THE EVENT

 

 

I have been to the Perris Auto Speedway more than a dozen times since it opened more than twenty years ago. I’ve had the opportunity to see racing on four different configurations at the “PAS”. The Perris Auto Speedway was a replacement track for Ascot Park. The PAS is one of the nicest dirt track facilities in the country. However, I knew Ascot Park. The PAS is no Ascot Park.

 

 

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

 

 

Randy’s Complete Track List

 

 

If you’ve got a question, comment or whatever please leave it at the bottom of this report.  It’s very easy to do.  Or you can visit me on Facebook.  Thanks!

 

 

Randy on Facebook

 

 

 

 

ON THE WAY TO THE RACES

 

 

FOREWORD

 

 

Carol and I decided to go up to the Perris Auto Speedway for the first night of the three-night “21st Annual Oval Nationals”. The Perris Auto Speedway was a replacement track when Ascot Park in Gardena, California closed. Ascot closed in 1990. The Perris Auto Speedway opened up in 1996.

 

 

PAS is about as close to Ascot Park as any track will ever be. However, it is not Ascot. That’s not really a criticism of the Perris Auto Speedway. No track will ever be another Ascot Park.

 

 

The PAS is not the easiest track to get to from our home in San Clemente, California. Mind you that comment comes from a fellow who drove rental cars more than 49,000 miles during the 2015 trackchasing season. I don’t mind driving those distances to get to new tracks. However, I have a much different feeling about the travel it takes to return to tracks I’ve already seen.

 

 

It works this way. I very much enjoy the thrill of the chase when it comes to getting to each new track I visit. Over the past many years I have averaged more than 100 days of trackchasing each year. The coming and going to all of those tracks takes time as well.

 

 

I have a very diversified lifestyle. Most folks who only follow my trackchasing might not know that. Over the past ten years I have averaged about 170 nights of overnight travel every year. During the past couple of years I have traveled more than 185 nights a year.

 

 

A very surprising travel statistic is that less than half of my overnights have come on a day when I was trackchasing. That means I stay overnight more than 50% of the time somewhere when I am not trackchasing.

 

 

Carol and I spend a good deal of time in Hawaii. We visit our family as much as we can. We have commitments to UCLA basketball and football as well as Los Angeles Angels baseball. Over the years I have averaged 75 rounds of golf each year. I simply don’t WANT to spend any more time with auto racing after I get home from a trackchasing trip. That’s the main reason why I don’t re-visit very many tracks in California or when I’m on the road. Some day if my trackchasing frequency decreases I may increase my track re-visits. We’ll have to see about that.

 

 

For us to get to the PAS we have to drive over the very treacherous two-lane Ortega Highway. That highway was built in 1934. It hasn’t changed all that much in 80 years! According to the L.A. Times the Ortega Highway is the most dangerous road of its kind in the state.

 

 

We could take the “long way” to the PAS using California freeways. That route increases the driving distance to about 80 miles. Those freeways are crowded making the drive two hours or more one-way. Yes, I’ll easily make a 10-hour drive out in the Midwest to get from one track to the next. However, on those drives I’m traveling at the posted speed limit to a NEW track.

 

 

I first went to the Perris Auto Speedway the year it opened in 1996. The 1/2-mile oval was my 275th lifetime track. According to my records tonight was my 12th visit to see racing on this oval configuration.

 

 

It’s interesting to contrast my Ascot Park tracks visits to the PAS. I didn’t start recording my track appearances by number or date until 1980. From 1980 to 1990, when Ascot closed, I went to the famous track 52 times. Keep in mind we didn’t live in California from 1979-1983. We lived in California from 1974-1979. I might have gone to Ascot during the 70s another 50 times before I began charting my travels.

 

 

In addition to seeing racing on their half-mile oval I have also made new track visits to three other racing configurations at the PAS. In 2001 the figure 8 track would became my 488^th lifetime track. In 2009 I returned to see racing on a dirt road course, lifetime track #1,415. Finally, in 2010 I saw the TQ midgets race on the PAS inner oval.  If you click on the appropriate tabs you’ll see my Trackchaser Reports from some of those visits.

 

 

With all of the above as a preamble Carol and I headed off across the Ortega highway today! The housing prices on the “other side” of the mountain are much less expensive than they are on the “ocean side” of the mountain in Orange County. This now creates a solid amount of traffic across the divide, even on Saturdays, of people commuting back and forth to work.

 

 

 

 

THE RACING

 

 

Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, California

 

 

I knew that our visit to the Perris Auto Speedway was going to be an expensive adventure. Several Southern California tracks charge for parking. The Perris Auto Speedway is one of them. Tonight they charged eight dollars to park. A couple of weeks ago the Ventura Raceway charged five dollars for parking.

 

 

Tonight I asked the parking attendant if the eight-dollar parking charge was a “good deal”? He seemed a bit taken aback by my question. I could tell he was not a race fan and just working his minimum wage job.

 

 

We got into a conversation about the parking charge topic. I told him that about one short track in one hundred charges for parking. Then he said, “Maybe that’s why so many people seem angry about having to pay to park.” I thought that was an interesting comment from him.

 

 

By the way please don’t misunderstand me. It is utter nonsense to complain about an admission ticket price or a parking charge as a trackchaser. I’ve seen trackchasers bemoan the price of a ticket when they spent ten times that much getting to and from the track itself.

 

 

I’ve heard them complain about gas prices. Trust me, higher gas prices are not going to keep the most ardent trackchasers from chasing the tracks. They just aren’t.

 

 

Tonight’s general admission ticket price was $30 per person. There was no senior pricing. Again for the first night of a three-day show that was paying only $5,000 to win $30 was pretty steep. It didn’t seem like a good value to me. I can go to a show like that in the Midwest where the prize money is the same and pay half that for a ticket price.

 

 

Nevertheless, the Perris Auto Speedway is one of the very best dirt track facilities in the country. It might even be the best.

 

 

The concession choices are out of this world, again comparing the PAS to other short track racing facilities. You will not get basic “race track food” here. They offer beer and wine. They sell churros, cappuccino, iced tea and pizza. They have milkshakes, cotton candy, kettle corn, chili cheese fries, ice cream sundaes as well as all of the food you might find at a traditional racetrack.

 

 

Of course their refreshments are not inexpensive. I commonly use a bottle of water as a comparison measure. Bottled water at this track sells for three dollars. At many tracks you can get a bottle of water for a buck. Small and large beers sell for $7-8 with import beers being a dollar more.  With that pricing who would buy a small beer?

 

 

They have a huge modern aluminum grandstand seating area that runs all the way from turn four to nearly the middle of turn one. As a matter fact the grandstands in turn one, now replaced, came from Ascot Park.

 

 

The speaker system is second to none. The press box announcing crew is really very good as well. However, I can’t say much for their roving pit interview announcing staff. The guy who’s been doing that for a very long time takes about 60 seconds to ask a question that normally elicits a response of five seconds. It ought to be the other way around.

 

 

At the Perris Auto Speedway racecar haulers are pitted in the track’s infield. Nevertheless, that does not block the view of the racing on the backstretch. The backstretch was built a few feet higher than the front stretch so that pitting in the infield wouldn’t be a sight issue.

 

 

They start on time here. Tonight’s racing was scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. We got in our seats at about 6:45 p.m. They were interviewing drivers with time trials already completed.

 

 

They were 44 non-winged sprint cars racing tonight. They made up five heats, a B main and the 30-lap feature for 26 starters. The race paid $5,000 to win with $500 to start.

 

 

I grew up on non-winged sprint car racing at Ascot Park starting in the mid-70s through 1990. I like non-winged sprint car racing 117 times better than winged sprint car racing.  Those were the days of Dean Thompson (above), Jimmie Oskie, Rick Goudy and Buster Venard (my favorite). Frankly, I will commonly not walk across the street to see a winged sprint car race.

 

 

Wings were originally installed on sprint cars as a safety feature. When the car goes into a wild flip the huge wing on the top absorbs a lot of energy and makes the flips a lot easier to ride out.

 

 

Winged sprint cars are quite a bit faster than non-winged sprint cars. However the major drawback to winged sprint car racing is they don’t pass much. Check out the results of World of Outlaws winged sprint car racing. The winner almost always comes from the first couple of rows. That’s why I stopped watching WOO sprint car racing. There just isn’t enough passing.

 

 

When you see my video from tonight’s racing at the PAS you’ll see the cars racing two and three abreast over all parts of the track. The crashes in non-wing sprint car racing are a lot more spectacular as well. Non-winged sprint cars just provide so much more racing entertainment in my opinion.

 

 

I believe there were only one or maybe two yellow flags in the five heat races. Then the track went to a short intermission to interview drivers. The B main went off without too much trouble. From there we went to another short intermission.

 

 

The track does a great job with music during the down times. They are famous for “dance contests” during their intermissions as well. Have you ever seen a dance contest at any other short track? Yep. California is and always has been just a little bit different.

 

 

Since I don’t follow this type of racing all that closely anymore I only knew a few of the drivers. I find that I enjoy the racing a lot more when I know the drivers and their histories.  I did need to go down to the first turn to watch a couple of races from there.  Virtually the entire grandstand beyond turn one was covered in mud.

 

 

There was a lot of really good hard racing in the main event tonight. It reminded me of how hard fought all racing on a short track should look like. It also reminded me that these cars look and are extremely dangerous. I have seen some very bad wrecks and a couple of sprint car drivers killed at Ascot Park.

 

 

The “A” feature event took the checkered flag at about 9:20 p.m. Seeing a two hour and twenty minute show was right in my wheelhouse. I’ve seen very few tracks that can complete their program that efficiently. Granted this was a one class racing program. Other that NASCAR there can’t be ten tracks in the country that run a one-division show.

 

 

Why do tracks run so many divisions? Are the fans clamoring for such a show? I don’t think so. Then why do track promoters feature 5-10 classes of racing? It’s the money! More and more tracks make their profit from the back gate than the front gate.

 

 

The top three finishers of the a main event pulled their cars up in front of the grandstands at the end of the feature. I would estimate that within one minute of that time fans were allowed to come down from the grandstands into the pit area. Carol and I did just that.

 

 

Although there had been a little bit of dust tonight I was amazed at how damp and tacky the front stretch racing surface was. That’s the way Ascot used to be.

