Greetings from Assumption, Louisiana
.
From the travels and adventures of the
“World’s #1 Trackchaser”
No Problem Raceway Park Paved road course Lifetime Track #1,295 Reprinted with permission from my Sunday, December 2, 2007, Trackchaser Report. THE CLASSIC TRACKCHASER REPORT Editor’s note: This is a CLASSIC Trackchaser Report. What the heck does “Classic” mean? It’s simply a Trackchaser Report that comes from my trackchasing archives. Typically these will be stories from tracks I visited five years or ten years or more ago. For whatever reason (usually not enough time) it didn’t get posted to my website when I first made the track visit. Often a classic TR will not have a video and/or photo album attached. I didn’t begin producing my YouTube videos until 2009 (YouTube channel: RANLAY). I didn’t begin writing a complete Trackchaser Report until I had seen about 425 tracks. Photo albums were sort of hit or miss during the early years of my trackchasing. Additionally, if you see a website link know that link worked when the TR was originally written. Will it work now? Your guess is as good as mine! Nevertheless, this CLASSIC Trackchaser Report has finally bubbled to the surface and is now available for everyone to see at www.randylewis.org. I hope you enjoy it. No trip too the Kentucky Motor Speedway is complete without a Momma Sue’s footlong hot dog personally recommended by Steve. I AM A TRACKCHASER. My name is Randy Lewis (above – being interviewed in Kentucky). I hail from the sleepy little village by the sea, San Clemente, California. I am a “trackchaser”. I trackchase. Have you ever in your life heard of “trackchasing”? I didn’t think so. Well, you made it this far. You might as well pour yourself a cold one and take your Trackchasing 101 class. When you finish you’ll have your trackchasing diploma and can then teach your friends about the hobby. Today’s adventure was one more of the 2,000 trips that have taken me up, down and around the proverbial long and dusty trackchasing trail. If you would like to see where I’ve been and experience those adventures here’s the link: If you’ve got a question, comment or whatever please leave it at the bottom of this report. It’s very easy to do. Or you can visit me on Facebook. Thanks! FOREWORD Sunday, December 2, 2007. I ALMOST MADE IT TO THE CARRIBEAN TRACKCHASING TOUR Thanks! I would like to thank all of those folks who have made www.randylewis.org the #1 searched website for the word “trackchasing” on Google and #2 when searching the word “trackchaser” behind Will White’s www.trackchaser.net. Track website trackchasing coverage This past summer, I had the most enjoyable trackchasing day at the Hidden Valley Motorsports Park in Drumheller, Alberta, Canada. The folks up there were nice enough to recognize my visit on their website. However, as this is posted their site has changed. Today’s headlines What is competitive? You might be interested in reading an essay I first wrote for the Trackchaser email forum and subsequently shared with my fellow competitors and friends at the Pacific Golf Club. Beyond that, you might be interested in the responses I received from several of the golfers. It’s all at the bottom of this Trackchaser Report………………..yes….details at the “Bottom of this Trackchaser Report”. Today I had a most unusual encounter with airport security. Were they messing with me?…………..details in “The Trip”. What trackchasing topic ties together a fellow I’ve never met from Albany, New York and my son-in-law who lives in Los Angeles? …………..details in “The People”. Have you ever eaten “Boudin Balls?” I did today for the very first time. …………..details in “Race Review”. Greeting from Assumption, Louisiana. I woke up this morning in New Orleans, Louisiana. I went to sleep back home in San Clemente, California. This is what transpired today. PEOPLE/STRATEGY/TRAVEL NEWS The Objective I am just five tracks short of the magic 1,300 trackchasing number. I still don’t know if I will make this milestone before New Year’s Eve or not. Back when I was a racechaser, I would go up to Mesa Marin Speedway for Sunday afternoon specials in Bakersfield, California. The race would normally finish up at about 5 p.m. Then I would make the 3-4 hour drive back south to home, usually with a stop for dinner. If I got home by 10 p.m. or so on Sunday night, I was satisfied. I could never have dreamed that I would go trackchasing in the backwoods of Louisiana on a Sunday afternoon and be home before Carol finished watching Desperate Housewives in the evening. That is exactly what happened today. The Trip I have been in most of the 200+ commercial airports in America during my time. However, I can never recall being in the Dallas Love Airport (DAL). Today I had to be resourceful when I returned my Dollar rental car. I had picked the car up at the DFW International Airport (DFW). When I went to drop it at DAL, I discovered that rental car returns are not done near the terminal. However, as a trackchaser, I have learned to be resourceful. I picked a safe spot to park and waited for the Dollar Rental Car shuttle bus to drop off passengers at the terminal. I then followed the bus back to the barn! When the shuttle bus driver drove me back to the terminal, I discovered I did not have any single dollar bills to use as a tip. I offered him the 92 cents in change that I had in my pocket for moving my one rolling bag from the bus to the curb. He declined my offer! Maybe that is why he is driving a rental car bus. Once in the terminal, I entered airport security. They weren’t very busy. I find that Saturdays are the quietest day of the week at our nation’s air terminals. At first, that seemed like a good sign. I would come to find out it was not. When airport security folks have time on their hands, they seem to pay a little closer attention to each passenger. Do you agree John? I was selected for “additional security”. I was asked to come to a special area to be “wanded” and “patted down”. While all of this was happening a second security person grabbed all my gear. My “gear” consisted of five separate items. One plastic bin