By TOM AVENENGO
This week’s photo:
It was called the “Star Dust” Offy. Sitting in the seat is the late Al Keller. It was metallic blue, in color, with chrome numbers. Over his midget career, Keller drove quite a few different midgets. Did you know he was the first to win a NASCAR Stock Car race with a foreign car – a Jaguar? I was in attendance at Langhorne, back in the 50’s, for a sprint car race the day Keller and his team mate. Johnny Thomson “got into it” in what could be called the fourth turn. Keller did some barrel rolls along the guard rail. One of his driving gloves flew off of his hand. In that glove was part of his thumb. A year later, the glove was returned to him, with the thumb still inside. Now I did have some doubts about that, until I read the book about Langhorne, and it was said that when he went to the hospital, what was left of his thumb was basically removed by a surgeon.
Some personal/family stuff:
Not too much to report on this week. My daughter, Judy, did work for Dave, in his trailer, at the OCFS last Saturday. Must have been quite cold in that trailer. As usual, she didn’t get to see any of the racing. My son, Eric, and his wife, Catherine did go. Best I’ve heard, grandson Brett was also there, but in the pits. It was, to put it mildly, quite cold.
Racin’ stuff:
MILLER: IndyCar fans deserve better
Here are some sad facts about Sunday’s inaugural Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana:
Between the French Quarter Festival and the Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival, there were more than 200,000 people in and around New Orleans over the weekend. The first IndyCar race in Louisiana may have drawn 8,000, if you count crew members, parking lot attendants, corner workers and the alligator outside the main gate.
Locals said the wettest weeks of the year in New Orleans are in mid-April or the first week in May. It rained out qualifying on Saturday and, after a morning-long monsoon Sunday, the race started an hour early and became a timed event.
Of the 47 laps of competition, 26 were run under caution. In a 105-minute race, only 31 minutes were green. On the flip side, the Pro Mazda kids ran Sunday morning in a driving rainstorm and put on a yellow-free clinic.
“I felt bad for the fans because we had so much yellow,” said winner James Hinchcliffe, who of course assumed the lead under caution on Lap 33 and led the final 15 circuits – all but one behind the pace car.
“That was embarrassing,” said one veteran driver. “I hope the fans who came out today don’t think this was a normal race. They should have gotten a refund.”
“Sorry,” tweeted owner Chip Ganassi.
Yes, the organizers and track crew did a nice job of throwing a club track together and making it ready for the professionals (?) under some very trying conditions.
The paying customers who braved the elements (and paid $20 to park a mile away so they could take a shuttle) were enthusiastic and engaged ‘til the end when they got the bad news the race was going to finish at 40mph. The ones who stuck around for the post-race festivities were greatly entertained by Hinchcliffe’s stand-up act following his implausible, one-pit-stop victory and they cheered wildly for runner-up Helio Castroneves.
Some of locals said they’ve been hoping for an IndyCar race for a long time and they would be back in 2016 so that begs some questions:
• Can there be another race without a title sponsor? Baltimore drew great crowds and still lost millions.
• Should IndyCar even be racing in a swamp a half hour from downtown New Orleans that’s a challenge to find? (There weren’t any signs to lead anyone to the track anywhere).
• Will IndyCar change the date to give it a chance to make it?
• Or will this be a typical here-today-gone-tomorrow scenario that follows IndyCar around like a band of gypsies?
IndyCar CEO Mark Miles said afterwards he was aware of the entertainment competition and probably needed to look at a different date. March could be a good fit temperature/weather wise (depending on where Mardi Gras falls) and IndyCar tested here last February so either month could fit into Miles’ wish to start the season earlier.
The track itself, a 2.7-mile road course built for rich guys and their expensive toys, turned out to be pretty racy when it was green as Graham Rahal, Simona de Silvestro and rookie Stefano Coletti pulled off some nifty passing.
Considering how flat it was and how hard it rained, it drained a lot better than expected but still had a couple of small rivers and lakes that contributed to a lot of the spinning cars – especially accelerating off the final corner.
But, no offense to the hosts or the plucky fans who showed up, this is a destination more suited for an SCCA regional or national than hosting the premier open-wheel series in North America. And while IndyCar continues to throw darts at places with no racing history or limited interest, great, traditional layouts like Road America, Watkins Glen, Road Atlanta, Mosport and CoTA in Austin are ignored.
Pretty much like IndyCar itself.
Note: To be honest, I really didn’t get to watch much of this “event” – or many Indy Car races on road courses, for that matter. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve seen better racing and driving when both my son, Eric and grandson, Brett, ran Karts.
