DUNKIN DONUTS CENTER - PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND

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RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report

DAYS 1-3 – “CAROL’S 50^TH STATE” TRACKCHASING TOUR

EDITOR’S NOTE

In the entire history of trackchasing, only nine folks have reported seeing racing in all 50 of the United States. That special fraternity/sorority has now expanded its membership by one. “Trackchasing’s First Mother” aka Carol Lewis saw her 50^th state at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island tonight. I sure that when she was working at the local Duncan Donuts store during high school in Downers Grove, Illinois, she had absolutely no idea that “The Dunk” would resurface in her life many years down the line. Special congratulations to her for this magnificent trackchasing achievement. Below follows her 50-state trackchasing list:

			CAROL'S 50-STATE TRACK LIST

		STATE	TRACK	CITY	DATE
#	1	Alabama	Sunny South Raceway	Grand Bay	4/7/06
#	2	Alaska	North Pole Speedway	North Pole	5/22/08
#	3	Arizona	Manzanita Speedway	Phoenix	Pre 1980
#	4	Arkansas	Poinsette County Speedway	Harrisburg	10/30/1999
#	5	California	Ascot Park -1/2 mile	Gardena	Pre 1980
#	6	Colorado	Pikes Peak Intl Raceway	Fountain	7/23/05
#	7	Connecticut	Danbury Fair Race Arena	Danbury	4/19/1980
#	8	Delaware	Dover Downs Intl Speedway	Dover	5/18/1980
#	9	Florida	Daytona Intl Speedway	Daytona Beach	Pre 1980
#	10	Georgia	Atlanta Intl Raceway	Hampton	Pre 1980
#	11	Hawaii	Hawaii Raceway Park	Ewa Beach (Oahu)	8/18/1984
#	12	Idaho	Atomic Motor Raceway	Atomic City	8/4/06
#	13	Illinois	Peoria Speedway	Peoria	Pre 1980
#	14	Indiana	Illiana Speedway	Schererville	5/23/1981
#	15	Iowa	Davenport Speedway	Davenport	Pre 1980
#	16	Kansas	81 Speedway	Wichita	7/21/05
#	17	Kentucky	Ponderosa Speedway	Junction City	6/5/1998
#	18	Louisiana	Lamar-Dixon Expo Center	Gonzales	11/1/07
#	19	Maine	Speedway 95	Bangor	6/11/2003
#	20	Maryland	Hagerstown Speedway	Hagerstown	7/7/07
#	21	Massachusetts	Topsfield Fairgrounds Arena	Topsfield	10/9/06
#	22	Michigan	Butler Motor Speedway	Quincy	8/28/1981
#	23	Minnesota	Proctor Speedway	Duluth	9/1/05
#	24	Mississippi	Southern Speedway	Hattiesburg	5/28/2004
#	25	Missouri	Lucas Oil Speedway	Wheatland	6/24/06
#	26	Montana	Mission Valley Speedway	Polson	8/5/06
#	27	Nebraska	Oregon Trail Speedway	Gering	5/7/1999
#	28	Nevada	Caesars Palace	Las Vegas	10/16/1981
#	29	New Hampshire	Twin States Speedway	Claremont	7/14/06
#	30	New Jersey	Convention Hall	Atlantic City	1/31/1981
#	31	New Mexico	Duke City Raceway	Albuquerque	6/25/1994
#	32	New York	Orange County Fair Speedway	Middleton	5/3/1980
#	33	North Carolina	North Wilkesboro Speedway	North Wilkesboro	4/21/1985
#	34	North Dakota	Jamestown	Jamestown	7/12/2003
#	35	Ohio	Queen City Speedway	West Chester	Pre 1980
#	36	Oklahoma	Enid Motor Speedway	Enid	9/24/06
#	37	Oregon	Race City USA	Hermiston	9/29/2001
#	38	Pennsylvania	Pocono International Raceway	Long Pond	7/18/1993
#	39	Rhode Island	Dunkin Donuts Center	Providence	3/6/09
#	40	South Carolina	Cherokee Speedway	Gaffney	4/20/1985
#	41	South Dakota	Miller Speedway	Miller	8/11/06
#	42	Tennessee	Nashville Intl Raceway	Nashville	5/8/1982
#	43	Texas	Devils Bowl Speedway	Mesquite	3/14/1980
#	44	Utah	Miller Motorsports Park	Tooele	8/4/06
#	45	Vermont	Devils Bowl Speedway	Fair Haven	7/16/06
#	46	Virginia	Martinsville Speedway	Martinsville	4/24/1994
#	47	Washington	Evergreen Speedway	Monroe	8/18/1985
#	48	West Virginia	Summit Point Raceway - SP	Summit Point	4/30/06
#	49	Wisconsin	Wisconsin State Fair Park	Milwaukee	Pre 1980
#	50	Wyoming	Casper Speedway	Casper	5/19/2000

Providence Journal – Providence, Rhode Island – March 8, 2009

The following excerpt appeared in the local Providence paper following the races at the Dunkin Donuts Center.

