National Geographic Diversity – Annual Results
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From the travels and adventures of the “World’s #1 Trackchaser”
Attention!
Effective January 1, 2021, I am retiring as a full-time trackchaser. I will no longer be updating the National Geographic Diversity contest results. I hope you have enjoyed seeing and reading about the National Geographic Diversity winners. The program dates back to 2003.
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY AWARD BACKGROUND
The National Geographic Diversity Award was first established in 2003. The NGDA is meant to recognize trackchasers who excel on two fronts. Points are awarded based upon a trackchaser’s state ranking in all 50 of the United States and the District of Columbia. For trackchasers to do well in this analysis they must see racing in a large number of states AND rank high in each state’s trackchasing standings.
The trackchaser who has seen the most tracks of anyone in an individual state will receive a score of “1” for that state. The second-place finisher gets a “2”, third-place finisher gets a “3”, etc. Anyone finishing outside of the top 10 in an individual state receives a score of 15 in that state. The National Geographic Diversity scoring scale is like golf. The low score wins.
The first National Geographic Diversity award was handed out in 2003. Since 2003 was the first year of this award, both the lifetime and 2003 (annual) results were the same. During 2003, the results were limited to the top 20 worldwide trackchasers. In subsequent years, any trackchaser listed in a state’s top 10 will be eligible for the award. Beginning in 2004 and concluding in 2010 an ANNUAL NGD award was created. It was felt that both a lifetime and annual award would allow more trackchasers to be recognized for their efforts. Due to the administrative burden, the calculations created the annual award was discontinued in 2010.
Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010
Annual National Geographic Award Winner
Mike Knappenberger, Reading, Pennsylvania – 2008
Annual National Geographic Diversity Winner
Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin 2004 & 2005
Annual National Geographic Diversity Winner.
Allan Brown, with wife Nancy – 2003 National Geographic Diversity
trackchasing award winner.
2010 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY ANNUAL RESULTS
Recently, I posted the lifetime National Geographic Diversity results. Now it is time to reveal the 2010 annual NGD numbers. With this comparison, we will see which trackchasers did the best during the past year when it comes to seeing large numbers of tracks in as many states as possible.
Is something rotten in Denmark?
Before I get started I must post a grave concern about the hobby of trackchasing. Below is a table that shows how many United States tracks were posted during the three-year period from 2007-2009.
2007 – 966
2008 – 870
2009 – 1,052
How many tracks were posted in 2010? Seven hundred and nine. Yes, only 709 tracks were posted by the NGD deadline of February 28, 2011. That is dreadful. Will this trend continue?
Is the quantity affected by the quality?
What makes this situation even worse is that the QUALITY of tracks is at an all-time low. Has the proliferation of figure 8 tracks, enduros and kart races turned off a major portion of the trackchasing population? I fear that it has. Only time will tell but this is definitely a disturbing trend.
Let’s take a look at the data.
Let’s get back to the results that WERE posted. Often times, a trackchaser will rack up large numbers in just a very few states. Sometimes trackchasers will focus on seeing racing in as many states as possible. That is why the National Geographic Diversity (NGD) lifetime rankings were created all the way back in 2003. The NGD annual rankings first started in 2004.
The annual National Geographic Diversity rankings measures exactly what its name implies. Just how “diverse” has a chaser’s body of work been on a national basis? It rewards those chasers who have done a lot of trackchasing all over the country in a single year.
The NGD “marries up” the concept of seeing a lot of tracks with seeing a lot of tracks in several states. Briefly, here is how it works. If a trackchaser holds a rank of number one in an individual state, he/she gets one NGD point. A second-place ranking gives two points, etc., etc. through position number ten. This is done for all fifty states and the District of Columbia.
When the NGD contest was formalized, the concept of “penalty” points was developed. Yes, the penalty points would be assigned to those underachievers who could not get at least a “top ten” ranking in an individual state. Every trackchaser who ranks outside the top ten gets an NGD score of fifteen points in that state. Trackchasers who have not made even a single visit to a state during the year get a score of 15 points in each state they did not visit.
Below is a list of past champions in the annual NGD contests.
