micro racers out there that want to run wingless. Car counts at Hamlin have increased every
week.
At
Out
at Selinsgrove, Davie Franek was 16th in the 358 sprint car feature
Up
at
At
Wyalusing, in the first
270 Micro Sprint feature, Jacob Hendershot was 3rd and
Rick Casario 7th. In the
second feature, Jacob was 4th and Rick 10th.
Rain
washed out some of the tracks, so some names that normally appear here are
missing this week.
Hey,
if I missed anyone, I’m sorry! And if I
missed YOU, how about letting me know how you’re doing with your advanced
racing careers?
Family
members in racing:
Grandson
John, down in
As
for our 600 Micro – we finally got our head gasket, the last remaining piece
that we needed to get the engine all back together. However, school activities have taken
precedence this past week, so it looks lie it will be another week, or longer,
before we hit the track. We sure wish
there was a track close by where we could test and tune, rather than driver
over two hours to find out whether everything is OK, engine wise, if ya know
what I mean!
Other racin’ stuff:
“The Big Show” – that’s what the
Super Dirt Series race that’s scheduled for the Orange County Fair Speedway on
June 17th, is being billed as.
And, it’s one of the very few SDS races that has
a rain date already posted, too. Many
time OCFS driving champion, Brett Hearn is promoting this event. Promoting races is something that Brett has
wanted to do for some time now, and if the economy hadn’t taken such a hit,
chances are that he might very well would be the
promoter at OCFS today.
Here’s a link to info for
this event: http://www.thebigdirtshow.com/
Looking at the entry list, as
of Wednesday, June 3rd at 12:30 PM, I see that there are 49
confirmed entrants, 14 probables, 12 not confirmed and 70 yet to be asked. Out of those 14 probables, 10 are OCFS
regulars.
Late on Wednesday, it was
announced that Ted Christopher and Miss Motorsports 2009, Alyssa Sharman, would
be in attendance, along with a Carl Edwards # 99 Cup car. It is said that they might attempt to get
Christopher behind the wheel of a dirt modified. Hmmm, has he ever driven a dirt mod?
More racin’ stuff:
I had the opportunity
to speak with Brett on the phone about the event mentioned, above. Many years ago, I happened to approach Jay
Castimore, who was then involved with OCFS, about a special kind of race I
would have liked to be held during Eastern States Weekend. It would consist of the top 12 (I believe it
was 12) qualifiers running a 10 lap race, but having to make a pit stop to
change a left rear tire, sometime during those 10 laps. “Mother Nature” played havoc with the racing
that weekend, and the track was going to scrap that
race. However, the drivers still wanted
it – I guess it was a “My crew is better and faster than your crew” kind of
mentality that the drivers and teams had, so the race was held. If my memory serves me right, it was held on
Sunday morning. Keep in mind – no speed
limit on pit road. Kenny Brightbill was
the first to pit, coming onto pit road on turn three. He blasted his way on pit road, inside of
turn 4, wide open, sideways, and throwing dirt.
The crowd went wild. Naturally,
he lost a lap when pitting, but that fate would befall all other drivers too,
or so it would seem. Every time a driver
would pit, the crowd really got into it.
To be honest, I was quite pleased with the way my idea was coming
off. Then, Doug Hoffman threw a monkey
wrench into the whole deal by stopping in turn two to bring out a yellow. Brett Hearn was just completing his pit stop,
and he wasn’t allowed back on the track.
I can’t blame him for parking his car behind pit wall. Mass confusion took over, and I think it was
decided that Doug was the race winner.
Shortly after that race, I met up with Jay under the stands. As exciting as the race was, he told me we
can’t have a race like that one anymore.
I did inform him that there should have been scorers for each car, since
pit stops were involved.
OK, back to my
conversation with Brett -
I brought up the possibility of maybe having this type of race on
the night of the “Big Show”, and he came back with “they were discussing the
very same thing”. Keep in mind – today
they have transponders. The biggest
problem would be if there were another yellow, of course. Brett said that to have this event, he’d like
to have some kind of sponsorship, so they wouldn’t be racing for nothing. Maybe beside the dollars, they could start
the 100 lap race the way they finish this race – if it’s even held?
Question: Anyone interested in sponsoring this special
race? Hey, maybe they’d let you wave the
green flag! How much would it cost? Would you believe, I didn’t ask him during
our talk! If I find out after this
column is sent in, look for something from me on the DTD’s message board.
The
History of the Sport:
Last week I had this, in this section:
“Some names from the past – could be drivers, car owners, photographers, writers or anyone else associated with racing, get included in these lists that I come out with, on occasion. Some you’ll know – some you won’t.
Here are some names from the past, from the “Hey-day” of midget racing from the mid 40’s to the early 50’s:”
Well,
this week, instead of midget drivers from back then, I’ll give you some names
that drove Indy cars in the late 40’s and early 50’s.
Mauri
Rose, Bill Holland, Ted Horn, Rex Mays, Pete Romcevich, Duke Nalon, Tony
Bettenhausen, Russ Snowberger, Henry Banks, Duane Carter, Zora Arkus-Duntov,
Johnnie Parsons, Cecil Green, Joie Chitwood, Lee Wallard, Walt Faulkner, Paul
Russo, Jack McGrath, Troy Ruttman, Johnny McDowell, Spider Webb, Fred
Agabashian, Ted Duncan, Bill Vukovich, Manuel Ayulo, Sam Hanks, Jimmy Davies,
Jimmy Bryan, Rodger Ward, Cal Niday, Chuck Stevenson, Johnny Thomson, Andy
Linden, Johnny Mantz, Bill Homeier, Joe Sostilio, Chet Miller, Allen Heath and
Jud Larso
Video
time:
At times, there are some serious, though non fatal
accidents in racing. Since you’re
reading this, I have to imagine that you’ve heard of Al Unser, Jr. and Chip
Ganassi? Well, they had an unscheduled
meeting during an Indy car race at
Other (non racing)
news:
I found this over on
Yahoo! News:
By KEN THOMAS, Associated Press Writer Ken
Thomas, Associated Press Writer – Wed Jun 3,
7:45 am ET
The
executives will appear before a Senate committee Wednesday to talk about their
dealership plans.