I’m always on the look-out for racing related articles on the Internet. Here’s one about a young man that suffers from Autism, and racing Go-Karts has helped him tremendously.
https://www.yahoo.com/autos/how-one-teen-races-go-karts-to-victory-over-autism-116047310351.html
I look at some of these full midget series and see where they’re letting 15 year olds race, now. I dunno, maybe it’s me, but I feel they should be racing something smaller for a while. I’d hate to see problem down the road if some young man get seriously injured. Then again, I’m “old school”, and remember that when I first started going to the races, back in the mid 40’s, the drivers were all grown men, and many of them had families. On top of that, it was more dangerous back then, too.
From Anne Fornoro:
Notes & Quotes: Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach
Takuma Sato: No. 14 ABC Supply Honda
Jack Hawksworth: No. 41 ABC Supply Honda
AJ Foyt Racing is the only team to have competed in every race (274) since the Indy Racing League began in 1996. This race will be the team’s 275th start, Sato’s 89th, and Hawksworth’s 20th in the Verizon IndyCar Series. Driving for Foyt, Sato won the event in 2013 to become the first Japanese driver to win an IndyCar race.
TAKUMA SATO ON:
• Long Beach circuit: “The Long Beach track has a great balance of layout. It has both high-speed and low-speed corners and heavy braking followed by good straights which means there are a few over-taking opportunities for drivers. The track is a little on the lower side of grip-level but it can evolve a lot over the weekend as it rubbers down in the consistently good weather. The venue has a fantastic atmosphere and great restaurants downtown or nearby. It’s just one of the best street courses I’ve known from many aspects.”
• What makes winning at Long Beach so special: “Long Beach has got a long racing history with the greatest series [F-1 and IndyCar]. People love this race and winning it makes it even more valuable and special.”
• How the new aero kit will affect how he drives there: “It will affect the set-up as we have more downforce now. It should be a similar trend to the opening race which was another street course [St. Petersburg]. We were competitive there so we will see. In terms of driving approach, it shouldn’t be much different and we will love it with more grip available. You can brake late and carry more speed than ever. It will be exciting.”
• Key factor to success at Long Beach: “The car needs a very good mechanical grip for sure and downforce level should be varied. Some cars will have heavy [downforce] and some will have light because the track has a long straight and you need to be fast there, as well as good on the corners, so finding a good balance for the downforce level is a key factor.”
• On why experience seems more valuable here (many multiple race winners like Al Unser Jr., Paul Tracy, Sebastien Bourdais, Will Power, etc.):“Perhaps the track condition is quite stable for many years because the weather is consistent and the track requires precision from many angles. If it were the opposite way around, then the winner might be changing all the time… So let’s hope that history repeat itself!”
JACK HAWKSWORTH ON:
• Long Beach Grand Prix: “Long Beach is one of the most historic street circuits in the world and the list of great champions who have won there is endless. It’s a bit like the Indianapolis of street course racing and its history and prestige definitely sets it apart. In terms of track layout, it is very technical and challenging.”
• What he will look for in his Track Walk on Thursday: “Usually we’ll look for changes in the track surface and corners’ radiuses in comparison to previous years. Street circuits in particular are an ever evolving animal and it’s quite common to find little changes from year to year. It’s also a great time to talk about the specific driving and handling challenges each corner presents and what kind of things the car might need to deal with the challenges.”
• What he likes about racing at Long Beach: “The weather and the atmosphere. It’s a fantastic track in the best location! The circuit has a fantastic feel to it and there is always a great crowd and buzz around the paddock.”
• Last year’s race there: “We had a quick car in qualifying but we struggled a little for pace in the race. With that said, we ran top six for most of the race before the leaders crashed in front and I got collected in the accident. We sustained some damage but managed to get to the end albeit a few laps down.”
• On what he learned from the New Orleans race: “It’s true that NOLA wasn’t a good weekend on any front result-wise for us, but sometimes these kinds of race weekends are actually the most productive in the long run–they force you to dig deep and figure out how to come back stronger. I think we already have a pretty good handle on a few of the issues which hindered us and this will certainly help us all moving forward. Last time out on a street circuit (St Pete) the team showed some great pace in practice, qualifying and the race. With this in mind, alongside the great people we have in the team and the lessons from NOLA in the bank, I see no reason why the ABC Supply cars won’t be up there fighting for a good result!”
Past Performance at Long Beach: Takuma Sato’s best start and finish came in the 2013 race where he qualified fourth and won; that race was also the best performance for AJ Foyt Racing at Long Beach. Jack Hawksworth’s only IndyCar start there came last year when he qualified fifth and finished 15th after being involved in an accident triggered by the leaders.
A.J. Foyt will be watching from his home in Houston this weekend. Foyt is not planning to return to the IndyCar paddock until the Grand Prix of Indianapolis in May.
