Greetings from Minden, Ontario, Canada
From the travels and adventures of the
“World’s #1 Trackchaser”
Minden Ice Track – Track #1,935
Life on the trackchasing road….in a suite.………….more in “The Details”. Make sense?………….more in “The Details”. Clearing the perimeter…………more in “The Details”. Dude!……….more in “The Details”. I was tearing up (not through) my Canadian currency……….more in “The Details”. Why do upscale hotels still charge for the internet? ……….more in “The Details”. Can you answer this question please? ……….more in “The Details”. The Caterpillar Cats.…………..more in “Attractions”. Maybe this trip did require too much effort…..details in “Race Review”. 12 Years a Slave…..details in “Race Review”. 2014 ice racing season: finito…..details in “Race Review”. SUNDAY Life on the trackchasing road….in a suite. I woke up this morning in my suite at the Marriott Hotel in Toronto. At 8:15 a.m. my alarm aroused me up from a dead sleep. That’s never a good idea. It means I didn’t get all the sleep was my body was requesting. Whatever. That’s life on the trackchasing road. Life on the trackchasing road….in a rental car. Today was going to be a rather long driving day. When I would finally make it to tonight’s hotel I would have had my rental car for just less than 48 hours. However, the odometer would have added 1,225 miles during that time. Whatever. That’s life on the trackchasing road. I mentioned to you yesterday how the Marriott ended up giving me more products and services than the cost of my room. Today at the hotel’s buffet breakfast I used a coupon that Marriott had given me from the night before. My bill, after using ANOTHER coupon they had given me, was $5 Canadian. My coupon was good for $10 Canadian although I could not get any useable change back. My server apologized profusely over the fact she could not give me the $5 overpayment from THEIR coupon for THEIR buffet breakfast in cash. Oh, my. Some things are just too good to be true. Minden….finally. Today I would be seeing the ice racing in Minden, Ontario, Canada. Minden is nearly three hours driving time north of Toronto. I’ve seen ice racing in several Canadian provinces including Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. No other trackchaser has seen ice racing in more than two of these provinces. Make sense? You might ask yourself, “Randy why do you mention others trackchaser’s accomplishments or lack there of when mentioning your accomplishments?” the simply curious reader might be thinking. The answer to that question is rather simple. By making a comparison between my results and others the reader can get some indication of how easy or difficult whatever I did was. If I had just done something in the trackchasing field that everyone else had already done then I would be a bit “late to the party”. However, if I had done something that few or no trackchasers had ever done then it might give the reader the idea that whatever was accomplished might be a bit more difficult to complete. I hope that helps anyone who has ever thought about a question like the hypothetical one posed above. I have a few tracks that I’ve had on my radar screen for years. Minden was one of those tracks. However, because of it’s remote location I could never make it up there. Up and back, way back. Today, from Toronto, it would be a 3-hour drive to get to the track. Then I would be looking at almost a 10-hour drive to get me within shouting distance of the Boston airport. I figured if I made it to Springfield, Massachusetts that would be close enough. Clearing the perimeter. However, I had long had a trackchasing strategy of “clearing the perimeter”. I prefer to pick the track that is furthest from where my trip begins. Typically I start at some major location’s airport. I figure if I always pick the track the furthest away then as I go along every new track will keep getting closer and closer. Make sense? I’ll tell you about today’s ice racing behind the “Race Review” tab. Getting from point A to point B. Last night it had taken me just over 30 minutes to clear the border from Buffalo, New York into Canada. That amount of waiting in very unusual. However, once I was in Canada it was smooth sailing. Dude…. This morning, after checking out of the hotel, it was an easy drive up to Minden. I did notice one thing that was different from yesterday. It was a lot colder. It was 9 degrees Fahrenheit! Folks, I live at the beach in Southern California. We only read about people having to deal with temperatures like this. To be honest when someone in SoCal reads about those people they turn to their fellow surfer dude friend, smile, shake their head in the negative and simply say, “Dude…..these old schoolers can get really bent with that hellacious cold weather”. AFTER THE RACES….. Why Springfield, Mass? Following the ice racing at Minden I would have a four-hour drive to the Canada-U.S. border. From there I would have another four-hour drive from the border to tonight’s hotel in Springfield, Massachusetts. I chose Springfield for several reasons. In case it’s not clear by now I try to “think things out”. I rarely do anything that hasn’t been thought out. That doesn’t mean I’m rigid in my thinking at all. I’ve just tried to analyze all my options and go with the best one. My final decisions on most things have weighed the plusses and minuses of all the choices. The more options the better. Springfield would be about