Lawmakers
contend the dealership closings will put thousands of people out of work and offer
few savings to GM or Chrysler, which have received billions in federal aid as
they attempt to restructure and return to profitability.
Chrysler LLC has identified 789 dealerships that it
plans to close next week, about a quarter of the company's dealership network.
The Auburn Hills,
General Motors Corp. told 1,100 dealerships that it
does not plan to renew their franchise agreements in late 2010 and expects to
shed another 900 dealerships through attrition and by selling or discontinuing
its Hummer,
"The
egregious time frame and terms of these franchise terminations seem
unprecedented to me," wrote Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., who chairs the Senate
Commerce Committee, which will hold the hearing.
GM
chief executive Fritz Henderson and Chrysler Vice Chairman and President Jim
Press were testifying before the committee along with several dealers being
forced to close. Car dealers are a potent political force, contributing more
than $9 million to federal candidates for the 2008
elections.
GM
and Chrysler have said the dealership reductions are a painful part of their
restructuring, which also has required concessions from union workers and
bondholders. Seeking to address the concerns, Troy Clarke, president of GM's
North American operations, and Press met with committee members before the
hearing.
Discontinued
Chrysler dealerships have resold or redistributed about 90 percent of their
vehicle inventory and parts through a company program, spokeswoman Lisa Barrow
said. GM's plan was designed to help dealerships slowly wind down their
businesses.
But
car dealers want the Obama administration to give shuttered Chrysler dealers
more time to close their franchises and provide additional financing to help
Chrysler buy back inventories, parts and specialized tools from the
dealerships.
The
request creates a potential conflict for the White House,
which has said it will refrain from running the day-to-day operations of the
companies and delegate those decisions to the auto companies' management. The
government is expected to receive a 60 percent stake in GM and a 10 percent
share of Chrysler in exchange for the federal aid.
Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who met with the GM and Chrysler executives on Tuesday, said Congress would not
try to "go through the administration to get them to do something in the
companies."
But
Dorgan said it was reasonable for the lawmakers to ask Chrysler: "Are you
sure you're making the right decision in the way you treat these kinds of
dealers in certain rural areas?"
And
this:
Both
Chrysler and GM are defending their closing of numerous dealerships:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_auto_dealers
Buying
something for one or five dollars? How
about a mobile home? It’s true. Check it out, here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/02/AR2009060203897.html?g=0
Closing with this:
The other day I was in our
kitchen getting ready to do some cooking on our gas grill. I like to use Garlic Powder as a
seasoning. I buy the jar that cost 99
cents. Hey, when you’re on a fixed
income, you attempt to get more for your buck, you know? Well I was really surprised to see that the
Garlic Powder was from
“I WAS BUYING FOOD
THE OTHER DAY AT THE COUNTRY MARKET. ON THE LABEL OF
SOME PRODUCTS IT SAID 'FROM
I WAS
SHOCKED!!
SO FOR A FEW MORE
CENTS I BOUGHT THE
TAKES FOREVER
JUST TO BUY FOOD AND DO LABEL
Are we Americans
as dumb as we appear --- or --- is it that we just do
not think? While the Chinese, knowingly and intentionally, export inferior and
even toxic products and dangerous toys and goods
to be sold in American markets, the media wrings its hands and criticizes the
ex-Bush Administration for perceived errors.
Yet 70% of
Americans believe that the trading privileges afforded to the Chinese should be
suspended.
Well, duh..why do you need the government to suspend trading
privileges?
SIMPLY DO IT
YOURSELF,
Simply look on
the bottom of every product you buy, and if it says 'Made in
Who needs plastic
eggs to celebrate Easter? If you must have eggs, use
real ones and benefit some American farmer.
Easter is just an example, the point is do not wait
for the government to act. Just go ahead and assume control on your own.
THINK ABOUT
THIS: If 200 million Americans refuse to buy just $20 each of
Chinese goods, that's a billion dollar trade imbalance resolved in our
favor...fast!!
The downside? Some American businesses will feel a
temporary pinch from having foreign stockpiles of inventory. Wahhhhhhhhhhhh
!!!
The solution? Let's give them fair warning and
send our own message. Most of the people who have been reading about this
matter are planning on implementing this on June
4, and continue it until July 4. That is only one month of trading
losses, but it will hit the Chinese for 1/12th of the total, or 8%, of their
American exports. Then they will at least have to ask themselves if the
benefits of their arrogance and lawlessness were worth it.
Remember, June 4
to July 4.
EVEN BETTER. . . START NOW.
Send this to
everybody you know. Let's show them that we are Americans and NOBODY can take
us for granted.
If we can't live
without cheap Chinese goods for one month out of our lives, WE DESERVE WHAT WE
GET!
Pass it on,
May “Guardian Angels” sit on the shoulders of all of our race drivers and guide them safely around the
tracks!
Drive safe!
As
usual, you can reach me at: ygordad@yahoo.com