Past Champions
2004 – Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 8.96
2005 – Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 6.86
2006 – Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 6.35
2007 – Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 6.53
2008 – Mike Knappenberger, Reading, PA – 7.67
2009 – Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 7.69
Did you know this?
As I reviewed the data from 2010, several interesting statistics jumped out. Despite trackchasers crisscrossing the country at a rapid rate, there were a few states where not a single trackchaser chose to visit. Those states were:
Alaska
Delaware
District of Columbia
Hawaii
Rhode Island
Some states had only one trackchaser visit during all of 2010. Those states were:
Idaho – Gordon Killian
Massachusetts – Bing Metz
New Mexico – Randy Lewis
Wyoming – Gordon Killian
It is not unusual for several states to be lightly trackchased. Typically, those states are in the Northeast or Far West. There aren’t very many tracks in either of these regions. Most northeast trackchasing is done by eastern-based trackchasers. Over the years, they’ve seen most of the tracks running in their area. There are no top-ranked trackchasers living west of the Mississippi. This limits Far West trackchasing as well when many eastern-based trackchasers stay close to home. These were the states that had just 2-5 track visits in 2010:
Idaho – 1
Massachusetts – 1
Mississippi – 2
Montana – 2
New Mexico – 2
Oregon – 2
Wyoming – 2
Arkansas – 3
Louisiana – 3
Maryland – 3
Missouri – 3
North Dakota – 4
Utah – 4
Washington – 4
On the other hand, some states are always heavily mined for their trackchasing gold. There were several states that had 40 or more individual tracks seen by a multitude of trackchasers. These states were:
New York – 81
Ohio – 76
California – 46
Indiana – 45
Michigan – 43
Only one state was seen by more than ten trackchasers in 2010 that didn’t at least tie for a tenth place finish. That was New York. Therefore the “penalty points” stipulation only affected a few low-level New York chasers.
These states were all visited by more than ten trackchasers:
California
Illinois
Indiana
New York
Ohio
Pennsylvania
As far as I know, trackchasers don’t plan their yearly activities around the annual NGD scoring opportunities as much as they do with the lifetime NGD contest. Nevertheless, it’s always interesting to see who’s been where and how often.
The final 2010 results!
All data is based upon results posted at www.autoracingrecords.com through February 28, 2011. Any results posted after that will not count. This is not a daycare center. You snooze you lose. Here are the annual National Geographic Diversity results for the period ending December 31, 2010.
Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 7.22
Paul Weisel, Orefield, PA – 8.98
Ed Esser, Madison, WI – 9.20
Gordon Killian, Wyomissing, PA – 9.96
Mike Knappenberger, Reading, PA – 10.41
Guy Smith, Effort, PA – 10.90
Pam Smith, Effort, PA – 11.43
Bing Metz, Tatamy, PA – 12.14
Carol Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 12.57
Ed Corrado, Binghamton, NY – 13.18
Most of the top ten positions were achieved by “team” trackchasers. I trackchase as an independent. The above rankings might show how difficult being an “independent” in this hobby is getting. There were a very large number of trackchasers who achieved a #1 ranking in one or more states. Some thirty-two trackchasers earned a top ten finish in one or more states.
** There’s an incredible amount of data to sort through here. The trackchasing information is available on several public websites. As an example, all of my personal results are posted on my website at www.randylewis.org. Trackchasing commissioner Will White first goes to my website to get my results to post on his website at www.autoracingrecords.com. He gets other’s results from various sources. I then go to Will’s site to get the data that, once massaged, becomes the official NGD results. If anyone would like to challenge the accuracy of any of the data, I will accept successful challenges through April 15, 2011. After that date, all results are final. We’ll see you all here about this time next year (assuming the data is available). At that time, we’ll know how trackchasers have done in the prestigious National Geographic Diversity rankings with another year under the contest’s belt.