 

 

We watched and listened to the driver interviews on the front stretch of the track. It was a relatively warm night with temperatures in the mid 60s but it seemed warmer. It looked as if several fans from the Midwest have ventured out see the Oval Track Nationals.

 

 

 

 

AFTER THE RACES

 

 

We headed home, taking the freeways this time. The Ortega Highway is bad enough to drive during the day or into a setting or rising sun. Taking the Ortega Highway at night is not something that I will ever be interested in doing.

 

 

One of Carol’s favorite racing classes is the non-winged sprint car. She liked the racing tonight. We got home at a reasonable hour of 11 p.m.

 

 

Will we go back to the Perris Auto Speedway very often in the future? Maybe. Maybe not. Like I say the time I spend with trackchasing uses up about the amount of time I have budgeted in my life for auto racing. Normally the last thing I want to do when I have free time at home is go back to a track I’ve already visited. Perris Auto Speedway would be an exception to that once or maybe twice a year.

 

 

 

California

 

 

The Golden state

I have seen 153 tracks in the Golden state, yes the Golden state. I hold the #1 trackchasing spot in California.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

World’s #1 Trackchaser

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

California thoughts: Whatever you do, definitely don’t say “Cali.” 

 

 

 

It seems that the only people who don’t refer to California as “Cali” are the Golden State natives themselves. You will very, very rarely hear a Californian call their home state by this name, despite the fact that people from everywhere else love to call it that. 

 

 

If you want to blend in, try not to use this shudder-inducing word in the presence of California natives.

 

 

 

 

QUICK FACTS

 

 

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 575 tracks of my lifetime total. Don’t blame me.

 

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 2,288

 

 

 

Total Trackchasing Countries

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

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 72

 

 

 

Current lifetime National Geographic Diversity results

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 4.47

 

 

 

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

 

 

Reprinted with permission from my June 23, 2001 Trackchaser Report

 

Greetings from Perris, California,

 

 

TRAVEL/PEOPLE NEWS

The trip from Lucerne Valley to Perris, CA was just 77 miles. This part of the country is very rural and rugged. It’s desert in the truest sense and during this time of year it’s hot. Temps were in the 90s although there is very little humidity. This is also fire season as in wildfires.

 

 

We were just 5 miles north of the Perris Auto Speedway when he ran across a burning wildfire in Riverside, CA. It looked from a distance like there wasn’t much to burn over the rocky low mountain terrain. We got some good video of planes dropping the red powder fire retardant and helicopters dumping buckets of water. This also backed up traffic on the I-215 freeway as everyone did a little rubber necking.

 

 

When the races were over the fires were really much more noticeable in the night. There were several spots where flames were shooting up in the night sky. There were homes within a half-mile or so but it looked like the fire was not severe enough to threaten them. It was about an 80-mile drive back to San Clemente. That’s a little farther than I like to drive following a race but it was what we needed to sleep in our own bed which is a luxury when this writer goes trackchasing.

 

RACING NEWS

I’ve been to the Perris Auto Speedway oval track just four times since it opened in 1996 (3 in 1996 and once in 1997). The track is a state of the art dirt track racing facility.

 

 

Today’s event brings Carol and I to see the figure 8 track at “The PAS”. This is only the second time figure 8s have ever raced at PAS. They are scheduled for two more appearances this year with the next being September 15. By the way, Ventura Raceway is also running figure 8s with an event schedule during their fair on Wednesday, August 1.

 

 

Southern California racetracks (read that Irwindale and PAS) are more like Disneyland in their approach to the consumer than auto racing tracks (read that expensive). Parking was $4. I would say 98% of local tracks do not charge for parking. General admission was $12. That’s high for a three-class show featuring stock cars, figure 8s and cruisers. The stock car class is very similar to the Iowa IMCA stock cars. They have some current late model appearing cars but lots of 1980s type stock cars as well.

 

 

The PAS does a lot of things to keep their crowds entertained. They had a large sized crowd in their big aluminum grandstands. They started off with a best appearing stock car contest as judged by the fans applause. Before each heat race was run their roving lady in the stands reporter would select a fan at random. If that fan could predict the heat race winner they would win four tickets to next week’s show. During intermission they had a dune buggy come onto the track. Atop the dune buggy was a huge slingshot that was used to propel t-shirts into the crowd. They had birthday mentions with background happy birthday music. They also had their traditional dance contests from a willing crowd. Finally they topped off the parade of contests with the men’s and women’s tattoo contest. Only in California!

 

 

The facility at the PAS is state of the art. They have about 35 three feet by four feet stereo speakers. This produces excellent quality sound. Their announcer is very professional. Sort of a DJ style but with excellent racing knowledge. They have a large selection of refreshments at slightly higher than normal prices. Carol and I had the BBQ Pork Rib sandwiches for $4.75. My large beer was $5.

 

 

As most race/trackchasers know black people don’t attend auto racing in very great numbers. I saw more black people tonight than in the previous 100 races I’ve been too and that was only about 30 or 40 folks. There was also a good representation of Hispanics. Racing is not a very diverse cross section of the population and California seems to be leading the way in this area.

 

 

The figure 8 track was very unusual. The turns of the ½ mile were not used at all. I’ll try to draw a word picture to describe the track. The top and bottom of the “8” was the length of the front straighaway only. The “8” was only about 50 yards wide from side to side. So it was a very narrow 8. The figure 8 cars were of the same quality as the stock car class. They had 12 figure 8 cars and the feature paid $1,000 to win. A couple of the cars had sprint car wings. Others had tall plexiglass spoilers ala Charlie Swartz of years ago. Definitely a unique group of cars but fast and competitive. They ran two heats and a 20-lap feature. There was a major crash at the X that was spectacular and fortunately no one was hurt.

 

 

The oval track was definitely a two groove-racing surface. When the stock car feature was completed the racing surface was wetter and tackier than most tracks I visit when they START hot laps. The surface is very similar to the old Ascot track surface.

 

 

Overall, a very nice entertainment experience. The track atmosphere was fun with a very family oriented crowd. I highly recommend this facility. The PAS figure 8 course was Carol’s 98^th track and my 488^th track.

 

 

Best t-shirt: No catchy slogans of note but the contents of several t-shirts represented the southern California cosmetic surgery culture quite well.

 

 

Best music of the day: 

They played several songs loudly as a prelude to different races starting including:

YMCA

We will rock you

The Main Event

Theme from Survivor (before the figure 8 race!)

 

 

Movie of the day: Saw Swordfish with John Travolta between Lucerne Valley and our arrival in Perris.

 

Weather: t-shirt and shorts

 

 

 

 

New racetracks visited in 2001

467. Laughlin Event Center, Laughlin, NV (no web site)
468. Loc Moran, Mont Carmel, Quebec (http://www.grabnetworks.net/delta/)
469. Circuit Jacques Rainville, Vanier, Quebec (no web site)
470. Pauline Davis Pavilion, Red Bluff, CA (http://www.rboutlaws.com/)
471. The Pavilion at the Fairgrounds, Chico, CA (no web site)
472. Baton Rouge Raceway, Baker, LA (http://www.batonrougeraceway.com)
473. Mississippi Motorsports Park, Long Beach, MS (http://www.msmotorsportspark.com)
474. South Alabama Motor Speedway, Opp, AL (http://www.southalabamaspeedway.com)
475. Nashville Super Speedway, Smyrna, TN (http://www.nashvillesuperspeedway.com)
476. Beech Bend Raceway (oval track), Bowling Green, KY (http://www.beechbend.com)
477. Beech Bend Raceway (figure 8 track), Bowling Green, KY (http://www.beechbend.com)
478. Soggy Bottom Speedway, Morgantown, KY (http://www.soggybottomspeedway.com)
479. Buttonwillow Raceway Park, Buttonwillow, CA (http://www.buttonwillowraceway.com)
480. Speedway 90, Beaumont, TX (http://www.Speedway90Bmt.com)
481. 105 Speedway, Cleveland, TX (http://www.105speedway.com/)

482   Savannah Speedway, Savannah, MO (no web site)

483. Winston Speedway, Winston, MO (no web site)
484. Stuart Speedway, Stuart, IA (http://www.midiowa.com/showtime/stuart.html)
485. Barberton Speedway, Barberton, OH (http://www.barbertonspeedway.com/)
486. Eriez Speedway, Erie, PA (http://www.statelineeriezspeedway.com/)
487. Anderson Dry Lake, Lucerne Valley, CA
488. Perris Auto Speedway-(figure 8 track), Perris, CA(http://www.perrisautospeedway.com/)

 

 

 

Worldwide trackchasers:

 

 

I took a busman’s holiday today. That means as a trackchaser, I went racechasing. I normally do not write much when I re-visit a track. Today was very unusual. I saw the best racing I have seen in years. Maybe today’s racing seemed so good because I’ve been to more than 800 tracks and I’m down to third and fourth tier racing at this point. On the other hand, maybe today’s racing was so good because it really was.

 

 

Today I went to the Perris Auto Speedway in southern California. This was my eighth lifetime visit to the PAS. The race today was in celebration of the 10^th anniversary of season openers at the track. Unbelievably, some of the best racing I’ve seen in years was conducted on a daytime dirt track. That’s unusual because most veteran race observers would probably expect a daytime dirt track to be less than spectacular.

 

 

First, the Perris Auto Speedway is arguably the best dirt track facility, when considering the total package, anywhere in the world. We’re also fortunate in SoCal to have what is arguably the best asphalt short track in the world in Irwindale Speedway.

 

 

Once you get past the expense of the PAS, everything else is great. General admission for the USAC/CRA sprint car show is $16. It also costs $5 to park. Many things are expensive in southern California. Housing and entertainment are two of the most expensive categories relative to the rest of the country. Why is that? Demand! So many people want to live in SoCal relative to the supply; prices are driven into the stratosphere. A concert in our area is likely to cost twice as much as in smaller cities across America. Southern Californians are much bigger spenders on luxury items (cars, restaurants, etc.) than anywhere else is in the country with the possible exceptions of some big cities such as New York, San Francisco and a couple of others.

 

 

Why is the Perris Auto Speedway so much better than virtually all other dirt short tracks? There are many reasons. The track prep is outstanding. Today’s track didn’t get dusty at all. The cars were still throwing mud into the grandstands during the “A” feature. The P.A. system is better than any concert venue I have ever seen. There are 50 huge speakers (probably 2 feet by 4 feet) pointed directly at the grandstands. They even have P.A. speakers in the restrooms! I’ve never seen that at a short track before. All of the racecars and haulers are parked in the center infield pit area. The infield has been lowered so even with the large 18-wheeler haulers there is no obstruction of the backstretch from the front stretch grandstand. Eldora could learn something from this engineering idea.

