DAY 2 – GO WHERE THE WEATHER IS BEST TRACKCHASING TOUR

 

 

AND THE READERS RESPOND

 

 

From time to time interested readers write me about one thing or another.  Many times, I feel that my other readers would be interested, informed and/or amused by the comments I get.  Here’s what a Texas reader had to say about the recent trackchasing ‘cheating’ scandal.

 

 

Randy,

 

I agree that I don’t want anyone cheating in any activity that I participate in.  I agree that if anyone does cheat, he/she should be penalized. 

 

But I’m not sure I agree with you regarding accusations not being made public until they’re proven or disproven.

 

Think about our justice system.  When someone is accused of a crime, that is made public, but it is understood that they are innocent, until proven guilty.  There is a reason it’s made public.  That is so no one can say later that there was a cover-up, or that it wasn’t fully investigated. 

 

I’m sure your trackchasing commissioner is an honest and capable person.  But what if a commissioner in another hobby was dishonest, or was prone to poor judgement?  If someone brought an allegation of cheating to this dishonest or incapable commissioner, he might just say “Well, I don’t believe this is worthy of pursuing”.  And that would be that, and no one would know any different, because it had not been made public; no one else would know about it except the dishonest or incapable commissioner.

 

In my view, put any allegations out on the table, where all can see them, and make sure that everyone understands that the person is innocent — until they are proven guilty.  In the situation you described, no one could prove the person was guilty, so they are innocent of the cheating charges.  Case closed.  That’s just the way it would be handled in our justice system.  (Unless Johnnie Cochran came back from the grave and someone hired him — then, who knows what might happen???!!!)

 

I always enjoy reading your reports, Randy, keep up the good work.

 

 

 

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE

 

 

The Hawkeye Racing News had recently published my memorial to Darrell Dake.  I’ve been receiving emails from HRN readers like crazy.  Darrel was loved by many people.  I have also received new photos from Darrell Dake’s racing career from Bob Dixon of Waterloo, Iowa.  I have posted those on my website at www.randylewis.org.  Just click on the “Tributes” tab.

 

I now have more than 10,000 photographs on my website.

 

 

 

 

TODAY’S HEADLINES

 

Hey great granddaddy.  Who was that guy?………………..more in “The Objective”.

 

 

What do you think of “multi-tasking?”  Can you do more than one thing at once? …………..details in “The Trip”.

 

 

When is it O.K. to change your child’s diaper? …………..details in “The People”.

 

 

 

 

 

GREETINGS FROM VICTORVILLE, CALIFORNA.

 

 

 

I woke up in Tyler, Texas this morning and went to sleep in San Clemente, California. This is what transpired today.

 

 

 

 

PEOPLE/STRATEGY/TRAVEL NEWS

 

 

The Objective  

“Hey, great granddaddy.  I’ve been looking at your old trackchasing records.  Who’s this guy that went from southern California for just one night of trackchasing in Minden, Louisiana and then showed up at Victorville, California the very next night?  That’s impossible ain’t it granddaddy?” asked the great grandson of one of today’s leading Eastern trackchasers.

 

 

“Well, sonny. That fella was from out there in San Clemente, California or somewhere.  He was one crazy mother,” replied great grandpa.  “What do you mean ‘mother’, great granddaddy?  How could he be a mother?” the child asked.  “Oh, it’s just an expression we used back then. No, he wasn’t a mother.  We just couldn’t figure out how he did it.  He was a real mystery to us”.

 

 

 

 

The Trip

 

 

Saturday afternoon

Do you ever try to “multi-task”?  I do all the time.  I’ve read stories that you can’t get 100% out of any activity when you’re doing two or more things at once.  I figure if I can get 75% out of two activities at the same time, that’s 150% from my time rather than just doing one thing at 100% efficiency.  Of course, if something is important, I will devote all of my focus to it.

 

 

I have spent a good deal of my life in airports.  Some might think that’s a bad thing.  Obviously, I would disagree.  I was just telling someone at the golf club this past week how much I loved San Clemente. However, I love visiting places all over our country and the world as well.  If I stayed in San Clemente all the time, I couldn’t do that.  On the other hand, if I traveled all the time, I couldn’t enjoy San Clemente.  This is a form of “multi-tasking”.