ABC Supply celebrates the 10th anniversary of AJ Foyt Racing sponsorship: ABC Supply began sponsoring the AJ Foyt Racing team with the 2005 Indianapolis 500. The company has leveraged its involvement by entertaining nearly 70,000 associates and customers over the past 10 racing seasons. At Long Beach, the company will entertain over 400 guests.
ABC Supply national account Diversified Roofing, headquartered in Phoenix, Ariz., will be featured on the engine cover of Takuma Sato’s no. 14 ABC Supply Honda. Guests will receive the VIP treatment this weekend along with a Meet and Greet with Sato.
ABC Supply roofing customer, Pacific Homeworks, located in Torrance, Calif., won the ‘Your Name Here’ contest for the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. The company name will be atop the sidepods of the No. 41 ABC Supply Honda. Guests will receive the VIP treatment plus a Meet and Greet with Jack Hawksworth.
Headquartered in Beloit, Wis., ABC Supply was founded by Ken and Diane Hendricks in 1982. The company has more than 490 branches in 49 states and is dedicated exclusively to serving professional contractors. ABC Supply has distinguished itself by following a simple guiding principle – take care of contractors better than any other distributor. It remains an “employee-first” company that treats its associates with respect and gives them the tools they need to succeed. As an eight-time winner of the Gallup Great Workplace Award, which recognizes the best-performing workforces in the world, ABC Supply is one of only three companies in the world to have earned this honor every year since its inception in 2007. More information is available at www.abcsupply.com.
The Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach will be televised live on NBC Sports Network Sunday, April 19th at 4:00pm ET.
For more information on the ABC Supply/AJ Foyt Racing program, please check our web site: www.foytracing.com. To follow us on Twitter: @AJFoytRacing, @TakumaSatoRacer, @JackHawk41, @LarryFoyt14. On Facebook, we have the AJ Foyt Racing fan page.
At times I get into trouble with some of those that are involved in motorsports, by things I might say or when I come out with some of my thoughts. There are a couple at a track I always went to that don’t seem to care too much for me. They’d love to get me off of Facebook, from what I’ve read. Sad thing is, after what one of these individuals did – in the past, it sure didn’t stop him from getting a job with this particular track. Most everything that was said about this individual, when he departed that other track, was said on the Internet. Yup, I copied and saved it all for a time in the future when I feel I must post what was said. Sadly, that time is getting closer – not that it matters to me all that much since I doubt I’ll ever go back to that particular track.
From Jayski:
http://www.jayski.com/
http://www.jayski.com/news/stats/2015/story/_/page/08-Bristol-2015-Entry-List
Tabitha Burton battling breast cancer:
Two weeks ago, Tabitha Burton, mother of Sprint Cup driver #26-Jeb Burton and wife of former Daytona 500 winner Ward Burton, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Jeb, driving for BK Racing in his rookie season in the Sprint Cup series, honored his mother by having the deck lid of his #26 Toyota painted to wish his her well. Friday morning Jeb tweeted a picture of the design. After failing to qualify for Saturday’s Duck Commander 500, Burton told NASCAR Talk the deck lid was a surprise for his mother that day and he hadn’t heard from her yet. Burton said he might keep the tribute for one more race.(NBC Sports)(4-11-2015)
Gordon wants NASCAR to eliminate pit road timing lines:
Friday #24-Jeff Gordon was asked about the increased number of penalties issued to teams this season:
Jeff Gordon: “I think the camera system speaks for itself. It’s black & white if you want to put it that way. When things roll out of the box or guys leave over the wall too soon or you drive through too many boxes, it’s going to bust you. And so it’s made all of us have to be that much cleaner and do our jobs that much better and pay more attention to more things than we used to. That didn’t have anything to do with what I did last week [when he got caught for speeding late in the race at Martinsville]. That was just us trying to take advantage of speed lines. I think that’s the next step. We’ve got to get rid of these speed lines. It doesn’t make any sense. The speed limit is the speed limit. You should never be able to break the speed limit. You should carry the speed limit all the way down pit road. What we do is find pit stalls to try to get around that. So we’re ramping up and slowing down and that’s what got us in Martinsville. We were just too aggressive with it.”(Team Chevy Racing)(4-11-2015)
UPDATE:
Jeff Gordon’s suggestion for changing the way NASCAR officials police speeds on pit road has merit, according to at least one NASCAR official, but it’s unlikely a new system will be adopted anytime soon. “The timing loops really play into our current timing and scoring system, so we believe it’s the most fair system to have today,” Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR’s executive vice president and chief racing development officer, said Monday. “But as we look forward … and as we integrate our timing and scoring system potentially with the Pro System and a lot of the new technology at the race track, I think you could see us evolve to that potentially in the future … But (Gordon’s) right in terms of something we want to work together on in the future and continue to improve upon.”(NASCAR.com)(4-14-2015)
Goodyear explains problems of altering tires:
The biggest topic of conversation over the past few weeks in the NASCAR garage has been tires — more specifically, teams altering tires. Starting at the end of the 2014 season, NASCAR began taking tires from select teams as their post-race inspection process. The practice began again this year starting with the third race of the Sprint Cup Series season at Phoenix International Raceway. The rumor in the garage has been team are poking tiny 0.001- to 0.002-inch holes in the sidewall of the tire to bleed air pressure, allowing the tire to reach optimal pressure sooner and maximizing grip. Last week, NASCAR issued a P5 penalty to the #31 Richard Childress Racing team for manipulating tires at Auto Club Speedway. NASCAR did not say specifically how the tires were altered, and the team has appealed the penalty. While it is clear altering tires is a major violation of the NASCAR rulebook, why is it a bad idea to do so? Greg Stucker, director of racing for Goodyear, sat down with FOXSports.com Friday at Texas Motor Speedway to explain.
