Reprinted with permission from my June 28, 2009 Trackchaser Report

 

 

On this date back in 2009 I ended up seeing racing at three different tracks, one in Ohio, one in Indiana and one in Illinois. This page will tell you about my visits to all of those tracks.

 

 

 

DAYS 6&7 – “SUMMERTIME, THE TIME TO MAKE TRACKCHASING HAY” TRACKCHASING TOUR

 

 

 

 

Cutting back….truth or fiction?

Beginning in 2008, I announced a plan to cut back on my trackchasing. Why would I want to cut back? It’s really rather simple. There’s just so much more to do in life than spend all of my time trackchasing. That doesn’t mean I want to stop chasing tracks. It just means “everything in moderation”. So…..how am I doing?

 

 

I think rather well. I typically go trackchasing more days during the second half of the year than the first half. Below you will see the number of days I trackchased from Jan.-Jun. during the past five years and the number of days I trackchased for the entire year during this period. You will notice a significant cutback in 2008 from the previous three years. I expect this year to be very close to the results achieved in 2009. I find the best way for me to achieve the results I am looking for is to first establish a goal and then monitor my results with data to see if I’m meeting the goal. This approach works well for me.

 

 

 

Year          6 month total                12 month total

 

 

2009          44                                75-80 (estimated)

 

2008          49                                81

 

2007          55                                119

 

2006          55                                115

 

2005          49                                121

 

 

 

 

You get to decide.

Here’s the real kicker regarding you, the Randy Lewis Racing Trackchaser Report reader, and the data presented in each of these reports. Each of you has been screened for superior intelligence…..and passed! You can read the data, interpret it and decide for yourself whether the data supports or not the point I think it does.

 

 

 

 

GREETINGS FROM PUTNAM, OHIO THEN HARTFORD CITY, INDIANA AND FINALLY ALEXANDER, ILLINOIS

 

 

 

TODAY’S HEADLINES

 

 

What if we limited each trackchaser to only one track per day? …………..details in “The Objective”.

 

 

Today I went trackchasing at three different tracks in three different states …………..details in “The Objective”.

 

 

Today I just kept driving and driving………………more in “The Trip”.

 

 

It’s always nice to make a new friend…………..details in “The People”.

 

 

 

 

 

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

I will maintain my policy of affording anonymity to readers who send in interesting bits of information or who provide cutting edge analysis.

 

 

FROM THE BEST READERS IN RACING

I received a large number of responses from my readers regarding my drag racing adventures earlier in the trip. Maybe it’s because I don’t go to many drag races, but everyone including my fellow golfers mentioned the Norwalk, Ohio drag racing report.

 

 

I also had one fellow golfer, state, “You’ve got to be driving those other trackchasers absolutely crazy” with your trackchasing intensity. Let me be perfectly clear. It is not my intention to drive my trackchasing competitors crazy. I cannot control how anyone else might react to my trackchasing achievements. That’s what is cool about my trackchasing and its impact on others. Everyone gets to choose what their reaction will be to whatever comes into their life.

 

 

Thanks to everyone who takes the time to write. I appreciate it.

 

 

First I drove more than 100 miles to Ottawa, Ohio. Then I drove another 100 miles to Hartford City, Indiana. Just to make the day more complete I then drove 300 miles over to Alexander, Illinois. From there I capped off the day with a drive up to Chicago’s O’Hare airport of more than 250 miles. The next morning I would fly from Chicago to Salt Lake City and then onto Long Beach, California. This is what transpired on days 6&7 of my 19^th trackchasing flying trip of the 2009 trackchasing season.

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

The Objective 

 

 

Three tracks…three states….one day.

Today I went trackchasing at three different tracks in three different states. I don’t think I’ve ever done that before and I don’t think anyone else has either, although I didn’t look it up.

 

 

It order to achieve the above, I had to leave the first two tracks after seeing the countable classes race just one race. However, I was following the protocol established by our trackchasing’s forefathers, so that seemed about right to me.

 

 

The first two tracks I visited today were “kart” tracks. At the first track, the Putnam Speed Park, there was only one countable class of cars (seven caged karts) out of about ten classes that were racing today. The second track, the Sigma Phi Gamma Park, had two (I think) countable classes out of eight groups running today. It is common trackchaser practice for a chaser to watch a race for each of the countable classes and then depart. That’s what I did today.

 

 

 

The two “Cs” of trackchasing ….complaining and competition.

We have a select group of trackchasers who complain strongly or to say it more directly “bitch and moan” about me leaving a track early in order to go to another track. Yes, some of these “constant complainers” also leave the very same tracks early but they seem to overlook that fact. I believe all of the complainers are the very same people who claim that “trackchasing is not a competition”. Some folks think of trackchasing as a competition and some do not. I have no problem with that. It would just seems to me that the folks who like to say “trackchasing is not a competition” would not be the very same folks complaining about how other people see tracks. Ya, I’m just sayin’.

