Racin' Stuff:

By Tom Avenengo

 

 

First things, first:

I’m pretty sure that out of all the columns that I’ve done, there was only one that I did that was dedicated to someone, and in that case, it was for two women – Ann Kneisel and Bev Foster.

 

This weeks column is being dedicated to the late Keith Herbst, who passed away on June 16th, at the age of 72.  I have to figure that a good percentage of those that read my columns will have no idea as to who Keith Herbst was.  We first met back in February in 2004 at the Paterson Museum when they had a small racecar show there.  Keith had done a lot of research, especially on Bill Schindler, and after he had read my “Ah Yes, I Remember It Well” articles, said he just had to meet me, and talk about the good old days.  We met a few times after that, and we even went to the Vintage Race Car Meet at Loudon back in 2005.  On our way to Loudon, we also stopped off to visit the fine folks at Coastal 181, a book publishing company.  Keith was in the process of getting a book published, one that would cover the racing at the Civic Stadium in Buffalo, N.Y. – during the 1940’s.  The title:  “Daredevils of the Frontier”.  One cannot imagine all the research and investigating that Keith did for that piece of work.  For him it was a work of love, so to say.

 

Once the book was published, which was Coastal 181’s first attempt at a hard cover book, I believe, I received an autographed copy, much to my surprise.  Even more of a surprise was what Keith had written above his signature:

“To Tom, whose “I Remember It Well” Series got me started thinking about “Daredevils” … Your friend” – followed by his signature and “Nov 2006”.

I would imagine that by now Keith is having a blast at the speedway above, bench racing with all of the “Daredevils” he wrote about.

 

So, for you Keith, this one’s for you!  Rest In Peace, my friend!

 

Some of my thoughts:

With all the work that was done up in Loudon on the infield, I was rather anxious to see just where the new “Victory Lane” was going to be.  With the rain causing the race to end early, I didn’t get to see the victory celebration, since I was cleaning up after dinner – no I’m not that messy of an eater, I do the dishes.  Heck, the “War department” always had my dinner ready for me all the years I worked, so I can see giving her a break today, by doing the dishes every night.  Back to the “Victory Lane” thing – any idea as to why they have to have it in the middle of the infield at most tracks?  Why not between the track and pit road, so the fans can get to see it?  Where was it at Loudon?

Usually Loudon is a complete sell-out.  Like most tracks now, that wasn’t the case.  Yes, some empty seats were seen.

I caught a glimpse of the WoO sprinters on TV the other day from Dodge City, Iowa.  Talk about a HARD track!

As of Tuesday, there are only 45 cars entered for the Daytona Cup race.  My daughter Sandra, called me on Sunday to tell me that she will be at Daytona for the race.  Hope it’s a good show for her and the weather holds out.

Saturday night I watched the Indycar “Freight train” race from Richmond.  It looks like the crowd was about the same as when I was there a couple of times, some years back.  When I say “Freight train” racing – well, that seems to be the norm today, in most of the racing we get to see.  “Progress”, in my opinion has really hurt the sport.  There’s no room for ingenuity.  Some series, like the Indy cars are mostly a “Spec” series now.  At Richmond, there wasn’t much passing, and that was even mentioned by the announcers and drivers, too.  They blame it on the “Aero” package, and I agree.  Personally I’d love to see them go back to no wings and put the driver more into the equation, but, sadly, it ain’t gonna happen.  And the powers that be can’t see what has happened to the sport, either.

Note:  While I was checking out the Track Forum, I came across a post that had this link, below, in it.  A very interesting read, believe me.  Funny, but I’ve seen it said more than once now, that the USAC Silver Crown cars and USAC Sprint cars didn’t seem to have any problems with passing at Richmond.  Why so for the Indy cars? A E R O & W I N G S & E N G I N E S (all the same – one brand - Honda)

http://www.racer.com/2009/06/indycars-racing-must-improve-immediately/

 

Uh oh, that little bit I said above about the USAC Silver Crown and Sprinters not having any problems passing – could very well be, BUT are there problems between USAC and the IRL with Richmond?  What follows, if true, doesn’t look too good as far as any future USAC/IRL events at the ¾ mile track go.  This was posted on the Micro Racing’s message board in a thread about Ryan Smith at Richmond:

“Seen on the news last night that there was such a low turn out that there may never be a race back at the track again”
---End Quote---

”Where was this reported?  Having been at the race, the attendance didn't seem any lower or higher than previous years.  Which in these economic times is all you can really ask for.  I know that the event was in its last year of the contract and that RIR was sitting down yesterday (6/30) with both USAC and the IRL to discuss the future of the event.”

