Kern County Raceway Park

 

 

 

THE EVENT

 

Today’s undertaking was just one of more than 2,000 trips that have taken me up, down and around the long and dusty trackchasing trail. If you would like to see where I’ve been and experience those adventures here’s the link:

 

 

Randy’s Complete Track List

 

 

If you’ve got a question, comment or whatever please leave it at the bottom of this report.  It’s very easy to do.  I’ll try my best to respond.  Thanks!

 

 

Carol and I first visited the Kern County Raceway Park in May 2013.  We were guests of the speedway.  Our mission was to see racing on their asphalt oval tracks.  Mission accomplished.  We saw racing on two of their three asphalt oval tracks.  The smallest track has racing for “kids”.  As you know “kids racing” doesn’t count under current trackchasing rules.

 

 

In 2016 we returned to Bakersfield, California once again.  KCRP had opened a 1/4-mile dirt track in late 2015.  This facility sits just beyond turns three and four of the asphalt track operation.  There are also three different ovals at the Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park.  Maybe some day I will see countable racing on the two smaller dirt ovals.

 

 

Back in the day we used to visit the Mesa Marin Speedway in Bakersfield.  Kern County is an able replacement for Mesa Marin.  Don’t miss the story behind our travels to Bakersfield as well as the videos and photo albums.  This is a fun facility especially since they have added dirt racing.  One more thing.  They have a dirt off-road track here too!

 

 

 

 

Kern County Raceway Park (inner and outer ovals), Bakersfield, – Tracks #1,847 & #1,848

 

 

From the travels and adventures of the “World’s #1 Trackchaser”.

 

 

Editor’s note:

July 17, 2013 has been selected as the day of the big announcement! Don’t stray far from your computer on that morning. My big trackchasing announcement is coming soon.

 

 

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!

 

 

 

 

THE KEYS TO THE TRIP

Open the #$%&#^% door!…………….more in “The Plan”.

 

What are the advantages and disadvantages of driving to the tracks?……………..more in “The Trip”

 

It’s the journey not the destination………..details in “The Experience”.

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

THE BEST READERS IN RACING TAKE TIME TO CONTRIBUTE

 

 

 

From a long-time Pennsylvania reader in answer to several questions I posed in my last Trackchaser Report.

 

In answer to your three questions.

 

 

Would I travel this way?  Probably not because I haven’t had the experience you have had.  Although I must say when I lost my wallet in Iowa Falls last September I did have two plans for getting home without any ID.  And when I encountered travel problems I was able to overcome them with little or no difficulty.  As for contending with standby I am loath to do standby.  I guess I don’t feel lucky enough.

 

 

Why would I do it this way?  Because of your sense of adventure and I like and admire that.

 

 

Do I know anyone who gets as many taters in a bag?  No.  But I will say when I spent three months in Europe in 2006 I went with a 22 inch carry on and a back pack.  That backpack contained my laptop, my Nikon DSLR, my iPod, my portable iPod speaker, all of my power adaptors, water, and other stuff.  My 22 inch carry on contained 2 pairs of polypropylene under ware (not including the pair I was wearing on the trip over), 2 pairs of polypropylene shorts (not including the pair of cotton shorts I wore on the plane), 2 polypropylene short sleeve shirts (not including the cotton short sleeve shirt I was wearing), one pair of very light weight cotton kaki’s, 2 pairs of polypropylene socks (not including the pair I was wearing), 2 pairs of low cut trail shoes, one pair of sandals (not including the sneakers I was wearing), a rain coat, compact umbrella, and toiletries.  I washed by hand most nights and went to the laundromat 4 times while I was there.  I purchased travel books when I arrived in each country and mailed them home when I left. That was expensive.  Next trip I intend to carry a iPad Mini with the travel books already loaded on the iPad.

 

 

 

 

Greetings from Bakersfield, California

 

 

 

 

WHO, WHAT, WHY AND WHERE

 

 

 

 

The Plan 

 

 

Open the #$%^# door.

What should you do when opportunity knocks? Open the #$%^#%$ door! For Carol and I “opportunity was knocking”. We just needed to open the door.

 

 

Buy one get one free.

“Buy one get one free” is concept I have always liked. This trackchasing trip was full of “2 for 1” offers. Our vacation home state of Hawaii would be what started this trackchasing trip in California. Why would that be the case?

 

 

Anti-American?

Here’s the answer. However, before I tell you much more I don’t want any of this to leak out to those “Dreaded East Coast Trackchasers”. They think I’m rich. They think because I could retire early I have an “easy” trackchasing life. Are the DECTs anti-American? Are they anti-capitalism? What have they got against a “poor fellow makes good” story? I do not know the answers to these questions. Only a “Dreaded East Coast Trackchaser” could explain their situational view.

 

 

The background.

We are the owners of some Hawaiian timeshare properties in Maui. We limit ourselves to just two trips to Hawaii each year. Yes, you’ve got to draw the line somewhere. We have the opportunity to trade the Hawaii timeshares we own if we don’t want to use the ones we have in Maui. Hawaii is so popular to worldwide visitors that we can trade for two weeks of timeshare usage elsewhere for just one week of Hawaii timeshare usage. This would be the first of three “2 for 1” opportunities on today’s trip.