a 90-minute drive from Boston. I fancied making an 8-hour drive after today’s racing more than a 9.5-hour drive. I also preferred staying in a slightly less urban area and Springfield fit that bill. That should make my hotel choice a bit more reasonably priced. Finally, Springfield had a Trackchasing Tourist Attraction that I could fit in on Monday morning. I had been to this TTA two times before. What kind of TTA would motivate me to go back for a THIRD visit? One I really liked. You can read all about it behind the “Attractions” tab. I was tearing up (not through) my Canadian currency. Just before I hit the Canadian border tonight I made a pit stop at Tim Horton’s. In my enthusiasm for the stop I ended up tearing a Canadian 10-dollar bill almost exactly in half. It got stuck in my pocket when I tried to retrieve it. Undaunted I offered up my “two fives” and, to my surprise, the Timmy Horton’s counterperson told me he could simply tape the two pieces together and we would be good as gold. That was most helpful. There was zero wait at the border to get back into the U.S. The customs agent asked me several clarifying questions about ice racing. I can never tell if they are really interested or if they’re just trying to get me to implicate myself in an international drug smuggling ring. I’ve found that with customs agents it’s best to be on your guard at all times. My wintertime driving skills were being tested. Once I did clear the border into New York it began to snow. It had been dark now for some time. I couldn’t tell how slick the roads were as I tried to keep my speeds down to about 60 M.P.H. Just up ahead I found out exactly how slick the roads were. From off the right shoulder I could see two white headlights pointing back toward the freeway. As I got closer I could see where the car had broken through the shoulder’s snowpack before sliding down the embankment. As I passed by I let up off the gas just a bit. Thank you Priceline.com, my long-time trackchasing sponsor. With just one stop for a Diet Mountain Dew (read that caffeine) I pulled into the Sheraton Hotel in Springfield. I had purchased this hotel via Priceline.com as soon as I knew my travel plans would take me through the area. As per normal I paid a little less than 50% of the hotel’s best online price. I actually paid less than the price of a nearby Motel 6. I am a member of the Starwood Preferred Guest program, which is Sheraton’s frequent stay program. As a GOLD member I have “status”. Folks, in the travel world as in most places, having “status” is a good thing. Why do upscale hotels still charge for the internet? Tonight status would get me an upgraded room on the concierge top floor. It would also provide free internet. It’s funny but the more upscale hotels still charge for internet while most inexpensive hotels provide it for free. Why is that? “Corporate” people stay at the expensive hotels. They don’t care if the hotel charges for Wi-Fi. If the hotel does then the corporate person just “writes it off”. Yes, that’s how I did it too when I was “corporate”. The Sheraton desk clear was most respectful of my status. Along with a room on the concierge level came a complimentary breakfast in the concierge lounge. Can you answer this question please? Permit me to ask you just one question. Are the Dreaded East Coast Trackchasers staying in Marriott and Sheraton quality hotels? Or are they paying more for an economy hotel than I pay for the Marriott or Sheraton? Of course, you may not know the answers to these two questions. If you don’t please let me offer some assistance. The answers to these two questions are “No” and “Yes”. Aren’t you glad you follow my trackchasing experiences rather than those of the “Dreaded East Coast Trackchasers”? Yes, I thought you were. MONDAY Here’s a tip: Stay in school. This morning after breakfast on the 12th floor of the Sheraton concierge lounge I was off to my Trackchasing Tourist Attraction. Following my TTA it was a 90-minute drive to Boston’s Logan International Airport. I spent a lot of time on the I-90 toll road on this trip. On the way out to central New York from Boston I burnt up most of a twenty-dollar bill just paying tolls. What an unusual job it must be being a toll taker in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere in 10-degree temperatures. However, I always have a big tip ready for these folks. “Stay in school!” Dodging bad weather is a skill I have learned. For the most part I had dodged the snowstorms during this weekend’s travels. I connected in Charlotte on Friday. The day before, Thursday, every flight from Los Angeles to Charlotte had been canceled because of a snow and ice storm in Charlotte. Yesterday, Sunday, a snowstorm had hit Boston. I stopped short of Boston and stayed in Springfield, Massachusetts. Today, Monday, I was flying out of a clear sky Boston. However, they were having a snowstorm in Chicago. My airport weather delay apps showed an average of 3 hours and 30 minute flight delays. Several flights from Boston-Chicago had already been canceled. However, my flight was still going. If everything went according to plan I would get home at 2 a.m. San Clemente time or 5 a.m. Boston time on TUESDAY morning. That was if EVERYTHING WENT ACCORDING TO PLAN! 