“The tire is a structure and it’s kind of a membrane, it requires the air pressure to give it rigidity and to give it the load-carrying capacity that we need,” he said. “It’s not just the tire itself; it’s a combination of the tire and the inflation pressure that’s in the tire, the air that you put in the tire that enables it to carry that load. We make a pressure recommendations knowing what the loads are at a place like Texas, knowing what the construction of the tire is, so those two work together to carry the loads that the car is going to see,” said Stucker.
“If you try to manipulate that you could be operating outside the envelope where the tire is meant to operate. The other thing is … you run the risk of damaging the structural members of the tire itself,” he said. “The tire has cords; it has fabric that creates its structure. If you damage one of those cords, then you lower the integrity of that component. You certainly have a high risk that the tire could fail because you’ve damaged one of the components.”
So while NASCAR made it clear with the penalties to Newman and the No. 31 RCR team that altering tires isa major offense, there is much more to the reasons behind the rule. According to Stucker, altering tires is not a concern for Goodyear in terms of competitive advantage; it is really all about maintaining the integrity of the tires on each car on the track.(FoxSports)(4-12-2015)
From Track Forum:
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/forum.php
OK, I can recall some of the drivers listed below, as driving this Indy Car. I’d have to say that the very first one I saw was Bill Vukovich when my father, brother, sister and I went to the Indy Car race on July 4, 1951 at Darlington.
http://www.amazon.com/Damn-Few-Died-Bed-Racing-ebook/dp/B00MC9ZEZS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428863852&sr=8-1&keywords=andrew+dunlop
Kindle Price: $0.99
Publication Date: August 1, 2014
Damned Few Died In Bed is the late Andy Dunlop’s personal account of his life in auto racing which began in 1928 when he moved to Cleveland Ohio from Detroit with his parents and his sisters at age 17 and ended in 1995 when he retired at age 84, still living in Cleveland. Besides running Pete Salemi’s Central Excavating Indianapolis 500 racing team that had its share of ups and downs, Andy witnessed most of the triumphs and tragedies that characterized American oval track racing in the rough and tumble days of the fifties and sixties.
Here’s the list of drivers who raced for Andy and the Central Excavating racing team at one time or another, all of whom are portrayed in the book: Gene Aldridge, George Amick, Tony Bettenhausen, Art Bisch, Tony Bonadies, Frank Burany, Buddy Cagle, Jimmy Canino, Wally Campbell, Duane Carter, Neal Carter, Bill Chittum, Johnny Crone, Allen Crowe, Jimmy Daywalt, Billy DeVore, Shorty Drexler, Ronnie Duman, Len Duncan, Ed Elisian, Larry Evans, Cotton Farmer, Johnny Fedricks, Don Freeland, Cliff Griffith, Bob Harkey, Gene Hartley, Sonny Helms, Red Hodges, Jackie Holmes, Bob Hurt, Jim Hurtubise, Bruce Jacobi, Gordon Johncock, Eddie Johnson, Dee Jones, Al Keller, Arnie Knepper, Jud Larson, Jim McElreath, Bobby Marvin, Earl Motter, Rabbit Musick, Peewee Northern, Wayne Padgett, Tex Peterson, Roy Prosser, Dick Rathmann, Red Riegel, Chuck Rodee, Jack Rounds, Lloyd Ruby, Mickey Rupp, Eddie Russo, Paul Russo, Eddie Sachs, Henry Schlosser, Sam Sessions, Jigger Sirois, Deb Snyder, Bill Spear, Wally Stokes, Len Sutton, Shorty Templeman, Bud Tinglestad, Johnnie Tolan, Bobby Unser, Bill Vukovich, Rodger Ward, Greg Weld, Chuck Weyant, Dempsey Wilson and Eddie Zalucki.