 

 

We would be trading our “Paki Maui” timeshare for a seven-day visit to South Lake Tahoe, California. Kristy, James, Astrid and Mitch would join us at the Tahoe Seasons resort for three of those days. That made the REAL purpose of this trip a family get together in “Tahoe”.

 

 

It was time to hop in the car for a traditional family vacation.

The resort in Lake Tahoe was a 970-mile round-trip drive from our home in San Clemente. Check in day was locked into Sunday. We could have driven up on Sunday morning. As it was we decided to leave on Saturday afternoon. Why do that? Because a stop in Bakersfield, California was somewhat on the way to Tahoe. In point of fact it was just 62 miles out of the way. That wasn’t bad. Bakersfield would be home to our second “Buy one get one free” offer of the trip.

 

 

Opportunity was knocking.

A new racing facility, the Kern County Raceway Park, opened just last week for their first ever race in Bakersfield. They race on two separate asphalt ovals tracks at KCRP. Adding two tracks by driving just 62 miles out of the way seemed like a great bargain. I’ll tell you more about this beautiful racing facility in “Race Review” below.

 

 

Still more “2 for 1” opportunities!

Oh yeah, what was the THIRD “2 for 1” offer? Toward the end of today’s racing program the track announcer told everyone that “following the legend feature event hot dogs would go on sale ‘2 for 1’”. That fit our dining schedule just perfectly.

 

 

We had opened the “door of opportunity”.

Opportunity had knocked. We had opened the door. We had received two weeks of timeshare usage by trading in just one. We were getting two tracks for even less than the price of one (more on that below) and slathering mustard on our “2 for 1” hot dogs. Life can be good when opportunity knocks.

 

 

 

The Trip

 

 

This is what today looked like.

We woke up this morning in San Clemente, California. We went to bed in Fresno, California. This is what today looked like.

 

 

We’re not hard to find.

We live just 74 miles north of Tijuana, Mexico. We live only 100 yards east of the Pacific Ocean. We live less than ten miles west of California national forests. Finally, we’re south of the Los Angeles metropolitan area and the sprawling “central valley” home to America’s most productive agricultural region.

 

 

If one HAD to pick the least desirable area to operate a trackchasing hobby in the continental U.S. it probably wouldn’t be far from San Clemente. That’s why I almost never drive to any of the races I see. For me, flying is the way to go.

 

 

What are the advantages of driving to the tracks?

However, there are some advantages to driving. First you can leave your driveway anytime you want. Secondly, there isn’t much of a weight limit on your checked luggage. Now that we have an SUV we just pour the stuff in the vehicle and go.

 

 

There is one MAJOR drawback to being a driving trackchaser. What is that? You simply beat your personal vehicle to a pulp. I’ve been trained to get the very best assets I can then take good care of them. You can’t really do that as a trackchaser if you drive to the tracks you visit.

 

 

I drive around 12,000 miles per year with my personal vehicle. That’s about average for personal usage. However, I drive some 25,000-30,000 miles in rental cars chasing tracks all over the world each year. If all of those miles, some 40,000 driving miles per annum, were added to my personal vehicle the expenses would be enormous.

 

 

Can you imagine? I would need a new set of tires virtually every year. I’d need an oil change every six weeks. In three years my “new” car would have 120,000 miles on it. How much of a DECREASE in value would that create? Nope! Give me an airplane every day.

 

 

The rain-free streak continues.

Today’s trip from San Clemente to Bakersfield would cover 173 miles. On a Saturday afternoon, as we drove over the “Grapevine” the weather was clear. The forecast for Bakersfield called for it to be 82 degrees for the 6 p.m. start.

 

 

Folks, I’m only a week away from going TWO YEARS without a trackchasing day being rained out. Will I make it? Stay tuned but right now it looks good.

 

 

 

 

The Experience

 

 

It’s the journey not the destination for me.

My hobby is about the journey not the destination. I’m sure I would be very happy seeing two new tracks at a brand new facility in just one visit. The tracks we were seeing was the trip’s destination. However, I was looking forward to the journey much more. Tonight, the journey meant meeting some local folks who wanted to both recognise and learn more about my trackchasing hobby.

 

 

There is frequently media work to do.

I had been contacted by Steve Lynch of the Bakersfield Californian newspaper regarding my trip to Bakersfield. They wanted to do a feature story on Carol’s and my visit to Bakersfield. I don’t do as many newspaper, radio and TV interviews as I used too. Why? For the most part it’s too difficult to guarantee my attendance at a particular track. With weather problems or transportation limitations my plans can chance in fifteen minutes. I don’t want to make a commitment with any of my friends in the media and then not be able to deliver.

 

 

However tonight, since we were driving, we were pretty well guaranteed to make it to Bakersfield. Therefore I made arrangements to meet up with Steve, the sports writer for the city’s main daily newspaper, the Bakersfield Californian.

 

 

It was helpful that Steve was a big race fan. That is not always the case with the media people who interview me. Steve had been to several NASCAR Sprint Cup racin venues. Often times the reporters I meet have only a passing interest in auto racing.

 

 

Let’s begin the “Q&A”.

Steve had a series of racing questions to ask. He recorded our interview in its entirety. He wanted to know the whys, hows and wherefores of trackchasing. I did my best to answer his questions. It was fun to see and hear Carol answering some of the reporter’s questions as well. By the time you receive this note it will be too late to read the paper. You might be able to “archive” the story on the paper’s website. However, that might be difficult to do. To make it easier I’ll simply include the text of the interview below. Check it out just below all of the trip’s travel stats. The actual article appeared on the front page of the sports section with two color photos of Carol and me.