 

 

 

What does this data tell you? 

I had 12 minutes while I was waiting in the Salt Lake City airport so I thought I would do a brief analysis. It is true. This analysis took me just 12 minutes to complete. We have trackchasers who see more than one track each day. Some see a track in the afternoon and then another at night. Some trackchasers will watch part of one program in the evening and then go visit another track that same night. Still others, most recently, seem to see more than two tracks in a single evening. Although I don’t do that, some folks like to trackchase in that manner.

 

 

I wanted to do an analysis on how many trackchasing DAYS each top 10 world trackchaser has trackchased in a single year. This method of scorekeeping does not give credit for seeing more than one track per day. I have long been a supporter of establishing a maximum of one track per day as a cost-cutting means. Although I am often referred to as the “Bill Gates” of trackchasing, none of the “low-dollar” trackchasers has ever supported the cost-cutting move of limiting the number of tracks seen in one day.

 

 

So……let’s get on with my analysis. Below you will see a table with five columns of data. The first column lists the name of each trackchaser who is currently in the worldwide top ten. The second column lists the percentage of total trackchasing days where a specific date has been listed. This data came from www.autoracingrecords.com a website that measured such things back in 2009. I don’t think that information is currently available on this site. As an example, I have listed a specific date for 93% of the tracks I have seen. For the first 80 tracks I saw (7%) I was not keeping track by date of when I saw the race. For me, all of these tracks were seen prior to 1980. On the other end of the spectrum, trackchaser John Moore has included specific dates for just 8% of the tracks he has seen. There is no requirement to submit a specific date when a track submission is sent to the unofficial trackchaser commissioner, Will White.

 

 

The third column from the table below shows the number of trackchasing days where a trackchaser has seen at least one track and assigned a specific date to that track submission. In point of fact, the trackchaser may have seen two, three or even four tracks in a single day. Nevertheless, the chaser is credited with “one trackchasing day” regardless of how many tracks were seen. Again, as an example, I have seen at least one track or more on 1,069 separate days. Rick Schneider has attached specific dates to just 146 of his trackchasing days. It is important to note that I am NOT making a judgment about anyone. I am simply reporting the data. You the reader can come to your own conclusions.

 

 

The fourth column lists the number of tracks that a chaser has seen where no specific date has been submitted. Sometimes we know the year the track was seen and sometimes we only know the trackchaser has been to that track sometime in the past. As an example, Gordon Killian lists an even 600 tracks on his resume with no specific date attached to any of them! For the sake of this analysis I have “credited” each trackchaser with a “full day” of trackchasing for each of these undated tracks. However, it is a virtual certainty, in this example, that Gordon Killian did not see these 600 undated tracks on 600 individual days. Apparently, no one can ever identify exactly how many trackchasing days a trackchaser needed to see each of the undated tracks on their list. It is more than safe to say that a trackchaser went trackchasing on some number of days LESS than the total number of undated tracks credited to his total.

 

 

The fifth and final column is the total number of trackchasing days a trackchaser could have possibly accomplished through May 15, 2009. I used this date because www.autoracingrecords.com is updated through May 15, 2009. I think this is the most precise way of “estimating” the total number of trackchasing days each chaser has to his credit.

 

 

You might notice that Guy Smith (99.0%) and Andy Sivi (96.6%) have done the best job of submitting a specific date with each new track they have recorded. This should not be surprising. Mr. Smith is a schoolteacher and Mr. Sivi is a Certified Public Accountant. Other trackchasers have done a decent job of identifying a specific date for each new track as well including: Lewis (93.0%), Brown (91.8%), Hollebrand (86.4%) and Erdmann (86.2%). On the other hand, four of the top ten have not been able to submit complete records (date-wise) for the tracks they are credited with. These include Esser (63.3%), Killian (45.2%), Schneider (13.5%) and Moore (8.0%).

 

 

This is in no way meant to be critical of the trackchasers who have not submitted individual dates for each track they have seen. No one is questioning whether they have seen these tracks or not. However, in this analysis, I gave each trackchaser credit for a full day of trackchasing for each undated track they saw. Guy Smith has just 11 tracks to his credit that don’t have a date attached to each of these tracks. Guy may have seen a trackchasing double or two on the days he saw these eleven tracks. If he saw, again by example, two doubles with these 11 tracks, he would have nine trackchasing days from this group and not eleven.