Give that the event marked the first sanctioned series of auto races in Rhode Island in 50 years, it attracted the attention of trackchasers, a group of hobbyists who compete to attend the most races at different tracks.

“It was an excellent program”, said Randy Lewis of San Clemente, Calif., a retired executive, who had flown in with his wife, Carol, to attend the race. Lewis is the “World’s No. 1 Ranked Trackchaser,” having attended races at 1,412 different tracks worldwide.

Indeed, only the weekend before, he and Carol had flown out to races in Bahrain and Abu Dhabi and he was flying to Alaska after the Rhode Island program to watch a race in Anchorage this afternoon. “I’ve been to 25 indoor programs and this was one of the best,” he said, noting that having the cars start and restart in double file created good action.

“Plus there were no fumes,” he and Carol said, noting that was a particular problem with indoor racing.

Certainly, they should know.

GREETINGS FROM PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND

TODAY’S HEADLINES

Tonight’s trip had one and only one objective …………..details in “The Objective”.

Would Carol survive if I had to leave her on a dark street corner on a rainy night in a bad neighborhood?..................more in “The Trip”.

We met up with “Paul and the Bingster” in Rhode Island. Check ‘em out…………..details in “The People”.

THINGS YOU MIGHT HAVE NOTICED HAD YOU BEEN PAYING MORE ATTENTION IN SCHOOL

I will maintain my policy of affording anonymity to readers who send in interesting bits of information or who provide cutting edge analysis.

FROM THE BEST READERS IN RACING

I received this information from an east coast reader.

“Great trip recap and great photos as well. I had read that the architecture in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates was impressive and your photos proved it. I have a couple of questions. You encountered two sandstorms and yet the races were held. Isn’t it a little dangerous for the drivers with limited visibility? What about the toll it takes on the cars? Blowing sand can’t be good for the cars. I was also taken by the dress worn by foreign females especially those working at the Autodrome. I’m assuming that dress for foreign visitors is not as strict as other Muslim countries. That being said I’m still assuming that United Arab Emirates citizens were segregated by gender if females

were even allowed to attend.

I also loved the pictures taken in DC and the pictures in Los Angeles. The contract between the Middle East, the east coast of the U.S. and the west coast of the U.S. were impressive. The world is a beautiful place isn’t it.”

This came in from a jokester in the Midwest.

“Will White may be trackchasing’s unofficial commissioner but after reading the recaps of your middle east trips I nominate you for trackchasing’s unofficial “secretary of state” with all of the rights, privileges and duties that come with the title. A male version of Hillary Clinton if you will.”

SEE THE PHOTOS; ENJOY THE PHOTOS

If you would like to see photos from today’s trackchasing adventure go to www.ranlayracing.com, click on the “Trackchaser Reports” tab and then click on “#1,412 Dunkin Donuts Center” for the pictures and story.

TECHNOLOGY UPDATE

The purpose of technology is not to confuse the brain but to serve the body. I have shared with you the many attributes of the Apple iPhone. I’m sure you have come to the same conclusion that I have. It is a truly revolutionary machine. I will discontinue the “app review” at this point. Hopefully, you will be able to find your way to an Apple store by this afternoon and get yourself one. Good luck!

WE STAYED IN LOS ANGELES, AFTER GOING TO THE THEATRE ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT, SO WE COULD GET AN EARLY START ON THURSDAY. WE TOOK A NON-STOP FLIGHT TO BOSTON ON THURSDAY MORNING BEFORE STAYING TWO EVENINGS IN PROVIDENCE. BRIGHT AND EARLY SATURDAY MORNING WE FLEW FROM PROVIDENCE TO CHICAGO. AT THAT POINT, CAROL AND I PARTED WAYS. SHE WAS HEADED TO LOS ANGELES VIA SACRAMENTO. I WAS HEADED TO YET ANOTHER OUT OF THE WAY TRACKCHASING DESINATION. THIS IS WHAT TRANSPIRED DURING DAYS 1-3 OF THE “CAROL’S 50^TH STATE” TRACKCHASING TOUR.