contained my computer. A second plastic bin had my shoes, my “liquids and gels” plastic bag and my 92 cents in change. Then came my briefcase, my camera bag and my rolling luggage piece. While I was “standing on the yellow footprints” just as we were instructed to do in the Marine Corps boot camp, I was asked to remove my belt. Once my TSA agent was satisfied that I was not packing heat or anything else that might harm my fellow passengers, he gruffly said, “grab your stuff, I’m through with you” and walked off. My inspection had a distinct “prison flavor” to it. But I had the time, so I did my time. I grabbed all my stuff and walked into the terminal. I walked some 400 yards and made a restroom stop. My trackchasing thought process was broken with an announcement that came over the entire P.A. system in the Dallas Love Airport. “Would Randy Lewis please return to the main security area to claim a lost article”. Wow! Was this a clever ploy by those disgruntled East coast trackchasers? Had one of them received a toy P.A. system as an early Christmas present? Could there be another Randy Lewis? I didn’t really want to walk all the way back to security. I checked my stuff. I had my driver’s license. I had my boarding pass. I was wearing my shoes. I looked down and everything seemed to be intact with my rolling bag, my briefcase and my camera bag. I concluded that I was not missing ANYTHING. Nevertheless, I trudged back to the security area. When I reached the P.A. desk, I was asked: “Are you Randy Lewis?”. I identified myself. Another guard said, “What did you lose?” Somewhat indignantly I replied, “I don’t think I lost anything”. With that, the young security guard held up a laptop computer. “Is this your computer?” Wow again! It sure was. How did they get my computer? Was one of the TSA agents a pickpocket? Let me explain. There had been some commotion associated with my being selected for “additional security”. While one TSA agent was taking me to a special area for the pat-down, another TSA agent had placed all of my gear on a table. When he did that he took the two grey plastic bins that held my lose articles and placed one on top of the other. The top tray contained my shoes, my plastic bag of gels and liquids, and my change. That tray was placed on top of the grey plastic bin that had my laptop in it. In my haste to put my belt back on and grab all my stuff, I didn’t notice that the two plastic bins had been combined. My bad! I would have noticed I was missing my computer very quickly as I was just about ready to begin work with it at the airport when the P.A. came over asking for me. What puzzled me was how they knew it was my computer? I asked the woman how she knew the machine was mine. She said, “I turned it on and your name appeared”. Heck, I don’t even know how to do that and this was my computer! She did suggest that I tape a business card to the back of the computer. That’s a good idea. I will do it as soon as I get home. I guess I would classify this as a narrow escape!! Priceline.com update I spent the evening in New Orleans. I was able to get the Priceline 3-star Radisson Airport hotel for just $35 plus tax. The room was going for $99 plus tax to the unprepared. For the first time in my life, I had a hotel room with a “sleep number” bed. I’d need to use the contraption a few more times in order to rate it. Priceline rocks, if you can use the advantages it offers. I will say this. “Continuous improvement” is a way of life with me. Back in the day, I thought the best approach was to drive around and ask for rooms at midnight at motels that were two grades below Motel 6 and Super 8. Then I upgraded to Motel 6 and Super 8 and thought I was doing fine. Now, I’m getting some very nice hotels for prices at or below what is charged by Motel 6 and Super 8. Heck, I enjoy competing against my own capabilities as much as competing with anyone else. By the way, the New Orleans airport Motel 6 was charging $59.99 as their internet rate before taxes on this evening. The People I am lucky in one sense. A long time ago, I discovered that most people know more about most things than I do. I also discovered that if I want to know more about something, I have to tap into the resources that will allow that to happen. There is an old wives’ tale that asserts that men will never stop to ask directions. That is not true with me. As soon as I know I’m lost, I stop and ask. Why waste more time, when someone is nearby who can help? My theory is often tested by convenience store clerks. They often don’t know where a racing stadium is when it’s in their own backyard. Or, as my grandfather used to say, “they wouldn’t know their $%^ from a hole in the ground”. However, that’s another kettle of fish altogether. Long-time Trackchaser Report readers may remember the chuckles they would get when I always appeared to get lost while trying to find my tracks. How you noticed, that doesn’t happen much anymore. I attribute my newfound skill to my portable GPS unit, “Dusty”. I don’t know how I did this hobby before I got the GPS unit. I don’t carry any paper state maps with me on any trip I take. My Garmin GPS unit allows me to put a city and state location in the machine. If I have a street address, it’s even better. Sometimes I can use the “POI” aka “Point of Interest” name such as “No Problem Raceway Park” or “Yankee Stadium”. However, there are times I don’t have a street address and the POI section of the GPS does not have the listing I want in its’ database. If I am in a large city or town, that can make finding a racetrack difficult. However, that problem has now been eliminated. I met a man named Richard Welty online recently. He lives up by Albany, New York. Richard runs an excellent website at http://www.na-motorsports.com. His site uses Yahoo Maps and lists all tracks including ovals (paved, dirt and historic), road courses (current and historic), drag strips, kart tracks (outdoor, indoor and historic) as well as tracks that “never were” in North America. His site may be the most inclusive, in this regard, of any I have found. Richard’s site includes