 

 

The announcer is both professional and entertaining. The guy knows racing and he knows how to insert the right amount of humor to keep the fans smiling. During breaks in the racing action, they play loud, upbeat music just as they do at pro basketball, hockey and baseball games. Many of the songs are theme related. To start the first race, the track went with “Let’s get it started” by the Black Eyed Peas. I’m not a big one for loud music, but they do it in good taste at the PAS. The PAS also does a great job with on the track interviews and analysis. Chris Holt, the infield announcer, used to really irritate me with his long and rambling questions that could only get a “Yes” or “No” from a driver. He has improved and the drivers gave some very insightful comments to the crowd throughout the day over a microphone that worked and a P.A. system that was as good as my surround sound system at home. The drivers seemed to recognize that they were being interviewed to not only inform but to entertain the crowd.

 

 

I think California communication is a little different from the Midwest and East. In the Midwest, you’re likely to get a very conservative tone, sprinkled with the “Yes sirs” and “No sirs”. In the East you’re likely to get the in your face, skeptical of even little old ladies approach. California communication is a little more laid back and like the East coast, very direct. Of course, these are gross generalizations and not true in every case (the lawyers made me put that last sentence in). I’ll give you a few examples from today’s event. This is not meant to be offensive to any of my Midwestern or Eastern friends, but I do think the analysis is directionally accurate.

 

 

One beginning driver had just purchased a sprint car with a brown body and bright pink chassis. The announcer allowed that the driver “must have bought the chassis in West Hollywood”, an obvious reference to the sexual orientation of residents in that area. When the driver’s engine sputtered, the announcer told the crowd, “He should immediately pull into the pits and not worry at all about the engine, but get a can of spray paint and get rid of that pink”. When Cory Kruseman was being interviewed about his driving school, he told the crowd, “It was the most fun you can have with your pants on”. When driver Ricky Gaunt was interviewed about a fellow driver he commented, “He can’t count his butt cheeks twice and come up with the same answer”. I’m sorry but you’re not likely to hear that comment in Iowa. In the Midwest, they wouldn’t say it, and in the east, they couldn’t say it without bloodying your face. My point is not that these comments are brilliant or better than anywhere else is. It’s just that they are direct without being in your face. There is a difference.

 

 

The PAS even has a designated smoking area located behind the grandstands. You cannot smoke in the grandstand. California has always been out in front with regard to limiting smoking. Smoking has not been allowed in open area professional sports stadiums in California for years. I’ve never see this kind of prohibition at an auto racing short track.

 

 

The refreshment selection is superior. They have pizza, hamburgers, tri-tip steak, Mexican food, hot dogs/sausages, milk shakes, caramel corn, pop corn, pretzels, chorizos and many other items. They even have closed circuit TVs in both of the beer booths so you won’t miss any action. One minor drawback, which might not be a drawback, is the four major food booths sell only hamburgers, pizza, Mexican food, etc. If you want both a hot dog and a hamburger, you would have to wait in two different lines. I guess they figured that your wait in the hamburger line, as an example, is one-fourth as long since you’re not standing behind anyone who is buying pizza or hot dogs or anything but hamburgers and drinks. I’ve never seen this done at any other short track.

 

 

So that’s the facility. What about the racing? Today’s USAC/CRA wingless sprint program drew 47 cars. This sanctioning group runs at the PAS about three weekends every month. They normally draw 30+ cars. How many tracks do you know of that race only one division at their place nearly every week? Plus, wingless sprint cars driven by drivers who know what they are doing are one of my favorite classes. Wingless sprint cars also give the fans lots of passing and some scary looking wrecks. Winged sprint cars provide very little passing and have about one-quarter the amount of flips. As a race fan, I enjoy seeing a good tumble as long as the driver is not hurt.

 

 

Even the crowd exuded quality that you see at some of the more traditional tracks across the country. Remember, the PAS is really just Ascot Park moved about 75 miles to the east. I think the cars and fans just moved over to Perris after Ascot closed in 1992. Even the famous first turn bleachers were relocated from Ascot to Perris. The crowd was well behaved and there weren’t any obnoxious people yelling and screaming at the wrong times. The Ascot crowd paid attention. They knew when to smile at the announcer’s jokes, when to nod in appreciation for a job well done on the track and when to tap their toes to the concert quality music. You can just tell when the crowd knows what they’re doing and can understand what’s going on around them.

 

 

The USAC/CRA group, just like their predecessors CRA and SCRA believe in starting the fast cars in the middle to the back of the field. Wouldn’t it be nice if the World of Outlaws tried that? Regardless of the number of cars in the field over 32, they run four, eight car heat races for 10 laps. The top four go to the “A” main, and the last four go to the “B” main. The cars that qualify 33^rd and slower run in the “C” main. The winner of the “C” tags one of the heats; everyone else in the “C” puts it on the trailer.

 

 

The first event today was for the four fastest qualifiers. The race was a three-lap trophy dash. Initially, that might sound somewhat boring. But, the announcer and the racers made it very exciting. First, the announcer told the crowd the four drivers would be racing for a $500 purse ($200 to the winner) in each trophy dash all season. It was nice to see my $16 admission fee being put to good use.

 

 

The drivers were on the gas. Tracy Hines, winner of the Chili Bowl, started outside first row and flipped all by himself going into the first turn. On the restart, Damian Gardner did a slide job on Danny Sheridan in the fourth turn of the last lap. They touched briefly before Gardner gained first place and they both raced down the front straight to the checkered flag with their front wheels off the ground. With Gardner in victory circle, Sheridan drove by and gave the one finger salute. Not bad for a three lap trophy dash.

 

 

The next race was the “C” main for 14 cars. Only the winner advanced. Everyone else went home. The PAS also employs the two spins and you’re out rule. I love that. I think that rule keeps many drivers from having their FIRST spin because they want to avoid the pressure of being DQ’d for causing two yellow flags. Turkey night winner, Jordan Hermansader was relegated to the “C” main.

 

 

The four heat races were TOTALLY inverted for the eight cars. You won’t see that many places. The top four went to the “A” and “got their times back” for the feature. There were a couple of flips during the heats and about six read flags for the entire day due to flipping racecars. Wingless sprint cars can provide some hellacious acrobatics. The track’s wrecker crew and push trucks cleaned up each mess efficiently.

 

 

The 30-lap “A” main was exciting. The fastest eight qualifying cars were inverted. Tracy Hines flipped again during the feature. One driver got into a bumping incident on the backstretch with another car. You could see he was very angry. When he got to the front straight he aggressively through his tear-off away. In doing so, he lost control of his car, hit another car and caused three sprinters to barrel roll all at the same time into the first turn catch fencing.

 

 

While all this was going on Damian Gardner drove from eighth to first in eight laps. Rip Williams drove from 15^th to second in 13 laps. You won’t see this happen nearly all season with the World of Outlaws for two reasons. First, the fast cars don’t start far enough back to pass that many cars. Secondly, winged sprint cars are so evenly matched they do very little passing for any reason.

 

 

My first experience with winged sprint cars was back in the 70s at Ascot Park. Pennsylvania, Bobby Allen, was visiting during the fall. His roll cage had wing mounts welded to it. All of the cars were racing wingless and I couldn’t figure out what those pointed things were on Allen’s cage. CRA sprint cars NEVER ran wings.

 

 

The announcer had painted Gardner as the “bad boy” following his slide job pass in the trophy dash. Gardner had done nothing to refute the bad boy title when he told the crowd after the trophy dash, “You only give me three laps, and I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do. I’m not here to hold hands with anyone”. The crowd rewarded those comments with the proverbial chorus of boos. The announcer had also reminded the crowd that Rip Williams had 99 feature wins in his CRA/SCRA career. A large number in the crowd wanted to see the “Ripper” win his 100^th. For the final 15 laps, Williams nipped at the heels of Gardner and actually passed him on the backstretch by a full car length. Gardner would pull a wheelie nearly every time coming out of the fourth turn. One such wheelie nearly proved disastrous. Coming out of the fourth turn, Gardner, with the front wheels about two feet off the ground started to drift inside toward the Jersey barriers. With the car still on two wheels, he corrected, got back on the actual racetrack and returned his car to all four wheels. This was the best racing I had seen in years, and on a daytime dirt track.

 

 

When the final checker was thrown, the crowd didn’t rush to leave the stands. They stayed to hear the three podium finish drivers interviewed. Like I said this was a very savvy crowd.

 

 

One of the reasons we don’t normally go to the PAS, other than the fact that I am never in California on a Saturday is the fact that the track is 82 miles from San Clemente. The traffic can be heavy out in this direction. I’m already seeing new housing tracts build up near the racetrack. I hope that is not a bad sign for the future. Just outside of Perris, I came across a freeway problem and took an alternate route that I was not familiar with. A simple, ‘Take me home” command to my navigational system got me home in good shape. Carol and I will be back to Perris on a much more frequent basis in the future.

 

 

I must admit I thought a lot about Tom Sivi driving to and from the track. I never met Tom. I was always impressed with his ability to simplify the situation. Of course, simplifying doesn’t always meet everyone’s personal interests, but I think Tom made a lot of good points with his infrequent trackchaser communications. Rest in peace, Tom.

 

 

Randy Lewis

#1 trackchaser living west of the Mississippi

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reprinted with permission from my March 14, 2009 Trackchaser Report

 

 

DAY 1 – “FIRST IT WAS HOME, THEN IT WAS A LONG WAY FROM HOME AND THEN IT WAS HOME AGAIN” TRACKCHASING TOUR

 

 

 

 

 

EDITOR’S NOTE

Don’t miss all of the “specialty notes” in “Things you might have noticed had you been paying attention in school”. Especially, don’t miss your opportunity to participate in and possibly win another of those famous RANLAY Racing contests.

 

 

 

 

 

GREETINGS FROM PERRIS, CALIFORNIA

 

 

 

TODAY’S HEADLINES

What do Larry Mac, a missing shoe, an April announcement, an apology to the media and a YouTube video all have in common? …………..details in “Things you might have noticed had you been paying more attention in school”.