 

 

On the other hand, John Moore has 759 tracks submitted without a specific date attached. Let’s say Mr. Moore saw trackchasing doubles on 10% of the days when these 759 tracks were seen. That would lower his “trackchasing days” by about seventy-five. I think you can see that any trackchaser who has a large number of tracks, without a specific date attached, is being “over-credited” with trackchasing days in this analysis. Nevertheless, I don’t know how else to more accurately figure it! Now that it has taken me 20 minutes to explain an analysis I did in 12 minutes on an Excel spreadsheet, below I present the data.

 

 

Name            % tracks        t/c days    t/c days total  Total T/C days

                     w/date                            w/no date

 Lewis          93.0%             1,069                80            1,149

 Killian          45.2%             494                  600           1,094

 Esser          63.3%             686                   397           1,083

 Schneider   13.5%             146                  933            1,079

 Brown         91.8%             984                  88              1,072

 Smith          99.0%            1,045                11              1,056

 Sivi             96.6%            849                   30                879

 Erdmann    86.2%            738                   118              856

 Moore          8.0%               66                  759              825

 P.J. Hollebrand    86.4%    688                 108              796

 

 

This is the data. What should we take from this data? First, we know that the effect of seeing more than one track in a single day has been taken out of the totals of column #3. However, seeing more than one track in a single day HAS NOT been taken out of the column #4 totals. For the trackchasers who have submitted specific dates for more than 85% of their track submissions, their number of trackchasing days should be fairly accurate.

 

 

I would guess that the trackchasers who have not submitted many specific dates (Killian, Esser, Schneider, Moore), have been credited with significantly more trackchasing days (column #4) than they actually saw if we could factor out their trackchasing doubles. It is also important to note that Mr. Schneider has stopped reporting a significant number of his tracks over the past few years due to political squabbles with the trackchasing hierarchy.

 

 

 

The conclusion.

In conclusion, the above analysis might be a good way to look at the trackchaser standings if one has a desire to factor out seeing more than one track on a single trackchasing day. In the big picture the standings changes to some degree but not very much. I hope you have enjoyed reading and understanding this analysis.

 

 

Factoring out all of the tracks I have seen, beyond one per day, still shows me as having trackchasing on more days than anyone else. The margin would be even more significant if the data could accurately remove the tracks seen, in addition to one each day, for the competitors who have not assigned any dates to their visits.

 

 

 

The Trip

 

 

Would the weather win today?

During the first four days of the trip, I had driven just over 1,500 miles in my National Rental Car Racing Hyundai Sonata. I had seen just three tracks despite this much driving. My final day of trackchasing (Sunday) brought a poor weather forecast with it. Was I going to end up driving more than 2,000 miles only to add three tracks to my total?

 

 

The short answer was “No”. I woke up early and left my “homeless shelter” type motel in Clyde, Ohio. After an Egg McMuffin, I was headed east to Ottawa, Ohio. Along the way, it began to rain. However, I was not worried. My Weather Channel iPhone app told me the chance of rain where I was going, although just 100 miles away, was zero! The radar map on my iPhone also showed no rain in the Ottawa, Ohio area.

 

 

When my work was finished at the Putnam Speed Park, I decided to chance seeing some racing action in Hartford City, Indiana. Their program was scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. The best I could do was get there by 4 p.m. I didn’t know if they would still be racing when I got there or not. Hartford City was another 100 miles to the east.

 

 

 

Sigma Phi Gamma Park….the first race ever.

Today’s track operated with the most unusual name of “Sigma Phi Gamma Park”. This is the first time there has ever been countable racing in this city park. I was going trackchasing in Indiana. Yes, this was “Hoosier” country. Indiana would be the 23^rd state where I have trackchased in 2009. Indiana trackchasing is dominated by one Roger Ferrell. Roger is from Majenica, Indiana. Roger had seen 117 different tracks in Indiana. The next best chaser has seen only 78 there.

 

 

Roger’s home in Majenica is only 24 miles from today’s track in Hartford City. I figured for sure that Roger would be here today. Actually, I had been hoping to receive an invitation from Roger for me to join him at today’s race. However, when the phone didn’t ring, I knew it wasn’t Roger! Nevertheless, I looked all over the grounds and didn’t see Roger. Maybe he missed this one.

 

 

Maybe I could.

I spent more than an hour watching the races on this custom made oval at the Hartford City public park. There were just two countable classes of senior champ karts racing. It was now just past 5 p.m., Eastern time in Indiana. I had an idea. Could I make it three new tracks in three states in one day? Maybe, I could.

 

 

The brand new Shepp’s Speedway was just 300 miles “down the road” over in Alexander, Illinois. I would save an hour moving from the Eastern time zone to the Central time zone. I figured I could make it just before sunset. As it was, I arrived about 15 minutes after sunset. I would have made it on time, except I didn’t trust “Tonto” when we were driving through Indianapolis. Sorry little buddy, I’ll listen to you next time. I still got to the track in time to get several good pictures.