 

 

My trip today first involved a two-hour drive from Tyler, Texas to the Dallas airport.  When I can, I like to arrive in plenty of time for my flights. I have so much entertainment gear in my briefcase, I can always stay busy if I have an extra hour in an airport. I can play live TV on my computer as well as watch any of the programs I’ve recorded on my DirectTV DVR.  I always have plenty of reading material that usually isn’t read in my Hartman case.  If all of that fails, I can just talk to my fellow passengers.

 

 

Today I was flying back to L.A. on a United Express flight operated by SkyWest Airlines.  Our son, J.J. flies for this airline.  With SkyWest, I have the best priority of any airline I fly. That priority netted a first class seat to Los Angeles.  That was a good thing.

 

 

When I arrived at LAX, I picked up my car at the Parking Spot that I had parked just 31 hours ago.  Even the parking situation involved a bit of multi-tasking.  During the 31 hours that I have been gone, J.J. had flown in from Tucson, picked up my car, drove it to San Clemente for an overnight, then drove it back to LAX and went back to work with a flight to Wichita.  By the time I returned to LAX the car was patiently waiting for me just as if it had never left the Parking Spot.  We Lewis’ are multi-taskers.

 

 

Saturday late afternoon

The Lewis multi-tasking effort was not finished on this day.  I had just landed at the Los Angeles International Airport.  Carol was at home in San Clemente.  Tonight’s track location was in Victorville, California. Of course, three independent points always form a triangle.

 

 

Here was our challenge.  It was 3 p.m. when I landed at LAX.  Tonight’s racing was to begin, for us, at 7 p.m.  I wanted to minimize the total miles that both Carol and I drove tonight in getting to the races.  The three points of the triangle were LAX, San Clemente and Victorville.  What was the best way to move around this triangle in the most cost-efficient manner? This sounds like an S.A.T. question doesn’t it.

 

 

We could both meet at the track. This option would require a total driving mileage of 404 miles since we would be using two cars.  Alternatively, I could drive home to San Clemente, pick up Carol, and take her to the races.  This would only require 270 miles of driving and the use of one car. However, there was not enough time to pull this option off.

 

 

We settled on Carol driving northward to Mission Viejo, a distance of 20 miles.  I would drive south from LAX to Mission Viejo, a distance of 53 miles. Yes, Carol and I were multi-tasking (both driving at the same time to accomplish a single objective).  This new solution required 280 miles of total driving spread over two cars.  It minimized the miles driven and met our time constraints of getting to the track on time.

 

 

Of course, our multi-tasking did not stop there.  On the drive up to the track, we listened to the UCLA-Oregon State football game being played in Corvallis, Oregon.  As we drove and listened, we planned our dinner strategy.  We wanted Chinese food.  We would search “Dusty” our portable GPS system for a Chinese restaurant that we could stop at during halftime so we wouldn’t miss much of the game.  We were unsuccessful in finding Chinese food that would match up with the halftime show because we were driving through the Southern California mountains during the game’s halftime.  Apparently, the Chinese have decided to avoid putting their restaurants in the mountains.

 

 

Once we reached Victorville, we found our Chinese restaurant.  To avoid missing the second half of the game, we decided to order takeout.  I needed to talk to three people at the restaurant before I could get someone who spoke English well enough to take our order. By the way, that is exactly the type of Chinese restaurant you want to eat at.  We don’t eat in “Taco Bell” type Chinese places.

 

 

Once we were at the restaurant, I came up with a new idea.  If the restaurant had a TV we could eat our food “in” and watch the game.  It was a “Chinese fire drill” (pun intended) trying to explain this concept to our friendly Chinese hosts.  They did their best with the limited resources of the “Dish Network” trying to find the game. However the “Dish” people weren’t broadcasting the UCLA game.  Maybe, that’s why I have DirectTV, which rocks and is adding 100 HD channels by the end of this year.

 

 

We were back to the original plan. We would eat our egg drop soup, pot stickers and shrimp chow mien in the car.  While Carol was unwrapping all of our food as well as our chopsticks, I was powering up the laptop in hopes of watching the game on our Slingbox system powered by my Dell laptop.  For whatever reason, (a possible simultaneous J.J. upgrade?) I couldn’t get that system to work.  By the way, it is quite the challenge to balance a laptop, a bowl of egg drop soup and a pair of chopsticks while dipping a pot sticker in a bowl of teriyaki sauce.  However, it is well worth the effort.

 

 

By the time we had reached our current location in Victorville, our local AM radio station’s signal for the UCLA game was fading.  No problem, we simply switched to XM radio and listened to the Oregon State announcers on our XM satellite radio system (UCLA initiated broadcasts are only available on Sirius satellite radio).  UCLA is not a great football team.  They trailed at halftime by a score of 14-6 and had only a couple of first downs. However, they are a lucky team. They capitalized on Oregon State turnovers in the second half to win 40-14.  Unbelievable!