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 often some 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. National Basketball Hall of Fame – Springfield, Massachusetts Third time was the charm. My favorite sport to watch, as an adult, is basketball. As a young man my favorite sport to play was basketball. That’s probably why I was visiting the National Basketball Hall of Fame for the third time. I was lucky to see it today. Normally, the HoF is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. However, today was President’s Day Monday. The ticket taker explained that, “We figured with all the kids off from school today we could do a lot of business”. That was correct thinking. The place was packed with kids and young families. Admission is a little on the steep side. Adults pay $21 U.S. and seniors (65+) are charged four dollars less. I was staying just a mile from the HoF. My flight wasn’t leaving Boston until 5:30 p.m. The HoF was 90 minutes from Boston’s airport. That meant I could show up at 10 a.m. when the place opened and stay for 2-3 hours. That would be plenty of time to see everything again. If you like basketball this is nirvana. The HoF has three main levels. The lower level is a basketball court where customers can shoot baskets for free and for as long as they want. When Carol and I were here a couple of years ago the place was nearly empty. I ended up shooting baskets for a very long time. Carol can be very patient with a man in his 60s who feels like he’s in his 20s on a basketball court! The second level contains all kinds of displays mainly focusing on the college and professional games. I was most interested in seeing the “AAU” display. This section covered the National Industrial Basketball League (NIBL). Through the 60s professional players could not play in the Olympics. Also during that period the NBA didn’t pay very much money. This motivated players to play for a “company” team for 1-3 years so they would be eligible for the Olympic basketball team. When the Olympics were finished they would move on to the NBA. The Caterpillar Cats. I grew up in the Peoria, Illinois “metro” area. Peoria was and is home to the world headquarters of the Caterpillar Tractor Company. “Cat” had their own entry into the NIBL appropriately named the “Caterpillar Cats”. They, along with the Phillips 66ers, were among the best teams in the NIBL. As a matter of fact the head coach of our 1952 and 1956 gold medal Olympic basketball team was Warren Womble coach of the Caterpillar Cats. Employees of Caterpillar were given free tickets. My mom and grandfather, like most people in the greater Peoria area, worked at Caterpillar. The games were broadcast on local radio. Along with being a fan of Peoria’s local college, Bradley University, I was a big fan of the Cats. I was pleased to see a “Caterpillar” jersey was on display in the HoF today. I was a big fan of the Harlem Globetrotters as well. As an 11-year old I saw them play with two famous players. The first was Wilt Chamberlain. Yes, “Wilt the Stilt” played for the Trotters for one year before moving into the NBA. Did you know that? The other famous Globetrotter was Meadowlark Lemon. Did you know that Meadowlark is living, at the age of 81, in Arizona? In the game I saw he dropkicked a ball from one free throw line into the basket at the opposite end of the court! I read all kinds of books about the Globetrotters. I also tried to buy a uniform directly from them but they didn’t sell stuff like that in the 60s. The country’s #1 college basketball team. Finally, I had a strong interest in seeing what the HoF had to say about the UCLA Bruins. As you may know all three of our children graduated from UCLA. Although I followed the Bruins before our kids started going there I became an active fan when they became students beginning in the early 90s. Since that time Carol and I have been UCLA season basketball and football ticket holders. We also follow the Bruins when they play on the road. They are a fun university to root for. Today the HoF had major displays and videos honoring possibly the best coach of all time, in any sport, John Wooden. Carol and I had the chance to meet Mr. Wooden and have our photo taken with him several years ago. Overall, I spent a most enjoyable late morning at the National Basketball Hall of Fame. The place comes highly recommended by me. I’m a big fan of Hall of Fames in general. Did you know I have a special tab that is being developed to summarize my visits to HoFs all over the country? I’m just getting started with it but will keep you posted. ONE CANNOT LIVE WELL OR SLEEP WELL IF ONE HAS NOT DINED WELL The Nine-Eleven Tavern – Buffalo, New York Folks, if you come to Buffalo, New York you had better eat some chicken wings. Chicken wings were invented in Buffalo! That’s right. Chicken wings were first served at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo. I’ve been there several times in my many trips to this area. However, I figured somebody else must be serving good wings in “The Queen City”. They were. Yelp! got me started. Soon I was headed to the Nine-Eleven Tavern. It was a funky little bar with not too much seating and lots of customers. I slid into the last table of the dimly lit dining room and prepared to chow down. The “Nine-Eleven” had a 4.5 star rating from 30 reviewers. You won’t see better than that on Yelp! Here are just a couple of those reviews. “This is a bold move for me to give 5 Stars after my first visit, but my experience so faithfully lived up to my expectations that I think it is warranted.