 

 

Following the above average races at the Shepp’s Speedway I drove northward toward Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. I had driven more than 500 miles from where I woke up this morning until I arrived at the Shepp’s Speedway. What would an extra 250 miles be just getting up to the airport?

 

 

With trackchasing there is no time for sleep.

I arrived at my airport hotel at about 2 a.m. early on Monday morning. My odometer for the day read more than 750 miles. My odometer for the five days I had my rental car read more than 2,300 miles. I had just five hours in my hotel before the alarm went off. With so little sleep I hurriedly returned my rental car and was off to the airport.

 

 

Airlines have cut back on the number of flights they are flying. It is also the peak of tourist season in the middle of the U.S. summer. This makes utilizing my flight sponsorships difficult but not impossible. First, I tried a couple of non-stop flights from Chicago to SoCal. I missed the first one by just one seat and the second one by several.

 

 

I needed a new strategy. I decided to fly to Salt Lake City and then take my chances on a flight to one of SoCal’s six commercial airports. That worked. Soon I was landing at the Long Beach Municipal Airport and not long after was in the loving arms of Trackchasing’s First Mother.

 

 

Home at last!

I had just wrapped up the first six months of trackchasing. I would now spend one of the longest periods of time just hanging out in my hometown of San Clemente. I would be home for 11 days. However, from there I will embark on my longest trip, in number of days, of all of 2009. You’ll be able to read about every last detail right here in the pages of the Randy Lewis Racing Trackchaser Report.

 

 

 

The People

 

 

Tonight I met a new friend.

I arrived at the Shepp’s Speedway just before intermission. During intermission the track’s announcer gave me a glowing welcome over the P.A. system. It’s funny, I had spent the afternoon, first in Ohio and then in Indiana. The evening would be reserved for Illinois. With all of that going on how in the world did the Shepp’s announcer know that I was in the audience and somewhat worthy of a “trackchaser mention”? Only the Shadow knows.

 

 

When I do get a nice welcome to a track, it is common for the people seated next to me to extend a welcome to their hometown racing facility. That was the case at the Shepp’s Speedway. As the features began to lineup, I grabbed a seat next to a fan in the top row of the mostly packed grandstand.

 

 

We started to converse about tonight’s program. The fan soon recognized that “I wasn’t from around here”. He then deduced that I must be “that guy who goes around seeing all those tracks”. Yes, I was.

 

 

I was interested in this fellow’s take on the local Illinois tracks since I am originally from Illinois. He was also interested in the places I had been in my trackchasing time. We got along well and most enjoyed each other’s company. I gave him a business card and encouraged him to take a look at my website. My new friend did just that. He was nice enough to sign my website guest book and to become a member of my “friend’s list”. This is a list of people who I have met along the road and who have signed up to receive my Trackchaser Reports. I am blessed to have more than 1,000 such people on every continent in this big world of ours on that list. I know that everyone cannot read every word. I’m just glad when anyone reads about my hobby and finds some enjoyment in that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

RACE REVIEW

 

PUTNAM SPEED PARK, OTTAWA, OHIO

 

 

A carnival, a circus and a new track!

Once I got past the rain on the early part of this drive I was almost home free. However, the only countable trackchasing class the Putnam Speed Park was likely to have was caged karts (aka senior champ karts) driven by adults. Since I’ve been shut out twice this year at tracks that were supposed to have this class I am always leery until I see what I need to see.

 

 

Today’s kart track is a small dirt oval. It is a permanent track located inside an old fairgrounds half-mile oval. The half-mile oval has likely been used more for horses than automobiles. Today’s racing was part of the county fair. This was the last day of the fair.

 

 

Since I arrived early I took a short walk through the fairgrounds. I was amazed at all of the unhealthy but tasty food choices available to the fair goer. I also stopped to take in the beginning of the 1 p.m. performance of the Star Family Circus. Of course, photos of the circus and be seen behind the photos tab.

 

 

This afternoon’s go-kart racing would be followed by an evening performance of demolition derby racing in front of the large covered county fair grandstand. This was good for me. It meant they had to keep the go-kart show moving. They did a pretty good job of that. It was also helpful that the caged karts ran 4^th out of nine divisions competing today. The caged karts were the only “trackchasing countable” class racing today. All but the caged karts and one other class had enough entrants for multiple heat races. The caged karts brought seven racers to the track today. The announcer told us this was the largest car count from this class ever.