 

 

This week’s trip planning took me around the world and back and I didn’t leave my office………………more in “The Trip”.

 

 

Dude!…………..details in “The People”.

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

Here are a few tidbits that have been sitting on my desk for a while. You might find them of interest.

 

 

 

STOCK CAR RACERS, RANDY AND CAROL, FIND THEIR WAY TO YOUTUBE.

While playing around on the computer I found a YouTube video of our stock car racing on ice adventure in Wisconsin of a few weeks ago. The clip is only 43 second long. However, it captures the essence of what went on in our media/celebrity race at the Lake Speed Ice Track in Tilleda, Wisconsin.

 

 

Note I am driving the yellow Chevy, #45B. Carol is in the pink Monte Carlo, #07. I’m leading the race and toward the end of what you will see, Carol is spun out by another car and I nearly t-bone here while driving on glare ice. I hope you enjoy seeing how we spent our Saturday afternoon in the winter:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xetc0PWIgA

 

 

 

THE PROVIDENCE JOURNAL FEATURES TRACKCHASING IN A SECOND NEWSPAPER STORY.

The trackchasing hobby was lucky enough to get a good deal of media coverage surrounding the auto racing at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. On the Wednesday following the event, this feature length story covered the hobby with multiple trackchasers being quoted. This may be a first for the hobby. 

 

  

LARRY MCREYNOLDS IS NOW MY BUDDY….OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

Recently, while I was standing in the airport security line at LAX. I was on my way to Dubai. I looked up and who did I see. It was FOX NASCAR TV broadcaster, Larry McReynolds. It funny, how I see old friends and celebrities so frequently in airports. I guess it has something to do with my being in airports so much. I often wonder how many people I’ve missed who just rounded the corner before or after I got there.

 

 

Larry was about ten people behind me in line. The line serpentined around a few times, so each time I passed by Larry we had an exchange. No one else in the area, seemed to recognize him. This was the day after the NASCAR race in Fontana, California. I asked Larry, “how was the race yesterday”. He responded simply, “it was one of the better races they’ve had there”. That was racing “code” that I took that to mean, something I already believed. The California Speedway is not one of the better NASCAR tracks, for action, on the circuit.

 

 

Larry asked me if I had gone to the race. I told him that “no, I hadn’t, I’ve already been there”. This is a frequent response that a trackchaser will provide when asked if they plan to go to one track or another in the future. Other than a core of tracks somewhat near a trackchaser’s home, it is unusual for a trackchaser to return to tracks that have already been seen. That’s just the nature of the hobby, folks.

 

 

 

I told Larry about my trackchasing interest and gave him my trackchasing business card. I mentioned that I had met FOX anchor, Mike Joy last spring in Virginia. At that time, I had a brief conversation with Mike about trackchasing. I’ve also met the third person in the FOX broadcast booth, Darrell Waltrip. Carol and I met Darrell Waltrip (a picture of Darrell and Carol sits on my office bookshelf) back in the mid-80s at the All-American 400 in Nashville, Tennessee. Darrell was very gracious in being part of our picture request. Carol was a big Darrell Waltrip fan from that point forward.

 

 

Larry was dressed casually wearing blue jeans and a long-sleeved blue dress shirt without his shirt tucked in. He was much taller, about 6’2”, than I would have expected. It was 5 a.m. in the morning, so I’m just happy to have had a brief encounter with Larry “Mac”. You can read more about Larry on his website at http://www.larrymcreynolds.com/home.html.

  

 

MISSING SHOE TURNS UP!

Last month when I was in Minnesota, I had to slam on the brakes to stop at a late arriving red light. When I did that all of my gear in the backseat flew forward onto the floor of the backseat. As luck would have it, my carryon case was unzipped and the contents flew out of the bag onto the backseat floor. In my haste to check my rental car in at the airport, I missed one item, a dress shoe. One of my airline sponsors requires that I wear dress shoes when I fly. “Dress shoes” in this situation are really just leather shoes of any kind. I guess if I had been flying this airline home that day, I would have noticed my shoe loss pretty quickly!

 

 

However, I used another sponsored airline and didn’t figure out I had only one shoe until I got home. I didn’t know, for sure, where I had left it. I emailed the Marriott in Doha, Qatar, but they couldn’t find it, although my correspondence did end up getting me on their email advertising distribution list! I ended up contacting the National Rental Car location in Minneapolis. This was nearly as easy as it might sound.

 

 

Luckily, I found a customer service person that really cared. She went out of her way and found my shoe. Then she mailed it back to me for free, after I had only paid $25 to rent their car and drive it out onto a frozen Minnesota lake! For her trouble, I wrote a letter to the National Rental Car Company praising Ms. Vanessa Williams. Maybe she will get a raise. I hope so.

  

 

RANLAY RACING CONTEST IS COMING UP!

I’ve been getting many questions regarding my upcoming “announcement” in my first Trackchaser Report following April 25, 2009. People want to know “what’s up”. They are even beginning to provide guesses as to what the subject matter might be. So far, no one seems interested in “why I fear Ed Esser”!

 

 

Therefore, I am beginning a contest for readers to guess what the “announcement” is regarding. There will be three contest winners. All you have to do to win is submit your entry, in 23 words or less, and tell me what you think the announcement will be about. The reader who comes closest will receive a United Airlines business class amenities bag and a Dubai Autodrome racing program. The next two closest guesses will win a Dubai Autodrome racing program. Judging will be done at the RANLAY Racing judging “Contests Institute” in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Judges decisions are final. Don’t wait, submit your entry today. Each certified reader may submit a maximum of two entries. 

 

 

ONE LAST CONGRATS FOR CAROL ON SEEING RACING IN HER 50^TH STATE.

 

 

From long-time friends and 50-state marathon runners….and watchers)

Wow! What an achievement, Carol! Dunkin’ Donuts are popular out east. Mike ran the Dunkin Donuts marathon in Falmouth, Massachusetts in October, 2007. You 50 staters are an elite group . Congratulations.

 

 

MY APOLOGIES TO THE MEDIA.

I’ve been putting off an interview with a leading auto racing oriented radio station. I have also been tardy in returning a questionnaire for a major Qatar trackchasing newspaper interview. Guys, bear with me, I’ll be with you soon. It takes some time and effort to publish the RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Reports and, of course, my readers are at the head of the line. 

 

 

CLIPPERS BIG GAME PACKAGE WRAPS UP FOR 2009.

Part of my “lifestyle stimulus” package involved buying a six-game “big game” package from the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers. Even though the Clippers lost every game and are one of the sorriest franchises in professional sports history, I enjoyed the experience. I was able to go to the games with Carol as well as son Jim and daughter Kristy. I believe the Clippers led every one of these six games only to lose in the end. The final game found them, with a 19-point lead, against the team with the very best record in the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs are led by Lebron James. I will say this, I believe Mr. James is the very best player in the NBA. He can do it all and he does it with a smile on his face.

 

 

 

 

 

This was a simple trip.  I left home in San Clemente, California, drove to the races in Perris, California and drove back home.  This is what transpired on day #1 of the “First it was home, then it was a long way from home and then it was home again” trackchasing tour.

 

 

 

 

What you are about to read is based upon a true story. Heck, I’m seeing some of this stuff for the first time myself!
THE OBJECTIVE, THE TRIP AND THE PEOPLE…AND A WHOLE LOT MORE

 

 

 

 

The Objective 

Tonight’s trackchasing trip would be a nice change of pace.

 

 

One of my 2009 trackchasing objectives is to lead a more balanced lifestyle. That is sometimes difficult to do when I am on the road as much as I am. However, today’s track was less than two hours from my home. There would be no airports and no hotels needed to get this track. This does not happen very often, but it’s nice when it does.

 

 

 

The Trip

This would be a short trip for Carol and me.

 

 

Recently, I learned that the Perris Auto Speedway was holding a series of “Stadium Off-Road” races. The “PAS” is about an hour and a half from our house. It is very unusual that I would drive my car (actually Carol’s car) to a race. I go trackchasing nearly every weekend. The last time I drove my own car to a race was back in September, 2007, about 18 months ago.

 

 

I was happy to make the discovery of this racing series. This would be an easy track for Carol and me to pickup without much hassle. However, when I mentioned the idea to Carol I received a surprise. She had already agreed to babysit for the grandkids on this Saturday evening. She couldn’t go with me.

 

  

Trackchasing strategy would come into play.

Strategically, I didn’t want to go to this track without her. She’s trying to reach 400 tracks before those “dreaded east coast trackchasers” pass a rule increasing the amount of tracks needed to become a voting member.  However, if she can slip underneath the radar and get her 400 tracks, she can become part of a growing silent majority. She can become a voting member, and then SHE can propose an amendment barring certain members from being part of the trackchasing community! Since she couldn’t go to the SoCal race, I decided to trackchase elsewhere.

 

 

I had a great trip lined up in the Midwest and Southeast.

Despite having seen more than 1,400 tracks, it isn’t very difficult to put a good trackchasing weekend together in the U.S. I was all set to fly into Oklahoma City to begin my weekend, when the weather forecast began to turn south. I grew up in Illinois, so I know what I’m talking about when I make the following comments. Many folks think that winter is the harshest season for the Midwest and east and anywhere else that gets sub-freezing weather during the winter.

 

 

However, I would tell you that early spring (after March 1 and going through April) can bring some of the most uncomfortable weather. It’s during this time that people think they “should” be able to start going outdoors. I believe a 40-degree day with a strong wind and some rain can be some of the most uncomfortable weather going. This was the type of weather forecasted for where I planned to trackchase. One track even canceled two days before their event just because of the upcoming bad weather forecast. I decided against trying to battle bad weather.

 

  

At this point I figured I would broaden my trackchasing horizons. The world is my oyster.

I’m a bit disappointed in my international trackchasing opportunities. Here is why I make that statement. According to www.ask.com, there are 193 countries in the world. According to www.autoracingrecords.com only 82 of those countries host auto racing. I have already seen racing in 27 countries. That leaves only 55 countries, internationally, where I can go trackchasing. I know you might be saying, “But Randy, it surely will take you a long-time to go trackchasing in 55 more countries won’t it?”. Actually, it might not take that long to see most of them. I figured since Carol was babysitting and the weather was bad all over the United States, I should try for country #28.