 

 

They had lots of nice people helping us out in Bakersfield.

We also got to meet John the paper’s photographer. John had been instructed to get several shots of Carol and me for the paper’s story. It was fun talking to John about his experiences of taking newspaper photos over a career that spanned thirty years.

 

 

Race fans will recall that four-time Indy 500 winner Rick Mears hailed from Bakersfield. That meant that John got to go back to Indy for several days each year to follow the exploits of Mr. Mears for the Bakersfield Californian newspaper. That had to be fun.

 

 

Our at the track host.

Finally we met up with Mr. Steven Blakesley. Steven is the track announcer and the public relations person for the track. He was a great ambassador for KCRP. Steven arranged for our complimentary admission. This gave us full run of the facility. We took advantage of the offer to peek into every nook and cranny of the place.

 

 

I didn’t realize this at the time of my first contact with Steven but he had been following my career as a trackchaser for some time. He enjoys seeing the YouTube videos I produce especially those from Mexico.

 

 

Doing interviews over the track’s P.A. system is always fun.

During a break between feature racing events Steven and I did an interview about my experiences as a trackchaser over the track’s P.A. system. I can always tell if an interviewer is really interested in what I have to say. You can hear it by how enthusiastically their questions are asked and the twinkle in their eye. Steven was genuinely happy to be doing the interview. So was I. Don’t miss the interview.  You’ll find it at the end of the racing action video (link above).

 

 

It was interesting to learn that Steven’s full-time “gig” is racing. Not only does he work for KCRP but he also gets a check from the track up in Watsonville and does work for NASCAR with the Sprint Cup race in Sonoma. Steven lives up by Sacramento, a distance of more than 250 miles from tonight’s track. Look for Steven Blakesley to make an even bigger mark in the auto racing industry as time goes on.

 

 

 

RACE REVIEW

 

 

KERN COUNTY RACEWAY PARK – BAKERFIELD, CALIFORNIA

 

 

Nothing is ever easy.

This racing facility has an interesting recent past. They started building it some 8-10 years ago. However, along came the worldwide financial crisis and the project was stopped in midstream. Things sat idle for the next 4-5 years. However, as you may have noticed especially if you are a stock investor things are getting better. They’ve gotten better for the Kern County Raceway Park too.

 

 

Last week was the inaugural racing event at KCRP. Reports told that more than 8,000 people jammed the facility. Traffic was an issue and they even ran out of food. When demand spikes it is sometimes difficult to get a handle on it.

 

 

I have often seen tracks do box office business on their first ever racing event. Then after all of the hoopla has subsided things return to what might be considered normal. That was probably the case with tonight’s racing program.

 

 

The early bird gets the worm.

I was a bit surprised by the early start time of 6 p.m. Most Saturday night tracks would begin at 7 p.m. or maybe even later. Bakersfield has a desert climate. In the summer time 100-degree temps will be the norm. At least the designers of the grandstands had the good sense to have the spectators facing away from the setting sun. One of my biggest pet peeves as a race fan is having to stare directly into hot summer setting sun for hours.

 

 

After signing in at the media building we headed to the pit area. This was accomplished by walking through a huge tunnel that runs underneath turns one and two. Tunnels are great. They allow race teams and fans to enter and exit the track without having to wait for the on track action to stop.

 

 

The racing.

Once inside the pit area we found three classes of racecars on hand. Car counts were not large. The late models had fourteen cars, the legends about ten and the bandelaros also about ten. California tracks have historically had low car counts. However, over the past couple of years car counts have been down nearly everywhere I visit. It’s expensive to operate a race car on a hobby basis. There isn’t much prize money (sometimes none) to offset the expense.

 

 

The entire pit area is either concrete or blacktop. You can tell they dropped some money on this project. The pit area has its own concession building and several other permanent buildings where driver’s meeting are held and tires are mounted. They are all modern as well as deluxe.

 

 

It’s fun to just talk to people on these trips.

We spent some time talking to the “Hoosier tire guy”. He told us a racing tire goes for about $125 per. Late model race teams are required to use this tire. He chuckled at that. If they wanted a new tire at the track, they would be buying it from him.

 

 

Track #1.

We watched the heat races from the pit area. The legends and bandelaros (open to kids only) race on the quarter-mile asphalt track. This track is situated between the pit wall for the larger ½-mile oval and the main grandstand. Think about the short quarter mile ovals at Charlotte and Las Vegas and you’ve got the layout at KCRP.

 

 

Track #2.

For the features we were invited up to the fourth floor media suite. Everything about the main grandstand is first class. Lower level general admission seats (aluminum bleachers with backs) go for $15 U.S. Higher level seats include folding chairs. These chairs are wider than normal and carry an additional five dollar fee for reserved seating.

 

 

Concessions are plentiful. When we entered the concession area sellers hawked their wares from inside the building. “Hot dogs, popcorn, get your beer here” they yelled. I liked that. This is what capitalism is all about.

 

 

It was warm so we each had a beer (bottled and draft) at six bucks each. From there we walked up to the fourth floor. The elevator is not operational yet. We did have to talk our way past two security officers who were just doing their job. However, when they learned “we were the trackchasers” the gates opened like the Red Sea.