 

 

I enjoyed today’s flat kart racing. I saw about eight heat races before the caged karts were up. The announcer told us that each class would run two heat races and a feature. However, I was going to follow trackchasing’s protocol and call it an afternoon following the first seven-kart heat of “caged karts”. They put on an O.K. race and I was headed westward. I had been at the Putnam Speed Park for nearly three hours. During that time I had visited the carnival area, saw a circus performance and some auto racing. I felt I had gotten my money’s worth ($5 fair admission, $5 race track admission).

 

 

 

SIGMA PHI GAMMA PARK, HARTFORD CITY, INDIANA

 

 

The inaugural run for this public park.

In a couple of weeks I will be back for a golf outing/reunion with my Delta Sigma Pi fraternity brothers from Northern Illinois. However, today I had no fraternal involvement with the Sigma Phi Gamma Park racetrack. In point of fact, I had some difficulty even finding the place.

 

 

I had no difficulty finding the small Indiana town of Hartford City. I figured the race might be downtown around the city square. I drove down there but didn’t find any racing action. I asked a local for directions. He got me to the racetrack in good shape. The track was in a local park, the Sigma Phi Gamma Park.

 

 

Racing was scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. I arrived at 3:55 p.m. I feared the racing might be over by the time I got there. Never fear, most racing runs behind schedule and they were behind schedule today. This track did not have a P.A. system. At first I wasn’t sure what classes I was watching or what races they were running.

 

 

This was later cleared up when a free two-page program was handed out. The program told me I was watching the Hartford City Heritage Cup race. I had been in contact with the promoters earlier in the week. The Pickett brothers, Rodd and Todd (do you think they are twins) were both prompt and helpful in returning my phone calls. Sometimes that is not the case.

 

 

Today there were eight classes of karts on the program. From the best I could tell, just two of them, the “senior animal champs” and the “senior champs” were trackchasing countable. That was good enough for me.

 

 

The track was a makeshift oval of sorts. The racing surface was asphalt. The front stretch seemed to be the parking lot for the city park. The backstretch ran past some residential housing. I estimate the track’s distance at about ¼-mile. There were hay bales spread around the track. It didn’t take long for the hay bales to come “undone” after being hit a few (several?) times. This caused many caution flags for “debris”.

 

 

Overall, this was a fun place to watch a race for an hour and a half. Probably what made it the most fun was the fact that this was the first time countable racing had ever taken place here. I looked around for other trackchasers but didn’t see any. Had I found this place all by myself when there are major Midwestern and Eastern trackchasing conglomerates whose sole mission in life is to root out little tracks like this? Where was Roger Ferrell? These are questions that remained unanswered as I spent a sunny afternoon in a small town city park. Don’t miss the pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

SHEPP’S SPEEDWAY, ALEXANDER, ILLINOIS

 

 

How bad did I want it?

Before I headed over to the Shepp’s Speedway I had to ask myself a question. How bad did I want it? I had already driven more than 200 miles today. If I bagged the idea of driving to Illinois for the Shepp’s program I would still have more than 200 miles to drive to reach Chicago’s O’Hare Airport for my trip back to California. There were no NGD points to be gained. Finally, I was going to be back out here for a golf outing in a month or so. I could go to Shepp’s following the golf on that Sunday.

 

 

However…..today was a sunny and beautiful Midwestern day. In a month it might be raining on the day I would want to go to the Shepp’s Speedway in Alexander, Illinois. My motto is “there is no time like the present”. I like to do “everything today”. That way if I like what I did today, I can do it again tomorrow if I want. I was off to Illinois.

 

 

However…..it was slightly more than 300 miles to the Illinois track from where I was in Indiana. Following the race at Shepp’s I would have 250 miles up to O’Hare. When I made the decision to leave the Sigma Phi Gamma Park it was with the full knowledge that I would have 550 miles more driving before my head hit the hotel pillow. Not a problem, I survived Marine Corps boot camp. This would be, comparatively, a breeze.

 

 

I had one minor advantage to this trip plan. I would “gain” an hour driving from the Eastern Time Zone to the Central Time Zone. However, I would also have to drive through Indianapolis. I’ve had problems driving through Indy before. I did today as well. I decided to outguess “Tonto” as he tried to direct me around I-465. Bad move on my part. I should never try to second-guess my “loyal and ardent” GPS buddy.

 

 

I can’t wait to go back.

I reached the Shepp’s Speedway in Alexander, Illinois at about 15 minutes past sunset. My iPhone told me that sunset would be 8:32 p.m. There was still enough light to get some good pictures though. The biggest challenge was crossing the highway from the track’s parking lot to the track itself. Once I made that crossing I was in the “three tracks in three states in one day” clover. No one had ever done that before….I don’t think. I’m sure if someone has they will speak up.