more elements of individual track information such as a link to the track’s website, the time zone of the track and the track’s street address and phone numbers if available. The track’s home page on Richard’s site even has the five-day weather forecast, a satellite photo of the track and surrounding areas, as well as links to local restaurants and hotels! I’ve never seen anything like it. Great job, Richard! I had noticed that this website provided both longitude and latitude information on a track’s location. My Lexus GPS system allows the entry of L/L data directly into the system. However, I almost never take that car on a trackchasing trip. My portable Garmin GPS does not accept longitude/latitude data. Therefore, even though Richard’s site had this wonderful feature, I did not have the capabilities to use it. This problem brought another person into the final solution. You all know that daughter Kristy married her James this past Cinco de Mayo. When you get a new son-in-law, you just never know how he’s going to turn out. If you don’t believe me, just ask my father-in-law. On second thought, don’t! James is an excellent new addition to our family. In addition to being a laid back nice guy, he has all the technical skills you would expect from someone of his generation. When he is not lawyering, he enjoys this aspect of his life with several different gadgets including the Garmin GPS unit. He was the primary driver in my getting my own Garmin. I explained my problem to James. I couldn’t use longitude/latitude data with my GPS. It wasn’t long before he found a computer download program that would let me put L/L data directly into my GPS unit. I used this newfound capability for yesterday’s track in Texas. It worked perfectly! I may not be as rich as those “Dreaded East Coast Trackchasers” make me out to be. I may not be as smart as my second-grade teacher told me I was. I may not be as handsome as Carol seems to think. I may not even look like Bill Clinton, as many strangers believe. However, I do have a knack for listening to people who know more about something than I do. If you’ve ever met me, you might recall my asking questions about your life and your background. I was probably being selfish. In all likelihood, I was trying to find out what areas you knew more about than I did. I don’t think I meet anyone who doesn’t know more than I do about several different things that I end up finding most interesting. STATE RANKINGS Louisiana This was my fifth-lifetime track to see in Louisiana. This breaks my tie with Jack Erdmann for third place. I now have a hobby-leading 22 different states with a ranking of third or better. Ed Esser and John Moore hold the first two positions in the Bayou state with 11 and 10 tracks, respectively. RACE REVIEW NO PROBLEM RACEWAY PARK, ASSUMPTION, LOUISIANA – TRACK #1,295 I’ve had the No Problem Raceway Park on my trackchasing wish list for years. It’s a road course and they race only during the day. The track is about 65 miles from the New Orleans airport. I guess I never came here before because there isn’t much too double this track with in the immediate area. I called the promoter earlier in the week. During our discussions, he invited me down for their Saturday night drag racing event. I couldn’t make that, but he did tell me they run some major NHRA events. He told me that other promoters ask him why his drag strip is so successful. The promoter told me, “We have a meeting about what food will be served. Then we talk about what the band is going to play. We talk about what we can do to make the event a big party. Then, a drag race is likely to break out”. I think all promoters could learn from this simple philosophy. I know that some of my readers have had their first taste of winter this weekend, complete with the fluffy white stuff. However, in Assumption, Louisiana today it was 83 degrees! The promoter told me that the road course racing would run from 9:30 a.m. to about 4 p.m. However, what he neglected to mention was that all the activity before lunch was qualifying. As you know, I must see actual wheel-to-wheel racing in order to count the track for trackchasing purposes. Louisiana sugar cane On my drive out to the track, I searched for a hole in the wall, off the beaten path, Louisiana eatery. I was looking for a shrimp po’boy on French bread. I was so far out in the country I couldn’t find anything. At one point, “Dusty” told me to take a one-lane gravel road for a couple of miles. I did as I was told like I always do. There was sugar cane growing that was 10 feet tall on both sides of me. Today they were burning the sugarcane. I stopped to get pictures of the cane fire. It was smoking and the fire crackled. The only “Cajun” item on the track’s menu was “Boudin balls”. No, this does not have anything to do with bulls. Since I will try anything (almost) once, I ordered the Boudin Balls! It turns out this is a local dish made of sausage and rice. It looks a lot like meatballs and tastes like spicy fried corned beef hash. I smothered it in mustard and went to town. It was all I could do to keep from ordering a second helping. The track’s concession menu had some most unusual items. These included “mosquito spray-$6”, “medicine-$1” and “license plate-$10”. However, the concession menu had one other item that I have never seen in the 1,294 tracks I have visited before coming here today. I could give you one million guesses and you would never get it. What was it? You can find out by going to www.randylewis.org and searching for the No Problem Raceway Park report and pictures. Following lunch, the racing got underway. The flat asphalt road course is purported to be 1.8 miles long. I know this is sounding like a broken record, but spectators have a very difficult time getting anywhere close to the action at the road courses I have been visiting. There are two viewing areas at NPRP. The first one in on the edge of the track paddock. From this vantage point, the spectator is within 100 yards or so of about 10% of the track. The rest of the track is up to almost a mile away. The second viewing area