2010 NGD Annual Results
| Randy Lewis | 7.22 |
| Paul Weisel | 8.98 |
| Ed Esser | 9.20 |
| Gordon Killian | 9.96 |
| Mike Knappenberger | 10.41 |
| Guy Smith | 10.90 |
| Pam Smith | 11.43 |
| Bing Metz | 12.14 |
| Carol Lewis | 12.57 |
| Edward Corrado | 13.18 |
| Narain Karthikeyan | 13.25 |
| Roland Vanden Eynde | 13.59 |
| Ron Rodda | 13.73 |
| Pat Eckel | 13.78 |
| Bruce Eckel | 13.78 |
| Chris Tyrell | 13.86 |
| Will White | 14.02 |
| Roger Ferrell | 14.12 |
| Rick Schneider | 14.35 |
| Eleanor Weidman | 14.43 |
| Brian Hickey | 14.51 |
| Kenny Schrader | 14.53 |
| Dale O’Brien | 14.59 |
| Rick Young | 14.65 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 14.67 |
| Norm Wagner | 14.73 |
| Dwight Bucks | 14.73 |
| Andy Sivi | 14.75 |
| Jack Erdmann | 14.78 |
| Paul Weidman | 14.80 |
| Bob Schafer | 14.82 |
| John Moore | 14.86 |
2009 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY ANNUAL RESULTS
Colorado
District of Columbia
Hawaii
New Mexico
Utah
Washington
Some states had only one trackchaser come during all of 2009. Those states were:
Alaska – Randy Lewis
Delaware – Brian Hickey
Oregon – Randy Lewis
Montana – Randy Lewis
It is not unusual for several states to be lightly trackchased. Typically, those states are in the Northeast or Far West. There aren’t very many tracks in either of these regions. Most northeast trackchasing is done by eastern-based trackchasers. Over the years, they’ve seen most of the tracks running in the area. There are virtually no top-ranked trackchasers living west of the Mississippi. This limits Far West trackchasing as well when many eastern-based trackchasers stay close to home. These were the states that had just 2-5 track visits in 2009:
Montana – 2
Oregon – 2
Wyoming – 2
Louisiana – 3
Arkansas – 4
Idaho – 4
Nevada – 5
Oklahoma – 5
South Dakota – 5
On the other hand, some states are always heavily mined for their trackchasing gold. There were six locations that had 50 or more individual tracks seen by a multitude of trackchasers. These states were:
Pennsylvania – 117
Florida – 73
New York – 68
Ohio – 65
Michigan – 51
Wisconsin – 50
Probably the most surprising track counts came from tiny Rhode Island and the large state of California. During many years, the state of Rhode Island has never received a single trackchaser visit. Up until the past couple of seasons, the state had just one countable track…..and they didn’t race every year. During 2009, a major indoor event was held drawing 19 different trackchasers! This created 21 individual track visits in the Ocean state during 2009.
On the other hand, California is one of the largest states by landmass of any in the U.S.A. Nevertheless, it is a long way from where most trackchasers live. Additionally, most tracks in the Golden state race on Saturdays preventing a trackchaser from very many multi-track opportunities during a weekend. Only one trackchaser visit was made by anyone living outside of California. In total, just seven new tracks were seen in California during this past year.
Only a few states were seen by more than ten trackchasers in 2009. That meant that penalty points for non-performance were handed out in these locations for those without a top ten ranking.
These states were all visited by more than ten trackchasers:
Florida
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
As far as I know, trackchasers don’t plan their yearly activities around the annual NGD scoring opportunities as they do with the lifetime NGD contest. Nevertheless, it’s always interesting to see who’s been where and how often.
All data is based upon results posted at www.autoracingrecords.com through February 28, 2010. Any results posted after that will not count. Here are the annual National Geographic Diversity results for the period ending December 31, 2009.
1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 7.69
2. Bing Metz, Tatamy, PA – 9.49
3. Ed Esser, Madison, WI – 9.80
4. Paul Weisel, Orefield, PA – 9.92
5. Mike Knappenberger, Reading, PA – 10.76
6. Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, PA – 10.92
7. Pam Smith, Effort, PA – 11.75
8. Guy Smith, Effort, PA – 11.78
9. Pat Eckel, Easton, PA – 11.84
10. Bruce Eckel, Easton, PA – 11.84
Most of the top ten positions were achieved by “team” trackchasers. That might show how difficult being an “independent” in this hobby is getting. There were a very large number of trackchasers who achieved a #1 ranking in one or more states. Some thirty-nine trackchasers saw racing in one or more states. All but six of those people earned a top ten ranking in one or more states.