 

TV has so overtaken our sport that now, after winning a race, the driver must wait in the car before he can get out and celebrate.  And, as for interviews, only a few drivers actually take off their sunglasses when talking, and doesn’t it get tiring watching them “drink” the sponsors product, too, while going on camera?

I hope that you do realize that double file re-starts are not something that NASCAR invented.  And isn’t there already way to much bally-who about them now on TV?  It’s kinda like these double file re-starts are the greatest thing since sliced bread.  Well, they ain’t folks. I’d still like to see the lapped cars mixed in with the lead lap cars.  Heck, the leader worked his butt off, in most cases, putting a car a lap down, and maybe the second place car hadn’t done that yet, still after a caution and a re-start, the second place car is now up next to the leader and that car that was lapped only by the leader, is now at the back.  I feel that the second place car should also have to work to lap the car – and third place car etc etc.

 

I caught a glimpse of Cup practice at Daytona on Thursday afternoon.  After 15 laps, the rear tire on the Jeff Gordon car was worn down too, and possibly through, some of the cords.  Other drivers also were talking about “tire wear”.  A “gas run” at Daytona is 40+ laps.  Race night problems coming up here?

 

 

 

Going back, in time:

 

On July 2nd, in:

 

1950

Tommy Hinnershitz won the AAA Eastern Sprint Car race over Mike Nazaruk at the Williams Grove Speedway,Mechanicsburg, PA.

1961

Parnelli Jones won the USAC Sprint Car race at the Indianapolis Raceway Park (5/8p), Indianapolis, IN. A.J. Foyt was second followed by Jim Hurtubise, Len Sutton and Al Keller.

Bobby Marshman won the USAC Midget race at the Trenton International Speedway (1.0p), Trenton, NJ.

Ray Roberts won the NEMA Midget race over Joe Csiki and Bill Randall at the Oxford Plains Speedway, Oxford Plains, ME.

1964

Edward Glenn "Fireball" Roberts, Jr.... Died ... On May 24, 1964, at the World 600 in Charlotte, Roberts had qualified in the eleventh position and started in the middle of the pack. On lap 7, Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson collided and spun out and Roberts crashed trying to avoid them. Roberts' Ford slammed backward into the inside retaining wall, flipped over and burst into flames. Witnesses at the track claimed they heard Roberts screaming, "Ned, help me!" from inside his car after the wreck. Jarrett rushed to save Roberts as his car was engulfed by the flames. Roberts suffered second- and third-degree burns over 80 percent of his body and was airlifted to a hospital in critical condition. Although it was widely believed that Roberts had an allergic reaction to flame-retardant chemicals, he was secretly an asthmatic and the chemicals made his breathing worse. Roberts was able to survive for several weeks, and it appeared he might pull through, but Roberts' health took a turn for the worse on June 30, 1964. He contracted pneumonia and sepsis and slipped into a coma by the next day. He died on July 2, 1964. Roberts' death, as well as the deaths of two drivers at the Indianapolis 500 the same year, led to an increase in research for fire-retardant uniforms. It also led to the development of the Firestone RaceSafe fuel cell, and all race cars today use a foam-backed fuel cell to prevent severe fuel spillage of the massive degree that Roberts had. Also, fully fire-retardant coveralls would be phased in leading to the now mandatory Nomex racing suits.

1965

Ray Tilley won the Super Modified race at the Williams Grove Speedway, Williams Grove,PA.

1973

Swede Savage... Died ... Savage started racing 1/4 midgets then motorcycles and karts. He then graduated to NASCAR, Can-Am, Trans-A and finally into Indy cars where he tragically lost his life as a result of injuries sustained in the Indy 500 in 1973.

1977

Tom Bigelow, won the first and third and Pancho Carter won the second of the Triple 33's USAC Sprint Car races at the Indiana State Fairgrounds,Indianapolis,IN.

1979

Sam Hornish, Jr.... Born ... An American race car driver. He is best known for his open wheel accomplishments, which include an Indianapolis 500 victory and three Indy Racing League championships. He now drives in NASCAR.