can be accessed by driving along a dirt road that parallels the property’s drag strip. From this spot, you are a bit closer to the racing but not very much. The closest anyone can get to the start/finish line is about 200 yards. Maybe that’s why this event attracted just 20 spectators or so. The first feature event of the day was for five open-wheeled formula cars. They quickly put 200 yards between each car and that’s the way they raced. The next race up was for 10 Miatas. I like Miatas on road courses. This race was better than the first. The final race that I stayed for was for the “all brackets” class. The last class of the day to race included vintage V8 and GTO cars. I would have liked to see them race, but on this track, I would not have been able to see much. Additionally, I had a flight to catch out of New Orleans. It was a pleasant afternoon. I enjoyed being able to examine the cars up close in the paddock area. I even enjoyed my Boudin Balls! RENTAL CAR UPDATE New Orleans – Saturday/Sunday I picked up the same type of car that I had yesterday in Dallas, a Dodge Avenger. This car had Sirius satellite radio. It also had a four-cylinder engine that made the car clearly underpowered. I drove the National Rental Car Racing Dodge Avenger 167 miles in the time I had it. I paid an average price of $2.88 per gallon. The Dodge gave me 32.2 miles per gallon in fuel mileage at a cost of 8.9 cents (U.S.) per mile. The car cost 23.6 cents per mile to rent, all taxes included. Thanks for reading about my trackchasing, Randy Lewis Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser The truth seldom brings a complaint. TRAVEL DETAILS AIRPLANE Los Angeles, CA – Dallas, TX – 1,237 miles RENTAL CAR – DALLAS DFW International Airport – trip begins Slidell, TX – 61 miles Dallas Love Field – 137 miles AIRPLANE Dallas, TX (Love Field) – New Orleans – 437 miles RENTAL CAR – NEW ORLEANS Louis B. Armstrong International Airport – trip begins Nr Assumption, LA – 97 miles Louis B. Armstrong International Airport – 167 miles AIRPLANE New Orleans, LA – Los Angeles, CA – 1,628 miles Total Air miles – 3,302 miles (3 flights) Total auto and air miles traveled on this trip – 3,606 miles TRACK ADMISSION PRICES: Eagles Canyon Raceway – No charge No Problem Raceway Park – No charge Total racetrack admissions for the trip – Zero! RANKINGS LIFETIME TRACKCHASER STANDINGS UPDATE: There are no trackchasers currently within 100 tracks of my lifetime total. Other notables These worldwide trackchasers are within 10 tracks (plus or minus) of Carol’s current trackchaser total. 2007 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS Tracks have been reported by 40 different worldwide trackchasers this season. LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS Results current thru 12/3//07** ** Results are unofficial. Gordon Killian has reduced the 18 state position lead I once had to just 8 positions. He has been putting the pedal to the mettle with some outstanding new NGD additions during November. I suspect that Gordon is very much enjoying the friendly competition. Why else would he trek all the way down to Louisiana for just one track? Does the answer “five NGD track positions gained” ring a bell? My next track might just be a shocker! 1,139. Meremere Dirt Track Club, Meremere, New Zealand – January 1 1,140. Meeanee Speedway, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand – January 1 1,141. Top of the South Speedway, Richmond, New Zealand – January 2 1,142. Woodford Glen Speedway, Christchurch, New Zealand – January 3 1,143. Robertson Holden International Speedway, Palmerston North, New Zealand – January 5 1,144. Taupo Motorsports Park, Taupo, North, New Zealand – January 6 1,145. Waikaraka Park International Speedway, Auckland, New Zealand – January 6 1,146. Angels Stadium of Anaheim (inner oval), Anaheim, California – January 13 1,147. Angels Stadium of Anaheim (outer oval), Anaheim, California – January 13 1,148. West Valley Speedway, Surprise, Arizona – January 14 1,149. Sandia Motorsports Park (road course), Albuquerque, New Mexico – January 28 1,150. Grand Prix De Lanaudiere, Lavaltrie, Quebec, Canada – February 3 1,151. Ste-Eulalie Ice Track, Eulalie, Quebec, Canada – February 4 1,152. St Guillaume, St Guillaume, Quebec, Canada – February 4 1,153. Caldwell Rodeo Arena, Caldwell, Idaho – February 10 1,154. Balsam Lake Ice Track, Balsam Lake, Wisconsin – February 18 1,155. Northeast Pond Ice Track, Milton, New Hampshire – February 24 1,156. Lee Pond Ice Track, Moultonborough, New Hampshire – February 25 1,157. New Hendry Country Speedway, Clewiston, Florida – March 3 1,158. Florida Sports Park, Naples, Florida – March 4 1,159. Honeoye Lake Ice Track – Road Course, Honeoye, New York – March 10 1,160. Houston Raceway Park, Baytown, Texas – March 16 1,161. Houston Motorsports Park, Houston, Texas – March 16 1,162. Dawgwood Speedway, Chatsworth, Georgia – March 17 1,163. Toccoa Speedway, Toccoa, Georgia – March 17 1,164. Tazewell Speedway, Tazewell, Tennessee – March 18 1,165. Malden Speedway, Malden, Missouri, Tennessee – March 23 1,166. Dacosa Speedway, Byhalia, Mississippi – March 24 1,167. Swinging Bridge Raceway, Byram, Mississippi – March 24 1,168. Florence Motor Speedway, Florence, South Carolina – March 25 1,169. Foothills Raceway, Easley, South Carolina – March 30 1,170. Mileback Speedway, Gray Court, South Carolina – March 30 1,171. Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg, Florida – April 1 1,172. Vegas Grand Prix, Las Vegas, Nevada – April 8 1,173. Huntsville Speedway, Huntsville, Alabama – April 13 1,174. Low Country Kartway, Aynor, South Carolina – April 14 1,175. Dillon Motor Speedway, Dillon, South Carolina – April 14 1,176. Valley Dirt Riders, Berthoud, Colorado – April 15 1,177. Antelope Valley Fairgrounds, Lancaster, California – April 22 1,178. Sertoma Speedway, Tularosa, New Mexico – April 27 1,179. Sandia Motorsports Park (outer oval), Albuquerque, New Mexico – April 28 1,180. Sandia Motorsports Park (inner oval), Albuquerque, New Mexico – April 28 1,181. Hollywood Hills Speedway, San Felipe Pueblo, New Mexico – April 29 1,182. Meridian Speedway, Meridian, Idaho – May 11 1,183. Diamond Mountain Speedway, Vernal, Utah, Idaho – May 12 1,184. Rocky Mountain Raceways (oval), Salt Lake City, Utah – May 12 1,185. Rocky Mountain Raceways (figure 8), Salt Lake City, Utah – May 12 1,186. Modoc Speedway, Modoc, South Carolina – May 18 1,187. Possum Kingdom Super Speedway, Belton, South Carolina – May 19 1,188. Laurens County Speedway, Laurens, South Carolina – May 19 1,189. Fairplex at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, Pomona, California – May 20 1,190. Lowes Motor Speedway (inner oval), Concord, North Carolina – May 24 1,191. Lowes Motor Speedway (road course), Concord, North Carolina – May 24 1,192. Madison International Speedway (inner oval), Oregon, Wisconsin – May 25 ** Madison International Speedway (outer oval), Oregon, Wisconsin – May 25 1,193. Thunderbird Stadium (figure 8), Bremerton, Washington – May 26 1,194. Thunderbird Stadium (oval), Bremerton, Washington – May 26 1,195. Whispering Pines Motorsports Park, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada – May 27 1,196. Magic Valley Speedway, Twin Falls, Idaho – May 28 1,197. Owyhee Motorcycle Raceway Park, Boise, Idaho – June 1 1,198. Race City Motorsports Park, Calgary, Alberta, Canada – June 2 1,199. Edmonton International Raceway, Wetaskiwin, Alberta, Canada – June 2 1,200. Castrol Raceway, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada – June 2 1,201. Hidden Valley Motorsports Park, Drumheller, Alberta, Canada – June 2 1,202. Boyd’s Speedway, Ringgold, Georgia – June 8 1,203. Fayette County Fairgrounds, Washington Courthouse, Ohio – June 9 1,204. Brush Creek Motorsports Park, Pebbles, Ohio – June 9 1,205. Brown County Speedway, Russellville, Ohio – June 9 1,206. Vinton Speedway, Vinton, Ohio – June 10 1,207. Hilltop Speedway, Millersburg, Ohio – June 10 1,208. I-70 Speedway – dirt (outer oval), Odessa, Missouri – June 13 1,209. L A Raceway, La Monte, Missouri – June 14 1,210. Valley Speedway, Grain Valley, Missouri – June 22 1,211. Jamaica Raceway, Jamaica, Iowa – June 23 1,212. Calhoun County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Rockwell City, Jamaica, Iowa – June 23 ** Hamilton County Speedway, Webster City, Iowa – June 23 (new for Carol only) ** Iowa Speedway (outer oval), Newton, Iowa, Iowa – June 24 (new for Carol only) 1,213. Butler Motor Speedway, Butler, Missouri – June 24 ** Peoria Speedway, Peoria, Illinois – June 25 1,214. Kart Kanyon Raceway, Aztec, New Mexico – June 30 1,215. Aztec Speedway, Aztec, New Mexico – June 30 1,216. Sunvalley Speedway, Vernon, British Columbia, Canada – July 1 1,217. Georgetown Speedway, Georgetown, Delaware – July 6 1,218. Delmarva Motorsports Park, Middleford, Delaware – July 6 1,219. Hunterstown Speedway, Hunterstown, Pennsylvania – July 7 1,220. Shippensburg Speedway, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania – July 7 (Randy only) ** Hagerstown Speedway, Hagerstown, Maryland – July 7 (new for Carol only) 1,221. Blanket Hill Speedway, Whitesburg, Pennsylvania – July 8 1,222. Lincoln County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Troy, Missouri – July 13 1,223. Pike County Speedway, Pittsfield, Illinois – July 13 1,224. Iowa Speedway (road course), Newton, Iowa – July 14 1,225. Mitchell County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Osage, Iowa – July 14 1,226. Scott County Fairgrounds (oval), Scottsburg, Indiana – July 15 1,227. Barry Expo Center (figure 8), Hastings, Michigan – July 16 1,228. Lycoming County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Hughesville, Pennsylvania, Michigan – July 17 1,229. Delaware County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Muncie, Indiana – July 18 1,230. Delaware County Fairgrounds (oval), Muncie, Indiana – July 18 1,231. Van Buren County Youth Fairgrounds (road course), Hartford, Michigan – July 19 1,232. High Banks Speedway (oval), Philpot, Kentucky – July 20 1,233. High Banks Speedway (figure 8), Philpot, Kentucky – July 20 1,234. SOIL MX, Bone Gap, Illinois – July 21 1,235. Western Kentucky Speedway, Madisonville, Kentucky – July 21 ** Windy Hollow Speedway (oval), Owensboro, Kentucky – July 22 1,236. Windy Hollow Speedway (small figure 8), Owensboro, Kentucky – July 22 1,237. Teton County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Jackson, Wyoming – July 26 1,238. Gallatin International Speedway, Belgrade, Montana – July 27 1,239. BMP Speedway, Billings, Montana – July 28 1,240. Sweetwater County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Rock Springs, Wyoming – July 31 1,241. Washington County Fairgrounds (oval), Washington, Kansas – August 3 1,242. Maxville Fire Department Figure 8 Course, Maxville, Iowa– August 4 1,243. Carroll County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Coon Rapids, Iowa– August 4 1,244. Iowa Speedway (temporary inner oval), Newton, Iowa– August 5 1,245. Sarpy County Fair & Rodeo Arena (figure 8), Springfield, Nebraska – August 5 1,246. Newaygo County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Fremont, Michigan – August 6 1,247. Newaygo County Fairgrounds (road course), Fremont, Michigan – August 7 1,248. Shiawassee County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Corunna, Michigan – August 8 1,249. Tioga County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Wellsboro, Pennsylvania – August 9 1,250. Coopersville Festival Grounds (road course), Coopersville, Michigan – August 10 1,251. Winston Motor Speedway, Rothbury, Michigan – August 10 1,252. Jackson Speedway (dirt oval), Jackson, Michigan – August 11 1,253. Springport Motor Speedway, Springport, Michigan – August 11 1,254. Double X Speedway, California, Michigan – August 12 ** Thunderhill Speedway, Mayetta, Kansas – August 13 1,255. RPM Speedway, Hays, Kansas – August 14 1,256. KAM Raceway, Hastings, Nebraska – August 24 1,257. Motorsport Park Hastings, Hastings, Nebraska – August 25 1,258. Boneyard Park (figure 8), Edgar, Nebraska – August 25 1,259. Lincoln County Raceway (inner oval), North Platte, Nebraska – August 25 1,260. Lincoln County Raceway (outer oval), North Platte, Nebraska – August 25 1,261. Dirtona Raceway, Hugoton, Kansas – August 26 1,262. Paris Fairgrounds (figure 8), Paris, Ontario, Canada – August 30 1,263. Autodrome Edelweiss, Cantley, Quebec, Canada – August 31 1,264. Barrie Speedway, Barrie, Ontario, Canada – September 1 1,265. Sunset Speedway, Stroud, Ontario, Canada – September 1 1,266. Kinmount Fairgrounds (figure 8), Kinmount, Ontario, Canada – September 2 1,267. Orangeville Fairgrounds (figure 8), Orangeville, Ontario, Canada – September 2 1,268. Warren County Prime Beef Festival (oval), Monmouth, Illinois – September 5 1,269. Warren County Prime Beef Festival (figure 8), Monmouth, Illinois – September 6 1,270. Camden Speedway, Camden, Tennessee – September 7 1,271. 