2015 NE racing schedule:
http://jw4.proboards.com/thread/308/small-block-modified-master-schedule
From the Dirt Track Digest Forum:
http://www.dirttrackdigest.com/DTD/
How much $$ will Brett Deyo distribute to drivers this season?
http://www.dirttrackdigest.com/DTD/index.php?/topic/53248-how-much-will-brett-deyo-distribute-to-drivers-this-season/
From the AARN:
This week in the AARN
Doug Coby Dominates Entire Thompson Icebreaker Weekend
Friesen Fast In STSS Season Opener At Orange County
Preece Passes Rocco In Thompson Mod 75; Finish Is Unofficial
Kyle Weiss Upsets The Mods At Grandview Speedway
It’s ‘The Doctor’ In RoC FMP ‘14 Finale; Friesen Is Champion
Jason Johnson, Daryn Pittman Injured In Cal. WoO Tangle
Dewease Registers First Central Pa. 410 Win Of 2015 At Lincoln
Ryan Godown On New Egypt Win Spree
Path Valley Wingless Super Sportsman Driver, Promoter Steve Wilbur Injured In Crash
And a little more:
15 year old Tyler Dippel has gotten the OK from New Jersey for him to race at New Egypt and Bridgeport.
At Wall Stadium, the TQ Midgets ran some wingless laps on the smaller, inner track. They also ran some wingless laps on the big track, too.
Out west, with the WoO Sprints, Jason Johnson suffered a broken back, and Daryn Pittman a broken collar bone when they crashed at Placerville Speedway.
Herb Anastor had an interesting article about the late Jim Clark and car owner Ken Brenn, with a photo of Clark sitting in a Brenn owned midget. Clark was really wanting to try out a (the) midget, but things could never be arranged.
Former OVRP Dirt Oval racers:
At OCFS, Anthony Perrego was 9th, Billy V 11th, Danny Creeden 16th, Tyler Dippel 21st, in the Hard Clay opener for modifieds. Kyle Redner, LJ Lombardo and Mike Ruggiero were DNQ’s.
In the Sportsman feature, LJ was the winner, with Joey Bruning 4th, Zack Vavricka 5th, Matt Janiak 14th, Joe Conklin 23rd and Matt Hitchcock 24th. Joe Falanga, Matt Pappa, John Illanovsky and Dominic Roselli, Jr. were DNQ’s.
At 5 Mile, Danny Creeden was 4th, Tyler Dippel 12th and Anthony Perrego 15th in the Modified feature.
Dave Franek was 4th in the URC feature at Bridgeport.
Johnny Guarino was 22nd in the modified feature at New Egypt.
Justin Grosz was in the wrong place at the wrong time in the POWRi Midget race at Belle-Clair Speedway, in Belleville, Il. Not positive of where he “finished”, but it had to be towards the end of the field. Quite a bit of damage to the car, that’s for sure. He only had a few bruises.
At the Accord Speedway on Tuesday night, Danny Creeden was 2nd, Tyler Dippel 7th and Anthony Perrego 10th in the modified feature. Brad Szulewski was 2nd and Joey Bruning 11th in the Sportsman feature.
Wyatt Clark was 2nd in the Slingshot feature.
Midget Racing from “Back in the Day”:
When he raced midgets and stock cars, he used the name “Ted Tappett”. Best I knew, he did that so his parents would not know of him participating in such a dangerous sport. It wasn’t until about maybe two years ago when I saw a video of an interview with him, when he said his mother was informed of his racing about two weeks after he first started. Once he got into racing sports cars, he went back to his original name – Phil Walters.