1994

Jimmy Spencer won the NASCAR Winston Cup Pepsi 400 over Ernie Irvan at the Daytona International Speedway, Daytona, FL.

 

July 8, 1956:  Nofri (Nick) Fornoro, Sr. won the last race he ever competed in.  He retired as a driver after his wife, Bette, told him about a premonition that she had about him and his racing.  Nick informed Ed “Dutch” Schaefer, President of the ARDC at the time, of his decision.  “Dutch” told Nick that he didn’t want to lose him, and asked him if he might be interested in being the flagger (starter) for the club.  Nick agreed to do that.  “Dutch” told him to be at the Orange County Fair Speedway, in Middletown, N.Y. the next night, which he did, and that led to him being one of the most respected starters in all of racing.  Oh, a little explanation of being respected – at a race one day, Nick was giving AJ Foyt the “move over” flag, because he was due to get lapped.  This went on for a few laps.  On one of those occasions, so the story goes, AJ showed Nick his “IQ” – if you know what I mean.  After that race there was a little talk between Nick and AJ.  After that talk, AJ obeyed every instruction that was given to him by Nick.

 

 

 

Coming up in the near future:

 

More than likely, if you’re going to a racing event this coming weekend, you’ll get to see some fireworks – the kind that they send up into the sky.

 

At OCFS on July 11th, they’ll have another “Nostalgia Night” where drivers from the past come to meet and talk with the fans, plus autograph most anything that the fans bring with them.  I know that Buzzie Reutimann is due up from Florida.  Some others are:

Gerald Chamberlain, Bobby Bottcher, Hank Goranson,  Billy Osmun, Dickie Keiper, Tom Hager,  Kenny Brightbill, Jackie Wilson, Russ Meyer, Beverly Pierce, Charlie Castle, Robbie Green, Charley Shire, Frankie Schneider, Greg Chelak, Eddie Yonkers and Eric Koster – to name a few.  It’s being said that there will be about 50 drivers from back in “The Day” that will be at OC.  Also on tap that night are the restored racecars of the Atlantic Coast Old Timers (ACOT), and the Vintage Modifieds.

 

The night before, on Friday, July 10th, at the Accord Speedway, both ACOT and the ARDC midgets will be in attendance.

 

 

 

Racing on TV:

Check out what’s on TV, racing wise, here:  http://www.racefantv.com/USTV.htm

This coming weekend there is the Saturday night Daytona race for Cup cars, on TNT, and the Indy cars are at Watkins Glen, and they’ll be on ABC.  Other races will also be telecast from Daytona, as you can see if you go to the link, above.

 

Note:  Quite a while back, it was said that at Daytona for this event, the entire backstretch stands would be CLOSED – mainly due to a seemingly continuous dropping in attendance for this event.  By doing that, they can keep from hiring extra help in all areas, like security, food services and rest room attendants, and probably parking, too.  Kind of like when you watch races on TV – other than Cup – and you see complete grandstands empty.  Just common sense, I suppose?  So, if you notice those stands empty (if they’re even shown on TV – which I’d say the TV people are told not to show them) – don’t be to surprised, ok?

 

Last week:

 

Last week, I had this in my column, which was found on the Track Forum:

 

“Doing away with the Truck Series?  Well, someone has started a thread on this on the TF.  Interested?  Check it out, here:

http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125167

 

While starting on this column this past Sunday, I came across this, over on Jayski’s website:

 

The future of NASCAR's Truck tour in doubt? Promoter Bruton Smith and NASCAR president Mike Helton are reported to be meeting Friday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway over the uncertain future of NASCAR's Truck series, with increasing speculation that the tour – 25 races this season, on 16 Sprint Cup tour tracks and seven other tracks – will be severely cut next season. Indeed even the survival of the Truck series, which was created in 1995 by the late Bill France Jr. as a budget-priced 'proving ground' for new car owners, new sponsors and new drivers, has been questioned. General Motors, Ford and Dodge have all withdrawn financial support of the Truck tour and the Nationwide tour, leaving only Toyota officially involved. Toyota officials have reportedly decided to drop their financial support too, though Toyota racing boss Lee White insists no decision has been made. One suggestion to help save the Truck series has been for the four NASCAR car makers to work together to design an inexpensive 'spec' Truck engine, to cut costs. Another suggestion has been a 'common' engine for all three NASCAR touring series.(mikemulhern.net)(6-27-2009)