24 Raceway (dirt oval), Moberly, Missouri – September 8 1,272. Westby Nordic Raceway, Westby, Wisconsin – September 9 1,273. Noise Park Raceway, Idaho Falls, Idaho – September 14 1,274. Northport International Raceway, Northport, Washington – September 16 1,275. Summit Raceway, Elko, Nevada – September 21 1,276. Champion Park Speedway, Minden, Louisiana – September 28 ** Victorville Auto Raceway, Victorville, California (oval) – September 29 (new for Carol only) 1,277. Victorville Auto Raceway, Victorville, California (figure 8) – September 29 1,278. Chula Vista Off-Road International Raceway, Chula Vista, California – September 30 1,279. Mid-America Speedway, South Coffeyville, Oklahoma – October 5 1,280. River’s Edge Road Course, Mission, British Columbia, Canada – October 7 1,281. Triovalo Bernardo Obregon, Tiajomulco de Zuniga, Jalisco, Mexico – October 14 1,282. Texas Motor Speedway (temporary dirt road course), Ft. Worth, Texas – October 19 1,283. Beechnut Raceway, Blountville, Tennessee – October 27 1,284. 411 Speedway, Seymour, Tennessee – October 27 1,285. Lamar-Dixon Expo Center, Gonzales, Louisiana – November 2 1,286. Atoka Park Raceway, Brighton, Tennessee – November 3 1,287. Riverside International Speedway, West Memphis, Arkansas – November 3 1,288. Las Vegas International Off-Road Raceway, Primm, Nevada – November 4 1,289. Pueblo Motorsports Park, Pueblo, Colorado – November 11 1,290. South Texas Speedway, Corpus Christi, Texas – November 16 1,291. Winchester Speedway, Winchester, Tennessee – November 17 1,292. Checkered Flag Speedway, Hohenwald, Tennessee – November 17 1,293. Lake Cumberland Speedway, Burnside, Kentucky – November 18 1,294. Eagles Canyon Raceway, Slidell, Texas – December 1 1,295. No Problem Raceway Park, Assumption, Louisiana – December 2 What is competitive? I must say that it pains me to hear from folks that “trackchasing isn’t as fun as it used to be”. I guess I would ask the question, “Compared to what?” My experience and view of the topic are not like that at all. I love trackchasing as much today as I did yesterday or as much as I did as far back as I can remember. Somewhere in my learning’s I came to know that it is important to manage my expectations. If you expect more than something can deliver, then you are likely to be disappointed. Permit me to give you some background on my thinking. First of all, I separate “racechasing” from “trackchasing”. I loosely define racechasing as going to the racetrack to see the “racing”. Trackchasing, for me, is primarily about going to see the track. To me, there is a difference. When I was a “racechaser” I went to see the race groups I really liked such as USAC stock cars at Milwaukee, World of Outlaw sprint cars and D.I.R.T. modifieds. I was there to see the cars and drivers. I didn’t care what track they were racing at. I was also lucky to have great local cars and drivers near where I lived at the time at places like Peoria Speedway, Santa Fe Speedway, Rockford Speedway, Manzanita Speedway and Ascot Park. I was really lucky. It would be hard to beat the racing I could see each week at those five tracks. Each location was less than one hour from me at the time I lived in the area. However, things change. I am pretty sure my “last night at Ascot” t-shirt tells me the track closed after the 1990 season. Its replacement, Perris Auto Speedway, was some 85 miles away from home in heavy traffic. It didn’t take me too long to switch over from being a “racechaser” as defined above to becoming a “trackchaser”. I found it was more fun to go to ten tracks one time than one track ten times. I believe the leading trackchasers feel the same way. However, the leading racechasers probably don’t. That’s what is great about Burger King; you get to have it your way. There is no doubt about it, trackchasing numbers are down for many of our members. I did a recent analysis of the top 20 trackchasers from 2002. Although the 2007 numbers are not complete, it’s likely that those trackchasers will see 25-30% fewer tracks than they averaged over a five year period from 2002-2006. There must be something going on. What is it? I’ll take a moment to comment on some of the reasons other trackchasers seem disappointed in the hobby as well as why trackchasing numbers are down. Just keep in mind, that I’m not disputing their claims, I’m just saying their disappointment in a particular area of trackchasing is not a problem for me. TRACKCHASING IS TOO EXPENSIVE Trackchasing can be and is expensive. I begin almost all of my trips by flying to the starting point of the multi-day trip. From there I hop in a rental car and drive. I AVERAGE $38 just for the gasoline each and every day I trackchase. I trackchase more than 100 days a year. By the way, I will make numerical references throughout this message. Please don’t waste your time trying to dispute the numbers. I have the data, many times over, to back it up. THE RACING ISN’T ANY GOOD ANY MORE I do NOT have a requirement for the racing to be good for me to enjoy the program. This does not mean I don’t want to see good racing. I do. However, I derive enjoyment from trackchasing from the non-racing activities as much or more than the racing activities. Last week I went to the Winchester Speedway (TN) and the Jack Daniels Distillery Tour on the same day. I enjoyed visiting the Jack Daniels site more than I did