Here’s a list (best I have) of his midget and stock car wins:
A summary of wins by Ted Tappett (Phil Walters)
1940 ARDC Midgets-3rd in points
Philadelphia, PA; Yellow Jacket Speedway- 7/15 8/12 8/20 9/23 track champion
Cedarhurst, NY; Cedarhurst Speedway- 7/24 8/14 9/28
West Haven, CT; West Haven Speedway- 7/25
Danbury, CT; Danbury Speedway- 7/26
Bronx, NY; Bronx Coliseum- 12/15
1941 ARDC Midgets-
Philadelphia, PA; Yellow Jacket Speedway- 7/21 8/4 8/18 8/18
West Haven, CT; West Haven Speedway- 7/24 7/31
West Lanham, MD; West Lanham Speedway- 7/22
Cedarhurst, NY; Cedarhurst Speedway- 9/3
Danbury, CT; Danbury Speedway- 7/25 8/8 8/22-50 laps 9/12
Bronx, NY; Bronx Coliseum- 1 win
Bronx, NY; Castle Hill Speedway- 7/29 9/2
1942
Bronx, NY; Bronx Coliseum- 1/18 4/5
1946
Paterson, NJ; Hinchliffe Stadium- 7/30 8/6 10/8
Avon, CT; Cherry Park Speedway- 8/18
Danbury, CT; Danbury Speedway- 7/13 7/27 8/3
West Haven, CT; West Haven Speedway- 7/4 7/11 8/8
Philadelphia, PA; Yellow Jacket Speedway- 7/25 10/17
1947
Bridgeport, CT; Candlelite Stadium- 7/21 8/11 8/25 9/8
West Haven, CT; West Haven Speedway- 7/31 8/21
Danbury, CT; Danbury Speedway- 9/6 9/27
Avon, CT; Cherry Park Speedway- 7/20 7/27 8/3
West Springfield, MA; Springfield Speedway- 7/26
Buffalo, NY; Buffalo Civic Stadium- 7/30
Paterson, NJ; Hinchliffe Stadium- 5/9
Bronx, NY; Kingsbridge Armory- 1/8 2/12 11/5 11/8 11/22 11/29
Middletown, NY; Victory Speedway- 7/23
Menands, NY; Empire Raceway- 7/18 8/22
Rhinebeck, NY; Rhinebeck Speedway- 9/30
Deer Park, NY; Deer Park Speedrome- 8/24
Seekonk, MA; Seekonk Speedway- 8/8 9/5
Groveland, MA; Pines Speedway-9/11
Lonsdale, RI; Lonsdale Arena- 9/17
1948
ARDC midgets-4th in points
Frank Curtis Offy
West Springfield, MA; Springfield Speedway- 5/15 5/29 6/12 6/19 7/10 10/9-100 laps
Avon, CT; Cherry Park Speedway- 4/18 6/6
Danbury, CT; Danbury Speedway- 5/1
West Haven, CT; West Haven Speedway- 6/10 7/8 7/15 9/9
Bridgeport, CT; Bridgeport Speedway- 5/3 5/10 5/31-100 laps 6/14 6/21 8/2
Buffalo, NY; Buffalo Civic Stadium- 7/14
Freeport, NY; Freeport Stadium- 5/21 5/28 6/15 6/18 7/6 7/9 7/20 7/30 9/6 9/14 9/21 9/28 10/1
Rhinebeck, NY; Rhinebeck Speedway- 5/11
Bronx, NY; Kingsbridge Armory- 4/3
Islip, NY; Islip Speedway- 4 wins
Lonsdale, RI; Lonsdale Arena- 8/8
Richmond, VA; Royall Speedway- 7/28
1949
United Stock Car Racing Club-4th in points
Frick Ford #23
Bridgeport, CT; Candlelite Stadium- 3/27 4/3
Agawam, MA; Riverside Park Speedway- 4/9 4/16 5/21 6/4 7/2-100 laps
7/23 8/6 9/3-100 laps
Menands, NY; Empire Raceway- 5/15
Plainville, CT; Plainville Stadium- 5/30
Freeport, NY; Freeport Stadium- 5/31-2 wins 6/21 7/5 8/30
Seekonk, MA; Seekonk Speedway- 7/22
Press Releases:
With the first ALL PRO event of the year fast approaching next weekend at Mahoning Valley Speedway there is a couple of things to go over .The 1 set of RS tires after qualifying rule will be in effect . testing is still open for this event . provisional will be based on 2014 All Pro and Action track USA points 2 from each . For action track USA opener we will use the 2015 All Pro points for the provisional opening night .
There is still a $200 set of tire deal for first time pavement racers call for details . This race is $3000 to win and $250 to take the green and is a National points paying event . Anyone needing setup help feel free to call and there are still some cars that need to take care of their 2015 Registration .
Speedway Entertainment
Home of the Slingshot by Tobias
Home of the SpeedSTR
www.speedwayentertainment.com
NEWS FROM Orange County Fair Speedway
CONTACT
Mike Gurda
239 Wisner Avenue 845-342-8573
Middletown, NY10940
From: John Snyder
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (REVISED EDITION)
WEEKLY RACING AT ORANGE COUNTY FAIR SPEEDWAY GETS THE GREEN ON SATURDAY, APRIL 18 WITH A BLOCKBUSTER EVENT!
Seven racing divisions headed by the Big-Block Modifieds to see action!
MIDDLETOWN, NY (April 13)……..With the special non-point Hard Clay Open race completed this past Saturday, April 11, weekly stock car racing competition at Orange County Fair Speedway is set to get underway on Saturday, April 18 with a full seven-division card on the program.
The 66th consecutive season of weekly racing at Orange County will find the first green flag waving at 7:00 pm. Headlining the program will be the 800-horsepower Big-Block Modifieds in a 30-lap feature race. They’ll be joined by the nearly-as-fast Small-Block Modifieds, Sportsman, Rookie Sportsman, Street Stocks, Thunder Trucks, and for the first time the Four-Cylinder race cars. Qualifying races will set the fields for the evening’s feature events.