 

UPDATE: During an interview on SPEEDtv's NCTWS setup program, NASCAR VP Steve O'Donnell said the state of the series is "really strong." O'Donnell stated that NASCAR officials met with team owners earlier this year to help out the racing with some rule changes, they have been working with the teams, and that the series puts on the "best racing". When asked about double-file restarts, O'Donnell said that the series has two weeks off following Memphis, and that NASCAR will continue to look at it. [Also heard that O'Donnell addressed the state of the series during the Drivers Meeting in Memphis, assuring teams that NASCAR is full speed ahead for 2010. He also said that NASCAR is excited by new owners and drivers and the new tracks coming on line next year.](6-27-2009)

 

Note:  It will be interesting to see just what will happen to this series.  There is other talk, on the internet, about some possible engine changes (Spec?) in the future for maybe the Truck Series and even Nationwide and Cup.  Time will tell, I suppose.  With the problems the “Big Three” are having, I can see some big changes coming.

 

Other forums/message boards and websites:

 

From the Track Forum - http://www.trackforum.com/forums/

My thoughts on the race at Richmond were above.  However, there are some threads on TF about it, too.

http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125338

http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125309

http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125301

 

Last week, they had the annual Vintage Racecar meet at the Latimore Valley Fairgrounds, or the Eastern Museum of Motor Racing.  There is a thread there - http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125448 - with a link to some nice photos of some of the cars from days gone bye.

 

The saga of Tony George – his resignation from Indianapolis (and the IRL too?).  Lots of things being said on this multi page thread:  http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125420

 

 

From Jayski - http://www.jayski.com/

 

Jayski has a special section that picks up on what a lot of other writers have to say as far as racing (mostly NASCAR) goes, and it can be found here:  http://www.jayski.com/pages/stories.htm

 

Mayfield's attorney speaks: Wednesday on "Sirius Speedway" on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio, host Dave Moody spoke with Bill Diehl, the attorney for driver Jeremy Mayfield.
Host, Dave Moody: "In your view, what was the key to this decision going your way?"
Bill Diehl: "Probably NASCAR's over the top confidence about how right they were and how wrong Jeremy was. You know, they were wrong about it from the get-go and we stayed with our position throughout the argument and throughout the time that we've been suspended and we just carried the day as far as the judge is concerned that Jeremy had been treated wrong and to right the wrong meant giving him back his position in NASCAR and suspending the suspension."
Moody: "How soon will he be back? Will we see Mayfield Motorsports at Daytona trying to qualify this weekend and, if so, will Jeremy be the driver?"
Diehl: "I think that's probably problematic to be perfectly honest. I think it's real difficult for him to get ready starting tonight and then race Saturday. He normally would have three days with a Sunday race and instead he only has two with a Saturday night race and I think it will be quite difficult. He hasn't made up his mind as far as a final decision is concerned but I think it realistic to expect that he'd be returning next week rather than this week."
Moody: "There have been conflicting reports since the ruling was announced earlier this afternoon about whether or not NASCAR would appeal this decision. What's your expectation? Do you have any at this point?"
Diehl: "I really don't. You know, they would do well to put this behind them, put this whole issue behind them, and go forward. It's what I hope. But, again, they're proud people and they don't lose very often and they've lost something that they may decide to try to carry on the case even longer and fight harder and that might be their position. I can't tell you today, for certain, that there'll be any contact. The judge himself urged the parties to try to talk to each other. We're certainly willing. We've never been haughty about this. We've never been over the top and I don't think we've been pushy. We've said, 'We have rights. We think they ought to be vindicated. We think you ought to listen.' So far they've been real hard to deal with. Maybe their position will change. I can't predict that."
(Sirius NASCAR Radio PR)(7-2-2009)

 

Mayfield not at Daytona as garage opens: Car owners #64-Larry Gunselman and #36-Tommy Baldwin say they will not put Jeremy Mayfield in their cars this weekend at Daytona International Speedway. Gunselman says his sponsor, Fred's, does not want Mayfield in the car. Baldwin says Mayfield has too much baggage to drive his car. Mayfield's indefinite suspension for a failed drug test was lifted by a federal judge on Wednesday, allowing him to race this weekend. His team was not at the track when the garage opened Thursday, which NASCAR initially said was the deadline for the #41 to enter the race. NASCAR now says Mayfield has until 3 p.m. to bring Mayfield Motorsports to the track.(Associated Press)(7-2-2009)