the Winchester Speedway. I would not have traveled all the way from California to visit Jack Daniels. However, the Winchester Speedway (trackchasing) drew me to something else I enjoyed (Jack Daniels). I like planning the trip. It’s fun for me to figure out the best way (not just logistically) to get from point A to point B. It’s fun trying to beat the weather. I enjoy seeing a track and its surroundings for the very first time. It’s fun to check out the concession stand and see if they have any unique offerings (usually they don’t). I enjoy seeing the different ways that tracks start their races and run them. I enjoy listening in on the track radio frequency to hear how the promoter is trying to manage the program. I just like observing every last nuance of any track I visit. Often, (usually) one visit satisfies my curiosity. I have been to nearly 1,300 tracks. I have only returned to about 10% of those tracks for a second visit. I started keeping track by track stats of my racing in 1980. The incidence of my returning to tracks has not changed much in 27 years. A track with a mediocre, or worse, program in 1980 didn’t rate a return visit any more than one did in 2007. The permanent tracks seem to have low car counts and lots of yellow flags. Please remember I am not saying this is a new aspect of racing. I have seen plenty of low car counts throughout my years as both a racechaser and trackchaser. Also, please do not compare most tracks with your favorite tracks when deciding if car counts are good and the racing is great. Of course, the racing is good at your favorite tracks or they wouldn’t be your favorites. Nevertheless, it is rarely fun to watch four-car heat races and a nine-car feature, each with multiple stoppages for wrecks and spins. Couple that with programs that start late, have bad food, bad restrooms, bad sound systems, etc. and you have a bad program. However, I usually don’t have high expectations for the racing part of the trip and therefore am rarely disappointed. Often the temporary tracks (figure 8s and enduro type racing) are not much better for the true racing fan. If they were any better, at least commercially, these tracks would be racing every week and not just once a year. I cannot compare every track I visit across the country with Ascot Park. That would be like scoring a birdie in golf and comparing every other hole where I played my best and coming to the conclusion that the other (non-birdie) 17 holes were a failure. Remember, it’s important to manage your expectations. I HAVE BETTER THINGS TO DO WITH MY TIME Of course, this is a very subjective topic. It’s not just happenstance that the majority of trackchasers are single individuals or have been single for many years of their adult life. If you don’t have to take someone else’s interests in mind, then it’s easy to hop in the car and head on down the road. I consider myself a family man. Carol and I have three children. I have been a soccer dad (three games every Saturday), have coached both youth baseball and basketball and attended more school plays than anyone should be expected too. When I was doing it, I had a blast watching our children grow up to be responsible and productive people. When our children were smaller, I didn’t go trackchasing very much. For a 16-year period (1980-1995) I averaged just TWELVE new tracks each year. That’s not much considering I have averaged more than ONE HUNDRED FIFTY new tracks for each of the last four years and more than 110 new tracks a year for the past eight years. I can only imagine where I would be, trackchasing wise, if I had not had those family commitments for more than 15 years. Of course, family was and is more important than trackchasing. However, today our kids are grown and off on their own life adventures. Good for them! Now, Carol and I are empty nesters. This means I have the time to go trackchasing without shortchanging anyone else in the family. Carol enjoys trackchasing about once a month. Maybe I should say that differently. She enjoys supporting me in my hobby about once a month on a cross-country trip. How many spouses do you know that would be willing to hit the airport and battle the crowds twelve or more times a year for a hobby that wasn’t even their own? The best thing about it is that she does not mind me going trackchasing more than that. Carol has never worked outside of our home much. She has had more important duties in raising our children and managing the family’s most important financial asset, our house. For most of my 30 years in business, I had my office in the house. This meant that we were able to see each other from the time we woke up until the time we went to bed every day since 1972. Most people who work away from home don’t have that luxury with their spouse. It’s the same way for us in retirement. This background gives me a better feeling when I do head out on my own for a trackchasing trip. THE COMPETITIVENESS OF TRACKCHASING MAKES ME DEPRESSED For me, trackchasing competitiveness falls somewhere between having open heart surgery and throwing a paper football when I was in the fifth grade. It’s not the end of the world, it’s only a hobby. I am a golfer. If I ever had the opportunity to play golf with Tiger Woods, I can’t imagine myself saying, “Hey Tiger, I’m not going to keep my score today. I’m afraid you might beat me”. I like to try to improve in the things that I find interesting or important to me. I am a member of a golf club. I normally play on Tuesdays and Thursdays. At age 58, I am one of the younger members of the group. Our oldest member, Farr Porter, is 88 years old. When I look into his eyes I can see the fire that says he wants to play as well as he can and beat the other guys. Mind you he doesn’t want to kill me; he just wants to beat me in golf. The rest of the group probably averages about seventy years of age. At the start of the day, we put everyone’s ball in a hat. We separate the “A” players from the Bs, Cs and Ds. This way every foursome gets a similar amount of “talent” such as it is. As far as I can tell EVERY player on EVERY team hits the best