Greetings from Rosamond, California
From the travels and adventures of the
“World’s #1 Trackchaser”
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Willow Springs International Raceway aka the “Big Track” permanent asphalt road course
Lifetime Track #198 (1991)
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Kern County Raceway now known at The Speedway at Willow Springs
permanent asphalt oval
Lifetime Track #267 (1995)
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The Speedway at Willow Springs – North Oval
temporary asphalt oval
Lifetime Track #2,103 (2015)
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The Speedway at Willow Springs – South Oval
temporary asphalt oval
Lifetime Track #2,104 (2015)
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The Speedway at Willow Springs –
temporary asphalt road course
Lifetime Track #2,104 (2015)
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The Speedway at Willow Springs
mixed surface figure 8
Lifetime Track #2,165 (2015)
THE EVENT I’ve made several visits to the Willow Springs Raceway property. I first went there all the way back in 1991. A fellow by the name of Nicolo Marozzo won the first race I ever saw at Willow Springs. To this point (2015) I have seen racing at six different “trackchasing countable” tracks up in Rosamond. Believe it or not there are still one or two MORE tracks I could see there. I had not yet begun writing my famous Trackchaser Reports when I first saw racing on the Willow Springs Raceway “Big Track” or during my first visit to the Speedway at Willow Springs in 1995 (then named the Kern County Raceway). However, I have returned to see racing at each of those locations so I will be able to share a few notes from those tracks. Willow Springs is an interesting complex. It’s about 150 miles from my home in San Clemente, California. Sit back and relax as I tell you about the SIX tracks where I’ve seen racing at the greater Willow Springs Raceway facility. Back in 1991 when I made my first visit to the Willow Springs Raceway’s “big track” I had not yet begun writing my Trackchaser Reports. However I returned to the track in 2006 with wife Carol, daughter Kristy and soon to be son-in-law James in tow. As a matter of fact this was James’ first ever race to see! Here’s what I had to say from that day trip. Reprinted with permission from my November 12, 2006 Trackchaser Report GREETINGS FROM ROSAMOND, CALIFORNIA THIS IS A BONUS REPORT! SUPER SPECIAL REALLY IMPORTANT NOTICE We are proud to announce that our daughter Kristy is getting married on May 5, 2007 to James Peters. Assuming there are no once in a lifetime tracks to see that weekend, I plan to be at the wedding. Also, assuming the wedding expenses do not bankrupt us, I plan to resume trackchasing following the wedding. PEOPLE/STRATEGY/TRAVEL NEWS The Strategy Most of you know that my primary trackchasing objective is to see more tracks than anyone else does. Even though that is my lead strategy, there are some racing days when that thought takes a backseat. Today was such a day. Check out “The People” section to see what I mean. The People There were three major wins with today’s racing activity. Let me tell you what I mean by that. First of all, Carol is in the battle of her young life for the 2006 Women’s Worldwide Trackchasing title. Yes, she is the defending champion of this award, but this year she is being challenged. Going into today, a woman from Pennsylvania has seen 53 tracks. After today, Carol has seen 56 tracks. There is still enough time in the season, for anything to happen. In the meantime, I’m trying to keep this catfight from becoming a real hair pulling, eye-gouging affair between two women who are trying to go through the same door at once. Carol has the lead and she doesn’t want to give it up. The Pennsylvania woman has seen more tracks this year than she ever has, so she seems motivated. I’m betting on Carol, but who really knows at this point. The second major result at today’s event involved daughter Kristy. This young lawyer was seeing her first ever road course racing event. Let me give you some background on Kristy’s trackchasing history. She was born in 1977. I did not begin listing my trackchasing companions on a track-by-track basis until 1986. This means that I have no record of Kristy’s actual trackchasing activity for the first 8 ½ years of her life. Someday, I’ll go back and look at family photos to see what tracks can be added to her list prior to ’86. Starting from 1986, Kristy has 21 lifetime tracks to her credit. Below is a summary of her results. For a trackchaser with just 21 tracks, she has an interesting trackchaser resume. First of all, she has seen racing in two foreign countries, Australia and England. To her credit, she organized a racing trip all by herself to Paramatta City Raceway, near Sydney, with some of her friends while she was a college exchange student