What you are about to read is based upon a true story. Heck, I’m seeing some of this stuff for the first time myself!

THE OBJECTIVE, THE TRIP AND THE PEOPLE…AND A WHOLE LOT MORE

The Objective

This trip met its single and primary objective.

The objective for the first portion of this trackchasing trip was simple. We would be trying to get Carol to Rhode Island so should could see trackchasing countable racing in her 50^th state. She did it!

The Trip

Are my “addiction relief” obstacles doing the job or not?

This was another local “obstacle” trip. Most of you know, that I would go trackchasing every single weekend if I weren’t stopped from doing it. I enjoy the overall concept that much. However, I fully recognize that a person’s life would be very one-dimensional if that’s all they could do each and every weekend.

I have found that when I have other “commitments” on my schedule then those activities will help keep me off the road. One of those commitments that have helped with my addiction was the purchase of season tickets to live theatre at the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles. So far this plan has worked. We’ve seen three shows (with two still to go) to date. I would never cancel one of our theatre show dates to go trackchasing. Tonight we saw the musical production of “Rent”. I had seen this when it first came on Broadway in New York. That trip involved just our three children and me. The four of us had a tremendous bonding experience with our weekend in New York. Carol and I both agreed that “Rent” was the best show we had seen at the Pantages this season.

I was free!

Of course, as soon as the final curtain came down, I was free to go trackchasing! I did a quick logistical analysis that you might find interesting. Here was the logic behind my thinking.

1. Rhode Island was having a special racing program this Friday and Saturday. The play in Los Angeles occupied our Wednesday evening. The best non-stop flight we could get to near Rhode Island would be into Boston. That flight didn’t land until 5 p.m. With Boston’s snarling traffic and the possibility of a flight delay, we couldn’t risk going in on Friday for the Friday races. We also could not attend the Rhode Island racing on Saturday, since I had another trackchasing commitment on Sunday that could not be reached if we trackchased in Rhode Island on Saturday. That meant we had to fly to Boston on Thursday. These scenarios all raced through my mind with the clear conclusion that we would be leaving Los Angeles on early Thursday morning.

2. The next logistical decision had to do with where we would sleep on Wednesday night. We could drive back from the theatre to San Clemente and then turn around about five hours later and drive back to the Los Angeles airport (LAX). This would require 202 miles of total driving. On the other hand, we could stay in a hotel near the LAX. Driving from San Clemente to the theatre to LAX would require 87 miles of driving. We chose option #2. We would save $13 U.S. in gas. We would get an additional two hours or more of sleep. The debit side of the ledger would add about $60 in hotel expense. I figured a net cost of $47 for two more hours of sleep and a guarantee we wouldn’t have morning rush hour traffic angst was a good value.

The above will give you just a “slice” of the many, many decisions that a trackchaser, who is trying to lead a balanced life, while trackchasing at a world-class level is required to do.

How should I look at “costs”?

There are many ways to evaluate “cost”. One way is to compare your bargain purchase price against what the “regular” price would be. Another way to figure cost against a “zero-based” budget. Using this method one compares their expense against “zero” and not against the going price of a product or service. Let me give you an example.

Carol and I would need three nights of hotel for the portion of the trip where we would be traveling together. As you know, I use www.priceline.com and www.biddingfortravel.com for our hotel needs whenever I can. Using the “purchase price vs. regular cost” method, we came up with these results:

Night #1 - Holiday Inn, Los Angeles Airport – Priceline $45 vs. Holiday’s best web rate including a AAA discount of $149.

Night #2 – Renaissance, Providence – Priceline $55 vs. Renaissances’ best web rate including a AAA discount of $197.

Night #3 – Renaissance, Providence – Priceline $55 vs. Renaissances’ best web rate including a AAA discount of $129.

Had I booked these hotels via the hotel websites (where the best rates are usually offered) I would have paid $475 in total. Assuming a 10% total tax rate (this is probably low), my total hotel expense for three nights would have been $522 U.S.

However, via Priceline.com the base rate was just $155 for three nights of hotels. Priceline charges a combination of taxes and “fees” of about 15%. Even with this charge added into the amount, our total 3-night expense would be $178. Using the regular cost vs. “best” cost method of expense comparison, we saved $344!

The critical observer, dare I say cheap or shall I go even further and say “scrooge like” might compare our actual expense to “zero”. Zero in this case might mean not making the trip. Actually, that thought never crossed my mind. I don’t roll that way. However, there may have been hotels, dare I say “fleabags” that could have cost less than the $178 we spent in these cities.