shot he can on EVERY hole. They want their team to win. When golf is over, we go in and have lunch. We each throw twenty bucks in the pot and compare our scores in many more ways than Will White tracks our trackchasing stats. Someone is declared a winner and the rest of us are losers (“participants” for the politically correct). We then go back to eating lunch and explaining that if this or that had happened on the golf course, we would have gotten a much better result. In two days, we do it all over again, but with different partners. In trackchasing, I enjoy trying to improve in the rankings where I am not a leader. For the past several years, I have beaten the competition in the annual rankings by an average of 40 tracks or more. I now lead the overall standing by more than 150 tracks. So what am I focusing on? I’m trying to improve my state ranking in Tennessee! I am not intimidated by any competition that goes on in trackchasing whatsoever. As Will used to say, there are enough categories in trackchasing that everyone can get to be #1 in something if they want too. Do I think removing rankings will change anything, for the good or bad, in trackchasing? Not a chance. Heck, I’d rather get a ribbon that says “third place” than one that says “participant”. If this were not a monitored message I would make the point in even stronger language. BECAUSE PEOPLE DON’T SHARE RACE DATES, I’M DEPRESSED How’s this for a news flash? As I look down the list of the top 40 trackchasers I see just four names (Guy, Allan, Will and Randy) who have ever routinely shared race dates. I suspect that the other 36 people have not shared 100 dates in total since the trackchaser forum was started in 1999. At one time or another Allan, Will and I have even provided websites with track dates. People have NEVER broadly shared race dates; this is not some sort of new phenomenon. If someone thinks that because their fellow trackchaser did not share a race date with them, they are being “competitive” is some kind of negative way, I could not disagree more. Heck, in golf, it is forbidden by rule to help your fellow competitor in any manner. The war in Iraq is COMPETITIVE. By way of example regarding the sharing of trackchaser dates, let me use Ed Esser to reinforce this point. Ed is a very nice guy and has one of the best race date research departments of any trackchaser going. Has Ed shared many dates on the trackchaser forum? The short answer is no. Do I begrudge Ed for not sharing dates? Never! He found ‘em, he can share them if he wants or not. Once he does visit a track, I will learn about it on trackchaser.net in the “recent new track visits” section. This is one of my favorite sections of trackchaser.net. I will then place that track in my own future tracks to see database. When the track runs again, I’ll go see it if I want. CONCLUSION Trackchasing numbers are down for the long-time trackchasers because the tracks they still need to see are getting further and further from home. The further a track is from home the more expensive it is to get there. The further a track is from home the more time it takes to get there. Racing at many small-time tracks isn’t really that good. It doesn’t help that the traveling trackchaser doesn’t know any of the drivers that are racing at these local tracks. I suspect if they did, they might think the racing was better. It costs a lot of money and takes a lot of time to go trackchasing on a frequent basis. If you have other folks in your life who are not into trackchasing or racing, then it’s important to spend your time and money with those folks away from the races. Don’t hang your hat on the racing needing to be “good”. It likely won’t be. Enjoy the trip and adventure. If the racing is good, then it’s all the better. Don’t walk around in life as if there’s a rock in your shoe. Don’t act as if OTHER PEOPLE are preventing you from enjoying life or in this case your hobby. My enjoyment of this hobby is not dependent in any way on what any other trackchaser does or does not do. Do you mind if I repeat that? My enjoyment of this hobby is not dependent in any way on what any other trackchaser does or does not do. I hate to say it, but I believe that the folks who complain about how others effect their enjoyment of trackchasing probably complain the most in their everyday lives about their jobs, other people and their life in general. That’s what he said. Randy Lewis Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser (and proud of it) RESPONSES FROM MEMBERS OF THE PACIFIC GOLF CLUB Now that you’ve read the text that I sent to the trackchaser forum, take a look at what the golfers had to say about them being made out to be “competitive role models”. “You are a very interesting man. I’m glad I know you” “You have a gift for explaining and expressing yourself” “Awesome, dude” “I don’t know how many responses you received from this epistle but for the effort you put in it, I hope a good many. It was interesting, informative, perhaps a “little” long-winded but commendable. I have known that racing, Nascar, in particular, has a huge following and I have to add that it is complete bewilderment to me as far as the reason for it. So, at least to some degree, your letter helped explain the attraction. Have no plans to join the troops but then again, different strokes for different folks.” Mind you, these folks are golfers and I don’t think any of them are race fans. They each took the time to share their comments about the topic. They say that for everyone who takes the time to write or respond about a particular point of view, there are many more people who feel the same way. I’m lucky to have so many golf friends. I’m also lucky they took the time to read what I wrote! Official end of RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report 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. Today was “no problem”….no I mean today was a visit to No Problem Raceway Park 
UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS
RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2007
(** not the first time to visit this track)