living in Australia. She has also seen a racetrack in Alaska. This was a great father/daughter trip just for the two of us. There were two highlights from this trip. First, Kristy made friends with the local tow truck driver at the track. This allowed us to watch the races from atop his truck all afternoon. Also on this trip, Kristy and I went salmon fishing. She caught a 55-pound King Salmon! I refinanced our mortgage to pay for the fish to be filleted and sent back to San Clemente. That was the most expensive fish I ever ate! I mentioned there were three major pluses to the trip today. The third plus involved Kristy’s fiancé, James, and his attendance at the Willow Springs International Raceway. Today was the first auto race that James, also an attorney, had ever attended. He grew up in Wisconsin and Oklahoma and for some reason, never made it to a racetrack until now. Of course, it wouldn’t be right for the future son-in-law of the #1 Trackchaser Living West of the Mississippi to walk down the aisle without having been to a racetrack would it? Of course not! James had a fun time with today’s road course and is looking forward to some oval and figure 8 racing action soon. My first visit to the Willow Springs International Raceway was back in 1991. I remember Bobby Unser being the Grand Marshall that day. Little did I know I would return some 15 years later with three more trackchasers in tow. The Trip Today’s racing took up the full day. We left San Clemente at 9:30 a.m. and didn’t get back home until nearly 11 p.m. The non-racing highlight of the day was a visit to Zankou chicken (www.zankouchicken.com) and Mashti Malone’s Iranian ice cream parlor (http://www.mashtimalone.com/) following the races. Los Angeles may have as many unique hole in the wall eateries at New York does. The Zankou chicken restaurant is a local outfit that features a special garlic paste that we plastered all over our rotisserie chicken. It was delicious. Here’s what the critics have to say about this place. “This might be the best roast chicken in town at any price: moist, juicy, and fragrant with garlic-infused marinade.” — Los Angeles Times This is a list of the foods we feasted on: SHAWERMA TARNA ® FALAFEL HOMMUS Following our garlic chicken experience, we went to the Mashti Malone’s ice cream parlor. When was the last time you visited an Iranian ice cream shop? You will not find flavors like Rosewater Saffron or Pomegranata Sorbet at Baskins-Robbins. Here is what Bon Appetit had to say about Mashti Malone’s. “When two Iranian brothers bought an ice cream parlor called Mugsy Malone’s some 20 years ago, they couldn’t afford to replace the entire sign; thus was born this only-in-America shop that has since become a source for area restaurants. Fans love the Middle Eastern accents in Orange Blossom ice cream and Rose sorbet.” Pavia Rosati We can always count on eating at the most unique and tasty places when we travel with Kristy and James in Los Angeles. The conversation was lively especially when we discussed the topic of computer dating. RACE TRACK STATS: WILLOW SPRINGS INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY, ROSAMOND, CALIFORNIA – CAROL’S TRACK #287 – 11/12/06 This was Carol’s 54th lifetime track to see in the Golden state. This was Kristy’s ninth California track and, of course, James’ first. Carol ranks 5th in California. Kristy and James have no ranking because in order for any American trackchaser to have any rankings whatsoever on www.trackchaser.com, they must first have 200 lifetime tracks. I don’t make these policies, I just explain them. Gary Jacobs leads the state with an incredible 149 tracks. That’s 51 more than I have here! RACE TRACK NEWS: WILLOW SPRINGS INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY There are several countable racetrack configurations at this facility. Most of them do not run countable racing, but they probably have in the past and I’m hoping they will in the future. Here is a list of those tracks. That makes nine tracks that could hold countable racing at this facility. I’ve only seen racing at two of the tracks (WSIR and Willow Springs Speedway – oval). The Willow Springs International Raceway is unique. It was built in 1953 and is an Official California State Point of Historical Interest. It is America’s oldest and first purpose-built road racing circuit. The course has a dramatic elevation change. From the flat start/finish area, the cars race up the side of a mini-mountain before turning back down hill. Spectators can see nearly the entire track from almost anywhere on the track. That is very unusual. Today’s racing was sanctioned by the Vintage Auto Racing Association. Today there were six classes of racing. We also enjoyed the unique food this road course offered. Road courses almost always provide special culinary offerings. We dined on egg salad and tuna fish sandwiches. This was supplemented by chili and