However, when I’m with Carol I don’t like to roll that way either. The Renaissance in Providence was a 5-star boutique hotel. It had everything including a lovely gourmet morning breakfast for the two of us. That was a $30-40 value right there. Anyway, I share this type of thinking with you so that you can add the data to your experiential database. I hope it helps in some way or another.

Carol has been groomed to do things on her own.

When it came time to head home, the type of analysis was much different. We had met up with trackchasers Paul Weisel and Bing Metz at the Dunkin Donuts Center. I’ll tell you more about those guys in the “People” section. They frequently trackchase all over the country together.

I am sure that both Paul and Bing consider each other fully self-sufficient. They can operate as a team together or on their own when they need too.

Carol and I are a similarly capable trackchasing team. Although, when Carol trackchases, she always trackchases with me, she is capable of taking care of herself when need be. We have been married for 37 years. During that time, I have traveled an average of 100 nights per year, first on business and now with the hobby of trackchasing. During this time, Carol has learned to be self-sufficient. I would not want it any other way and neither would she. I had seen some couples where one person is so dependent on the other they wouldn’t know what to do if they were on their own for a short period of time. To my way of thinking, that’s not healthy nor is it very intellectually stimulating.

How would Paul and Bing handle the situation?

That being the case, I did what Paul would do with Bing or what Bing would do with Paul. When the time came in the trip for each of them to head on their own to the next stop they would bade each other farewell, thank each other for the fellowship and head their separate ways.

That is what Carol and I did in Chicago. Just five hours after the checkered flag dropped on the last race of the night in Providence, Carol and I were leaving the hotel bound for the Providence airport. From there we flew onto Chicago. It was at this point, that I had to bid Carol a fond farewell. Yes, we had celebrated in style her 50-state accomplishment. However, her trackchasing trip was ending and mine was continuing.

Carol was on her own now.

She was intending to fly from Chicago to Los Angeles. I was going to fly from Chicago to Salt Lake and then onto…….sorry, but my security procedures prevent me from announcing my trackchasing plans in advance.

Carol and I would both be flying standby. I will tell you this. Most people wouldn’t fly standby for any amount of monetary savings. I think flying standby provides so much flexibility that I would hate to be flying on a fixed payment, point A to point B confirmed seat arrangement.

I had done as much research for Carol and I could. I had seven different flights from Chicago to Los Angeles scoped out for her. All of them were tight on availability but I figured she could make it. However, with standby flying there are no guarantees. When we got to Chicago, they were having bad weather. The flights to LAX were delayed and more overbooked than originally planned. Nevertheless, I had to leave Carol to fend for herself. It was similar to Paul leaving Bing (or vice versa) on a rainy street corner in a bad neighborhood. They wouldn’t want to do it, but it there was another trackchasing engagement on the other side of the mountain they would HAVE to do it.

However, at the very last moment I saved the day for Carol.

At the very last minute, I noticed a flight going to Sacramento that had some open seats. I made a phone call. Carol could get on that plane. Then she could take a second plane over to LAX from California’s capital. She would be in Los Angeles before 7 p.m. That was a better result than half the non-stop flights she had been considering. At the same time, I had text messaged J.J. to ask for his help on this case while I was going to be in the air. Carol stood by hoping that her protectors were not truly leaving her on the curb in a driving rainstorm in a bad neighborhood.

She meekly asked if I could guarantee she would get home tonight. Before she asked that question, I am certain she knew the answer. No, I could not guarantee it. There are really very few guarantees in life are there? However, she was in good hands and she made it home just as planned. I would not have expected, even though I could not have guaranteed, any other result.

The People

The “other” woman.

Nancy Brown, up until tonight, was the only woman to have ever trackchased in all 50 of the United States. She made it to her 50^th state, Alabama, on May 26, 2000. For almost ten years, she has held the “gender dominant” position in this all-important category.

I pride myself in being discreet. However, I am going to deviate just this once because, you the reader, deserve a little “behind the scenes” information in the sometimes sordid hobby of trackchasing.

I first met Nancy Brown in Bakersfield, California nearly 20 years ago. She was a beautiful and pleasant young woman, and still is. As luck would have it that night, we ended up spending the night at the Motel 6 in Bakersfield. It might be said that I have a “history” with Nancy. Since then just the two of us have spend several Saturday nights together at the races talking about all types of subjects. I hope this “revelation” doesn’t surprise anyone. Carol can’t always come with me to the races, and it can get lonely out on the trackchasing trail. I have also spent the night in Nancy’s home and can tell you this, she makes a delicious breakfast!