Mike Knappenberger, last year’s champion fell to fifth place. This shows how difficult maintaining a championship form can be. Youngster Carol Lewis just missed a top ten finish by a quarter of one point. Bing Metz made a nice move up from eighth in 2008 to second in 2009. John Moore moved up five positions from last year (17th to 12th). Roland Vanden Eynde fell the furthest from 12th to 28th. It’s too bad the rankings and trackchasing, in general, is dominated by folks living in the east as well as the Midwest. This makes our hobby less diverse. It’s sort of like NASCAR’s lack of geographical diversity some 25 years ago.
| Randy Lewis | 7.69 |
| Bing Metz | 9.49 |
| Ed Esser | 9.80 |
| Paul Weisel | 9.92 |
| Mike Knappenberger | 10.76 |
| Gordon Killian | 10.92 |
| Pam Smith | 11.75 |
| Guy Smith | 11.78 |
| Pat Eckel | 11.84 |
| Bruce Eckel | 11.84 |
| Carol Lewis | 12.10 |
| John Moore | 12.53 |
| Brian Hickey | 12.71 |
| Ron Rodda | 13.25 |
| Will White | 13.65 |
| Kenny Schrader | 13.67 |
| Allan Brown | 13.80 |
| Rick Schneider | 13.84 |
| John Osowski | 13.92 |
| Chris Tyrrel | 14.14 |
| Robert Helmick | 14.16 |
| Andy Sivi | 14.20 |
| Mike Gaskell | 14.29 |
| Roger Ferrell | 14.37 |
| Kevin Eckert | 14.39 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 14.45 |
| Nancy Brown | 14.55 |
| Roland Vanden Eynde | 14.61 |
| Rick Young | 14.80 |
| Norm Wagner | 14.82 |
| Dale O’Brien | 14.84 |
| Jack Erdmann | 14.84 |
| Virginia Schuler | 14.86 |
There were 35 trackchasers who recorded a top 10 finish in one or more states. A large number of 14 trackchasers ranked #1 in one or more states. These trackchasers all led one or more states in 2008:
Mike Knappenberger, Reading, Pennsylvania
Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California
Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin
Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, Pennsylvania
Brian Hickey, Westport, Massachusetts
Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania
Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania
Bing Metz, Tatamy, Pennsylvania
Pam Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania
Roland Vanden Eynde, Vilvoorde, Belgium
Roger Ferrell, Majenica, Indiana
John Moore, Knoxville, Tennessee
Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California
Steve Kinser, Bloomington, Indiana
This year’s trackchasers saw 870 tracks in the United States. Of note was the fact that no tracks at all were seen in the District of Columbia, New Mexico or Rhode Island. Just one track was seen in Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon and North Dakota. On the other hand, there were two states where more than 50 new tracks were seen, including:
Ohio -98
Michigan -70
In the annual NGD competition, it pays to go to as many states as possible. In the lifetime competition, a trackchaser can go to a large number of tracks and still not be ranked in the top 10 in some states. In the annual competition, it’s unlikely that any trackchaser who visits a state will be ranked lower than 10th place, although this did happen in several states this year. That shows the strategy is to see as many states as possible in the annual rankings and as many tracks as possible in the lifetime rankings.