 

 

With our Chinese dinner fully consumed and not too much of it spilled on the interior of the Carol Lewis owned and Life of Virginia sponsored Lexus LS 430 we were off to the races as they say. We arrived into the parking lot of the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds at 7 p.m.  We listened to the last couple of football minutes as the track’s water truck completed its work during intermission at tonight’s program.

 

 

So……what have we learned from the above? I can only imagine what you’re thinking right now.  I suspect many of my foreign as well as U.S. readers have never heard of some of the technology that we used today.  I know one of my readers has characterized me as a “closet engineer”.  My tax accountant tells me that I am her only “non-engineer” client that has re-created the U.S. tax form system in an Excel file. Others may think that I’m going to have a heart attack living this fast-paced “XXXXs to the wall” lifestyle.  Heck, every one of these assessments could be true.

 

 

However, I don’t think of myself as an Engineer.  Engineers remind me too much of work.  I think of myself as a salesman.  I’m trying to communicate.  I’m trying to find compelling reasons for you to buy my product.  “What is your product, Randy?” the quizzical reader might ask.

 

 

I have a simple product to sell. Not everyone needs this product. Not everyone wants this product. Heck, not everyone can even understand this product.  Here is what I am selling.

 

 

I am selling the idea of “thinking out of the box”.  I see so many people that limit themselves by seeing all the reasons that something cannot be done, why something isn’t right, etc.  The use of technology is a prime example. Technology can be difficult to understand.  However, when used properly, technology can give you so many more options in life. Granted, I have three children who as my grandma used to say, “are smart as a whip” (whatever that meant).  They “keep me current”.

 

 

However, I am not just talking about technology by any means.  I’m talking about a “mind set” really.  That mind set means challenging yourself at whatever age you might be to be more, learn more, do more.  “More” can be a good thing.

 

 

Anyway, that’s how my travel day went. I have to get on my elliptical machine and pump away while watching the President’s Cup golf match on my DVR.  I only have an hour until Carol gets back from church and we’re off to our Sunday afternoon race. 

 

 

In my own personal effort to “be more, learn more, do more” I’ve made a mental note to learn more about “covered call stock options” as mentioned by son, Jim and long-time, loyal Trackchaser Report reader Mr. Tomasek.  My goal is to place a covered call option, if that’s how you say it, before the end of the year.

 

 

 

The People 

I see things at nearly every track I visit that I have never seen before.  The Victorville Auto Raceway did not disappoint in this area.  The track is located on the property of the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds.  Tonight there were several activities going on in the adjacent fair buildings.

 

 

There were at least three major Mexican weddings and parties going full blast.  The Mexican bands were playing their favorites and everyone was having a good time.  Southern California probably has more Hispanics than any other race including Caucasians.  We could see wedding cakes and lots of Mexican cowboy hats.  Everyone was having a great time.

 

 

When we approached the ticket window, I saw something I have never seen in my previous 1,276 track visits.  The ticket seller was changing the diaper on her two-year old!  I tried not to look.  If you do this long enough, you will see everything.

 

 

After Carol and I were comfortably seated in the fifth row of a spacious county fair grandstand that sits back from the track some, I passed my trackchaser press release up to the announcing booth.  Less than sixty seconds later, the announcer was telling the crowd they had a “celebrity” in their midst.  Yes, we SoCalers are accustomed to dealing with celebrities with the movie industry nearby.  Carol and I craned out necks to see what famous person might be seated in the grandstand.

 

 

Alas, the announcer was referring to the “World’s #1 Ranked Trackchaser”.  I never could have guessed!  He asked me to come up and talk with him and I did.  This announcer was most enthusiastic about tonight’s races and about the hobby of trackchasing.

 

 

He told the crowd what counted and didn’t count in the world of trackchasing tracks.  I figured if the Victorville crowd could understand the requirements after hearing the rules explained just once, then our long-time trackchasers shouldn’t have any trouble understanding the rules.

 

 

I told him a little about where I had been in 2007.  The announcer told the crowd that he himself had traveled a good deal with “monster truck shows”.  However, he was a bit taken aback with my travel schedule.  “You’re not home much are you?” he offered.  Well, I am home nearly every Tuesday and Thursday to play golf with the Priestly group. I simply think of myself as an “active senior”.