 

 

Once up in the media suite we met our host Steven Blakesley. Sports report Steve Lynch was also up in the suite getting his story ready for tomorrow’s paper. We knocked out a few more questions and answers with Steve and then it was time to watch the main events. We watched the first couple of features from high atop the grandstand just in from of where Steven announced the action.

 

 

They did it right.

What a beautiful facility. The lighting was great. There’s not a bad seat in the house. The announcing team included an on-track reporter who did a great job of interviewing the drivers both before and after the races.

 

 

Some folks who have seen racing at the Irwindale Speedway in the greater Los Angeles area think it might be the best short track asphalt track in the country. KCRP rivals Irwindale. During my interview I told the crowd that the facility would easily rank in the top ten in the country. That’s a high compliment.

 

 

For the final two features of the night (the 14-car late model field ran TWO 35-lap features) we watched from the grandstands. I was surprised the P.A. didn’t reach our seating location all that well. I’m sure they’ll work to improve their sound system all around the track.

 

 

Will I be back?

Will I return to KCRP? Absolutely. I’ll be back for their big shows just like I did for the now shuttered Mesa Marin Speedway located just 25 miles or so across the valley also in Bakersfield.

 

 

Everything was perfect for this outing.

Overall, this was an outstanding night of trackchasing. Meeting up with the key players at the track and the local newspaper was a highlight. Getting to see this outstanding brand new venue up close and personal was fun. Please don’t miss the pictures and video from KCRP. Of course, adding two new tracks in one visit is always a plus. If you get the chance don’t miss visiting the Kern County Raceway Park.

 

 

 

STATE COMPARISONS

 

 

 

 

 

California

 

 

The Golden State

This evening I saw my 121st and 122nd lifetime tracks in the Golden state, yes the Golden state.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

World’s #1 Trackchaser

Peoria Old Timers Racing Club (P.O.R.C.) Hall of Fame Member

 

California sayings: From the coast to the valley I’m loving Cali.

  

 

 

 

TRAVEL DETAILS

 

AIRPLANE

No airplanes!

 

 

RENTAL CAR #1

No rental cars!

 

 

PERSONAL CAR

San Clemente, CA

Bakersfield, CA

 

 

TRACK ADMISSION PRICES:

Kern County Raceway Park – complimentary admission

 

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS 

The three most important trackchasing comparisons to me are:

 

 

Total lifetime tracks seen

Total “trackchasing countries” seen

Lifetime National Geographic Diversity results

 

 

Total Lifetime Tracks

There are no trackchasers currently within 300 tracks of my lifetime total. Don’t blame me.

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,848

 

 

 

Total Trackchasing Countries

There are no trackchasers currently within 10 countries of my lifetime total.

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 65

 

 

Current lifetime National Geographic Diversity results

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 5.10

 

 

 

 

From the Bakersfield Californian

 

Local Motor Sports

 

A need for speed – and travel  ‘Trackchaser’: Kern County ranks high

 

By Stephen Lynch

Special to the Californian

 

 

From superspeedways to short track to road courses and figure-eights, Randy Lewis has traveled the globe to watch auto racing at all of them.

 

 

Having seen 1,849 tracks, the 64-year-old from San Clemente bills himself at the “World’s #1 Trackchaser”.

 

 

Lewis, who travels 250,000 miles a year in pursuit of his hobby, and his wife, Carol, were at recently opened Kern County Raceway Park on Saturday night.

 

 

Lewis was impressed with both the facility and the on-track action that he saw.

 

 

“From a facility point-of-view it probably in the top 10 nationally for short-track asphalt, racing speedway, Lewis said. “It’s got good site-lines. You can see everything really well. The lighting in spectacular. The P.A. system is good. The announcer is good. You’ve got action on both tracks.

 

 

I don’t really see anything that can be improved.”

 

 

Lewis’ visit to KCRP raised his track count by two, since the rules of trackchasing allow for quarter-mile and half-mile configurations at the same venue to be tallied separately.

 

 

Lewis has come to town numerous times in the past to watch Bakersfield Speedway and Mesa Marin Speedway before it closed down.

 

 

His foray in watching auto racing began when, as a 5-year-old, he went to Peoria (ILL.) Speedway, near his childhood home.

 

 

The quarter-mile, high-banked bullring is still Lewis’ all-time favorite track. His other favorite is Eldora Speedway in Ohio, owned by NASCAR driver Tony Stewart. Lewis had been to that track roughly 40 times.

 

 

Lewis, now retired, began going to different tracks during his 30-year career working for Procter & Gamble.

 

 

“I did a lot of traveling in my sales management position,” he said. “A lot of times we would have a meeting in wherever and I would just stay over when the meeting was finished for another day or two and watch the local racing.

 

 

Eventually, Lewis made the switch from “racechaser” to “trackchaser”.

 

 

“At some point in time, I switched over and said, ‘I’d rather go somewhere for the first time than the 10^th time,’” Lewis said.

 

 

Out of the nearly 1,900 tracks Lewis has seen, he estimates that he’s only been back a second time to 150-200.

 

 

Since his retirement 11 years ago, Lewis has averaged visiting 120 tracks a year.

 

 

He has been to tracks in 65 countries. His average trip is 6,000-8,000 miles round-trip.

 

 

He has been to every NASCAR Sprint Cup track, but says he still prefers to watch racing at small, dirt ovals.