 

 

If I could go to only one type of track it would be exactly like the Shepp’s Speedway. It is a banked ¼-mile dirt oval. This is my absolute favorite. You can sit in the front row here and it looks like the sportsman stock car division cars are going to race right into your lap. It’s better than high-definition TV. I thought the track looked just like my all-time favorite, the Peoria Speedway. A local fan I spoke with told me the track was built to replicate the “Little Springfield” track that closed a long time ago. I never made it to that track, although I either visited it on a day it was not running or got there after they were rained out. My memory is foggy on that one.

 

 

As mentioned the announcer gave me a great “trackchaser mention”. The track had several different food choices including pork chop and rib eye sandwiches. You would not expect anything less from Midwestern farm country. They also had a large souvenir offering.

 

 

Tonight’s racing was taking place on a Sunday night. This track had only opened in 2009. Given the above two statements I would have expected a small crowd. Wrong! They had a great crowd on hand.

 

 

I arrived just in time to see the last sprint car heat race before intermission. I could tell from that race that it was going to be dirty. I had my yellow tinted racing goggles with me. I don’t always bring them. However, I was seeing some high-powered racecars during this trip that would require these goggles. The best thing about them being yellow-tinted is that a nighttime race almost looks like it’s being run in the daylight.

 

 

The interlude allowed me to cross that dreaded highway in the dark so I could retrieve a sweatshirt. It was now getting chilly. Nevertheless, I had driven more than 500 miles today and would now be treated to feature racing on a quarter mile dirt track. It don’t get no better dan dat.

 

 

Tonight’s program featured winged sprint car racing, mini-sprints, sportsman, street stocks and sportsman. The car counts ranged in the 12-15 for most classes. On a track this small that was a perfect number.

 

 

I was able to see four of the five scheduled features (I didn’t stay for the hornets). I met a fan during the racing activity. He gave me the scoop on the local track racing activity. He felt that the Shepp’s Speedway might move away from Sundays in the future and might put the local dirt track in nearby Jacksonville, Illinois out of business.

 

 

Overall, I was glad I made the decision to visit the Shepp’s Speedway. This is one of the relatively few tracks I might like to re-visit in the future. Following the racing it was a long 250 miles up to Chicago. I arrived at my hotel at 2 a.m. and had only five hours to use it. I’m lucky Priceline gave me a good rate.

 

 

You’re up to date now.

Overall, this was another wonderful trackchasing trip. However……my next trackchasing trip will dwarf this in duration and miles covered. If you are reading this before July 10, 2009, you are completely up to date now with my trackchasing activity.

 

 

 

 

STATE COMPARISONS

Ohio

This afternoon I saw my 55th lifetime track in Ohio. This puts me into 9^th place all by myself, if you credit Ed Esser with 54 Ohio tracks. He has reported that many but the missing in action trackchaser commissioner has only credited him with 52 tracks in the Buckeye state. I’ll give Ed the benefit of the doubt. This pushes Ed down one notch in the standings and pushed the two trackchasers with 52 Ohio tracks completely out of the top ten. Norm Wagner leads in his home state with 122 tracks.

 

 

 

Indiana

This afternoon I saw my 61^st lifetime track in the Hoosier state. This breaks a tie with Andy Sivi who has 60 tracks in Indiana. Andy and I were tied for 7^th place here. Now I hold sole possession of seventh and Andy is relegated to eighth place. I don’t get any more NGD points, because I remained in seventh. I trail the deceased Pappy Hough by six tracks. Since I’m that far out of sixth place in Indiana I won’t put any focus on trackchasing here for the time being. Roger Ferrell has a commanding 39-track lead over both Allan Brown and Jack Erdmann. As mentioned, Roger has seen a stunning 117 tracks in his home state.

 

Illinois

This evening I saw my 73^rd lifetime track in the Land of Lincoln. This gives me a second place ranking in my native state (Yes, I was born here). I lead Jack Erdmann by six tracks. Since I trail first place by 19 tracks and have no serious challengers that might try to lower my ranking, Illinois will not get any serious NGD attention. It pains me to say that Ed Esser is beating me in my native state. He currently holds the leadership position with a strong 92 tracks. O.K., it doesn’t really “pain me” to recognize Ed’s achievements in the least. When folks beat me in trackchasing they’ve done well and deserve my most heartfelt admiration.

 

 

 

RENTAL CAR UPDATE

 

 

Chicago, IL – Wednesday/Monday

My National Rental Car Racing Hyundai Sonata was a worthwhile car to drive more than 2,300 miles in over five days. I used my XM satellite radio to listen to more than 40 hours of Michael Jackson coverage.