 

 

Most foreign country websites are written in foreign languages. Imagine that! Nevertheless, I muddle my way through and can usually get to where I am going. I began to send out email inquiries to several foreign sources.

 

 

If you have read this far I am going to share a secret. I have a special source for my international information. I will simply refer to him as “the man who lives behind the purple curtain of international intrigue”. I can’t identify him by name for obvious security reasons. Trust me, it’s a good idea to have this man on my side.

 

 

I began to receive responses to my international email requests. There would be an outstanding foreign track opportunity this weekend. It was so firm that I began to make my hotel arrangements. I am not exaggerating when I say this. I was within ten seconds of hitting the “send” button on my computer to make my “non-refundable” hotel reservations, when an eerie feeling came over me.

  

 

Something wasn’t right.

Something wasn’t right. I stopped and thought. I had a foreign friend who was promising me V.I.P. treatment. He would even make arrangements to have me picked up at the hotel and driven to the track. Where I planned on going, this seemed like a great idea. What could possibly be wrong with this plan?

 

 

This was the problem. I was planning to make my hotel reservations for this weekend, March 13-15. My foreign friend was talking about races that would be the next weekend, March 20-22. Wow! I came very close to making hotel reservations in a foreign country when the race I wanted to attend was actually the NEXT weekend.

  

 

Given this set of logistical circumstances, I was back to my original plan of trackchasing in SoCal.

Now you might be able to understand how I keep myself so busy, without doing any household chores whatsoever, in retirement. I had “mentally committed” to going trackchasing in a new country. The night before I was scheduled to leave, I concluded that plan was not the right plan. This weekend I would simply go trackchasing on the “other side of the mountain” in SoCal. However, next week I will take advantage of the V.I.P. offer and attempt to go trackchasing in country #28.

  

 

 

The People

 

Dude!

The demographic of a stadium off-road race is much different than traditional short-track auto racing in the United States. At an event like this you will likely hear the term, “Dude” used interchangeably for members of both genders. A “valley sheep” is some loser who says “d u u u d e” way too slowly and way too often. “Way” incidentally is the preferred word for “very” as in that’s “way” cool.

 

 

The grandstand tonight was packed almost exclusively with “dudes”. I’m sure most of these fans were “stoked” if not “totally stoked”. I saw a few spiked Mohawk haircuts. I also suspect the incidence of video game playing is high amongst this group. It was a very well behaved crowd of folks who enjoy the desert, off-road riding and weekend camping. They come to this form of racing because it offers fun entertainment. This is one of the reasons that short-track racing at far too many of America’s “traditional” tracks is losing fans. They don’t entertain them.

 

 

 

RACE REVIEW

 

PERRIS AUTO SPEEDWAY – PERRIS, CALIFORNIA

 

Tonight it was like going back to Ascot Park….almost.

Tonight, I will go trackchasing at the Perris Auto Speedway aka “The PAS”. The PAS is a very special facility for several reasons. Ascot Park in Gardena, California closed in 1990 (I thought it was 1992, but Wikipedia says differently). Ascot was the premier racing track for wingless sprint cars in the world. This is where Carol and I learned to love sprint car racing. Ascot was our home track from 1974-1976 and again from 1983 until it closed. Since that time, most sprint car racing has changed to being “winged” sprint car racing. For that reason, I no longer enjoy sprint car racing.

 

 

The Perris Auto Speedway replaced Ascot. They even transported the bleachers from Ascot’s famous fourth turn and put them in the fourth turn of the PAS. I have only recorded eight visits to the PAS since it opened in 1996. That’s not a very good record. However, I am rarely home on the weekends to go trackchasing in SoCal. When I am home on a non-trackchasing weekend, usually the last thing I want to do is see more racing.

 

 

I have recorded trackchasing visits to both the Perris Auto Speedway ½-mile oval and their “figure 8” track. Back in 2001, I saw racing on a randomly constructed figure 8 track at the PAS. This was simply two tractor tires placed on the front straight of the oval. Luckily, they did have late model “like” cars racing, but overall it was a “lame” track. 

 

 

Yes, I am grateful but wish the rules had been written differently.

Of course, I am grateful for the trackchasers who came before me and established the hobby that I enjoy so much. I also understand that “hindsight provides 20/20 vision”. I really wish that trackchasing’s founding fathers had limited countable tracks to “one grandstand, one track”. That would have saved me countless hours of traveling and sitting through really questionable shows like the figure 8 racing at the PAS. I think a tighter regulation on what types of racing would be accepted as countable would have been a good idea as well.

 

 

Many of our current trackchasers were formidable racechasers in their day. I was as well. Now most are relegated to going to the most putrid non-racing events that one could possibly imagine. “But, Randy, the interested and curious reader might ask, if the racing is so bad why do you go?” I would simply answer that trackchasing is a very competitive hobby. No one wants to slip in the standings. Folks will drive through the night. If they don’t drive through the night, they will sleep in their cars overnight. Folks will spend ungodly sums to fly to faraway places. Simply put, they will do whatever it takes to get one more track. It’s an addiction for most folks. It’s too late to change the rules. The “train has left the station”. It is with this background that I drove over one of the most dangerous highways in the United States to see “one more track”.

  

 

I do it for you, even when it’s dangerous.

The Perris Auto Speedway is about 70 miles from my house to the track. It is one of the five closest racetracks from where I live. I had two choices when it came time to planning my driving route. I could take SoCal freeways, which could be crowded and would add 15 miles to my drive. On the other hand, I could take the Ortega Highway http://www.theortegahighway.com/OrtegaHighwayHistory.html). The Ortega Highway exit from the I-5 interstate is less than ten miles from my house. This highway winds through the mountains from San Juan Capistrano to the growing Lake Elsinore Valley. Construction on the Ortega Highway began in 1929 and was completed in 1933. The mountain crossing is some 30 miles long. This is a winding and very scenic road. However, it is a very dangerous road to drive. I would not even consider using this road at night. However, I thought you might like to see the Ortega Highway scenery during the daylight. .

 

 

It’s a phenomenon.

“Stadium Off-Road” racing is a SoCal phenomenon. It’s an offshoot of the famous American west and Mexican desert off-road racing. In desert off-road racing, courses can be 50 miles long or more. Some of the most professional auto racing that exists comes from the desert off-road racing such as the famous Baja 500. However, did you know that races such as the Baja 500 cannot be counted in the hobby of trackchasing? Yes, two $35 clunkers racing around two tractor tires spaced 20 yards apart for five laps can be counted, but the ultra high-tech desert off-road racing series cannot.

 

 

“But, Randy, that doesn’t seem fair. How can this be?” I would suggest that had desert off-road racing been a big item on the east coast, it would be a countable form of racing today. However, off-road racing is most popular in the west. Since trackchasing was started by east coast trackchasers trackchasing all over the east, you can imagine how the rules were set up. When I first started visiting western located desert off-road racing venues, the “loophole” was quickly closed by stating that “all cars had to start the race at the same time”.

  

 

Dog eat dog?

At most off-road desert racing venues there isn’t enough room for the 200 or more cars and trucks that show up to start at the same time. Therefore, the cars are started at intervals. Normally, two cars start at a time every 15-30 seconds until all the cars are racing in the desert. I have only seen two such events. Each time there were about 200 vehicles racing for the better part of 3-4 hours or more. One track was a 50-mile loop and the race required the completion of four laps. Once all the cars and trucks get going it is a real free for all with jumping, crashing and passing all over the desert. It truly is a very entertaining form of racing. However, it is “special rules” like this that can easily allow one to understand that trackchasing’s competitiveness can truly be a “dog eat dog” activity.

 

 

The desert moves inside the stadium.

Astute race organizers have taken desert off-road racing and converted it to “Stadium Off-Road” racing. The Championship Off-Road Racing (CORR) group has championed this effort, although they seem to have been hurt by the current economic crisis.

 

 

I wasn’t sure what to expect with tonight’s event at the PAS. They get great crowds for their sprint car races and poor crowds for their dirt track races. SoCal has never been big into dirt stock car racing. However, tonight the huge grandstands were nearly full.

 

 

The PAS is about as good as it gets.

The Perris Auto Speedway is one of the very best dirt track overall facilities in the world. Their concessions are varied and of good quality. Most American short tracks offer hamburgers, hot dogs and nachos or some narrow variation of these “racetrack staples”.

 

 

The PAS has those items and much much more. Their “sweets” stand sells churros, multiple flavors of ice cream and even root beer floats. They have all kinds of Mexican food and pizza. They sell beer, and dare I say it, wine. Yes, you can have a warm glass of Merlot or a chilled class of Chablis all for just seven bucks. The hamburgers were grilled on an open fire for all to see. If my memory serves me correctly, I have never ever seen a larger burger served at any racetrack.

 

 

The facility has a concert quality sound system. There are more than 30 speakers, none of which could fit in your car’s trunk. The announcers at the PAS have always been top quality. They entertain and they inform. The races were scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. What time do you think the National Anthem was being sung? 6 p.m.!! Friends, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to offer fan an entertaining race program.

 

 

Pricing at the PAS is not for the feint of heart. Admission is $15 per person. That’s high by American short track standards. Parking is another five dollars. Almost, no one charges for parking in the short track racing business. So……how can a promoter fill his large grandstand seating area (I estimate there were 3,000-4,000 people at tonight’s race) with higher than normal admission prices and a parking charge. Folks…..it’s called entertainment. Build it and they will come.

 

 

Stadium off-road racing is like desert off-road racing in the sense that the buggies and trucks race over jumps and make both right and left hand turns. In trackchasing parlance, that makes it a road course. Tonight, all of the racing was done in the full view of the spectator. All races were started with “land rush” starts just as they did at the Peoria Speedway where I grew up. Maybe there is something to this road racing after all, IF the spectator is allowed to view all of the action.

 

 

I was lucky the very first race of the night was for a dune buggy class. These were driven by adults. The course used portions of the half-mile oval with diversions through the infield to complete the course. There were 5-6 dirt hills that provided jumps. At these jumps the vehicles would fly through the air for about two seconds. 

 

 

The buggies were followed by various forms of stadium karts and stadium trucks. In all there were about ten classes racing tonight. The races were contested over 12-15 laps. Interestingly, each race had a “competition” caution near the middle of each event. This caution was used to “bunch up the field” and make the racing more entertaining for the fans. Don’t like that idea? Remember, the promoter is in the business to make a profit. I suspect that 4,000 fans paying $15 a head generated a handsome profit.   Fans vote with their feet….and their butts. If a competition caution allows the promoter to entertain his fans and make a profit I say more power to him.