 

 

“The reason being is there’s a lot of passing (on them),” Lewis said. The cars can race side-by-side. And you can see it all.”

 

 

Lewis’ favorite type of cars to watch are late model stock cars and wingless sprint cars.

 

 

His fondness for wingless sprint cars started when he moved to the Los Angeles area and began watching them run at Ascot Park in Gardena, a half-mile track that closed in 1990.

 

 

Most of Lewis’ favorite drivers are old-timers who have passed away, such as Darrell Dake, Dick Trickle, or have retired. He’s a big fan of Dake and has a page on his website (www.randylewis.org) dedicated to the former Iowa driver who raced in the 1960 and 1961 Daytona 500s.

 

 

Lewis’ current favorite driver is four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon.

 

 

I follow NASCAR on TV,” Lewis said. “I never miss a second. I watch it from the very start of the pre-race coverage until the race is over and the last interview is done.”

 

 

Even though it doesn’t increase his track count, Lewis still attends a couple of NASCAR races each year.

 

 

Those are short jaunts compared to his trips to watch races in Argentina, China, Italy, Morocco and Australia.

 

 

While in New Zealand, Lewis a single-digit handicap golfer, met Tiger Woods’ former caddy Steve Williams at a racetrack. Williams, who races a stock car in his home country when not busy with golf, won the New Zealand Saloon Car title for the 2009-2010 season.

 

 

“It was fun to talk to (Steve) about racing and golf,” Lewis said. “He still sends me a postcard every year.”

 

 

Lewis’ wife likes to go with him on as many trackchasing trips as she can, and averages about 100,000 miles a year of traveling.

 

 

She’s been to 480 tracks.

 

 

“I think he has just as much fun planning it, doing the logistics of it and making sure it all works out, that he sees all he needs too and doesn’t get rained out,” Carol Lewis said. “He does love the races and I love to see the races, too, probably not as often as he does. Someone has to keep the castle intact at home when everything is falling apart. Whenever I go I think we stay at better hotels and it’s not such a grueling adventure. When he goes by himself he sleeps in airports and cars and things.”

 

 

Lewis spends his summers in the Midwest and East, where they race nearly every night of the week. Unlike California, where most of the action takes place Saturday nights.

 

 

Much of his energy is spent plotting where he is going and trying to avoid rain-outs. Lewis hasn’t been rained out in two years, a span of 180 tracks visited.

 

 

“Most of the people think of this hobby as kind of racing related, which obviously it is,” Lewis said. But it’s more about planning the strategy of getting from point-A to point-B.”

 

 

Lewis said most of the tracks he visited are poorly organized. They don’t start on time and/or have long delays and don’t have a good announcer, who he cites as the most important employee at the racetrack.

 

 

“They do the entertaining, they keep the crowd informed, and they can create drama,” Lewis said. “If all of that happens then the spectator is likely to return….The lion’s share of (short) tracks I attend have 200 people or less. They’re not going to stay in business long at that rate.”

 

 

Lewis is constantly looking for new tracks to attend. Driven by his love for the hobby, he has no plans on slowing down anytime soon.

 

 

“I really like the idea, I guess, of being able to do something that just everybody else cannot do either because they don’t want too or their family, or financial or some other situation would prevent them doing that right now,” Lewis said. “And I enjoy the idea of trying to figure out a plan to make it come off”.

 

 

 

 

That’s all folks! Official end of the RLR – Randy Lewis Racing Trackchaser Report

 

 

 

 

ON THE WAY TO THE RACES

 

 

Better in January than July.

How many people get to trackchase in 66° weather in mid-January? The answer? Not very many. I’ve been coming to Bakersfield, California to see stock car racing since the mid-70s when the Mesa Marin Raceway was the hot ticket. It’s a lot better to come to Bakersfield in January than it is in July.

 

 

More fun and frolic.

Today Trackchasing’s First Mother, a.k.a. wife Carol, would be joining me for an afternoon of fun and frolic at “The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park”. This track has a variation of names all based around the theme in the previous sentence. The track located in Bakersfield, California is a short three-hour drive north of our hometown of San Clemente.

 

 

Carol and I had already had a wonderful week of activities including a stop in Long Beach for our annual “Yacht night”, a visit to the Nethercutt Automobile Museum and a UCLA basketball game against their archrival the lowly usc Trojans. I like to think of us as “active seniors”. You can see what “Yacht night” looked like in the Dirt Track at KCRP photo album. You will be able to view the Nethercutt Automobile Museum (nearly every car in the collection) from the tab below and in my “Halls of Fame/Museums tab. Here are the links:

 

 

Nethercutt Museum – Los Angeles

 

 

Halls of Fame/Museums

 

 

Noticed in passing.

I first noticed the Dirt Track at KCRP when we passed it several months ago while traveling northward on Interstate 5. We were headed to Northern California for some reason. I was shocked to see the new dirt track sitting off the freeway by just a few yards. Of course within a minute or two of iPhone searching I soon got the lowdown on this newly built track. When I got back home I had to immediately follow up and figure out what their racing plans were.

 

 

The track is just getting started. This was probably only their fourth or fifth race since the track was built in the shadow of the mother ship, the Kern County Raceway asphalt oval.

 

 

Although I was battling a strong cold, despite getting a flu shot sometime ago (what was up with THAT?), there was no way I was going to miss this trackchasing day. I didn’t have a lot of good all alternatives since the ice hasn’t built up all that well in the ice racing regions. Therefore a stop in central California would be the perfect January trackchasing plan.