Defending track champion Tim Hindley won the 2014 opening night Big-Block Modified feature race, while veteran driver Tommy Meier captured last year’s inaugural Small-Block Modified feature. Hindley experienced some bad racing luck in the Hard Clay Open, with his car suffering mechanical issues during warm-ups. He’s looking to rebound this Saturday. Meier finished fourth in the Hard Clay Open, driving a small-block car.
It will all play out on Saturday, April 18, 2015 and the start of the 66th consecutive season of weekly stock car racing at Orange County Fair Speedway. Will there be new Opening Night winners added to the long list of great Orange County drivers? Or will previous victors take the checkered flags once again? Racing gets under way at 7:00 P.M at the historic Middletown, New York five-eights-mile “Hard Clay” surfaced speedway. Opening Night will include seven divisions of race cars—Big-Block Modifieds, Small-Block Modifieds, Sportsman, Rookie Sportsman, Street Stocks, Thunder Trucks, and Four-Cylinder race cars—in qualifying races and main events with the evening’s program sponsored by Howard Johnson/Super 8 of Middletown and MAACO of New Hampton. The Street Stocks will be competing in the Jeremy Michael Hedges Memorial Race for Street Stocks.
Advance and season ticket sales and additional information is available at the Track Office. Call 845-342-2573 during business hours. Fans and competitors are reminded to visit the speedway website for the latest track news:www.orangecountyfairspeedway.net.
SEE FOLLOWING PAGE FOR A LISTING OF OPENING NIGHT MODIFIED WINNERS
ORANGE COUNTY FAIR SPEEDWAY — OPENING DAY WINNERS 1950-2014
1950 04/15 Tex Enright 1960 04/10 Ken Wismer Sr. 1970 04/18 Will Cagle*
1951 04/15 Frank Schneider 1961 04/08 Carl Van Horn 1971 04/17 R. Schwendernmann
1952 04/26 Joe Romer 1962 04/21 Al Tasnady 1972 04/29 Carl Van Horn
1953 04/26 Bud Marl 1963 04/13 Frank Schneider* 1973 04/14 Bobby Bottcher*
1954 04/16 Dick Fletcher 1964 04/05 Bill Wimble 1974 04/20 Carl Van Horn
1955 04/30 Pete Corey 1965 04/10 Al Tasnady 1975 04/12 Wayne Reutimann*
1956 04/21 Bud Marl* 1966 04/06 Bill Wimble 1976 04/10 Buzzie Reutimann
1957 0414 Ray Brown* 1967 04/29 Will Cagle* 1977 04/16 Bobby Bottcher
1958 04/13 Sonny Strupp* 1968 04/20 Jackie Evans 1978 04/22 MeMe DSantis
1959 04/04 Carl Van Horn 1969 04/12 Will Cagle* 1979 04/21 Bobby Bottcher
1980 04/19 Billy Osmun 1990 04/14 Sammy Rogers 2000 04/15 Brett Hearn
1981 04/11 Harry Behrent 1991 04/20 Frank Cozze 2001 04/28 Brett Hearn
1982 05/01 Rich Eurich* 1992 05/02 Brett Hearn* 2002 04/20 Jeff Heotzler
1983 04/02 C.D. Coville 1993 04/17 Brett Hearn* 2003 04/19 Chuck McKee
1984 03/18 Larry Brolsma 1994 04/16 Jeff Heotzler 2004 04/17 Tommy Meier*
1985 04/06 Bob McCreadie 1995 04/15 Jack Johnson 2005 04/16 Chuck McKee
1986 04/12 Brett Hearn* 1996 04/13 Jeff Heotzler 2006 04/29 Craig Mitchell
1987 04/18 Brett Hearn* 1997 04/19 Frank Cozze 2007 04/21 Mike Kolka
1988 04/16 Carl Reynolds 1998 04/18 Rich Eurich 2008 04/19 Brett Hearn
1989 04/22 Brett Hearn* 1999 04/17 Rich Eurich 2009 04 18 Danny Creeden
2010 04/17 Brett Hearn 2014 04/12 Tim Hindley*
2011 04/09 Danny Creeden
2012 04/14 Chris Shultz
2013 04/13 Jerry Higbie
*Won Opener and Track Modified Point Champion Same Year
39 Different Winners, 1950-2014
Multiple Winners Single Winners
Brett Hearn – 9 Harry Behrent Craig Mitchell
Carl Van Horn – 4 Larry Brolsma Billy Osmun
Bobby Bottcher – 3 Ray Brown Buzzie Reutimann
Will Cagle – 3 Pete Corey Carl Reynolds
Rich Eurich – 3 C.D. Coville Sammy Rogers
Jeff Heotzler – 3 MeMe DeSantis Joe Romer
Frank Cozze – 2 Tex Enright Carl Reynolds
Bud Marl – 2 Jackie Evans Ron Schwendernmann
Chuck McKee – 2 Dick Fletcher Chris Shultz
Frankie Schneider – 2 Jerry Higbie Sonny Strupp
Al Tasnady – 2 Jack Johnson Ken Wismer Sr.