 

 

If you want to learn more about this racing series, check it out at http://m4sx.com/. I stayed for about 2 ½ hours of the racing action. The temperature had dropped to about 52 degrees, which by SoCal standards IS freezing. I was entertained, but doubt I will come back for another one of these shows unless I decide to bring Carol here. This thinking is really how the entire hobby of trackchasing got started.

  

 

How did trackchasing really begin?

Race fans tired of seeing the same program at the same track week in and week out. They started to branch out. Then they came to the conclusion that seeing a track for the first time was usually better than seeing a track for the tenth time. Then these people became trackchasers when they decided that seeing most tracks for the first time was better than seeing most tracks for the second time. I suspect that if promoters did a better job of entertaining their traveling fans, the hobby might never have developed to the degree that it has.

 

 

 

 

 

STATE COMPARISONS

 

 

 

California

This evening, I saw my 105^th lifetime track in California. With an amount like that you might think I would have a #1 ranking in the Golden state. Not even close! The legendary Gary Jacob holds that title with 149 California tracks. My “tracks remaining to be seen” database shows just five tracks that I have not visited. Only two of those race on a weekly or semi-weekly basis.

 

 

RENTAL CAR UPDATE

No rental car! For the first time since September, 2007 I drove my own car to the races.

 

 

 

Coming soon!

How do fellow P&G retirees really think?

 

 

I have some really big news that will break in my first Trackchaser Report after April 25, 2009. Despite frequent questions, I can’t tell you what this is about until the appointed date. I will say I am receiving some most unusual questions and comments on this topic.

 

 

Why I fear Ed Esser.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser

When Peter says something about Paul, it says more about Peter than it does Paul.

 

 

 

 

TRAVEL DETAILS

 

 

No airplane or rental car!

 

 

I USED THE CAROL LEWIS OWNED AND LIFE OF VIRGINIA SPONSORED LEXUS LS 430 

San Clemente, CA – trip begins

Perris, CA – 73 miles

San Clemente, CA – 158 miles – trip ends

 

 

 

Total Air miles – 0 (0 flights)

 

 

Total auto and air miles traveled on this trip – 158 miles

 

 

 

 

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES: 

Perris Auto Speedway – $15 

  

Total racetrack admissions for the trip – $15

 

 

COMPARISONS

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS UPDATE:

 

There are no trackchasers currently within 200 tracks of my lifetime total.

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,414

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other notables

 

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

 

26. Kevin Eckert, Indianapolis, Indiana – 455

 

27. Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 377

 

28. Ken Schrader, Concord, North Carolina – 373

 

 

 

2009 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

 

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 14

 

2. Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania – 8

 

2. Bing Metz, Tatamy, Pennsylvania – 8

 

 

 

 

 

LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS

 

Final 2008 National Geographic Diversity results have been posted.

 

 

 

 

 

 

UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS 

It looks like I’m going to be spending the next two weeks on an airplane. Last year I traveled about 257,000 miles with my trackchasing hobby. I didn’t think that total would ever be challenged by anyone, including me. However, who really knows what the future will bring.

 

 

 

RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2009

1,401. Death Valley Raceway (oval), Armargosa Valley, Nevada – January 3

 

 

1,402. Lake Weyauwega Ice Track (oval), Weyauwega, Wisconsin – January 11

 

 

1,403. Marion Pond Ice Track (oval), Marion, Wisconsin – January 11

 

 

1,404. Grandvalira Circuit (road course), Port d’Envalira, Andorra – January 17

 

 

1,405. Kuna International Raceway (oval), Kuna, Idaho – January 25

 

 

1,406. Circuito Efren Chemolli (oval), Buenos Aires, Argentina – January 31

 

 

Ozark Empire Fairgrounds (oval), Springfield, Missouri – February 6 (new track for Carol only)

 

 

Lake Speed Ice Track (oval), Tilleda, Wisconsin – February 7 (new track for Carol only)

 

 

1,407. DeltaPlex (oval), Grand Rapids, Michigan – February 8

 

 

1,408. Losail International Circuit (road course), Doha, Qatar – February 13

 

 

1,409. Lake Washington Ice Track (road course), Mankato, Minnesota – February 15

 

 

1,410. Bahrain International Circuit (road course), Sakhir, Bahrain – February 27

 

 

1,411. Dubai Autodrome (road course), Dubai, United Arab Emirates – February 28

 

 

1,412. Dunkin Donuts Center (oval), Providence, Rhode Island – March 6

 

 

1,413. Fur Rondy Grand Prix (road course), Anchorage, Alaska – March 8

 

 

1,414. Perris Auto Speedway (road course), Perris, California – March 14

 

 

Reprinted with permission from my March 13, 2010 Trackchaser Report

 

 

DAY 1 – “JUST HANGIN’ AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD” TRACKCHASING TOUR

 

 

 

 

RANDY LEWIS RACING (RLR) SPECIAL ADDITION

 

 

 

 

LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANNUAL UPDATE

It’s that time of year again. Yes, it’s time to recognize those trackchasers who excel at seeing racing in two important trackchasing categories. I’m talking about trackchasers who see a large number of tracks in a particular state and those that see racing in a large number of states.

 

 

Which do you think is the more noteworthy trackchasing accomplishment, seeing 100 tracks in one state or two tracks in each of the fifty states? The answer to that question could be debated until the “cows come home”. That’s why the National Geographic Diversity (NGD) rankings were created all the way back in 2003.

 

 

We’ve had two extremes in trackchasing. First, we have the “regional” trackchaser who has seen very large numbers of tracks in just a few states. Typically, these chasers have miniscule totals in the states located beyond their regions.

 

 

On the other hand, we have trackchasers who have managed to see racing in all fifty states or nearly all states but have not seen very many tracks in most states. The National Geographic Diversity program seeks to identify those trackchasers who have seen “lots of tracks in lots of states”. The program does not reward the regional trackchaser or the trackchaser who has only dipped his/her trackchasing proverbial toe in each state.

 

 

The 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. I can’t think of a more significant accomplishment within the United States.

 

 

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 1 NGD point. A second place ranking gives two points, etc. etc. through position number ten. This is scoring system is used for all fifty states and the District of Columbia. At the end of the year, the trackchaser with the lowest score wins, just like how Tiger Woods does it in golf…..sort of.

 

 

In most states, some 20-50 trackchasers have seen at least one track. Some states are much more “competitive” than others. In some states several chasers have seen more than 100 tracks. In some states, like New Mexico, only a few trackchasers have ever been there. This state is so isolated from a trackchasing point of view, that only one trackchaser has seen more than six tracks in the Aztec state.

 

 

When the NGD contest was formalized the concept of “penalty” points was developed. Yes, the penalty points would be assigned to those underachievers (ne’er-do-wells?) who couldn’t achieve at least a “top ten” ranking in an individual state. Every trackchaser who ranks outside the top ten gets an NGD score of fifteen in that state. The penalty points have really kept me from doing better in this contest. I have consistently had 10-15 states where I had a ranking worse than tenth.

 

 

The trackchasers really get a kick out of my publishing the NGD results. Even those who quibble about the rules, always check out their ranking when it’s posted once a year. The quote below is a good summary of how to look at the National Geographic Diversity rankings. This came from one of our Eastern based top 15 chasers.

 

 

“Hi Randy, 

I spent about two hours this morning with your NGD data from 2008. The NGD is really a travel chess game – it’s an exercise in how many balls (states) can you keep in the air (top ten) at a time without running out of time, money or sanity. Only a truly demented individual could have devised it. Nice job!”

 

 

I really couldn’t have described the situation any better. However, I must provide further comment about a “demented individual” having devised this system. Although I formalized the concept I remember getting input on the general concept from Andy Ritter, Guy Smith and Will White among others all the way back in 2002. In this report I will publish the lifetime NGD results. In my next domestic Trackchaser Report, I’ll share the 2009 only results. Of course, the results will be posted at www.randylewis.org as well.

 

 

This year there were changes throughout the lifetime NGD list. First, the top spot changed. In addition, one of the most significant happenings in the rankings was the addition of track totals from a newly identified chaser Robert Helmick who hails from Orlando, Florida. I have never met Robert. However, the official website (some call it the unofficial website) of trackchasing, www.autoracingrecords.com shows that Robert has seen just over 1,000 tracks. His totals served to move several people down a spot in many states where he has done well including me. Robert’s showing in North Carolina shoved me out of the top ten and saddled me with those dreaded five extra penalty points. Thanks, Robert!!

 

 

Below is the list of past lifetime NGD champions and their winning scores. I’ve only held the top spot once during the NGD’s seven-year existence. Nevertheless, for years, I have said this is the most coveted trackchasing title outside of having seen the most tracks on a worldwide basis. I still feel that way.

 

 

Past Champions 

2003 – Allan Brown, Comstock, MI – 6.80 (only top 20 chasers included)

2004 – Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, PA – 6.78

2005 – Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, PA – 7.41

2006 – Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, PA – 7.08

2007 – Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 6.37

2008 – Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, PA – 5.96

 

 

As you can see the scores have been getting lower and lower for the champions as the years roll past. This is one of the most competitive categories in all of trackchasing. Trackchasers, including but not limited to me, have been known to plan their entire trackchasing schedule around the areas where the most NGD points could be added. This is a VERY competitive area of our hobby.

 

 

But wait….there’s more! 

There were a number of significant changes in this year’s lifetime standings. First, Mr. Helmick’s initial appearance on the scene moved him into sixth place overall. I didn’t notice it throughout the year but Paul Weisel was on the move. He improved his year-to-year lifetime score from 12.75 to 11.80. That dramatic improvement moved him up from 18^th place last year to 11^th place this year. It is not often that someone can move up this much this fast.

 

 

The scores throughout the pack didn’t change much. Some chasers are dropping a spot or two as they cut back on their participation in the hobby. Nancy Brown had the top women’s score at 12.57. Closely behind her were both Pat Eckel and San Clemente’s own Carol Lewis at 12.63. To show how tight the results were there were less than two points separating Paul Weisel in 11^th place (11.80) and Kevin Eckert in 28^th place (13.75). 