2008 NGD Annual Results
| Mike Knappenberger | 7.67 |
| Randy Lewis | 8.63 |
| Ed Esser | 8.78 |
| Gordon Killian | 9.47 |
| Brian Hickey | 9.65 |
| Paul Weisel | 11.37 |
| Guy Smith | 11.69 |
| Bing Metz | 12.37 |
| Allan Brown | 12.51 |
| Pam Smith | 12.61 |
| Pat Eckel | 12.65 |
| Roland Vanden Eynde | 12.78 |
| Bruce Eckel | 12.88 |
| Roger Ferrell | 13.14 |
| Nancy Brown | 13.71 |
| Bob Schafer | 13.98 |
| John Moore | 14.04 |
| Ron Rodda | 14.04 |
| Carol Lewis | 14.06 |
| Kenny Schrader | 14.14 |
| Steve Kinser | 14.27 |
| Kevin Eckert | 14.29 |
| Will White | 14.49 |
| Norm Wagner | 14.55 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 14.57 |
| Dale O’Brien | 14.73 |
| Virginia Schuler | 14.73 |
| Eleanor Weidman | 14.76 |
| John Osowski | 14.76 |
| Paul Weidman | 14.76 |
| Rick Schneider | 14.78 |
| Jack Erdmann | 14.82 |
| Linda Rixon | 14.82 |
| Spike Rixon | 14.82 |
| Rick Young | 14.90 |
| Andy Sivi | 15.00 |
2007 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY ANNUAL RESULTS
For the second year in a row, Randy Lewis of San Clemente, California has won the trackchasing National Geographic Diversity Annual Award contest. Randy’s winning score, 6.53, fell short of last year’s record 6.35. Ed Esser finished in the runner-up spot with a score of 7.69
There were 38 trackchasers who recorded a top 10 finish in one or more states. An incredible 23 trackchasers ranked #1 in one or more states.
Several foreign country residents scored first-place finishes including:
Linda Rixon (England) – Georgia, Nevada
Spike Rixon (England) – Nevada
Rick Young (Canada) – Florida
Roland Vanden Eynde (Belgium) – South Dakota, Wisconsin
In the women’s division, Carol Lewis of San Clemente, California repeated as champion with a score of 10.92 (overall rank 6th) defeating her closest competitor Pam Smith.
This year’s trackchasers saw 966 tracks in the United States. Of note was the fact that no tracks at all were seen in the District of Columbia or Hawaii. Just one track was seen in Vermont and only two were visited in Alaska, New Jersey and Maryland. On the other hand, there were several states where more than 50 new tracks were seen, including:
Ohio – 117
New York – 83
Michigan – 69
Pennsylvania – 63
In the annual NGD competition, it pays to go to as many states as possible. In the lifetime competition a trackchaser can go to a large number of tracks and still not be ranked in the top 10 in some states. In the annual competition, it’s unlikely that any trackchaser who visits a state will be ranked lower than 10th place, although this did happen in several states this year. That shows the strategy is to see as many states as possible in the annual rankings and as many tracks as possible in the lifetime rankings.
2007 NGD Annual Results
| Randy Lewis | 6.53 |
| Ed Esser | 7.69 |
| Gordon Killian | 10.08 |
| Mike Knappenberger | 10.22 |
| Paul Weisel | 10.80 |
| Carol Lewis | 10.92 |
| Allan Brown | 11.27 |
| Guy Smith | 12.33 |
| Roger Ferrell | 12.73 |
| Dale O’Brien | 12.80 |
| Pam Smith | 12.88 |
| Bruce Eckel | 13.06 |
| Pat Eckel | 13.06 |
| Bob Schafer | 13.10 |
| Roland Vanden Eynde | 13.24 |
| Andy Sivi | 13.55 |
| Bing Metz | 13.92 |
| Mark Manning | 13.96 |
| Kenny Schrader | 13.98 |
| Steve Kinser | 13.98 |
| Linda Rixon | 14.04 |
| Nancy Brown | 14.04 |
| Spike Rixon | 14.04 |
| Jack Erdmann | 14.14 |
| Rick Schneider | 14.14 |
| Ron Rodda | 14.20 |
| Rick Young | 14.31 |
| Norm Wagner | 14.55 |
| John Osowski | 14.57 |
| Dwight Bucks | 14.59 |
| Eleanor Weidman | 14.65 |
| Kevin Eckert | 14.69 |
| Will White | 14.73 |
| Robert Moreno | 14.78 |
| Paul Weidman | 14.82 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 14.86 |
| Sammy Swindell | 14.86 |
| Virginia Schuler | 14.86 |
2006 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY ANNUAL RESULTS
For the first time in contest history, we have a different winner in the National Geographic Diversity Annual Award contest. Randy Lewis of San Clemente, California captured this year’s title with a record-breaking score of 6.35. This eclipses the previous record held by Ed Esser of 6.86.