 

 

While all of this was going on, a fellow over in the corner of the press box was taking copious notes.  I would later learn that he was a reporter for The Daily Press, Victorville’s local newspaper.  Soon I was being introduced to J.J. Calvacca.  J.J. told me he will be placing a story about trackchasing in the paper in the next few days.  When I get the copy I will share it with all Trackchaser Report readers.

 

 

It was a full people night.  My experience at the Victorville Auto Raceway exceeded my expectations.

 

 

 

STATE RANKINGS

This is my 103^rdlifetime track to see in the Golden state.  The late legendary Gary Jacob leads in California with a grand total of 149 tracks.  It’s most unlikely that I will ever catch up to Gary for the state lead.  By my count, I have only nine active tracks remaining to be seen here.  Just one of those runs on a weekly basis.  That’s the Siskiyou Motor Speedway up in Yreka.  I had hoped to see them race last night, but bad weather forced me to detour to Louisiana.

 

 

The oval and then the figure 8 tracks were Carol’s 59^thand 60^thlifetime California tracks.  She has a commanding 19-track lead over Allan Brown and is beginning to threaten Alan Skinrood’s fourth place total of 60 tracks.  California is the state where Carol has seen the most tracks.

 

 

 

RACE REVIEW

 

 

VICTORVILLE AUTO RACEWAY, VICTORVILLE, CALIFORNIA – TRACK #1,277 (CAROL’S TRACKS #342–OVAL & #343–FIGURE 8)

 

Wow!!  Was I surprised.  I really wasn’t expecting much from the Victorville Auto Raceway.  I had seen racing on the oval back on July 31, 1992. Back then the track was called the Victorville Grandstand Arena.  The race I saw was the inaugural event for oval racing at this location in Victorville. Between then and now the track was also called the Route 66 Raceway as Victorville sits on what used to be the famous Route 66 highway.

 

 

I was here to see the figure 8 racing. Luckily for Carol, she would get credit for both the figure 8 and oval tracks as she had not accompanied me on that special night in 1992.  I was expecting a small town track with far west car counts and quality, meaning “bad news”.

 

 

However, we were in for a treat.  I had called ahead to confirm the figure 8 racing.  In the past, the only time this location ran figure 8s was during the Thanksgiving weekend. This year they’ve been running figure 8s every two or three weeks.  By the way, according to a flyer handed out at the track, they will be racing over the Thanksgiving weekend but will not be running figure eights.

 

 

My contact at the track confirmed they would run figure 8 races.  Although he cautioned “it’s only the four-cylinders”.  I didn’t care if it was Reliant Robins, I would be there.  He also advised that heat races began at 5 p.m.  He told me I would be safe in seeing the figure 8 races if I arrived no later than 7 p.m.  “That’s when the feature racing starts.  A lot of people show up then”.  Given my arrival from Louisiana into LAX, getting there for the feature events would be no problem.

 

 

As noted above, Carol and I dined on fine Chinese cuisine in the Carol Lewis owned and Life of Virginia sponsored Lexus LS 430 just two miles from the track.  When we pulled into the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds facility, we could see the water truck putting down some moisture on the dirt oval’s surface. With that sight we knew we had time to listen to the last minutes of the UCLA football game on radio.

 

 

For some reason this track is eerily like the shuttered Ascot Park.  Yes, the track lengths are different.  Ascot was a small half-mile oval and Victorville is only a quarter-mile track. Nevertheless, there were many similarities.  The outside retaining wall was painted like Ascot.  The track surface was smooth and banked about like Ascot.  The announcer reminded me of Southern California and Ascot. The announcers at many SoCal tracks including Perris, Irwindale and now Victorville and Ascot bring a lot to the party that I just don’t see virtually anywhere else.

 

 

They are funny and informative. You feel like they are talking to you and they are entertaining.  They are not “DJ style” announcers who seem to talk a lot but don’t know their racing very well.  They are not “wallflower” announcers that rarely speak at all.  They are not “curmudgeon” announcers who are not very friendly or informative.  SoCal announcers like we had tonight are in a league of their own.

 

 

The racing fields were full.  The tracks website at http://www.victorville-auto-raceway.comindicates eleven divisions have raced there in 2007.  Tonight there were five classes racing.  This included the mini-stocks, sport compacts senior, sports compact junior, sprints and figure 8s.