taquitoes. You can’t beat that variety. WEATHER CONDITIONS This track is located just north of Los Angeles. It’s amazing how rural this area can be when it’s so close to such a large metropolitan locale. The sky was blue and the air was clear. Temperatures were in the low 60s. With the sun shining, it was a gorgeous day for this outing. RENTAL CAR UPDATE: “My” Lexus now lives in Honolulu with a new paint job and master – son Jim. No rental car today. We motored along in the Carol Lewis owned and Life of Virginia sponsored Lexus LS 430. It’s a great road car. Saturday total driving miles – 286 LIFETIME TRACKCHASER STANDINGS UPDATE: These worldwide trackchasers are within 100 tracks (plus or minus) of my current trackchaser total. * Warning, you are within 50 tracks of being removed from this list. ** Special exemption. Other notables These worldwide trackchasers are within 10 tracks (plus or minus) of Carol’s current trackchaser total. 2006 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS 2006 (current – 10/29/06)** **Lifetime NGD results could be affected by current track counting proposals Thanks for reading about my trackchasing, Randy Lewis #1 Trackchaser Living West of the Mississippi If you don’t want mud in your eye, don’t stand at the fence. Willow Springs International Raceway – $10 Total racetrack admissions – $10 1,000. Auburndale Kartway, Auburndale, Florida – February 10 1,001. Ocala Speedway (asphalt oval), Ocala, Florida – February 12 1,002. Speedworld Speedway, Surprise, Arizona – February 19 1,003. Lowe’s Motor Speedway (1/5 mile asphalt oval), Concord, North Carolina – February 25 1,004. Concord Raceway, Concord, North Carolina – February 25 1,005. Antioch Speedway, Antioch, North Carolina – February 25 1,006. Green Valley Speedway, Gadsden, Alabama – February 26 1,007. East Bay Raceway (inner oval), Gibsonton, Florida – March 17 1,008. Volusia Speedway Park West (1/6M oval), Barberville, Florida – March 18 1,009. Speedway Park, Fruitland Park, Florida – March 18 1,010. Sand Mountain Speedway (road course), Fort Meade, Florida – March 19 1,011. Anderson Motor Speedway, Anderson, South Carolina – March 31 1,012. Westminster Speedway, Westminster, South Carolina – March 31 1,013. East Lincoln Motor Speedway, Stanley, North Carolina – April 1 1,014. Margarettsville Speedway, Margarettsville, North Carolina – April 2 1,015. Sunny South Raceway, Grand Bay, Alabama – April 7 1,016. Barber Motorsports Park, Leeds, Alabama – April 8 1,017. Coldwater Raceway, Coldwater, Alabama – April 8 1,018. Talladega Short Track, Talladega, Alabama – April 8 1,019. Ballymena Raceway, Ballymena, Northern Ireland – April 14 1,020. Oulton Park, Little Budworth, England – April 15 1,021. Somerset Rebels Banger Raceway, Rooks Bridge, England – April 16 1,022. Mendips Raceway, Shipham, England – April 16 1,023. Oval Raceway, Angmering, England – April 17 1,024. Arlington Stadium, Eastbourne, England – April 17 1,025. Southside Speedway, Midlothian, Virginia – April 28 1,026. Motor Mile Speedway, Radford, Virginia – April 29 1,027. Wythe Speedway, Wytheville, Virginia – April 29 1,028. Summit Point Raceway, Summit Point Circuit, Summit Point, West Virginia – April 30 1,029. Old Dominion Speedway – inner inner oval, Manassas, Virginia – April 30 1,030. Shenandoah Speedway, Shenandoah, Virginia – May 4 1,031. Bridgeport Speedway (inner oval – front), Bridgeport, New Jersey – May 5 1,032. Empty Jug, Hawley, Pennsylvania – May 6 1,033. Oakland Valley Race Park, Cuddebackville, New York – May 6 1,034. Thunder Mountain Speedway, Center Isle, New York – May 6 1,035. Motocross 338, Southwick, Massachusetts – May 7 1,036. Glen Ridge Motorsports Park, Fultonville, New York – May 7 1,037. Calumet County Speedway, Chilton, Wisconsin – May 19 1,038. Grant County Speedway, Lancaster, Wisconsin – May 20 1,039. Blackhawk Farms Raceway, Rockton, Illinois – May 21 1,040. The Milwaukee Mile (Road course), West Allis, Wisconsin – May 21 ** Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wisconsin – May 21 (new track Carol only) 1,041. Park Jefferson Speedway, Jefferson, South Dakota – May 25 1,042. Superior Speedway, Superior, Wisconsin – May 26 1,043. Brainerd International Raceway, Brainerd, Minnesota – May 27 1,044. Canby Speedway, Canby, Minnesota – May 27 1,045. Crawford County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Denison, Iowa – May 28 1,046. Tri-State Speedway, Sisseton, South Dakota – May 29 1,047. Sheyenne River Speedway, Lisbon, North Dakota – May 29 1,048. Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, Pahrump, Nevada – June 3 1,049. The Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nevada – June 3 1,050. Hibbing Raceway, Hibbing, Minnesota – June 6 1,051. Buena Vista Raceway, Alta, Iowa – June 7 1,052. Lebanon Midway Speedway, Lebanon, Missouri – June 8 1,053. Rocky Top Raceway, Coal Grove, Ohio – June 9 1,054. Midvale Speedway (oval), Midvale, Ohio – June 10 1,055. Midvale Speedway (figure 8), Midvale, Ohio – June 10 1,056. Spring Valley Raceway, Millport, Ohio – June 11 1,057. Rialto Airport Speedway, Rialto, California – June 17 1,058. Lawrenceburg Speedway (figure 8), Lawrenceburg, Indiana – June 20 1,059. Lawrenceburg Speedway (temporary oval), Lawrenceburg, Indiana – June 20 1,060. Thunder Mountain Speedway, Knox Dale, Pennsylvania – June 21 1,061. State Park Speedway, Wausau, Wisconsin – June 22 1,062. Dodge County Fairgrounds Speedway, Beaver Dam, Wisconsin – June 23 1,063. Lucas Oil Speedway (oval), Wheatland, Missouri – June 24 1,064. Lucas Oil Speedway (figure 8), Wheatland, Missouri – June 24 1,065. Tri-City Speedway, Pontoon Beach, Illinois – June 25 1,066. Lake Ozark Speedway, Eldon, Missouri – June 29 1,067. Poplar Bluff Speedway, Poplar Bluff, Missouri – June 30 1,068. Indianapolis Motor Speedway (road course), Indianapolis, Indiana – July 1 1,069. Rush County Fairgrounds, Rushville, Indiana – July 1 1,070. Rock Castle Speedway, Mount Vernon, Kentucky – July 2 ** Windy Hollow Speedway (oval), Owensboro, Kentucky – July 2 1,071. Heartland Park Topeka (dirt oval), Topeka, Kansas – July 3 1,072. Thunderhill Speedway, Mayetta, Kansas – July 3 1,073. Little Valley Speedway, Little Valley, New York – July 13 ** Twin State Speedway (oval), Claremont, New Hampshire – July 14 1,074. Twin State Speedway (figure 8), Claremont, New Hampshire – July 14 1,075. Canaan Speedway (asphalt oval), Canaan, New Hampshire – July 14 ** New Hampshire International Speedway, Loudon, New Hampshire – July 15 1,076. White Mountain Motorsports Park, North Woodstock, New Hampshire – July 15 1,077. Legion Speedway, Wentworth, New Hampshire – July 15 1,078. Devil’s Bowl Speedway, Fair Haven, Vermont – July 16 1,079. Stafford Motor Speedway, Stafford Springs, Connecticut – July 17 1,080. Little Log House Speedway, Hastings, Minnesota – July 28 ** Elko Speedway (outer oval), Elko, Minnesota – July 28 ** Elko Speedway (inner oval), Elko, Minnesota – July 28 ** Elko Speedway (figure 8), Elko, Minnesota – July 28 1,081. Chickasaw Big Four County Fairgrounds, Nashua, Iowa – July 29 1,082. Buffalo River Speedway, Glyndon, Minnesota – July 30 1,083. Miller Motorsports Park, Tooele, Utah, – August 4 1,084. Atomic Motor Raceway, Atomic City, Idaho – August 4 1,085. Mission Valley Speedway, Polson, Montana – August 5 1,086. Rock Creek Race Track, Kimberly, Idaho – August 6 1,087. Stevens County Fairgrounds, Morris, Minnesota – August 9 1,088. Norman County Raceway, Ada, Minnesota – August 10 1,089. Miller Speedway, Miller, South Dakota – August 11 1,090. Gimli Motorsports Park, Gimli, Manitoba, Ontario, Canada – August 13 1,091. Bemidji Speedway, Bemidji, Minnesota – August 13 1,092. Dayton Fair (figure 8), Dayton, Pennsylvania – August 14 1,093. Holmes County Fairgrounds, Millersburg, Ohio – August 15 1,094. Lawrence County Fairgrounds, New Castle, Pennsylvania – August 16 1,095. Armada County Fairgrounds, Armada, Michigan – August 17 1,096. Spencer Speedway, Williamson, New York – August 18 1,097. Yates County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Penn Yan, New York, – August 19 1,098. Tillsonburg County Fairgrounds, Tillsonburg, Ontario, Canada – August 20 1,099. Marshfield Fair, Marshfield, Massachusetts – August 21 1,100. Cambridge Fair, Cambridge, Ontario, Canada – September 9 1,101. Georgetown Fair, Georgetown, Ontario, Canada – September 9 1,102. Oakwood Fair, Oakwood, Ontario, Canada – September 10 1,103. Western Fair, London, Ontario, Canada – September 10 1,104. Rice Lake Speedway, Rice Lake, Wisconsin – September 14 1,105. Iowa Speedway (oval), Newton, Iowa – September 15 1,106. Harrison County Fairgrounds (figure 8), Missouri Valley, Iowa – September 16 1,107. Calhoun County Raceway (oval), Rockwell City, Iowa – September 16 1,108. Hutchinson Raceway Park, Hutchinson, Kansas – September 22 1,109. Dodge City Raceway Park (outer oval), Dodge City, Kansas – September 23 1,110. Dodge City Raceway Park (inner oval), Dodge City, Kansas – September 23 1,111. Enid Motor Speedway, Enid, Oklahoma – September 24 1,112. Desert Thunder Raceway, Price, Utah – September 30 1,113. Norfolk County Fairgrounds, Simcoe, Ontario, Canada – October 4 1,114. La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway (inner oval), La Crosse, Wisconsin – October 5 1,115. Londonderry Raceway, Manchester, New Hampshire – October 8 1,116. Hudson Speedway, Hudson, New Hampshire – October 8 1,117. Topsfield Fairgrounds Arena, Topsfield, Massachusetts – October 9 1,118. Cricket Arena, Charlotte, North Carolina – October 11 1,119. Gordon Park Speedway, Groveton, Georgia – October 13 1,120. I-20 Kartway, Batesburg, South Carolina – October 14 1,121. Hemi Speedway, Mount Croghan, South Carolina – October 15 ** Bakersfield Raceway Park, Linton, Indiana – October 20 (new track Carol only) 1,122. South Georgia Motorsports