Nine-Eleven is what I imagine the Anchor Bar used to be…a friendly neighborhood bar in Buffalo that stumbled upon the best bar food ever. Nine-Eleven did not reinvent the wheel, but they put spinners on it.
The wings and fries were amazing. The fries were thick cut and tasted pan fried, like mom used to make. They were seasoned with salt and garlic and could not have been better. The wings were crispy and presented beautifully on a platter. The sauce was deceptively hot. It was cut with real butter, garlic, maybe some kind of cheese? These additions gave the sauce a sweetness and richness that I haven’t experienced in a wing sauce before and distracted me from the heat, which stung and lingered. My only complaint was that it made it hard to throw down a full ten, but this just means more to enjoy for lunch today.
My favorite places have always been Duff’s and the Gate, and I would place Nine-Eleven on par with either of those.
The bar itself is divey but friendly. Our bartender was excellent and handled a full bar with ease. The decor is rich in Buffalo tradition and is appropriately rough around the edges. The beer and liquor selections are adequate. Flying Bison Aviator Red was a feature. This is not the place for wine, but neither is any other wing place.” “Yum. Awesome buttery wings and killer garlic fries. This is the perfect bar to go to for wings. Tourists….Forget Duffs and anchor bar. If you want real “Buffalo” wings, stop here! Nothing fancy, but who wants that when you’re covered in wing sauce anyway?!” I love researching advice from others, analyzing it and then making some executive decisions on where to eat wings! As you can see from the pictures these reviewers were right on. I think my favorite might have been the fresh cut garlic fries. Wow! The wings were very good too. This was a fantastic discovery. I’ll be back and hope to bring others just for the experience. Minden Ice Track – Minden, Ontario, Canada Maybe this trip did require too much effort. During this three and one-half day trip I drove 1,333 miles and flew 5,431 miles just to see racing at two different ice tracks. On the first night of my travels I had to drive overnight to make the New York track. Luckily I got upscale hotels for the next two nights. On the final day of my journey bad weather in Chicago delayed my arrival home until 3 a.m. on Tuesday. That would be 6 a.m. Minden time. Did I have to put a bit too much effort into seeing two ice tracks? Maybe. As mentioned I’ve been wanting to come to Minden for their ice racing for years. Ontario only has two ice racing tracks. That seems a bit odd to me. They certainly have the cold weather for it. Neighboring Quebec has had ice racing at 10-20 different venues. These Minden folks have it figured out. Minden’s ice racing is not done on a frozen lake. Most ice tracks ARE contested on frozen lakes. In an age where the weather seems to be getting warmer (I know that’s hard to believe in 2014 with the cold weather most areas have had) depending upon a lake to have 12-15” of ice or more is a big risk. I had often wondered why ice racers don’t do what Minden does. Minden begins laying down a track of ice on a dirt base as early in the year as they can. They build the track up in layers of ice. I’m not certain how thick the ice/snow racing surface is. However, it was sold ice and snow today. Former trackchasing commissioner, Will White, always wanted to count a track like what I saw today as a “dirt” track. His reasoning was that the ice was on top of a dirt track. Heck, if that logic were used then an asphalt racing surface would have to count as a “dirt” track since the asphalt was sitting on top of the dirt! 12 Years a Slave. However, I don’t see it (Commissioner White’s theory) that way. At Minden they race on snow and ice. I count Minden as an ice track. Of course, I am not restrained by commissioner rulings any longer so I can do pretty much anything I want. I like it that way. Very well done. Today’s ice racing was done on a road course. I would guess the track’s distance was about three quarters of a mile. Racing started at 12 noon. There were 14 races lasting 12 laps each. Do you see a pattern here? They ran an efficient program. One race was ready to go as soon as the previous race was finished. There was no P.A. system. That’s pretty much the norm for ice racing. However, without an explanation of what is being done on the racetrack it’s difficult for the spectator to know for sure what they are