Of all the trackchasers I have spent time with Nancy is the most levelheaded of the bunch. Of course, there are several others who tie Nancy is this important category. Then, as in any normal distribution of people that are a few trackchasers that are “slightly askew”. Additionally, as my grandfather used to say “you’re always going to have a few people who have their head up their %#*”. Yes, my grandfather could always spin a phrase.

Tonight was Carol’s night.

However, tonight was Carol’s night. I first went trackchasing with “Trackchasing’s First Mother” in Davenport, Iowa. We were young college students at the time. I had to “test drive” her to see if she was going to be up to rigors of trackchasing, both on a domestic and international basis. Obviously, she passed with flying colors.

Tonight she is seeing racing in her 50^th state. To go along with that she has also trackchased in eight Canadian provinces and two Mexican states. She doesn’t just hang around North America. Carol has now trackchased in 14 different countries. No other woman has trackchased in more than five, unless you want to consider trackchasers admitted under the “where I live they don’t have too many tracks amnesty program” and the total is seven. Yes, Carol has an impressive trackchasing resume.

In the interest of full disclosure……

Before I leave this section of the RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report, I want to add just a few more things about my relationship with Nancy Brown. I would not want anyone to get the wrong impression. Yes, it is 100% true that on the very first night we met we spent the night in the same hotel. However, as far as I know, Nancy slept in a room with her husband, Allan. Of course, I slept in a separate room with Carol.

It is also true that Nancy and I have spent several Saturday by ourselves at the racetrack. Of course, Nancy’s husband Allan was nearby walking the grandstands selling his National Speedway Directory book. Yes, I guess it could get lonely at the track, but it never has for even one night for me. As good friend, and Delta Sigma Pi fraternity brother, Phil Thompson once told me, you have to “enjoy your own company” when he explained how he could have fun all by himself riding his motorcycle from Illinois to Alaska.

Finally, let me ease everyone’s mind about my spending the night at Nancy’s house. Of course, that is 100% true as is everything in the RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report. By the way, it is interesting to note, that I am still receiving “non-believing” feedback regarding my “Sky Marshall” April fools post of a few years ago. People have come to count on the words printed here as being the gospel. That is probably why so many people were convinced that I actually WAS a sky marshal operating under the cover of “international trackchaser”. I hope I didn’t disappoint anyone with that brief venture into “spoofism”.

Anyway……yes, I spent the evening at Nancy’s house. At the time, Carol didn’t know it. Yes, Nancy did make a delicious breakfast for me. However, I know what you might be thinking and I’m not sure I like it. Nancy’s husband Allan was also at the breakfast table along with fellow competitor Andy Sivi. You see there is always just a little bit more to each and every story, isn’t there?

Paul and Bing

I don’t go trackchasing often with other trackchasers. Truth be told, not many trackchasers trackchase where I do. Additionally, my travel is always contingent upon the support of my airline sponsors. It wouldn’t be fair to others for them to expect me to meet them when situations beyond my control might prevent me from joining them.

For tonight’s race, Paul emailed asking if I might be in attendance. Maybe he knew that Carol would be searching for her 50^th state in Rhode Island. Paul emails or calls on occasion in the hopes we might meet up somewhere along the trackchasing trail.

Paul and his sidekick Bing Metz bring something extra to the trackchasing party. They are former race drivers. Most trackchasers have zero actual competitive racing experience and some, like me, have very little.

I enjoy hearing Paul’s racing stories. He is really a very intelligent guy. I like the way he thinks and respect his ability to analyze all types of situations quickly. That was the type of personality I interacted with so frequently in business as well as home with each of our children. It’s fun to hang around with smart people.

Paul asked me an interesting question.

Paul asked me an interesting question. He said something to the effect, “What are your special trackchasing plans for 2009? Do you have some special tracks that you want to visit?”

I thought about Paul’s question for a moment. I really don’t have any “special” tracks that I’m dying to see. I’ve been to more than 1,400 tracks. I’ve really seen about anything I really wanted to see. I mentioned two tracks that have eluded me up to now, the Indiana State Fairgrounds and the Duquion State Fairgrounds in southern Illinois. Both are one-mile dirt ovals. However, if I really had wanted to see these tracks I would have seen them by now. Maybe I will see them this year.