Park, Cecil, Georgia – October 25 1,123. Altus Speedway, Altus, Oklahoma – October 29 1,124. Riverside Raceway Park, Mayodan, North Carolina – November 3 1,125. Hickory Motor Speedway, Hickory, North Carolina – November 4 1,126. Delaware International Speedway, Delmar, Delaware – November 5 ** Willow Springs International Raceway, Rosamond, California – November 12 (new track Carol only) 2015 – Twice….so far. During the 2015 season I have visited Speedway Willow Springs twice. The first occasion, in June, showcased racing on their twin inner ovals and the asphalt road course. When I returned in September the figure 8 track was the big draw. Below you will see how it all came down. Promoter Andy Daggario is a very creative fellow. I think that skill is building his crowd base from one week to the next. June, 2015 Excited! I was really excited about today’s trackchasing visit in Southern California. Currently I’m 12 tracks behind noted racechaser Gary Jacob (pictured) for the prestigious lead in the state California trackchasing totals. I don’t often get a chance to see new tracks in California. Why? I’ve seen nearly every one! However today I expected to add to my California totals. There was lots going on in San Clemente. This was going to be an exciting week for the Lewis family. All three of our children and their family and friends would be visiting for the next few days. The celebration centered on the seventh birthday of our twin grandchildren, Astrid and Mitch. Yes, time flies. Son J.J. was coming in from Los Angeles. Daughter Kristy had arrived a few days ago with her family from Austin, Texas. Last night our youngest son Jim got in from his home in Honolulu, Hawaii. We Lewis’ are a traveling bunch and getting more spread out all the time. You gotta be flexible. Until about a day ago today’s race date was reserved for Carol and me exclusively. Then we got the news from our children they were coming in a day early! That’s how kids do it nowadays. As parents we see our role as being in a position to accommodate. I had made a commitment to the track promoter to be at his event. I couldn’t back out now. Carol, on the other hand, had less of a commitment. Even though she could have seen three new tracks today she chose to stay home for the 8 p.m. arrival of our guests. I would be home a couple of hours after that. When to buy cheap things cheap and when not too. The round-trip drive to Rosamond, California from our house would be about 300 miles. I toyed with the idea of renting a car. I really don’t like using my own personal car for trackchasing driving. I never have. It took some of my fellow competitors several years to come around but they are renting cars now rather than wearing their own out. I could have rented a car at the Orange County airport for just $18/day. I suspected that the gas savings alone, not considering wear and tear between a rental car and my luxury Lexus SUV, would’ve paid for the rental car in its entirely. Then I got to thinking. How often do I use my car in California to trackchase? Not often. When I go to sell the car will it really matter if my car has 300 more miles on the odometer or even 3,000? Not likely. Thirty thousand would make a difference but not three hundred. If I had rented the car today for $18 it would’ve been an example of buying cheap things cheap. That’s not my goal in life. I want to buy good stuff cheap. Can you imagine? Going into tonight’s event I have seen racing at 2,102 different racetracks. Can you imagine the time it has taken and the experiences I’ve had doing ANYTHING 2,102 times. Nevertheless, what I was about to see tonight would be something I had never seen in my entire professional trackchasing career. I know you hear me say that frequently about small stuff. However tonight I was going to see a BIG thing that I have never ever seen before. It was going to be exciting. This guy’s a promoter! Over the past two weeks, off and on, I’ve been talking to the Speedway Willow Springs racing promoter Andy Daddario. He seemed as intrigued by my trackchasing hobby as I was about his special event scheduled for tonight. He told me he thought of tonight’s promotional idea at “3 o’clock in the morning”. Before the idea was finalized he created a map and presented the plan to his “safety director”. He asked me to call back couple of days before the planned race date to see if his plan was still on. I did as instructed. Andy had good news for me. The safety director at Willow Springs gave Andy the full approval for the project. Hot and cold. When I left San Clemente at 1 p.m. this afternoon it was 67° at the beach. It was going to be a beautiful day in San Clemente. However in Rosamond, California, at the same time it was 100°! Rosamond is located in the “high desert” of California. Everything was planned to begin at the track at at 6 p.m. tonight. It was a three hour drive from San Clemente. I gave myself