 

UPDATE: [Mayfield] can drive for someone else or bring his own #41 Toyota to the track, but the $5,005 late entry fee is daunting for the cash-strapped Mayfield. He said in an affidavit last week that he laid off 10 employees, borrowed money from family and had to sell personal assets to cover his living expenses. Phil Parsons said he'd keep Dave Blaney in his #66 car, and Joe Nemechek said he had no intention of giving up his seat in his #87. (Associated Press)(7-2-2009)
UPDATE 2: Jeremy Mayfield has missed the deadline to enter his car into Saturday night's race at Daytona International Speedway. He had an afternoon deadline Thursday to bring the #41 Toyota to the track, and it passed with no sign of Mayfield or his race team.(Associated Press)(7-2-2009)

Ramsey Poston speaks about Mayfield ruling: Today on "The Morning Drive" on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio, hosts Mike Bagley and Nate Ryan spoke with NASCAR managing director of corporate communications Ramsey Poston about the temporary injunction issued yesterday by a judge that lifted driver Jeremy Mayfield's drug suspension.
Bagley: "What are the next steps for NASCAR?"
Poston: "We've got a couple of options to consider. At this point it is to, with regards to the lawsuit, is to begin to go into the discovery phase, begin to get testimony and affidavits and a witness list."
Bagley: "Does yesterday's temporary injunction affect the current policy or procedure in place or does it even raise a discussion that there perhaps at some point needs to be a change to the policy and the procedure?"
Poston: "In the short term we'll continue to implement our policy as is because, again, this was a temporary injunction to allow him back onto the track. It was not any sort of indictment in terms of the policy. But anytime you go through any sort of challenge on any policy, you tend to learn more about it and I suspect once we get past this process and the dust settles, we'll look back and say, 'OK, where can we strengthen the policy? What can we do?' I will say this: if this stands and if this is not reversed, this becomes a much larger question for all of sports and all of substance abuse testing. This now means that any athlete in any sport, regardless of what contracts they've signed, can now take that to court and be allowed back onto the playing surface."
Host, Nate Ryan: "Ramsey, are you guys going to appeal the decision?"
Poston: "That is one of the options that we're considering. We have not made a decision on that yet."
Ryan: "When do you have to make that decision by?"
Poston: "We have some time to make it, so there's no definitive deadline on when it has to be made."
(Sirius NASCAR Radio PR)(7-2-2009)

 

 

Note # 1:  Kind of a shame that it now looks like Jeremy will be “Black balled” from racing.  As someone else said, which I read on the internet, if and when he does show up at a track, he can expect his car to be very, very finely gone over by the inspectors. 

 

And, if he makes a race, you best believe they’ll watch his each and every move on the track, in the garage, and his pit road speeds – my thoughts on this.

 

Note # 2:  On the Track Forum, there’s an interesting thread about Jeremy Mayfield which can be seen if you go to this link:

http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125394

 

 

While checking out Jayski’s website, I came across this – an article by Marty Smith, who is basically siding with NASCAR on the Mayfield deal:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4302104&name=smith_marty

 

And then there were some comments made about what Marty had to say – and they more or less are siding with Jeremy and are against NASCAR:

http://myespn.go.com/s/conversations/show/story/4302104

 

 

 

Danica Patrick to Hendrick? Dale Jr. to.....UPDATE denied: If Danica Patrick does jump from the Indy Racing League to NASCAR, as increasingly appears likely, the battle for her, according to sources close to the negotiations, is down to car owners Rick Hendrick, of Chevrolet, and Jack Roush, of Ford. According to these sources, Hendrick and General Motors' Chevrolet division are now suddenly the heavy favorites to sign Patrick. And the key would apparently be Hendrick's willingness to put her in a Sprint Cup ride for the full 2010 season. Roush has said he would like to see her run some NASCAR Nationwide and/or Truck events, along with six or seven Cup events, to get her accustomed to stock car racing. Hendrick reportedly is willing to go further. Patrick might take Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s spot on Hendrick's official four-team Cup roster, with Earnhardt moving to an expanded JR Motorsports operation. JR Motorsports, Earnhardt's own operation, run in partnership with Hendrick, would thus be stepping up to a full Cup program; Hendrick has already been talking with Talladega winner Brad Keselowski about Keselowski's future in NASCAR, with indications he could get a Cup ride with an expanded JR Motorsports venture, with Hendrick engines and Hendrick engineering. It is not clear how far along any Patrick-IMG-Hendrick negotiations have gone, but sources tell mikemulhern.net that the Patrick-Hendrick deal is very close to being a 'done deal.'(Mikemulhern.net)(6-28-2009)
UPDATE - denied:been told by Hendrick Motorsports reps that there is absolutely no truth to this.(6-28-2009)