 

 

2009 Lifetime NGD Results

                   (top 20 and ties)                                  

1. Randy Lewis – San Clemente, CA – 5.29
2. Gordon Killian – Sinking Springs, PA – 6.29
3. Allan Brown, Comstock, MI – 8.33
4. Ed Esser, Madison, WI – 8.75
5. Guy Smith, Effort, PA – 9.18
6. Robert Helmick, Orlando, FL – 9.31
7. Rick Schneider, Bay Shore, NY – 9.80
8. Andy Sivi, Clairton, PA – 10.49
9. Jack Erdmann, DePere, WI – 11.12
10. John Moore, Knoxville, TN – 11.18
11. Paul Weisel, Orefield, PA – 11.80
12. Will White, Quakertown, PA – 12.10
13. Dale O’Brien, Green Bay, WI – 12.51
14. Bruce Eckel, Easton, PA – 12.55
15. Nancy Brown, Comstock Park, MI – 12.57
16. Pappy Hough – Deceased – 12.61
17. Pat Eckel, Easton, PA – 12.63 (tie)
18. Carol Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 12.63
19. Pam Smith, Effort, PA – 12.96
20. Roger Ferrell, Majenica, IN – 13.16 (tie)
21. Mike Knappenberger, Reading, PA – 13.16

 

 

** There’s an incredible amount of data to sort through here. As an example, all of my personal trackchasing visits 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. Contrary to deeply held beliefs, I do not charge him for the use of this data. 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 lifetime NGD results. If anyone would like to challenge the accuracy of any of the data, I will accept successful challenges through March 31, 2010. After that date, all results are final.

 

 

To see the results in much more detail than anyone should provide click on this link:

 

 

http://www.randylewis.org/ngdlifetimeresults.htm

 

 

 

 

GREETINGS FROM SAN BERNARDINO, CALIFORNIA AND THEN PERRIS, CALIFORNIA

 

 

TODAY’S HEADLINES

The hobby of trackchasing is getting an inordinate amount of publicity in Europe these days…………..details in “Things you might have noticed had you been paying more attention in school”.

 

 

Not every Trackchasing Tourist Attraction has to be a big deal……………….more in “Trackchasing Tourist Attraction”.

 

 

Please welcome “Garth” to the racing family of the World’s #1 Ranked Trackchaser. …………..details in “The Trip”.

 

 

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

 

 

THE BEST READERS IN RACING TAKE TIME TO CONTRIBUTE

 

 

From all the way in the tiny island country of Malta.

When Carol and I were in Malta last month I had the opportunity to do two television interviews. One was done in a TV studio and the other was an interview filmed at the track to be shown later on Malta TV. I’m still working on getting a copy of the studio interview. However, I did come up with a copy of the television interview conducted at the Ta’ Qali racetrack in Malta. Note that some of the interview is conducted in Maltese. Click on this link to see it:

 

http://videos.wittysparks.com/id/32402329

 

 

I also had some good coverage of our visit to Malta in the local newspaper press. The story about me is short, but the important thing is that I was able to get a “European mention” for two other top trackchasers. I’m guessing this is the first time their names have been mentioned in a major daily European newspaper, the Malta Times. You can view that media story at:

 

 

http://www.randylewis.org/maltatimes.htm

 

  

I must say that several trackchasers with a worldwide ranking have been slow to acknowledge the work that goes into getting them this recognition. In some cases, that’s about what I would have expected. In others, I’m surprised at the lack of appreciation.

 

 

The Maltese Olympic Committee also did a story about our Malta trackchasing trip. You can click on this link to see the story and pictures or simply read the text below.

 

http://www.nocmalta.org/page.asp?n=newsdetails&i=13922

 

 

Track Chaser Randy Lewis at ASM Off-Road Circuits

ASM will hold the 8^th event of the ASM National Championships next Sunday 21^st Feb at the ASM Racing Circuits at Ta Qali. The ASM Ashika & Poiatti 2009/10 Championships are to include Autocross, Bangers and Motocross races. First Race Start is scheduled for 12.00 noon.

 

 

During last event races Mario Scicluna won the highest qualifying points. He too took the lead for seven from the nine laps in the Final Race but was forced to retire due to mechanical failure. Scicluna was closely followed by Patrick Cassar and Chris Aquilina on similar and highly competitive cars who then took the lad in seconds. Christian and Mario Galea were following and battling for third place. It was really an exciting race with both joy and disappointment as Mario bet Christian almost on the Finish Line.

 

 

Malcolm Borg won the Class B race. He was closely followed by Silvio Sciberras on a Citroen AX. New to Autocross Karmenu Zammit closely followed in third place for the nine lap Final Race.

 

 

Banger racer Dennis Vassallo seems to be unbeatable on his 2 litre Cortina. He won two races and placed second in the third heat, thus winning 54 from the 60 points available. Banger Racer Tony Spiteri won 50 points and placed 2^nd. Clayton Bugeja won 3^rd place with 46 points.

 

 

The ASM Banger racing brought over to Malta Mr Randy Lewis from California USA to the scene of Motorsport. Mr Lewis who is ‘World’s No.1 Ranked Track Chaser’ came all the way to Ta Qali to watch our Oval Circuit which counts to his record of Track visits. Mr Randy, who was accompanied by his wife Carol registers the ASM Race Circuits as his 1522^nd visit and Malta is his 35th Country he visited purposely to watch oval motorcar racing around the world. Mr Lewis, while at Ta Qali  was interviewed by local journalist re his visit and how he manages to hold his World Title of Track Chaser. More information is available on http://www.randylewis.org. Mr & Mrs Lewis spent some more days touring the island accompanied my ASM members.

 

 

 

 

 

THE OBJECTIVE, THE TRIP, THE PEOPLE…AND A WHOLE LOT MORE

 

 

The Objective 

 

 

There is no need to make this difficult. 

I do not intend to make the hobby of trackchasing difficult. I would love to have all of the tracks located in my backyard like those “Dreaded East Coast Trackchasers” have had for years. However, I live in California. Most of the tracks are located in the East and Midwest. However, not ALL of the tracks are located miles and miles (which means hours and hours) from the sunny seaside village of San Clemente.

 

 

Today the moon and the starts aligned. Today, the hobby of trackchasing would not be difficult. That’s right! On this cloudy Saturday morning, Carol and I would each add two new tracks to our ever expanding totals and end up driving less than 200 miles to do it. I love it when a plan comes together.

 

 

 

The Trip

 

 

Have we had a ‘bad’ winter? 

We’ve had a cool winter in San Clemente this year. Since February 1, we have only had four days where the temperature was above 75 degrees. Heck, most of the high temperatures each day have been in the 60s. You’re not going to believe this but we actually had three days where the temperature topped out at 57-59 degrees! How does that compare to where you live?

 

 

Of course, this is the “rainy” season in SoCal as well. We don’t get any snow where we live. However, we did get 3.5” of rain in the nearly month and a half of weather since the beginning of February. Starting about April 1, we will not get enough rain to “wet a whistle” until at least next November. I guess compared to everyone else there isn’t much to complain about weather-wise. Nevertheless, since everyone complains about the weather I wanted to get my shot in!

  

 

It doesn’t get much easier than this. 

Today was a pretty easy trackchasing trip. We left the house at 10 a.m. and were pulling into the driveway just 12 hours later. During that period, we saw two new tracks at separate locations and experienced a “Trackchasing Tourist Attraction”. If trackchasing were always this easy, I might have twice as many tracks as I do at this point.

 

 

How do I keep up in this ‘dog eats dog’ hobby? 

I must say that even on an easy trip like this, I couldn’t do it without technology. You’ve all heard me talk about “Tonto” my loyal and ardent GPS traveling buddy. I loved Tonto. However, trackchasing is a “dog eat dog” competitive environment.

 

 

No one understands this better than my family. They don’t like to see or hear about anyone “catching up” to my trackchasing totals. That’s why they banded together to “upgrade” me from my loyal standard provided by “Tonto”.

 

 

They presented me with a more powerful GPS version. It’s still a Garmin. The model is the Nuvi 765T. As we travel along this year, I’ll tell you more about what it does and what it does better than “Tonto”. In the meantime, “Tonto” will still be working for the Lewis’. He’ll be up in Pasadena, helping J.J. navigate in the heavy Los Angeles traffic.

  

 

The beta test is complete. 

In the meantime, the Nuvi 765T has been in Beta testing for the last couple of trips. The machine has “passed” and is ready for full-time assignments. The Nuvi has worked well internationally (Finland) and on all domestic assignments.

  

 

Please help me welcome “Garth”! 

The final item in the “GPS indoctrination checklist” was to get an “official” name for my GPS unit. That name will be “Garth” in honor of our musical extravaganza in Las Vegas last month. “Garth” will now be moving me around the U.S. and the world. Welcome aboard, “Garth”!

 

 

Even on a short trip like the one we had today, we used “Garth” extensively. First, we needed to find a Subway Sandwich shop for an early lunch. As we were cruising along a California freeway, Garth put us in a position to get a foot long sub almost immediately. Later in the day we had time for a movie. First, my iPhone told us what theatres were nearby, what shows were playing and what time they would be shown. If you had needed to watch any movie “trailers”, the iPhone would have shown them to us. “Garth” then took over and got us to the theatre on time.

  

 

Tonight it was chilly, so we looked for some chili. 

Following the races, we were in the mood for chili. Wendy’s serves good chili quickly. “Garth” had us dribbling chili on our chins before we knew it. Of course, Garth got us to each track on time as well. I hope I don’t have any readers who was still trying to live in a world without GPS. You owe it to yourself to get the very most out of life, don’t you?

  

 

The People

 

 

Family is fun.

Carol and I just chilled out on this weekend. We didn’t interact much with our fellow racing people at the tracks we visited. We just enjoyed each other’s company. Later in the weekend, we had a fun time with the Peters’ clan. We love those grandbabies and their parents too.

 

 

 

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 usually 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.

 

 

She’s out of my league

AMC Victoria Theatre, Rancho Cucamonga, California

 

(AMC Victoria Theatre)

Carol and I go to the movies a few times each month. Today our first race ended at 2 p.m. We were less than an hour from the next track that would begin racing at 5:30 p.m. There was just enough time to “catch a flick”.

 

 

As you know, I like to see what can be seen when I travel. However, not all “Trackchasing Tourist Attractions” can be on the scale of a Garth Brooks concert. Today our TTA was a simple movie.