five hours. SoCal traffic can be heavy but rarely for me. Traffic can be heavy in Southern California at certain times of the day or week. As a retiree I am rarely in traffic because I don’t need to travel when others are going to work. On Saturdays and Sundays traffic can be unpredictable. I will be driving through the heart of Los Angeles. For pretty much the entire 150-mile drive I would be on freeways with 8-12 lanes. I had to guarantee myself I would not be late for the start of the monumental event. Texting….the best way to go. Members of our family are avid texters. In any given week we will share well over 100 texts about what we’re doing, what we’re saying and how we are feeling. It’s not like living next-door to each other but we certainly keep in touch. As I traveled northward to the high desert I receive texts from everyone telling me what they were doing today and what their plan was going to be for tomorrow. Later in the week we will be babysitting our twin grandbabies. We’ll spend a day with the twins at Knott’s Berry Farm. We have plans for a Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim baseball game. It’s going to be “Backpack cooler night”. Who wouldn’t want to go for that premium? In N Out Burgers….why do you think every store operates at 100% capacity virtually from the time they open until the time they close. When I had cleared the majority of traffic and was past the city of Los Angeles I knew I could stop for a break. I found an “In N Out Burgers” location. There I ordered a double double “protein style”. Did you know there are several secret code words for ordering special items at In N Out Burgers? At virtually every In N Out I have ever visited from the time they open until the time they close they have a line of customers. They operate as close to 100% capacity as any business I have ever seen. They offer great food at low prices. Here’s the link to the special code words you’ll want to use at In N Out Burgers. In N Out Burgers….the secret menu This was not my first visit to Willow Springs. I have been to the Willow Springs racing complex a few times. I first went to the “Big Track”, their asphalt road course, in 1991. Then I came back to see racing at the “Kern County Raceway” in 1995. The “KCR” track is now called Speedway Willow Springs. This is not to be confused with the new Kern County Raceway Park in Bakersfield, California. I won’t give up on this one. I’m still trying to see racing on the “Streets of Willow Springs”. This is a very narrow road course. They only have real racing there about once a year. I’m not giving up on the “Streets”. I’ll get it some day. Scare! I arrived at Speedway Willow Springs at about 5:15 p.m. for the scheduled 6 p.m. start. I did receive a minor scare about 10 miles from the track. There was a huge thunderstorm cell in the area. It packed lots of “yellow radar” which means heavy rain. Fortunately it looked as if this rain was going to be just north of the track. I did receive some sprinkles within 5 miles of the track. It really wasn’t much. I don’t know how much rain the track got before I got there but it didn’t look like very much at all. The parking lot was bone dry. However, other areas looks like it had rained hard for a short time. Nevertheless at the track there were three or four huge trucks pulling very large tractor tires around the track to help dry it. The tires put heat into the track. They even had their own jet blower! All of this activity amazed me somewhat given the fact that it didn’t really look very wet at all. I grabbed a couple of bottled waters. These would come in handy in the mid nineties° heat. I waited for the track drying to be complete. Top row center stage. Then I selected a top row grandstand seating area near the flagman. This would turn out to be a great location to get the latest information on what the track was up to tonight. First I heard the flagman yell up to the press box, “Qualifying has been canceled”. Soon the announcer was informing the crowd that qualifying had indeed been canceled. That was good news. I don’t like qualifying anyway. Then a minute or two later it was announced the driver autograph session was being canceled as well. Again the reason stated was “wet grounds”. I guess that was good news. Those cancellations would save some time and help keep the program on schedule. There was one final bit of positive news. Only one legend racecar had shown up. That class would not race. However, the single legend would provide an “exhibition” later in the program. The National Anthem went off at 6:07 p.m. Even with the rain and track drying they were still pretty much on schedule. I classify a track that starts their official activities within 15 minutes of the scheduled starting time as being on time. Let’s get started. Andy, the Speedway Willow Springs promoter has done a good job of telling me what to expect about tonight’s