Bill Wimble – 2 Mike Kolka Tim Hindley
Danny Creeden – 2 Bob McCreadie
Tommy Meier
Video time:
I came across this on Tuesday night, just prior to going to bed. It’s a Garth Brooks song that is titled “The Dance”. But this one is just a little different, as you’ll get to hear and see if you copy & paste the link, below:
Non racin’ stuff:
My thoughts – we’re gonna be seeing a lot more of this from this individual before election day.
Hillary Clinton Never Responded To Direct Question About Personal E-Mail Account In 2012
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/14/hillary-clinton-never-res_n_7066930.html?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000592
Hey! Might you shop at Wal-Mart? I have. Have you read about some of their stores closing for up to six months, due to some “plumbing problems”? Yes, SIX MONTHS! I really don’t know what to make of what follows. I’ll have to let you make up your own minds.
Are The Wal-Mart Closings In Jade Helm 15 States A Sign We’ve Sold Them The Rope They’ll Use To Hang Us With By Shopping At Wal-Mart All These Years?
Just one little part:
“With news of numerous Wal-Mart supercenters now being ‘temporarily closed’ (6+ months each which brings us to October 2015 or later) in at least 4 different states now tied to the Jade Helm 15 ‘exercises’ due to what we’re being told are ‘plumbing problems’, will these massive stores soon be used as ‘food distribution centers’ and to house the headquarters of invading troops from China, here to disarm Americans one by one as promised by Michelle Obama to the Chinese prior to Obama leaving the White House? Astute story commenters were quick to point out that any plumbing problem can be fixed in much less time than 6 months, even in such large supercenters, and to have several of these 6-month closings all at once in states tied to Jade Helm 15 and martial law exercises (Florida, Texas, California and Oklahoma) reeks of something much deeper than ‘plumbing issues’. The fact that China has DEMANDED Americans be disarmed and the scheduled ‘reopening dates’ (if they EVER reopen at all!) of these stores will be after Jade Helm 15 is completed are raising many questions about what is really going on among those who are paying attention to events in Barack Obama’s ‘new America’ as seen in more detail below. One reader tells us that one of these Wal-Mart stores had just recently been remodeled and didn’t have any plumbing problems while the note below is from a source who recently called her local Wal-Mart and discovered they may NEVER reopen!”
http://allnewspipeline.com/What_Martial_Law_Will_Look_Like.php
And, another link:
https://www.intellihub.com/are-the-nationwide-walmart-closures-connected-to-detention-centers-for-american-citizens/
This weeks joke:
A farmer got pulled over by a state trooper for speeding, and the trooper started to lecture the farmer abut his speed, and in general began to throw his weight around to try to make the farmer uncomfortable.
Finally, the trooper got around to writing out the ticket, and as he was doing that, he kept swatting at some flies that were buzzing around his head.
The farmer said, Having some problems with the circle flies there, are ya?
The trooper stopped writing the ticket and said: “Well, yeah, it that’s what they are – I never heard of circle flies.
So the farmer says ,”Well, circle flies are common on farms. See, they’re called circle flies because they’re almost always found circling around the back end of a horse.
The trooper says: “Oh, and goes back to writing out the ticket. Then after a minute, he stops and says: “Hey… wait a minute, are you trying to call me a horses ass?”
The farmer says, “Oh no officer, I have too much respect for law enforcement and police officers to even think of calling you a horse’s ass.
The trooper says, “well that’s a good thing”, and continues writing out the ticket.
After a long pause, the farmer says: “It’s kinda hard to fool them flies, though.”
And, I almost forget this one – continued from last week:
The 2nd Affair
A middle-aged couple had two beautiful daughters but always talked about having a son.
They decided to try one last time for the son they always wanted.
The wife got pregnant and delivered a healthy baby boy.
The joyful father rushed to the nursery to see his new son.
He was horrified at the ugliest child he had ever seen.
He told his wife:
‘There’s no way I can be the father of this baby. Look at the two beautiful daughters I fathered! Have you been fooling around behind my back?’
The wife smiled sweetly and replied:’No, not this time!’
Until my next column – next week
Columns are available on the Dirt Track Digest at: http://www.dirttrackdigest.com/ at Contributing Columnists
And:
http://newenglandtractor.com/racereport/
Note: There has been a problem with the New England Tractor getting my last few column up and running. Hopefully, it will be fixed ASAP.
As usual, I can be reached, via email at: ygordad@yahoo.com