 

 

I paid an average price of $2.54 per gallon. Gas is fairly cheap in the Midwest. The Sonata gave me a healthy 31.8 miles per gallon in fuel mileage at a cost of 8.3 cents per mile. The car cost 12.9 cents per mile to rent, all taxes included. Rental cars are getting more expensive as rental car companies cut back on their supply of vehicles.

 

 

 

 

Coming soon – Exclusive features!

 

 

Why I fear Ed Esser. (Delayed! Coming, hopefully, by July 31, 2009).

 

 

My six-month trackchasing budget results (coming July, 2009)

 

 

My objective is to be a balanced trackchaser in eleven key trackchasing comparisons (more info coming in Trackchaser Report #1,454)

 

 

How do fellow P&G retirees really think? (Coming in Trackchaser Report #1,464)

 

 

What is Randy’s (speaking in the third person) trackchasing future? (Coming August, 2009)

 

 

Who have been Randy’s three toughest trackchasing competitors? (Coming soon)

 

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser

God is watching…..look busy.

 

 

 

 

TRAVEL DETAILS

 

AIRPLANE

Los Angeles, CA – Minneapolis, MN – 1,535 miles

Minneapolis, MN – Chicago, IL – 349 miles

 

 

RENTAL CAR

O’Hare International Airport – trip begins

Waynesfield, OH – 262 miles

Atwood, TN – 808 miles

Carrothers, OH – 1,536 miles

Ottawa, OH – 1,657 miles

Hartford City, IN – 1,763 miles

Alexander, IL – 2,073 miles

O’Hare International Airport – 2,311 miles – trip ends

 

AIRPLANE

Chicago, IL – Salt Lake City, UT – 1,247 miles

Salt Lake City, UT – Long Beach, CA – 590 miles

 

 

Total Air miles – 3,721 (4 flights)

 

 

Total auto and air miles traveled on this trip – 6,032 miles

 

 

 

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES: 

Waynesfield Motorsports Park – $20 (no senior rate)

Clayhill Motorsports Park – $30 pit pass

Lil’ Indy – $10 pit pass

Putnam Speed Park – $5 (plus $5 fair admission)

Sigma Phi Gamma Park – Free

Shepp’s Speedway – $10

 

 

Total racetrack admissions for the trip – $75

 

 

 

 

COMPARISONS

 

 

LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS

 

Past Champions

2003 – Allan Brown

2004 – Gordon Killian

2005 – Gordon Killian

2006 – Gordon Killian

2007 – Randy Lewis

2008 – Gordon Killian

 

 

Top 10 – Final 2008 lifetime National Geographic Diversity standings.

 

1. Gordon Killian, Sinking Spring, PA – 5.96
2. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, CA – 6.02
3. Allan Brown, Comstock Park, MI – 7.98
4. Ed Esser, Madison, WI – 8.33
5. Guy Smith, Effort, PA – 9.16
6. Rich Schneider, Bay Shore, NY – 9.33
7. Andy Sivi, Clairton, PA – 9.59
8. Jack Erdmann, DePere, WI – 10.61
9. John Moore, Knoxville, TN – 10.76
10. Will White, Quakertown, PA – 11.90

 

 

 

 

Current 2009 lifetime NGD leader board

Note: When a trackchaser improves his or her state ranking that reduces the NGD score. The objective is to get a low score. As an example, by improving from sixth to fourth in a particular state the NGD score goes from six to four. That equates to a net change of -2. Conversely when a trackchaser falls in the state rankings from seventh to tenth, the NGD score goes from 7 to 10, a net change of +3.

 

As an example, when you see “Alabama -6” that means the trackchaser has improved his state ranking in Alabama by six positions. If the scorecard reads “Alabama +4”, the chaser has fallen by four positions in that state. Notably, an individual trackchaser’s ranking is affected by any other trackchaser that moves ahead of him/her.

 

 

Randy Lewis – current score = 5.41 (tracks posted thru June 28)

2009 changes

Connecticut -6

Maine -6

New Hampshire -11

North Dakota -1

Rhode Island – 8

Texas +1

Net changes -31

 

 

 

Gordon Killian – current score = 5.88 (tracks posted thru May 15)

2009 changes

Georgia -6

Kansas +1

New Jersey +1

North Dakota +1

Ohio -1

Rhode Island -1

South Carolina +2

Net changes -3

 

 

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS UPDATE:

 

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

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,452

 

 

 

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 – 460

 

27. Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 393

 

28. Ken Schrader, Concord, North Carolina – 374

 

 

 

 

 

2009 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

Lifetime track totals in ( ).

 

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 52 (1,452)

 

 

2. Bing Metz, Tatamy, Pennsylvania – 48 (359)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tracks have been reported by 30 different worldwide trackchasers this season.