program. He said car counts in his main stock-car divisions racing on the oval were small. There were four stock divisions racing on the oval. Car counts were just 4-7 in each class. However I did not come for racing on the traditional oval. Never ever. That’s right. Never Ever. Coming into tonight I had seen racing at 2,102 different racetracks. However the promoter had come up with an idea that I had never ever seen or experienced in the entire history of my trackchasing. That’s a pretty big statement. Andy’s idea was this. He was going to have two races start at the same time and continue at the same time. Each race would be run on it’s own individual separate temporary oval track. Pure genius if you ask me. Here is how things worked. Here’s how his plan would work. The permanent oval at Speedway Willow Springs is a one-quarter mile slightly banked asphalt track. Most of the infield is paved. The enduro division would be the class racing on these two temporary ovals. The cars on both tracks would begin the race from a standing start in the infield of the full oval. One group of eight cars would race over to the big oval’s straight and make a left turn toward turn one of the big oval. They would drive through turns one and then two of the oval track in a counter-clockwise direction. At the end of turn two they would make a left on a line through the oval’s infield that was perpendicular to the straight line of the backstretch and the front stretch. When they had crossed through the oval’s infield they would make another left back onto the oval’s front straight and then into the turn one of the oval. Was that clear? Can you picture this track? I’m called this inner oval the “Speedway Willow Springs – South Oval”. The “Speedway Willow Springs – North Oval” was a mirror image of it’s counterpart. There eight enduro cars would race in a clockwise direction. Their track would have them exiting turn three of the oval, drive through the oval infield and come back onto the oval at the exit of turn four. Actually each of these temporary tracks raced in nearly a complete circle. In the infield of the oval these two smaller tracks were separated by five large tractor tires. When the cars raced through the infield they were traveling in the same direction. The two tracks racing lane were separated by 25-30 yards. Of course what I was seeing was entirely within the current trackchasing rules. Here’s what the rules have to say about the situation I encountered tonight. The rules. “all temporary tracks of the same type are only separately countable if they physically exist and are active at the same time, even if they are located on different parts of the property (moving a temporary track during the course of the day does not constitute a new track), with the following exception, tracks located inside different buildings on the same property can be counted separately; all tracks falling under the road course category are only separately countable if they are not connected or if they meet the change of surface rule, with the following exception, one permanent and one temporary road course which share a minority of common surface may be counted twice” Absolutely laughable! Here’s something comical about the rules written above that might not seem obvious to the trackchasing neophyte. The wording about a “temporary track moving during the course of day” was specifically added to prevent me from counting a track in New York that experienced exactly that circumstance. The rule about allowing tracks to count in “separate buildings” was an accommodation for eastern-based trackchasers where that exception exists. And you thought politics only existed in Washington, D.C.!!! These folks should be ashamed of themselves. Two of everything. This was the first event of the night. When the green flag dropped on both races, there were two flagman. Everything happened just like Andy said it would. I had not been in my seat but a few minutes and two tracks were in the books. The race announcer called these races “heat” races. I think they were for about eight laps each. Which of these two tracks was “first”? Now I had a dilemma. Which of these two smaller temporary tracks that had started at the same time would count as track #2,103 and which would be #2,104? I guess I could have gone back to check the video to see which flagger dropped the green flag first. The track on my right would be called “South” track. The track on my left would be designated as the “North” track. When I returned home I had Astrid flip a coin and Mitch called it. Heads was designated for the South track and tails for the north track. The coin was flipped the call was made and the “North” track came out as track #2,103. I thought it most appropriate that our TWIN grandchildren help decide the matter with these TWIN tracks. It always pays to communicate at the highest level. At the beginning of tonight’s racing program