 

 

Jack-in-the-Box, breakfast 24/7.

We were out the door at 8 a.m. and soon stopping at a Jack-in-the-Box restaurant for a sit-down breakfast. Following our meal the next stop was the John Wayne Orange County Airport in Santa Ana, California.

 

 

Park and rent.

There I would park to Carol Lewis owned and MFunds sponsored Lexus RX 350. I would be trading in her Lexus for a sparkling black Toyota Avalon. Why do that? It’s simple. In 3-5 years I don’t want our personal car to be worn to a frazzle from the trackchasing hobby.

 

 

My long time trackchasing sponsor the National Car Rental Company would give me a very good deal on a one-day rental of a full-sized car. By the time I figured in their sponsorship dollars and the money I would save on gasoline for the 325-mile round-trip drive up to Bakersfield the car wouldn’t cost me anything. At the same time my own car would be sitting peacefully in its fully sponsored airport parking garage awaiting my return.

 

 

We didn’t count on an accident in the early part of our drive up Interstate 5. However Waze my GPS system skillfully directed us along some surface roads for about 4 miles until we bypassed the stoppage. I’ve got a lot of good systems in place, which make the hobby of trackchasing all that much easier.

 

 

It was a Saturday morning and Southern California traffic was light. In nearly no time we were up in the Bakersfield area with an estimated arrival time at 12 noon. The first race of the day was also scheduled to begin at noon. However I had a slightly different plan.

 

 

If you go to a movie…..

If you go to see a movie you know it’s going to start on time and last for an hour and a half or two. A college basketball game will be two hours. A college football game maybe three hours or so.

 

 

Sitting in one place for three hours is about my outside limit in order to enjoy whatever it is I am seeing. However there are very few short track racing programs that start on time and finish within three hours of the scheduled start time. I didn’t really want to be sitting on a wooden board for four hours today.

 

 

Plan B was the better plan.

Therefore even though we could have entered the track at 12 noon I went with Plan B. Plan B was to find a good Mexican restaurant. Bakersfield is full of them. We would have a nice lunch and bypass some of the minutes normally spent waiting for the track to get going. We might also miss some of the heat racing. So be it.

 

 

Yelp! never lets me down.

I consulted Yelp! and soon came up with the Lino’s Mexican Cuisine restaurant. It was located about 20 minutes from the racetrack. Some 59 reviewers had given the place a four-star rating. If that many people think it’s that good then it’s that good.

 

 

Leno’s Mexican Cuisine restaurant is not the kind of place that you would stop in unless you knew something about it. The neighborhood is a little rundown although much of Bakersfield is a little on the rundown side as well. However that’s why I use Yelp! Yelp! almost always takes me to a great place that I wouldn’t normally stop at. However after I’ve eaten there I’m glad I did.

 

 

Just really good authentic Mexican food.

The tortilla chips were warm. The chili verde was spicier than I expected which made it good. The corn tortillas were fresh and warm. Dessert came in the form of Mexican flan. It was some of the best we’ve had in a long time. Overall I would give the restaurant five stars.

 

 

Carol was struck by the classiness of the restaurant’s interior. She commented on the cloth napkins and roses. The dark bar got her attention as well. If you’re going to take a girl out on a date it’s always good if they think where you took them was extra classy!

 

 

 

 

 

THE RACING

 

 

The Dirt Track at KCRP – Bakersfield, California

 

 

Perfect timing.

My plan for the racing was to arrive after the heat races were finished. That way we would be just in time for the five feature events of the day. Sometimes my plans work out and sometimes they don’t.

 

 

We arrived at 1:20 p.m. The last heat race of the day was just taking the checkered flag. The announcer told everyone the track was going to a 10-minute intermission. Our timing was nearly perfect.

 

 

I didn’t like this.

We paid five dollars to park. I didn’t like that. I felt like telling the parking attendant that probably less than 1- 2% of all short tracks charge for parking. However as they say don’t kill the messenger. The parking attendant was just the messenger. I never like to pay for stuff that is almost always free.

 

 

I liked this better.

General admission prices were $10 each. However for those folks who have at least 65 years of experience on this earth the admission price was reduced to seven dollars. Don’t even get me started on why I don’t think senior citizens should get such discounts. However this policy did help us pay for our parking!

 

 

Not our first rodeo at KCRP.

Carol and I had been to the Kern County Raceway Park back on May 25, 2013. On that warm evening we saw racing on two of their three asphalt ovals. One of their asphalt tracks doesn’t count because only kids race on it. Don’t get me started on “kids and trackchasing”.

 

 

The dirt track or the dirt TRACKS.

Today’s dirt track is built about 100 yards or less from the asphalt oval. Today they were racing on the three-eights-mile dirt track.

 

 

Once we settled into the grandstand I was surprised to see there were two other dirt oval tracks in this complex as well. They’re all inside the other just like a set of Russian dolls. I’m not sure if they run trackchasing countable events on these two smaller ovals or not. You can bet I’ll keep checking.

 

 

 

Maybe even another countable track at KCRP.

They also have a motocross track right next to the dirt track. Today some motorcycle riders were out there testing their skills. The track looked wide enough for UTV racing. I think I could see myself returning to the Kern County Raceway another time or two in the future. If so I’ll keep you posted.