 

Note:  My thoughts- any owner that would put a rookie driver in a Cup ride FULL TIME, and not get some experience prior to that in either the Nationwide or Truck Series, has got to be a little low on brain fluid.

 

Truex Jr. may leave EGR, but Bass Pro Shops will return: Earnhardt Ganassi Racing President Steve Lauletta said no matter what happens with Martin Truex Jr., he expects Bass Pro Shops will remain with the organization for 2010. Truex, who drives for EGR, is expected to be announced as the 2010 full-time replacement for Michael Waltrip at Michael Waltrip Racing on July 7. “I heard about that [announcement] – I have no idea [its content],” Lauletta said in the New Hampshire Motor Speedway garage. “We have not re-signed Martin for 2010.” Lauletta was fairly mum on whether the team would put current driver Aric Almirola (who started the year driving for EGR in Sprint Cup and has since been driving select Nationwide and Truck races for other teams) in the #1 car or someone else. “We’re not going to talk about what we’re doing and what our options are,” Lauletta said. “We’ll keep that all internal.” He said those discussions would include Bass Pro Shops. As far as his manufacturer situation, Lauletta said EGR is in a similar situation as the rest of the Chevrolet organizations as it has been asked to cut back.(SceneDaily)(6-28-2009)

 

Note:  Don’t ya just love “rumors”?

 

Latest on Gordon's back: #24-Jeff Gordon met with members of the media at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and discussed many things, among them, how his back is doing, transcript in part:
HAS YOUR BACK PLAYED ANY ROLE IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS?
Gordon: "No, no. The thing with my back is it's almost a blessing in disguise because I've always been fairly fit without having to do much. And I think that because of that, my core had gotten a little bit weak and I think over the last few years, especially with some wrecks, it's contributed to my back problems. And now, I'm getting much stronger so I'm actually in better physical shape than I've been in a long time and still have a ways to go. But I think it's actually going to help me be more prepared for the end of the year and the Chase than anything else. So far, I think Bristol, maybe Richmond, those tracks have been the toughest on me. And they're not in the Chase. So we'll be in good shape."(GM Racing)(6-27-2009)

 

Note:  Well, since he’s “much stronger” now, and in better shape, what do you think the odds will be on him racing in the “Prelude to the Dream” race now, on September 9th?  Really.  Betcha he doesn’t race it.

 

New Hampshire TV Ratings Up: TNT's telecast Sunday of the Sprint Cup Series' Lenox Industrial Tools 301 from New Hampshire Motor Speedway earned a 4.1 cable rating and 5.555 million viewers from 1:59-5:45pm/et, the Sports Business Journal reported Tuesday. The telecast marks the first Cup Series race this season to see both year-over-year ratings and viewership gains, up 2.5% and 1.1% from last year's 4.0 cable rating and 5.495 million viewers. The race also was the ninth most-viewed telecast on all of cable for the week of June 22-28. For four Cup Series races to date, TNT is averaging a 4.0 cable rating and 5.502 million viewers, down 4.8% and 3.7% from a 4.2 rating and 5.715 million viewers last year.(NASCAR.com), for more race-by-race TV Ratings, see my 2009 TV Ratings page.(6-30-2009)

 

Note:  What?  TV ratings UP?  Maybe those empty seats that could be seen (not many of them, though) – maybe those folks chose to sit home and watch?

 

 

 

Dirt Track Digest’s forum:  http://www.dirttrackdigest.com/forum/index.php?

 

Check out the forum!  Lotsa stuff on it!