 

 

 

 

UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS 

After a long rest at home for the Fourth of July holiday, I will venture back onto the airways and roadways of the trackchasing jungle. When the time comes to return I will be ready.

 

 

 

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

 

 

1,415. Autodromo de Tocancipa (road course), Tocancipa, Colombia – March 22

 

 

1,416. Motorland Aragon (road course), Alcaniz, Spain – March 28

 

 

1,417. Circuto de Murca (road course), Murca, Portugal – March 29

 

 

1,418. High Plains Speedway (oval), Clovis, New Mexico – April 19

 

 

1,419. Flomaton Speedway (oval), Flomaton, Alabama – April 22

 

 

1,420. Kapelluhraum (road course), Hafnafjorour, Iceland – April 25, 2009

 

 

1,421. Monadnock Speedway (oval), Winchester, New Hampshire – April 25, 2009

 

 

1,422. Berlin Lions Club Fairgrounds (oval), Berlin, Connecticut – April 26, 2009

 

 

1,423. Tri-State Speedway (oval), Amarillo, Texas – May 1, 2009

 

 

1,424. Uranium Capital Speedway (oval), Milan, New Mexico – May 2, 2009

 

 

1,425. Speedworld Off-Road Circuit (road course), Surprise, Arizona – May 3, 2009

 

 

1,426. Hungaroring (road course), Mogyorod, Hungary – May 8, 2009

 

 

1,427. Hoch Ybrig (road course), Hock Ybrig, Switzerland – May 9, 2009

 

 

1,428. Vighizzolo d’Este Stock Car Track (road course), Vighizzolo d’Este, Italy – May 10, 2009

 

 

 

1,429. Siskiyou Motor Speedway (oval), Yreka, California – May 16, 2009

 

 

1,430. Delbert’s Memorial Raceway (oval), Lakeport, California – May 17, 2009

 

 

1,431. Canaan Dirt Speedway (oval), Canaan, New Hampshire – May 22, 2009

 

 

 

1,432. New Hampshire International Speedway (road course), Loudon, New Hampshire – May 23, 2009

 

 

1,433. Bear Ridge Speedway (oval), Bradford, Vermont – May 23, 2009

 

 

1,434. Riverside Speedway (oval), Groveton, New Hampshire – May 23, 2009

 

 

1,435. Quic Raceway (oval), Tiverton, Rhode Island – May 24, 2009

 

 

1,436. Seekonk Speedway (figure 8), Seekonk, Massachusetts – May 25, 2009 (Carol added Seekonk Speedway oval to hear track list)

 

 

1,437. Lee USA Speedway (oval), Lee, New Hampshire – May 29, 2009

 

 

1,438. Pomfret Speedway (oval), Pomfret, Connecticut – May 30, 2009

 

 

1,439. Route 106 Race Park (oval), Pembroke, New Hampshire – May 30, 2009

 

 

1,440. Sugar Hill Speedway (oval), Weare, New Hampshire – May 31, 2009

 

 

1,441. Unity Raceway (oval), Unity, Maine – June 5, 2009

 

 

1,442. Get-Er-Done Raceway (oval), Skowheagon, Maine – June 6, 2009

 

 

1,443. Thundering Valley Speedway (oval), St. Albans, Maine – June 6, 2009

 

 

Oxford Plains Speedway (oval), Oxford, Maine – June 6, 2009 (new track for Carol only)

 

 

1,444. Spud Speedway (oval), Caribou, Maine – June 7, 2009

 

 

1,445. Mclean County Speedway (oval), Underwood, North Dakota – June 11, 2009

 

 

Plaza Park Speedway (oval), Visalia, California – June 20, 2009 (new track for Carol only)

 

 

1,446. WaKeeney Speedway (oval), WaKeeney, Kansas – June 21, 2009

 

 

1,447. Waynesfield Motorsports Park (oval), Waynesfield, Ohio – June 24

 

 

1,448. Clayhill Motor Sports (oval), Atwood, Tennessee – June 25

 

 

1,449. Lil’ Indy (oval), Carrothers, Ohio – June 27

 

 

1,450. Putnam Speed Park (oval), Ottawa, Ohio – June 28

 

 

1,451. Sigma Phi Gamma Park (oval), Hartford City, Indiana – June 28

 

 

1,452. Shepp’s Speedway, (oval), Alexander, Illinois – June 28

 

 

Official end of RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report

 

 

 

 

[enter YouTube videos]

 

 

 

Click on the links below to see photos from each of tracks I visited

Photos from my visit to the Putnam Speed Park

 

 

Photos from my visit to the Phi Sigma Gamma Park

 

 

 

Photos from my visit to the Shepp’s Speedway