 

 

The mini-stocks and sports compact seniors were very similar looking divisions.  They each ran a 20-car feature with nice looking cars.  The track was well lit, they didn’t screw around with a lot of yellow flag delays and the racing was excellent.

 

 

What was most fantastic were the wingless sprint cars.  Ascot Park closed back in 1992.  They told us they wanted to develop the land.  That land sits vacant to this day.  The Perris Auto Speedway is Ascot’s replacement.  I love Perris, but it’s nearly 90 miles from our home and I’m never home on Saturday nights.

 

 

I wasn’t expecting much from Victorville’s sprint car class.  I figured with Perris running wingless sprint cars on a nearly weekly basis, a track like Victorville located just 63 miles away couldn’t have much of a sprint car count. Wrong!  They brought 20 wingless sprints to the dance.  Twenty wingless sprints on a banked quarter-mile dirt oval was perfect.

 

 

Maybe I was catching them on a good night.  The web site told me that seven sprint car races had been run to date.  Only five cars had made all seven races and only seven cars had made more than four races.  I was also surprised to see that 49 different cars had raced in the sprint division at least once.

 

 

Nevertheless, there were twenty of them tonight.  They put on a great race.  This was easily one of the best five races I’ve seen in 2007.  There was plenty of two-groove racing, several runs from the back to the front and a couple of minor crashes including one after the checkered flag with the second place finisher.  I love wingless sprint cars.  I will likely park across the street and watch street stocks before I will be interested in winged sprint cars.

 

 

The figure 8 race was the last of the night.  There were ten starters.  The race was run on a traditional figure 8 track.  That means they use the turns of the oval for the turns of the figure 8 track. This is a permanent figure 8 course. There was a little action at the “X” but not much. For the most part this was a figure 8 “race” and not a figure 8 “derby” like most of the figure 8 racing I watch in the East and Midwest.

 

 

The entire program was finished by 9:05 p.m.  This had rekindled my interest in non-winged sprint cars.  I just might make a return visit to Perris or even Victorville in the future.  The only problem is I’m never in SoCal on a Saturday night.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser

Everything I know, I learned from someone else.

 

 

 

 

AIRPLANE 

Los Angeles, CA – Dallas, TX – 1,237 miles

 

 

RENTAL CAR – DALLAS

Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport – trip begins

Minden, LA – 228 miles

Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport – 464 miles – trip ends

 

 

AIRPLANE 

Dallas, TX – Los Angeles, CA – 1,237 miles

 

 

PERSONAL CAR

Los Angeles International Airport – trip resumes

Victorville, CA – 139 miles

San Clemente, CA – 241 miles – trip ends

 

 

Total Air miles – 2,474 miles (2 flights)

 

 

Total auto and air miles traveled on this trip – 3,179 miles

 

 

 

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES: 

Champion Park Speedway – $10

Victorville Auto Raceway – $10

 

 

Total racetrack admissions for the trip – $20

 

 

 

RANKINGS

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER STANDINGS UPDATE:

 

There are no trackchasers currently within 100 tracks of my lifetime total. 

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,277

 

 

 

 

Other notables

 

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

 

27. Ken Schrader, Concord, North Carolina – 352

 

28. Max Allender, Des Moines, Iowa – 349

 

29. Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 343

 

 

 

2007 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 139

 

2. Roland Vanden Eynde, Vilvoorde, Belgium – 91

 

3. Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 83

 

4. Mike Knappenberger, Reading, Pennsylvania – 76

 

5. Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania – 57

 

6. Pam Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania – 52

 

7. Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 49

 

7. Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania – 49

 

9. Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, Pennsylvania – 38

 

10. Roger Ferrell, Majenica, Indiana – 34

 

Tracks have been reported by 40 different worldwide trackchasers this season.

 

 

 

 

LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS

 

Results current thru 9/29/07**

 

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 6.65
2. Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, Pennsylvania – 6.67
3. Allan Brown, Comstock Park, Michigan – 7.69

 

 

** Results are unofficial.

 

 

 

 

UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS 

Now that I’m back on my original California weekend plan, Carol and I will trackchase together again tomorrow in Southern California less than ten miles from the Mexican border.