Of course, my “special” plans for 2009 include more international trackchasing. However, for the most, part I trackchase on a “popup” basis. When something interesting “pops up”, I go there. As I write this, I have no firm plans for trackchasing anywhere in particular. Do I think I will go trackchasing somewhere this weekend? Yes, I do. It’s Wednesday as I write this. I will likely leave on Friday. At this point, I don’t know where I might be headed. Many trackchasers plan their trips out in detail for the next month or even for an entire year. There’s nothing wrong with that. I just don’t roll that way.

I enjoyed spending a little time with the “Bingster”.

I don’t know Bing very well. We had only met briefly one time before at a track in Missouri. However, Bing has a solid history as a race driver. Tonight Paul had purchased a track program. The program had a complete history of the indoor racing results at the Atlantic City, New Jersey indoor track (this venue was home to the Miss America pageant for years). Paul showed me the winner of the 1970 indoor races in Atlantic City. It was none other than the aforementioned Bing Metz! That’s impressive.

It was fun spending the evening with Paul and Bing. Later in the evening, Nancy and Allan Brown along with Ed Esser made a brief appearance. They had just completed a 14-hour drive in from Michigan for the Rhode Island races. Yes, trackchasers will go to great links to pursue their hobby.

Tonight’s clientele was fitting.

I thought it was fitting that Carol was able to see both Nancy Brown and Paul Weisel tonight. As mentioned, Nancy is the only other trackchasing woman to see racing in 50 states. Carol is the tenth person to ever do it. Who was the ninth person to see racing in 50 states? Paul Weisel!!

TRACKCHASING TOURIST ATTRACTION

I very much enjoy the racing when I go on trackchasing trips. However, I am not the type of person who would feel the trip was complete if I simply left home, went to the race and came back home.

I do a good deal of traveling. I want to do my best to see the local area when I come for a visit. There are usually unusual attractions that one area is noted for more than any other locale. I want to see those places. I want to touch them and feel them. When I leave an area, I want to have memories of these special places that I call Trackchasing Tourist Attractions. I will remember those experiences long after the checkered flag has fallen on whatever race I have seen that day.

Brown University – Providence, Rhode Island

When we go trackchasing, we frequently visit college campuses. Today we were able to visit a school located right in downtown Providence. The Brown University is an Ivy League school. My personal physician attended Brown. One of his classmates was Chris Berman, the ESPN sportscasters.

Brown is a relatively small school with just 5,800 undergraduates. Thinking about sending one of your little rug rats there? You had better start saving. Undergraduate tuition is $35,584 and room and board will run about $11,892. That’s $47,476 for just one year!!

Brown University began as the Baptist answer to Congregationalist Yale and Harvard, Presbyterian Princeton and Episcopalian Penn and Columbia. At its inception, it was the only school from above to admit students of all religious persuasions. Brown no longer has its Baptist affiliations.

Today the Brown campus was cold and snowy. We visited the student center and the campus bookshop looking for postcards and souvenirs. After walking around the campus, my “Yelp” iPhone app identified “Louis’ Café” as a unique place to eat. It’s either a rundown diner or a diner with significant ambience. Each individual gets to decide. The food was fair but the décor was worth seeing. We topped it off with a visit to the Stone Cold Creamery for some reduced fat “sinless” Cake Batter ice cream. Ya!

Our evening dining spot also came from “Yelp”. We selected “Tauqeria Pacifica” a Mexican restaurant in downtown Providence just a block or two from the Dunkin Donuts Center. In a word, “Yuk”. This place might be described as where “Haight-Asbury meets Tijuana”. It was so “hippiyish” they didn’t even sell Diet Coke. There were no chips and salsa and the tacos we had were dry. I have no idea how the place received so many positive reviews on “Yelp”. Live and learn.

RACE REVIEW

DUNKIN DONUTS CENTER – PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND

Tonight’s racing at the Dunkin Donuts Center was as good of an indoor racing program as I have observed in 28 tries. I can’t think of any better. It wasn’t perfect but they offered a very entertaining show. I’ll give you the highlights from a race fan’s perspective.

The arena is located in downtown Providence. The Providence Flyers college basketball team plays their home games here as well as a local hockey team. The place seats 12,500 for basketball games. Our seats were very comfortable although it was slightly on the cool side inside the area. Our sightlines were excellent of all the racing action.

The “Dunk” sits next to the Rhode Island Convention Center. We entered through the RICC and found a large group of more than 100 people waiting in line for something or other. To add to our curiosity, each person in line was sitting on a video monitor along with several other pieces of electronic equipment. I had to ask what they were up too. A young man told me they were waiting to get into a weekend long video games contest. These guys were all “gamers”. It seemed like they would be having a fun weekend, although as “gamers” it didn’t look like they had gotten much sun lately!