 

 

OCFS - http://www.orangecountyfairspeedway.net/

As you know, OCFS was canceled last week due to some electrical problems.  Heck, it would not have mattered, since it would have rained out, anyway.  As of Monday, they have a green light for this coming Saturday.  Hopefully, for the track, it’s race teams, drivers and fans, they’ll be racing.  And, yes, as far as I know, if you have your wristband (orange one) from the “Big Show”, you’ll get $4.00 off the price of admission to the stands or drive-in.  We might miss that deal since we should be racing our Micro Sprint – finally, down at the Greenwood Valley Action Track, near Bloomsburg, Pa.

Just prior to sending this column in, I thought I’d check our local papers website.  I found this, pertaining to OCFS and this coming Saturday:

“OCFS has been cleared to operate on Saturday July 4

Orange County Fairgrounds owner Michael Gurda called the Record on Thursday afternoon to inform us that there will be racing (weather always permitting, of course) on Saturday July 4th.”

 

 

Bethel Motor Speedway:  http://www.bethelmotorspeedway.com/BethelMotorSpeedway/HomePage.html

Bethel is about the closest track to where I live, and believe it or not, I’ve never been there.  With OC having to cancel last Saturday, some of those fans that frequent OC made the trip to Bethel, and from what I’ve been reading, they had a good time.

 

Hamlin Speedway:  http://www.hamlinspeedway.com/

This coming Saturday is a 100 lap, $1,500.00 to win, Slingshot race.  That purse is for 24 entrants, or more, which shouldn’t be a problem.

 

Accord - http://www.accordspeedway.com/

So far in 2009, Accord has had 11 races scheduled on Friday nights.  So far, feature winners are Rick Mill and John McGill with one each, Danny Johnson with three, and “Mother Nature” with six.  Looking at the weather forecast, as of Monday, scattered thunderstorms are being predicted for every day this week – including Friday.

 

 

OVRP’s Dirt Oval - http://www.ovrpdirtoval.com/

Nothing to report from the Dirt Oval this week since they were rained out last Saturday and are closed for these next two Saturdays.

 

 

Former OVRP Dirt Oval runners:

Last week I didn’t mention that Brad Szulewski had a third place finish in the 600 Modified feature at Lindas.

 

At Fulton, in the Modifieds, Mike Storms was 13th.  In the Sportsman feature, Matt Hitchcock was 16th.

At New Egypt, Johnny Guarino was 3rd in the modified feature.  There is a Mike Ruggerio listed as 11th in the Sportsman feature, and I’m wondering if it is Mike Ruggiero from OC and Accord.

At Five mile Point, in the Irv Heath Memorial race, Jamie Yannone was 8th.

At Lebanon Valley, in the Sportsman feature, Kyle Armstrong was 15th and Kolby Schroder was 21st.

At Whip City, RJ Tufano had a 2nd in the Quad 4 and a second in the 1200 Mini Sprint features.

At the Greenwood Valley Action Track, in the 270 Micro Sprints, Mike Casario finished 7th.

At Utica/Rome, Mike Storms was 11th in the modified 50 lap feature.

At Lanco, Brad Szulewski had a 13th place in the 600 Modified feature.  Geordan Farry was a DNQ.

At Bethel, Rusty Creeden was 2nd and Anthony Perrego 6th in the Sportsman main.  I had heard that Clinton Mills was at Bethel, but didn’t see his name in the results.

At Selinsgrove, Davie Franek was 10th in the Sprint Car feature.

At Wall Stadium the Modified Outlaw Microstocks ran and Nick Cottone was first across the line, with Brian Braddock 2nd, Dennis Hiddemen 3rd, Tom Ervin 4th, Bill Kreiger 6th and Andy Hiddemen 8th.  Nick Cottone celebrated his 71st birthday last year when he won the feature at OVRP’s Dirt Oval.       

 

Family members in racing:

I’ve been told that grandson John Rizzo has put his racing on hold for a little while.  As for Brett, it looks like we’ll finally get to race this coming Saturday – probably at the Greenwood Valley Action Track down by Bloomsburg, Pa.  I see that the Atlantic Coast Old Timers are also scheduled for GVAT on the 4th.  Will be nice seeing some ACOT folks again.