There were 43 trackchasers who recorded tracks in the U.S. during 2006. Thirty-three of those trackchasers saw enough tracks to garner a top 10 finish in one or more states. Seventeen trackchasers ranked #1 in one or more states. These included (number of #1 states in parenthesis), Randy Lewis (14), Ed Esser (10), Paul Weisel (10), Mike Knappenberger (6), Bing Metz (6), Carol Lewis (5), Guy Smith (3), Roger Ferrell (3), Mark Manning (2), Bruce Eckel (2), Pat Eckel (2), Pam Smith (1), Rick Schneider (1), Ken Schrader (1), Andy Ritter (1) and Norm Wagner (1) and Gordon Killian (1).
In the women’s division, Carol Lewis of San Clemente, California ranks first with a score of 9.80 (overall rank 3rd) defeating her closest competitor Pam Smith. Carol’s NGD score was a record for this division.
This year’s trackchasers saw nearly 1,000 tracks in the United States. Of note was the fact that no tracks at all were seen in the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine or Maryland. On the other hand, there were several states where more than 50 new tracks were seen, including:
Pennsylvania – 105
Michigan – 98
New York – 77
Ohio – 55
North Carolina – 53
Florida – 50
In the annual NGD competition, it pays to go to as many states as possible. In the lifetime competition, a trackchaser can go to a large number of tracks and still not be ranked in the top 10 in some states. In the annual competition, it’s unlikely that any trackchaser who visits a state will be ranked lower than 10th place, although this did happen in several states this year. That shows the strategy is to see as many states as possible in the annual rankings and as many tracks as possible in the lifetime rankings.
2006 NGD Annual Results
| Randy Lewis | 6.35 |
| Ed Esser | 9.12 |
| Carol Lewis | 9.80 |
| Paul Weisel | 9.88 |
| Gordon Killian | 10.94 |
| Mike Knappenberger | 11.22 |
| Bing Metz | 11.35 |
| Guy Smith | 12.24 |
| Allan Brown | 12.27 |
| Roger Ferrell | 12.35 |
| Pam Smith | 12.57 |
| Ron Rodda | 12.92 |
| Mark Manning | 13.08 |
| Rick Schneider | 13.53 |
| Bruce Eckel | 13.88 |
| Pat Eckel | 13.88 |
| Kenny Schrader | 14.14 |
| Will White | 14.18 |
| Andy Ritter | 14.31 |
| Bob Schafer | 14.41 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 14.41 |
| Norm Wagner | 14.43 |
| Steve Kinser | 14.53 |
| Chris Economaki | 14.57 |
| Nancy Brown | 14.57 |
| John Osowski | 14.65 |
| Dwight Bucks | 14.75 |
| Johnny Gibson | 14.75 |
| Andy Sivi | 14.76 |
| Linda Thomas | 14.78 |
| Sammy Swindell | 14.80 |
| Jack Erdmann | 14.82 |
| Rick Young | 14.82 |
| Spike Rixon | 14.82 |
| Colin Herridge | 15.00 |
| Eleanor Weidman | 15.00 |
| Hans Joachim Stuck | 15.00 |
| Jack Brabham | 15.00 |
| Narain Karthikeyan | 15.00 |
| Paul Weidman | 15.00 |
| Robert Moreno | 15.00 |
| Roland Vanden Eynde | 15.00 |
| Stirling Moss | 15.00 |
2005 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY ANNUAL RESULTS
For the second consecutive year, Ed Esser of Madison, Wisconsin is the National Geographic Diversity Annual Award winner. Mr. Esser wins the award with a record score of 6.86. His 2005 results dwarf his winning score of 8.96 in 2004.
Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California finished in second (8.08) and Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania (10.20) finished in the third spot.
In the women’s division, Carol Lewis of San Clemente, California ranks first with a score of 10.86 (overall rank 5th) defeating her closest competitor’s Nancy Brown and Pam Smith (both tied at 13.20).
Mr. Esser owes his success to the variety of states he visited during 2005. He saw racing in 34 states. One might wonder how Mr. Lewis with 182 tracks seen in 2005 could be defeated by Mr. Esser who saw “only” 132 tracks during the year. First of all, Mr. Lewis saw 28 of his tracks outside the United States, while all of Mr. Esser’s tracks were seen in the U.S.