Getting tickets to this event involved Ticketmaster. Can you spell “FEES” and still more “FEES”. We bought the best seats in the house. It’s the way we roll. We were in the front row of the first level, about 20 feet above the track’s surface. There was no one seated in front of us. The base ticket charge was $18 U.S. However, there was a “building facility” charge of $2 per ticket as well. Then Ticketmaster charged us a $7.75 per ticket convenience fee. Exactly whose “convenience” was being satisfied? Then there was an “order processing” charge of $3.80. We turned down the opportunity to buy “insurance” for our tickets at $6 per ticket. Who buys such insurance anyway? Someone must or they wouldn’t offer it.

Finally, we passed on all of the various charges for delivery of the tickets. We could have had our tickets delivered in one day, two days, a week or whatever. We could have had them emailed to us. We could have had them held at “Will Call”. All of these choices would cost us even more money. We chose to have Ticketmaster simply mail our tickets at no extra charge. Yes, Ticketmaster is a rip-off.

We did a complete circular walk around the arena to see what concessions were being offered. There was no way I could watch a race in the “Dunkin Donuts” Center without have a chocolate covered glazed donut. One donut and a coffee was five bucks. Last night in the Providence Place Mall, a single Dunkin Donut cost 98 cents. I guess the arena serves some expensive coffee! We also had a large tub of fresh popped popcorn. It was very salty just the way I like it. It was good corn.

We arrived in our seats about 30 minutes before the first race. They were time trialing the headlining group when we sat down. We were soon joined by fellow trackchaser, Paul Weisel. About that time, I received a tap on the shoulder. It was the photographer from the Providence Journal. He wanted to take Carol and my picture for a feature they will be running on us in next Wednesday’s Journal.

I had been contacted earlier in the week by one of the paper’s sportswriters. They were interested in doing a story about Carol seeing racing in her 50^th state. How do these folks find out about these underfunded trackchasers who trackchase out of a small seaside residence in Southern California? Nevertheless, we are grateful for their interest in our hobby. I’ll share the contents of the Providence Journal news coverage when I can.

Now let’s go racing. The promoters of this show were well ahead of the game with me when they did the unthinkable. They started on time!! Right then they were ahead of 95% of the racetrack competition.

I guessing the flat concrete oval track might have been 1/5-mile in distance. The cars were turning lap times of 8-9 seconds. There were just two classes racing tonight. The Three-Quarter (TQs) midgets ran four heats, two semis and a main event. They brought about 40 cars to the show. The senior champ karts ran two heats, a semi and a main event. They brought about 30 competitors to the Dunk.

The organizers knew what they were doing. First, they brought a good announcer to the show. They were also excellent in getting wrecks and spins cleaned up. When a disabled car wouldn’t roll, they lifted it up, placed a four-wheel dolly under it and away they went. This was the best run racing program, I have seen in a couple of years.

The racing itself was close and the drivers raced hard. Again, the organizers were ahead of the curve by having all restarts done in double file. Had they reverted to single file restarts they would have gotten only single file racing.

Most indoor shows I have attended have a problem with fumes. No fumes tonight. The lighting was also nearly perfect. Often the speaker system in large arenas isn’t any good. Not the case tonight, we could hear the announcer very well.

There were several big name local racing heroes in the field including “Liquid Lou” Cicconi, Ted Christopher and Joey Payne. The highlight for me was learning that our own Bing Metz’ son was the car owner of the racer starting on the front row pole of the TQ main event. The Metz car ran third for most of the race before being caught up in a wreck toward the end of the race.

The entire show ended a bit before 11 p.m. I’m glad it didn’t run any later as we had a wakeup call for 4:15 a.m. Tonight’s race moved me up, temporarily, from ninth in the state to third in the Rhode Island rankings. That was a nice NGD bump. However, when more trackchasers visit the arena on day 2 of the two-day program, I will likely settle out in seventh place in the Ocean state.

Overall, this was an excellent show. Obviously, it will always be remembered as where Carol got her 50^th trackchasing state. She told me she expected to remember the night for a very long time.

STATE COMPARISONS

Rhode Island

This evening I saw my second new track in the Ocean state. As noted, this was Carol’s first ever track to see here. Currently, Pappy Hough and Paul Weisel lead in Rhode Island with three tracks.