 

 

 

 

RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2007(** not the first time to visit this track)

 

 

1,139.  Meremere Dirt Track Club, Meremere, New Zealand – January 1

 

1,140.  Meeanee Speedway, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand – January 1

 

1,141.  Top of the South Speedway, Richmond, New Zealand – January 2

 

1,142.  Woodford Glen Speedway, Christchurch, New Zealand – January 3

 

1,143.  Robertson Holden International Speedway, Palmerston North, New Zealand – January 5

 

1,144.  Taupo Motorsports Park, Taupo, North, New Zealand – January 6

 

1,145.  Waikaraka Park International Speedway, Auckland, New Zealand – January 6

 

1,146.  Angels Stadium of Anaheim (inner oval), Anaheim, California – January 13

 

1,147.  Angels Stadium of Anaheim (outer oval), Anaheim, California – January 13

 

1,148.  West Valley Speedway, Surprise, Arizona – January 14

 

1,149. Sandia Motorsports Park (road course), Albuquerque, New Mexico – January 28

 

1,150. Grand Prix De Lanaudiere, Lavaltrie, Quebec, Canada – February 3

 

1,151. Ste-Eulalie Ice Track, Eulalie, Quebec, Canada – February 4

 

1,152. St Guillaume, St Guillaume, Quebec, Canada – February 4

 

1,153. Caldwell Rodeo Arena, Caldwell, Idaho – February 10

 

1,154. Balsam Lake Ice Track, Balsam Lake, Wisconsin – February 18

 

1,155. Northeast Pond Ice Track, Milton, New Hampshire – February 24

 

1,156. Lee Pond Ice Track, Moultonborough, New Hampshire – February 25

 

1,157. New Hendry Country Speedway, Clewiston, Florida – March 3

 

1,158. Florida Sports Park, Naples, Florida – March 4

 

1,159. Honeoye Lake Ice Track – Road Course, Honeoye, New York – March 10

 

1,160. Houston Raceway Park, Baytown, Texas – March 16

 

1,161. Houston Motorsports Park, Houston, Texas – March 16

 

1,162. Dawgwood Speedway, Chatsworth, Georgia – March 17

 

1,163. Toccoa Speedway, Toccoa, Georgia – March 17

 

1,164. Tazewell Speedway, Tazewell, Tennessee – March 18

 

1,165. Malden Speedway, Malden, Missouri, Tennessee – March 23

 

1,166. Dacosa Speedway, Byhalia, Mississippi – March 24

 

1,167. Swinging Bridge Raceway, Byram, Mississippi – March 24

 

1,168. Florence Motor Speedway, Florence, South Carolina – March 25

 

1,169. Foothills Raceway, Easley, South Carolina – March 30

 

1,170. Mileback Speedway, Gray Court, South Carolina – March 30

 

1,171. Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg, Florida – April 1

 

1,172. Vegas Grand Prix, Las Vegas, Nevada – April 8

 

1,173. Huntsville Speedway, Huntsville, Alabama – April 13

 

1,174. Low Country Kartway, Aynor, South Carolina – April 14

 

1,175. Dillon Motor Speedway, Dillon, South Carolina – April 14

 

1,176. Valley Dirt Riders, Berthoud, Colorado – April 15

 

1,177. Antelope Valley Fairgrounds, Lancaster, California – April 22

 

1,178. Sertoma Speedway, Tularosa, New Mexico – April 27

 

1,179. Sandia Motorsports Park (outer oval), Albuquerque, New Mexico – April 28

 

1,180. Sandia Motorsports Park (inner oval), Albuquerque, New Mexico – April 28

 

1,181. Hollywood Hills Speedway, San Felipe Pueblo, New Mexico – April 29

 

1,182. Meridian Speedway, Meridian, Idaho – May 11

 

1,183. Diamond Mountain Speedway, Vernal, Utah, Idaho – May 12

 

1,184. Rocky Mountain Raceways (oval), Salt Lake City, Utah – May 12 

 

1,185. Rocky Mountain Raceways (figure 8), Salt Lake City, Utah – May 12

 

1,186. Modoc Speedway, Modoc, South Carolina – May 18

 

1,187. Possum Kingdom Super Speedway, Belton, South Carolina – May 19

 

1,188. Laurens County Speedway, Laurens, South Carolina – May 19

 

1,189. Fairplex at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, Pomona, California – May 20

 

1,190. Lowes Motor Speedway (inner oval), Concord, North Carolina – May 24

 

1,191. Lowes Motor Speedway (road course), Concord, North Carolina – May 24

 

1,192. Madison International Speedway (inner oval), Oregon, Wisconsin – May 25

 

** Madison International Speedway (outer oval), Oregon, Wisconsin – May 25

 

1,193. Thunderbird Stadium (figure 8), Bremerton, Washington – May 26

 