Mr. Esser defeated Mr. Lewis in states visited 34-27. In the 25 states where both men went trackchasing Mr. Lewis won the head to head competition with Mr. Esser 14 times. There were three ties.
In the annual NGD competition, it pays to go to as many states as possible. In the lifetime competition, a trackchaser can go to a large number of tracks and still not be ranked in the top 10 in some states. In the annual competition, it’s unlikely that any trackchaser who visits a state will be ranked lower than 10th place. That shows the strategy is to see as many states as possible in the annual rankings and as many tracks as possible in the lifetime rankings.
Special congratulations go to Paul Weisel, Bing Metz, Sammy Swindell, Guy Smith, Roger Ferrell, Carol Lewis, Andy Ritter, Kenny Schrader, P.J. Hollebrand, Pam Smith, Rick Young, Will White, Chris Economacki, Andy Sivi, Dale O’Brien and Norm Wagner. They all managed to see the most tracks in at least one state.
2005 NGD Annual Results
| Ed Esser | 6.86 |
| Randy Lewis | 8.08 |
| Paul Weisel | 10.20 |
| Bing Metz | 10.59 |
| Carol Lewis | 10.86 |
| Roger Ferrell | 11.98 |
| Guy Smith | 12.24 |
| Andy Sivi | 12.41 |
| Andy Ritter | 12.82 |
| Kenny Schrader | 13.04 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 13.06 |
| Allan Brown | 13.18 |
| Nancy Brown | 13.20 |
| Pam Smith | 13.20 |
| Bruce Eckel | 13.47 |
| Pat Eckel | 13.47 |
| Dale O’Brien | 13.59 |
| Gordon Killian | 13.63 |
| Ron Rodda | 13.65 |
| Rick Young | 14.00 |
| Will White | 14.20 |
| Robert Moreno | 14.24 |
| Roland Vanden Eynde | 14.27 |
| Jack Erdmann | 14.35 |
| Sammy Swindell | 14.35 |
| Bob Schafer | 14.55 |
| Norm Wagner | 14.57 |
| Chris Economaki | 14.73 |
| Eleanor Weidman | 14.73 |
| Paul Weidman | 14.73 |
| Rick Schneider | 14.76 |
| Johnny Gibson | 14.80 |
| Kevin Eckert | 14.80 |
| Steve Kinser | 14.80 |
| John Osowski | 14.84 |
| Virginia Schuler | 14.96 |
2004 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY ANNUAL RESULTS
2004 NGD Annual Results
| Ed Esser | 8.96 |
| Randy Lewis | 9.26 |
| Andy Sivi | 9.94 |
| Roger Ferrell | 10.66 |
| Allan Brown | 11.44 |
| Gordy Killian | 11.58 |
| Dale O’Brien | 11.84 |
| Nancy Brown | 11.90 |
| Jack Erdmann | 11.90 |
| Will White | 11.92 |
| Guy Smith | 12.06 |
| John Moore | 12.10 |
| Andy Ritter | 12.18 |
| Ron Rodda | 12.28 |
| Paul Weisel | 12.65 |
| PJ Hollebrand | 12.90 |
| Bruce Eckel | 13.28 |
| Pat Eckel | 13.32 |
| Pam Smith | 13.48 |
| Norm Wagner | 13.48 |
| Johnny Gibson | 13.56 |
| Rick Schneider | 13.68 |
| Gary Jacob | 13.78 |
| Ken Schrader | 13.98 |
| Kevin Eckert | 14.02 |
| Tom Schmeh | 14.02 |
| Steve Rixon | 14.06 |
| Dale Danielski | 14.52 |
| Eleanor Weidman | 14.68 |
| Paul Weidman | 14.68 |
| John Osowski | 14.72 |
| Chris Economaki | 14.74 |
| Dwight Bucks | 14.76 |
| Tom Sivi | 14.78 |
| Colin Herridge | 14.80 |
| Alan Skinrood | 14.86 |
| Colin Casserley | 14.88 |