Now you can see the entire up to date trackchaser rankings for the state. Just click on this link or paste it in your browser:

http://www.autoracingrecords.com/tc/statregion.php?country=USA&region=RI

RENTAL CAR UPDATE

Boston, MA & Providence, RI – Thursday/Saturday

For the first time ever, that I can recall, I rented a Hybrid car. It was a Toyota Prius to be exact. I rented the car in Boston and would end up dropping it in Providence. I used a “free day” to pick up the car and drop it in the Rhode Island capital. This reduced a normal $80 U.S. charge for a “drop off” to just $16 in taxes. I then “re-rented” the same car in Providence for one day. Yes, there is a lot of strategy that needs to be employed in the trackchasing hobby.

I drove the National Rental Car Racing Toyota Prius 100 miles on this trip. I paid an average price of $2.00 per gallon. The partially battery powered car gave me 42.6 miles per gallon fuel mileage at a cost of 4.7 cents per mile. The car cost 67.9 cents per mile to rent, all taxes included.

Coming soon!

How do fellow P&G retirees really think?

I have some really big news that will break on April 25, 2009. Despite frequent questions, I can’t tell you what this is about until the appointed date. I will say I am receiving some most unusual questions and comments on this topic.

Why I fear Ed Esser.

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

Randy Lewis

Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser

When Peter says something about Paul, it says more about Peter than it does Paul.

TRAVEL DETAILS

AIRPLANE

Los Angeles, CA – Boston, MA – 2,608 miles

RENTAL CAR

Logan (Boston) International Airport – trip begins

Providence, RI – 67 miles

T.F. Green (Providence) International Airport – 100 miles

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES:

Dunkin Donut Arena – $18 + + +

COMPARISONS

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS UPDATE:

There are no trackchasers currently within 200 tracks of my lifetime total.

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,412

Full Lifetime World Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/trackchasers.php

Other notables

These worldwide trackchasers are within 10 tracks (plus or minus or more) of Carol’s current trackchaser total.

26. Kevin Eckert, Indianapolis, Indiana – 455

27. Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 377

28. Ken Schrader, Concord, North Carolina – 373

2009 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 12

2. Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania – 8

2. Bing Metz, Tatamy, Pennsylvania – 8

Tracks have been reported by 15 different worldwide trackchasers this season.

Complete 2008 Trackchasing Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statyear2008.php

LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS

Final 2008 National Geographic Diversity results have been posted.

COMPLETE TRACK TYPE CATEGORY COMPARISONS OF NOTE:

Dirt Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statdirt.php

Paved Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statpaved.php

Ice Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statice.php

Mixed Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statmixed.php

Oval Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statoval.php

Circuit (road course) Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statcircuit.php

Figure 8 Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statf8.php

Indoor Track Comparisons

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/statindoor.php

Official Trackchaser Rules

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/rules.php

Past trackchasing reports are available at:

www.ranlayracing.com

Official trackchaser comparisons can be viewed at:

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/index.php

Some of the data in this report comes from

http://autoracingrecords.com/tc/index.php

and my Garmin GPS aka “Tonto”

UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS

Last Friday we went trackchasing in Bahrain and then on Saturday we moved over to Dubai in the Middle East. Then we flew home to California before heading out on Wednesday toward Rhode Island. You likely will not believe where I showed up on Sunday just nine days after being in Bahrain.

RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2009

1,401. Death Valley Raceway (oval), Armargosa Valley, Nevada - January 3

1,402. Lake Weyauwega Ice Track (oval), Weyauwega, Wisconsin - January 11

1,403. Marion Pond Ice Track (oval), Marion, Wisconsin - January 11

1,404. Grandvalira Circuit (road course), Port d’Envalira, Andorra - January 17

1,405. Kuna International Raceway (oval), Kuna, Idaho - January 25

1,406. Circuito Efren Chemolli (oval), Buenos Aires, Argentina - January 31

Ozark Empire Fairgrounds (oval), Springfield, Missouri – February 6 (new track for Carol only)

Lake Speed Ice Track (oval), Tilleda, Wisconsin – February 7 (new track for Carol only)

1,407. DeltaPlex (oval), Grand Rapids, Michigan – February 8

1,408. Losail International Circuit (road course), Doha, Qatar – February 13

1,409. Lake Washington Ice Track (road course), Mankato, Minnesota – February 15

1,410. Bahrain International Circuit (road course), Sakhir, Bahrain – February 27

1,411. Dubai Autodrome (road course), Dubai, United Arab Emirates – February 28

1,412. Dunkin Donuts Center (oval), Providence, Rhode Island – March 6