 

 

We didn’t have enough time to get lost searching for a movie theatre. “Garth” guaranteed an on-time arrival. Nevertheless, we wanted to understand what all of our movie viewing options would be. My iPhone app “Admit One” allowed us to consider movies at several somewhat nearby theatres as well as the starting times.

 

 

We also used the iPhone app “Green Tomatoes” for professional movie reviews. “Green Tomatoes” gives every movie a score of 1-100. Today’s pick “She’s out of my league” scored only a “51” on the Green Tomatoes rating chart. Normally, we wouldn’t consider a movie with a score that low. However, we needed a good location and a movie with the right kind of starting time so we wouldn’t be late for tonight’s new track visit.

 

 

We found just what we needed in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Maybe you’ve heard of “Rancho Cucamonga” on the Jay Leno show. There probably aren’t many states (none?) that have a town named Rancho Cucamonga.

 

 

If you liked “Something about Mary” (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0129387/), you would probably love “She’s out of my league” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/She%27s_Out_of_My_League). It was just pure fun with lots of laughs in what could have been a plausible story.  

 

 

I have several airline pilots and TSA airport personnel among my readership. If I was one of those folks I would want to see this movie. Try it; I think you will have a good time.

 

 

 

RACE REVIEW

 

GLEN HELEN RACEWAY – SHORT COURSE, SAN BENARDINO, CALIFORNIA

  

 

I’m a regular at the Glen Helen Raceway now.

This was my third trip up to San Bernardino in the past 90 days or so. Recall, I was rained out while trying to see racing on their larger 4.5-mile desert off-road road course in December. I returned to knock that one out in January.

 

  

This type of racing is a very close cousin to the “Stadium Off-Road” racing events that are becoming so popular primarily in the Far West. As you can see the flyer proudly proclaims “World Famous Land Rush Starts”. I’m not sure they know about these starts in Malta or Finland, but they do in the worldwide Quakertown, Pennsylvania trackchasing headquarters. That’s good enough for me. Land rush starts are what makes this type of racing countable.

  

 

A trackchasing first.

Several trackchasers have been to more than 100 tracks in an individual state. Today I saw my 112^th and 113^th lifetime tracks in the Golden state. However, I doubt than any trackchaser has ever seen two tracks at separate locations in a state after they had already seen more than 100 tracks in that state. If you search hard enough everyone gets a prize in trackchasing. It’s sort of like little league where “participation” trophies are given to every player.

 

  

Permanent and separate. 

The two off-road courses at the Glen Helen Raceway are both permanent and separate road courses. The track I saw in January is 4.5-miles long and has some significant elevation changes. At different points, the racing competitors disappear out of site.

 

 

Today’s 1-mile desert off-road course is for the most part flat except for some manmade jumps. The racers can be seen, albeit it at long distances sometimes, as they race around the entire track. There were some 6-8 jumps where the buggies and trucks can get some “air”. There are also at least three “oval like” banked turns where the racers throw up a rooster tail of dirt behind their spinning wheels.

 

 

Today there were four divisions racing. I’m not sure if the Pilots division was limited to folks younger than trackchaser adult status or not. There was no P.A. or announcing at the event. Beyond the Pilot class there were three other classes racing today. They were mainly what might be called “dune-buggies” by the novice fan. Each class raced two 15-minute “heat” races.

  

 

Famous land rush starts. 

The cars all started at the same time from a position similar to how U.K. autograss races are begun. They means every starter is in the “front row”. It’s fun to watch the competitors take the jumps and broad slide around the turns. These folks are “on the gas”. These “land rush” starts were able to offset the rule that some call one of the “Randy Rules” and make everything legal and countable.

 

 

We were able to watch the racing from the comfortable confines of the Carol Lewis owned (but Randy Lewis driven) and Life of Virginia sponsored Lexus LS 430. Since it was cloudy, with some wind and a temperature in the low 60s watching from “indoors” was a good idea.

  

 

This was almost a severe ‘I told you so’. 

I parked Carol’s car within 30 yards of the racetrack surface. A “dry gulch”, yes that’s an old western term reserved for desert racing locations like today, separated the racetrack from our car. Of course, Carol tossed out the “mandatory caution” that we were parking too close to the track. Like most of her cautions, I dismissed this one.

 

 

It wasn’t 15 minutes later when a buggy came flying over one of the track’s jumps, lost control and flipped into the “dry gulch” within a few feet of Carol’s luxury automobile. For all of you who are married, you know what was coming next. I was lucky to be standing outside the car when this flipping machine came flying by. I actually got a shot of it in mid-flip. Luckily, for me, Carol had somehow missed this major wreck. When I tapped on the window to pointed in the direction of the still steaming upside down racer, she was surprised!!

 

 

When the main racing was finished at the Glen Helen Raceway there was time for a short “Trackchasing Tourist Attraction” before heading out too our evening event.

 

 

 

PERRIS AUTO SPEEDWAY, PERRIS, CALIFORNIA

 

 

This was news to me. 

I wasn’t even aware that the Perris Auto Speedway was having races on an inner oval until someone mentioned it on the Trackchasers Yahoo forum. At the time, I thought the only countable class to use that track would be the NMRA TQ midgets. In actuality, the factory stock class also races on the inner oval.

 

 

The smaller track was referred to by the announcer as a “quarter-mile track” while he labeled the outer oval the “half-mile track”. I’m pretty sure one track was not twice as long as the smaller track. The two tracks share the same straightaway. The turns of each track are separated by an unwatered dirt “berm” and a series of highway safety cones. The racing groove of each track is probably 50-60 feet apart. The dirt berm in turns three and four is wider than the berm in turns one and two.

  

 

One of the best. 

The Perris Auto Speedway aka “The PAS” is arguably one of the best dirt track racing facilities in the country. The PAS replaced the famous Ascot Park that closed in the early 90s. The USAC wingless sprint cars are the premier class at the PAS. They race an average of twice a month here.

  

 

This track also plays host to stock car racing when the sprint cars aren’t here. Southern California has never offered much in QUALITY dirt stock car racing. I’m from Illinois originally. There is nowhere in the world that offers the quality of the dirt track oval racing featured in the Midwest. There’s just no question about that.

 

 

Tonight’s racing included street stocks, factory stocks, modifieds, sport mods, California Lightning sprint cars (winged) and the NMRA TQ midgets. Each class ran a 5-7 car 6-lap heat races and a 20-lap feature. The smaller sprint cars brought the most competitors with twenty. The sport mods had just four competitors and combined their feature event with the modified class.

 

 

 

Not all that great.

The racing wasn’t all that great. Heat races with smaller car counts are not that exciting. Fortunately, there were few yellows in these short 6-lap races. We stayed for four of six feature events. The California Lightning sprints put on the best show of the bunch.

 

 

I was surprised to see that the factory stock division also races on the inner oval. I wondered if they had been doing that last year and before. The factory stocks only had enough cars for one heat race.

 

 

The speaker system, track lights and track announcer are all above and beyond top notch. The announcer is very informative and entertaining. The track does a good job of interviewing the top three finishers in each feature event with a remote microphone and second announcer.

  

 

Remember, we’re ‘retired pensioners’. 

About the only complaint I have about the PAS are the prices. Tonight’s admission price was a reasonable nine dollars. However, the wingless sprint cars ask $15 from each customer. I was surprised by a sign at the ticket window that read, “Seniors – $9”. Since general admission was also nine dollars, I took the “Seniors – $9” sign to mean “Don’t ask”. This was the first time ever that I have ever seen a posted “senior” price that was the same as general admission!

  

 

For all those ‘NASCAR haters’. 

From time to time, I have to read how the NASCAR fan is price gouged. Oh my! I doubt the folks who complain about NASCAR in this area have much justifiable rationale to back up these claims.

 

 

I would suggest the “NASCAR haters” switch allegiances and become “Perris Auto Speedway” haters if expense is a major concern to them. The PAS charges an annoying five dollars to park at a track that is out in the boonies. I can’t ever recall having to pay to park on a NASCAR track property. The PAS offers a wide variety of food and drink. They even sell wine!

 

 

However, who ever heard of paying $5.25 for a root beer float. A track cheeseburger, although good-sized is EIGHT DOLLARS AND TWENTY-FIVE CENTS! Are you kidding me? I can get a double-cheeseburger for a buck at McDonalds. I can’t ever recall a cheeseburger being as much as eight dollars at a NASCAR track. Come on “NASCAR haters”. Isn’t it time to change teams?

 

 

 

 

STATE COMPARISONS

 

 

 

California

Today I saw my 112^th and 113^th lifetime tracks in California. Carol was seeing her 65^th and 66^th lifetime Golden state tracks. That gives me a second place ranking and her a fourth place standing in California. The greatest “race chaser” of all time leads in our state. I’m talking about the late Gary Jacob who has seen 149 tracks here.

 

 

Frankly, I didn’t even have the quarter-mile oval at the PAS on my radar screen until this trip was planned. I know of four somewhat active tracks that race in California where I have not visited. I’ll try to see those locations whenever time and scheduling permits.

 

 

 

Coming Soon – RANLAY Racing Exclusive Features!

Trackchasing politics revealed….they’re about ready to kill each other.

 

 

Has a conspiracy been committed in the international tracks “counting world”?

 

 

2009 Annual National Geographic Diversity results are being computed as we speak.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser

Remember half the people you know are below average.

 

 

 

 

TRAVEL DETAILS

 

 

AIRPLANE

No planes!!

 

 

RENTAL CAR #1 

No rental cars!!

 

 

Personal Car 

San Clemente, CA – trip begins

San Bernardino, CA – 71 miles

Perris, CA – 97 miles

San Clemente, CA – 171 miles – trip ends

 

 

Total air miles – 0 (0 flights)

Total rental car miles – 0 (0 cars)

Personal car miles – 171 miles

 

 

 

Total miles traveled on this trip – 171 miles

 

 

 

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES: 

Glen Helen Raceway – $10

Perris Auto Speedway – $9

 

 

Total racetrack admissions for the trip – $19

 

 

 

COMPARISONS

 

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS 

 

 

There are no trackchasers currently within 200 tracks of my lifetime total.

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,529

 

2. Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 1,262

 

3. Guy “The Kid” Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania – 1,255

 

 

 

 

 

 

Official end of RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report

 

 

 

 

Click on the link below to see the video production from the racing action today.

 

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

The Oval Track Nationals from the Perris Auto Speedway