 

 

I couldn’t believe our good timing. When we sat down it was one hour and 50 minutes past the scheduled start time. All the heat races were finished. They would soon start feature racing.

 

 

After seeing the car counts in the feature events I’m guessing they had eight heat races. I don’t know if they started on time. I don’t know if there were any other races, such as trophy dashes, in addition to the heats.

 

 

Do race promoters get this?

I don’t know if racing promoters get this or not. Do people really want to sit in the grandstands for one hour or two hours or sometimes even more watching preliminary events before the features racing even starts? Of course there are always going to be 100 people who would want to do that but there are a lot more people, many of them sitting at home right now, that don’t want to do that.

 

 

A basketball game or baseball or football game or a movie runs from 1 ½-3 hours. Those events always start on time. Shouldn’t a racing program do the same? I think they should. I do not want to sit in the grandstands and watch fairly meaningless heat races. Then after two hours or so be tired out from sitting out in the weather elements that the feature racing is no longer enjoyable.

 

 

105 laps; 7 bucks. Good value.

The announcer told us we would be seeing 105 laps of feature racing. For seven bucks that seemed like a very good deal.

 

 

There were five classes racing today. There was a mod light class similar to the class used when I won the feature at the Millard County Raceway in Delta, Utah. Did you ever see that video? More than 2,200 people have. Here’s the link:

 

 

Millard County Raceway – World’s #1 Trackchaser wins the feature!

.

.

There are also two classes of modified stock cars racing. They were creatively named class A and B. They had a hobby stock race group and an American stock car race class. These were lower-level street stock type cars.

 

 

The car counts were not huge. However the racing was good. Even in the feature races with just six competitors they all raced in a tight pack. That made for a good race.

 

 

The first three features had from 5-7 cars in their race. This included the American stock cars, the “B” modifieds and the mod lights.

 

 

The main class of the day was the “A” modifieds. They brought a nice field of 16 cars to this smallish three-eights mile dirt oval. They were the only class to provide any dust on this warm summer like day. Of course they had the most powerful engines and that can create dusty conditions.

 

 

Warm…but not stifling hot.

Of course this was not a warm summer like day for Bakersfield. In the summer the temperature routinely gets over 100° each and every day for three or four months. One fan told us the temperature this past summer reached 117°. Bakersfield can be one hot sucker.

 

 

An efficiently run program from the time we got there.

The hobby stock class capped the day. They had 12 cars in their race and did a nice job. All of the feature racing was concluded by 3:12 p.m. just about an hour and 15 minutes after intermission had been completed.

 

 

I really enjoyed the idea of sitting in the bleachers for about an hour and a half and seeing five feature races. I wouldn’t be all that disappointed to see most oval track short track programs be “features only”. I think the crowd might like a program that finished in 2-2 1/2 hours and consisted only of main events. Asphalt track operators do this in the south but not very many other promoters do.

 

 

Carol’s comments.

Carol had some interesting comments about the racing. She always sees the things that I don’t see. She liked the friendliness of the announcer. He did do a good job over a very solid PA system.

 

 

Amenities.

As a matter fact the facilities were first class. The bathrooms were modern and even had four drinking fountains for spectators. When was the last time you went to a short track with a drinking fountain? Carol liked that.

 

 

There was a small concession stand and two trucks serving food and beer. There wasn’t much seating but it was enough to accommodate the 200 people or so in the stands today. If they run big bigger races in the future they might need more seating.

 

 

Carol liked the idea that the announcer interviewed each winner briefly following his or her feature win. She particularly liked the young driver who was the winner in the mod light division. After the races we went into the pits to check things out. Carol walked up and congratulated the young 15-year-old or so pilot. I suspect that kind of recognition made his day. People crave recognition even when they say they don’t.

 

 

 

AFTER THE RACES

 

 

My fast food favorites.

Following the races we headed back over the “grapevine” into the greater Los Angeles area. We would stop for a snack at McDonald’s. That would hold us off until we got back into San Clemente. Then it would be Yogurtland time.

 

 

The ups and downs of life.

There are ups and downs in life. Today when we stopped at McDonald’s we were reminded of this fact. Not all “ups and downs” are of equal importance.

 

 

When I ordered one McDouble the voice over the faceless PA system asked, “Would you like to make it two McDoubles for two bucks?” Since I was figuring that one McDouble was going to cost a buck sixty-nine I figured that I certainly would take them up on their offer.

 

 

However this McDonald’s was not on top of their game today. Their system couldn’t accept my Apple Pay system I use when ordering food from McDonald’s. With Apple Pay iPhone bills my American Express card. When I ordered a medium iced tea for Carol they served her sweet iced tea. That was a first.

 

 

 

Carol don’t do sugar.

That’s right. Carol doesn’t do sugar. She doesn’t like people who do sugar. She doesn’t like people who serve her sugar. Carol is a mild-mannered person…except when it comes to sugar. I offered to take another run through the drive-through to rectify the problem but she told me it wasn’t necessary. Then later on we found out they didn’t give us any napkins. Half of one star for this McDonald’s.

 

 

This would have been a super dumb move.

The parking lot at the Kern County Raceway is a vast expanse of asphalt and near asphalt. That’s why I was so shocked to see that I nearly ran over a pole while taking a photograph of the permanent grandstands at KCRP. By the time I noticed the pole it was about up to the passengers door maybe only 6 inches from the car. That would’ve been an expensive mistake!