1,194. Thunderbird Stadium (oval), Bremerton, Washington – May 26

 

1,195. Whispering Pines Motorsports Park, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada – May 27

 

1,196. Magic Valley Speedway, Twin Falls, Idaho – May 28

 

1,197. Owyhee Motorcycle Raceway Park, Boise, Idaho – June 1

 

1,198. Race City Motorsports Park, Calgary, Alberta, Canada – June 2

 

1,199. Edmonton International Raceway, Wetaskiwin, Alberta, Canada – June 2

 

1,200. Castrol Raceway, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada – June 2

 

1,201. Hidden Valley Motorsports Park, Drumheller, Alberta, Canada – June 2

 

1,202. Boyd’s Speedway, Ringgold, Georgia – June 8

 

1,203. Fayette County Fairgrounds, Washington Courthouse, Ohio – June 9

 

1,204. Brush Creek Motorsports Park, Pebbles, Ohio – June 9

 

1,205. Brown County Speedway, Russellville, Ohio – June 9

 

1,206. Vinton Speedway, Vinton, Ohio – June 10

 

1,207. Hilltop Speedway, Millersburg, Ohio – June 10

 

1,208. I-70 Speedway – dirt (outer oval), Odessa, Missouri – June 13

 

1,209. L A Raceway, La Monte, Missouri – June 14

 

1,210. Valley Speedway, Grain Valley, Missouri – June 22

 

1,211. Jamaica Raceway, Jamaica, Iowa – June 23

 

1,212. Calhoun County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Rockwell City, Jamaica, Iowa – June 23

 

** Hamilton County Speedway, Webster City, Iowa – June 23 (new for Carol only)

 

** Iowa Speedway (outer oval), Newton, Iowa, Iowa – June 24 (new for Carol only)

 

1,213. Butler Motor Speedway, Butler, Missouri – June 24

 

** Peoria Speedway, Peoria, Illinois – June 25

 

1,214. Kart Kanyon Raceway, Aztec, New Mexico – June 30

 

1,215. Aztec Speedway, Aztec, New Mexico – June 30

 

1,216. Sunvalley Speedway, Vernon, British Columbia, Canada – July 1

 

1,217. Georgetown Speedway, Georgetown, Delaware – July 6

 

1,218. Delmarva Motorsports Park, Middleford, Delaware – July 6

 

1,219. Hunterstown Speedway, Hunterstown, Pennsylvania – July 7

 

1,220. Shippensburg Speedway, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania – July 7 (Randy only)

 

** Hagerstown Speedway, Hagerstown, Maryland – July 7 (new for Carol only)

 

1,221. Blanket Hill Speedway, Whitesburg, Pennsylvania – July 8

 

1,222. Lincoln County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Troy, Missouri – July 13

 

1,223. Pike County Speedway, Pittsfield, Illinois – July 13

 

1,224. Iowa Speedway (road course), Newton, Iowa – July 14

 

1,225. Mitchell County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Osage, Iowa – July 14

 

1,226. Scott County Fairgrounds (oval), Scottsburg, Indiana – July 15

 

1,227. Barry Expo Center (figure 8), Hastings, Michigan – July 16

 

1,228. Lycoming County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Hughesville, Pennsylvania, Michigan – July 17

 

1,229. Delaware County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Muncie, Indiana – July 18

 

1,230. Delaware County Fairgrounds (oval), Muncie, Indiana – July 18

 

1,231. Van Buren County Youth Fairgrounds (road course), Hartford, Michigan – July 19

 

1,232. High Banks Speedway (oval), Philpot, Kentucky – July 20

 

1,233. High Banks Speedway (figure 8), Philpot, Kentucky – July 20

 

1,234. SOIL MX, Bone Gap, Illinois – July 21

 

1,235. Western Kentucky Speedway, Madisonville, Kentucky – July 21

 

** Windy Hollow Speedway (oval), Owensboro, Kentucky – July 23

 

1,236. Windy Hollow Speedway (small figure 8), Owensboro, Kentucky – July 21

 

1,237. Teton County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Jackson, Wyoming – July 26

 

1,238. Gallatin International Speedway, Belgrade, Montana – July 27

 

1,239. BMP Speedway, Billings, Montana – July 28

 

1,240. Sweetwater County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Rock Springs, Wyoming – July 31

 

1,241. Washington County Fairgrounds (oval), Washington, Kansas – August 3

 

1,242. Maxville Fire Department Figure 8 Course, Maxville, Iowa– August 4

 