seeing. There were a good number of fans watching the races today under blue skies and coolish 15-degree temps at race time. Luckily, there wasn’t much wind. It is the wind that creates the cold. Snow banks some 8-10 feet tall provided a barrier between racers and fans. There was little chance an ice racer could clear such a high snow wall. Spectators could feel safe and have a good view being that far above the track. Some of the snow where the spectators stood was soft or “hollow”. I had an experience with stepping in a “snow hole”. When I placed my size 13 boot into the snow I discovered that my boot immediately went more than a foot into the snow. That sent me for a tumble. I was a bit embarrassed at my predicament. However, I looked around. I didn’t know anybody else and they didn’t know me. I dusted myself off and went about my business of trackchasing. I took a walk through the paddock area. I’m guessing there were about 30 cars, plus or minus, racing today. I think the main difference in racing classes was the tires being used, studded and non-studded. There may have been engine differences as well but I don’t think so. Food, warmth, relaxing. The fairgrounds had a food building. I ventured in there for no other reason than to get warm. However, it was lunch time. The menu had 12-15 items. I chose a bowl of chili, a Tim Horton’s Valentine’s donut and a can of Diet Pepsi. The entire bill came to just $5 Canadian. By the way, there was no admission charge for the ice racing today. I stayed inside and enjoyed my lunch. Overall, I was very impressed with the ice racing at Minden. It’s just a shame it’s so far from everything. Driving nearly 10 hours to get back to Boston from Minden was a lot of seat time. 2014 ice racing season: finito. This ends my ice racing season. If it stays cold they will race another weekend or two in most ice racing locations. However, next week I am off to the Daytona 500 in Florida. It can get cold in Florida this time of year but not cold enough for ice racing. The following weekend Carol and I will be babysitting those nearly 6-year old grandbabies. After that, unless something most unusual happens, the ice will begin to disappear as it does about this time every year. Ice racing will be history for 2014. I have had a very good ice-racing season having seen seven different tracks. Five of those seven tracks were in Canada. The other two were located in Minnesota and New York. This was the first time in a long time that I didn’t do any ice racing in Wisconsin. Full-time sponsorship coming up in 2015. When the 2015 ice racing season rolls around I will be back to having a “full” airline sponsorship program. This will make traveling to these far flung places a little easier and a little less expensive. Don’t miss the photos and videos of my trip to Minden. I think you might particularly enjoy the “racing action” video from today. PROVINCE COMPARISONS Ontario The Heartland Province This evening I saw my 57th lifetime track in the Heartland state, yes the Heartland state. I’m a big fan of Ontario and can’t wait to go back. 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 Ontario sayings: Tim’s, Timmy’s, Timmy Ho’s, Timmy Ho-Ho’s: Tim Horton’s doughnut chain
QUICK FACTS AIRPLANE Los Angeles, CA (LAX) – Charlotte, NC (CLT) – 2,131 miles Charlotte, NC (CLT) – Boston, MA (BOS) – 689 miles RENTAL CAR #1 Logan (Boston) International Airport – trip begins Dundee, NY Minden, Ontario Logan (Boston) International Airport – trip ends – 1,333 miles AIRPLANE Boston, MA (BOS) – Chicago, IL (ORD) – 867 miles Chicago, IL (ORD) – Los Angeles, CA (LAX) – 1,745 miles Total air miles – 5,432 (4 flights) Total rental car miles – 1,333 (1 car) Total miles traveled on this trip – 6,765 miles TRACK ADMISSION PRICES: Wineta Lake Ice Track – $5 U.S. Minden Ice Track – No charge Total Racetrack Admissions – $5 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 375 tracks of my lifetime total. Don’t blame me. 1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,935 Total Trackchasing Countries There are no trackchasers currently within 10 countries of my lifetime total. 1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 68 Current lifetime National Geographic Diversity results 1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 4.96 That’s all folks! Official end of the RLR – Randy Lewis Racing Trackchaser Report 
A Trotters fan too.
1 comment
Would love to see the basketball hall of fame some time! Sounds really cool.