 

 

Driving over the grapevine we reached elevations in excess of 4,000 feet. Our ears were popping. When it rains in Southern California it often snows on the grapevine. As a matter fact we could see snowcapped mountains on our drive up to the track today. That was contrasted with the palm trees that line the entrances to KCRP.

 

 

I liked this rental car.

Our rental car, the Toyota Avalon, is a pleasant vehicle to drive. This is the same make and model that I used for 27 days on this past summer’s 66-day record-breaking trackchasing adventure. If I wanted a car in the Toyota Avalon class the Avalon would be my choice.

 

Today I had seen my 146th lifetime track in California. Although that’s a pretty good total it only gives me a second place finish in the Golden State. Racechaser Gary Jacob, now deceased, saw 149 tracks in his home state of California.

 

 

I didn’t think this would ever happen.

Of all the numerical achievements I have recorded in my hobby of trackchasing getting a number one ranking in California was one I thought would never happen. When Gary passed away he was about 60-70 tracks ahead of my Golden state total. At that time there were virtually no new tracks for me to see in California. However they just keep popping up. Now besting Gary’s total should not be that difficult to achieve sometime in 2016. There are quite a few UTV tracks racing now, a couple of road course variations and another miscellaneous track or two. I have just three more to go to tie and then pass Gary’s achievements.

 

 

Another good day of Golden state trackchasing.

Today was another good day of California trackchasing. I don’t get to trackchase that much in California anymore. So many of the big-name tracks, for their genre, have disappeared as the population increases of California has moved the land toward development rather than racing.

 

 

Remember these names?

Names like Ascot, Riverside, Ontario, Saugus, Corona, Cajon, and El Toro among many others have long since disappeared. Although Iowa is my best all-time state for short track racing California can’t be far behind. It probably ranks second in my list of overall best racing states. Some day I will do a 50-state ranking on this subject.

 

 

I’m ready for the cold weather that ice racing brings.

Next weekend I’ll hit the trail for winter-oriented auto racing. What is winter-oriented auto racing?

 

 

For me it’s a couple of extremes. During the winter you will find several venues racing indoors. At the other end of that scale are the tracks racing on frozen lakes. I’ll do a little bit of both over the next 2-3 weeks. Then Carol and I will retreat to first Mexico and then Hawaii. I don’t think I’ll be watching any racing in 66° sunny outdoor weather like I did today though any time soon.

 

 

These are the good old days.

Just as we were leaving the track today the announcer reminded everyone of something important. He was telling fans that with today’s afternoon racing their Saturday evening was free. Free for what? To watch the live broadcast of the 30^th annual Chili Bowl midget race from Tulsa, Oklahoma. I had forgotten all about that.

 

 

I have not thought to record this program. I was three hours from home. I really wanted to see this broadcast. What could I do? No problem. I simply opened my Direct TV app on my iPhone, hit a couple of buttons, and the Chili Bowl Nationals would be waiting for me to watch on my DVR at home. Folks THESE are the good old days!!

 

 

Carol and I were back in San Clemente by 7:30 p.m. We had driven our rental car 325 miles. We made a quick stop at Yogurtland one of my new most favorite places. As a matter of fact I like Yogurtland so much I now hold platinum card membership in their frequent user program!

 

 

 

 

California

 

 

The Golden state

This afternoon I saw my 146th lifetime track in the Golden state, yes the Golden state. I’ve seen more tracks in California than any other state. I now trail California racechaser and trackchaser Gary Jacob by just three tracks.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

World’s #1 Trackchaser

Peoria Old Timers Racing Club (P.O.R.C.) Hall of Fame Member

California sayings: “Roach coach”, “Sig alert”, “Marine layer”, “There’s a high speed chase on”

 

 

 

 

QUICK FACTS

 

 

AIRPLANE

No planes today!!

 

RENTAL CAR #1

John Wayne Airport – trip begins

Bakersfield, CA

John Wayne Airport – trip ends – 325 miles

 

 

 

Total air miles – 0 (no flights)

Total rental car miles – 325 (1 car)

 

Total miles traveled on this trip – 325 miles 

 

 

 

TRACK ADMISSION PRICES:

The Dirt Track at KCRP – $7

 

Total racetrack admissions for the trip – $7

 

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS 

The three most important trackchasing comparisons to me are:

 

Total lifetime tracks seen

Total “trackchasing countries” seen

Lifetime National Geographic Diversity results

 

 

Total Lifetime Tracks

There are no trackchasers currently within 525 tracks of my lifetime total. Don’t blame me.

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 2,189

 

 

Total Trackchasing Countries

There are no trackchasers currently within 10 countries of my lifetime total.

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 70

 

 

 

Current lifetime National Geographic Diversity results

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 4.47

 

 

 

That’s all folks! Official end of the RLR – Randy Lewis Racing Trackchaser Report

 

 

Click on the link below to see the “Video Plus” production from the racing action in Bakersfield, California.

 

The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park

 

.

.

Kern County Raceway Park – asphalt racing

 

.

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click on the link below for a photo album from today’s trackchasing day.  You can view the album slide by slide or click on the “slide show” icon for a self-guided tour of today’s trackchasing adventure.

 

 

The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park – photo album

.

.

 

2013 – Our first ever visit to the Kern County Raceway Park

. 

.

 

Nethercutt Museum – Los Angeles, California