 

Other racin’ stuff:

There have been more than one “Formula Libra” race at the famed mile and a half road course in Lime Rock, Ct.  As you probably know, Rodger Ward won the one in 1969 while driving a twelve year old midget owned by Ken Brenn.  And, there have been just plain midget races at Lime Rock, too – in conjunction with some sports car races.  Mario Andretti, former World Champion in Formula One actually won his very first road race at Lime Rock – in a midget.  In that same race, Mark Donohue ran his first ever professional race.  He drove a Cooper car (rear engine) with an Offy engine in it.  It’s said that Mark had some problems and were making repairs, and it looked like he wouldn’t make it out for the main event.  Another driver (Dutch Schaefer?) had his car on the track, but he disappeared – probably to “relieve” himself.  He didn’t return until Marks car was ready to race.

Some photos from Lime Rock can be seen if you go to this link:  http://www.coldplugs.com/lime_rock_park01.htm

 

More racin’ stuff:

With the ARDC coming to the Accord Speedway on July 10th, I thought I’d give you the link to the list of all of their driving and car owner champions, from 1940 to the present.

http://www.ardcmidgets.com/RecordBooks/PastChampions.asp

 

The History of the Sport:

 

With July 4th just about upon us, I thought I’d take you back to July 4, 1951.  On that date I was in attendance at the racetrack in Darlington, S.C. for the 250 mile Indy car race.  I went with my father and brother, and I some how remember that my little sister was also with us.  Back then, my sister and I lived in Snow Hill, N.C., while my father and brother still lived in Montvale, N.J.

They started 28 cars, with 16 cars not making the field.  Every car entered was powered with an Offenhauser engine.  I can still recall the car that sat on the pole – a blue # 79 that was driven by Johnny McDowell.  From what I recall, it was the sound of that water-injected engine that set it apart from all the others.   McDowell finished 16th when the race ended.  Walt Faulkner won the race.  Finishing behind Walt , in order, were:  Tony Bettenhausen, Cecil Green, Bill Mackey, Jack McGrath, Manuel Ayulo, Henry Banks, Mike Nazaruk, Chuck Stevenson, Walt Brown, Cliff Griffith, Andy Linden, Paul Russo, Kenny Eaton, Gene Force, McDowell, Gordon Reid, Dick Frazier, Rex Easton, Neal Carter, Bill Schindler, Ray Knepper, Johnnie Parsons, Jimmy Davies, George Connor, Bill Vukovich, Carl Scarborough and Joe James.  For his win, Faulkner earned a little over $5,600.00.  Last place paid $112.00.  Some names that didn’t qualify for the race are:  Johnny Tolan, Rodger Ward, Fred Agabashian, Joe Barzda, Doc Shanebrook, Duane Carter and Duke Dinsmore.

 

 

 

Video time:

 

When I look at our 600 Micro Sprint, it sure looks like it is about the same size as what the midgets were back in the 40’s and 50’s.  Here’s an in car video from a 600 Micro Sprint (wingless) from the Hamlin, Pa. speedway.  Enjoy!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ca6BpDxu7S4&feature=related

 

 

Other (non racing) news:

In a way I was glad to see the Supreme Court rule in favor of the firemen that were not promoted.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_go_su_co/us_supreme_court_firefighters_lawsuit

 

Farrah Fawcet – the “girl friend” of many of us men and boys - way back when, lost her battle with cancer and passed away.  Quite a bit was made of her passing, at least for a day.  With the news of Michael Jackson passing, the media kind of put Farrah’s passing way back on the back shelf, so to say.  To this writer, that was a shame.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_en_tv/us_farrah_fawcett_funeral

 

Many times in my past columns, I’ve come out and said that the unemployment rate would hit 10%.  Well, on Thursday, July 2nd, it has been reported that the unemployment rate is now 9.5%.  Keep in mind, that does not include workers that lost their jobs but were successful in obtaining some part time work!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090702/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/us_economy   jobless rate 9.5%

 

My apologies for the lateness of this weeks column.  Been a rather hectic week on the home front.

 

Closing with this:

 

I received an e-mail from Ron Lauer with the subject being “4th”.  In part, this is what is said:

 

“The 4th of July is upon us and each and everyone should cherish the Freedoms that were given to us by our founding Fathers - especially after the last eight
years of seeing our most valued documents and laws being trampled upon...A lot of brave men gave their last breath for what they believed to be a better way of
life...between the hot dog and beer this 4th stop and think of them for a second or two...Have a great 4th my friends”
  

 

 

 

 

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