1,243. Carroll County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Coon Rapids, Iowa– August 4

 

1,244. Iowa Speedway (temporary inner oval), Newton, Iowa– August 5

 

1,245. Sarpy County Fair & Rodeo Arena (figure 8), Springfield, Nebraska – August 5

 

1,246. Newaygo County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Fremont, Michigan – August 6

 

1,247. Newaygo County Fairgrounds (road course), Fremont, Michigan – August 7

 

1,248. Shiawassee County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Corunna, Michigan – August 8

 

1,249. Tioga County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Wellsboro, Pennsylvania – August 9

 

1,250. Coopersville Festival Grounds (road course), Coopersville, Michigan – August 10

 

1,251. Winston Motor Speedway, Rothbury, Michigan – August 10

 

1,252. Jackson Speedway (dirt oval), Jackson, Michigan – August 11

 

1,253. Springport Motor Speedway, Springport, Michigan – August 11

 

1,254. Double X Speedway, California, Michigan – August 12

 

** Thunderhill Speedway, Mayetta, Kansas – August 13

 

1,255. RPM Speedway, Hays, Kansas – August 14

 

1,256. KAM Raceway, Hastings, Nebraska – August 24

 

1,257. Motorsport Park Hastings, Hastings, Nebraska – August 25

 

1,258. Boneyard Park (figure 8), Edgar, Nebraska – August 25

 

1,259. Lincoln County Raceway (inner oval), North Platte, Nebraska – August 25

 

1,260. Lincoln County Raceway (outer oval), North Platte, Nebraska – August 25

 

1,261. Dirtona Raceway, Hugoton, Kansas – August 26

 

1,262. Paris Fairgrounds (figure 8), Paris, Ontario, Canada – August 30

 

1,263. Autodrome Edelweiss, Cantley, Quebec, Canada – August 31

 

1,264. Barrie Speedway, Barrie, Ontario, Canada – September 1

 

1,265. Sunset Speedway, Stroud, Ontario, Canada – September 1

 

1,266. Kinmount Fairgrounds (figure 8), Kinmount, Ontario, Canada – September 2

 

1,267. Orangeville Fairgrounds (figure 8), Orangeville, Ontario, Canada – September 2

 

1,268. Warren County Prime Beef Festival (oval), Monmouth, Illinois – September 5

 

1,269. Warren County Prime Beef Festival (figure 8), Monmouth, Illinois – September 6

 

1,270. Camden Speedway, Camden, Tennessee – September 7

 

1,271. 24 Raceway (dirt oval), Moberly, Missouri – September 8

 

1,272. Westby Nordic Raceway, Westby, Wisconsin – September 9

 

1,273. Noise Park Raceway, Idaho Falls, Idaho – September 14

 

1,274. Northport International Raceway, Northport, Washington – September 16

 

1,275. Summit Raceway, Elko, Nevada – September 21

 

1,276. Champion Park Speedway, Minden, Louisiana – September 28

 

** Victorville Auto Raceway, Victorville, California (oval) – September 29 (new for Carol only)

 

1,277. Victorville Auto Raceway, Victorville, California (figure 8) – September 29

 

 

 

 

In the business world, the U.S. is often divided up into geographic areas that are referred to as East, Central and the “eleven Western states plus Alaska and Hawaii.” No, I don’t know why they don’t just say the “thirteen western states.”  Those states include Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming and, of course, Alaska and Hawaii.

 

The far west probably has the most beautiful scenery per square mile anywhere in the United States.  This got me to thinking.  Over the next 2-3 years, I’d like to put a “full-court”press on these far west states for trackchasing purposes.  I want to establish a goal of becoming the number one trackchaser in each of these states except California by the end of 2009.  Becoming #1 in California is not a realistic goal at this time. 

 

Below is a listing of these thirteen Far Western states.  The state’s name is followed by my current rank and how many tracks I need to see to gain at least a tie for 1^stplace.  As an example, I’m currently in ninth place in Alaska and trail first place by three tracks.  I’m looking forward to spending more time than usual is the Far West, a great part of our country.

 

Alaska – 9^thby 3

 

Arizona – 1^st

 

California – 2^ndby 46

 

Colorado – 2nd by 1

 

Hawaii – 3^rdby 1

 

Idaho – 1st

 

Montana – 1st

 

Nevada – 2^ndby 1

 

New Mexico – 1st

 

Oregon – 1^st

 

Utah – 1st

 

Washington – 1st

 

Wyoming – 1st