I had introduced myself formally for the first time to promoter Andy Daggario. I gave him my business card. He was busy and that was fine. He thanked me for coming and I went to find a seat in the grandstands. However following the heat races Andy came down from the press box to say hello. He asked me if I would like to ride in tonight’s Toyota pace car. Of course I would. I’ve done that a few times but mainly on larger road courses. Riding in the pace car was a serious matter at the Willow Springs Raceway. Both the pace car driver and the rider, me, wore four-point safety harnesses. I was surprised at how fast the pace car was taken around the oval. I was also surprised to feel how rough the racing surface was. It was fun to be in the pace car and the driver was a great guy. When there was some downtime we talked about local Southern California race tracks. He told me there was a good chance the I-10 speedway out in Blithe, California would be closing. A large number of Southern California tracks have closed since I first started watching races here in the mid 70s. Small car counts; decent racing. Despite the really small car counts the racing was actually pretty decent. All you need for a good race is to have the top two or three cars battling for the lead. That happened in several races tonight. The enduro cars that raced on the two small ovals were four-cylinder “beater” cars. They come to Speedway Willow Springs about five times a year. Tonight for the first time ever they raced on the two temporary ovals. New track #3 for the night. During their normal visits the enduro cars race on a makeshift road course at Speedway Willow Springs. They take two large tractor tires and create a chicane on both the front and back stretch of the oval. The cars must come out of the turn and make either a left or a right hand turn into the infield, drive inside the tire and then back onto the next turn on the big track. The Enduro cars began the evening with heat races on two small ovals. They would cap off the Speedway Willow Springs racing program with a 50-lap feature event on the temporary all asphalt road course I have just described. I think you know where I’m going with this. Each of the smaller ovals had counted separately. Now the temporary road course track would be my third countable race track of the evening! Poor Carol! Wow! While all of this was happening I could only think, “Poor Carol”. She had planned to come tonight but when our family plans changed in a minor way she couldn’t make it. Had “Trackchasing’s First Mother” come to Speedway Willow Springs tonight she would have seen FOUR countable tracks. That’s right she would have seen racing on the large permanent oval, the two smaller ovals and then the temporary road course. Carol and I are currently trackchasing’s number one trackchasing couple by more than 100 tracks. We’ve been in the lead for years. It’s too bad Carol missed out on tonight. This Andy fellow is a bit twisted. The 50-lap and enduro road course race had an interesting twist. After 25 laps they red flagged the race. Then they made the cars race in opposite directions for the last 25 laps. This didn’t effect the countability of the track one way or the other. However it was a very interesting twist. With the I-10 Speedway possibly closing and maybe even the Irwindale speedway closing some of those cars may find their way to Willow Springs. I hope so. Their management and fans deserve it. Nice folks. I have met some nice people tonight. They went out of their way to make my experience as a visiting trackchaser an excellent one. I’m going to do my best to give them a great couple of videos and photo album so that we can all remember the evening well. It was nice getting home from a trackchasing trip on a Saturday night. That almost NEVER happens. I will be spending the next five days with Carol and the grandkids. That was going great. I couldn’t wait. *********************************************************** September, 2015 There is always something new. You would think that after seeing more than 2,100 different racetracks in 70 countries that it would be hard to see new things and have unusual experiences. In point of fact nothing could be further from the truth. Today was a leisure Saturday just a couple of days after finishing up my all time record 66-day trackchasing trip. I spent some time at the driving range getting ready for next week’s golf outing. Then a little bit of time on the elliptical trainer. Soon Carol and I were off in mid-afternoon bound for the California high desert. We were traveling 150 miles north of San Clemente to Rosamond, California. Rosamond is home to the Willow Springs International Raceway racing complex. Willow Springs first started racing in 1953. As a matter of fact it was the first ever purpose built racing road course in America. I thought that was pretty cool. Speedway Willow Springs. Within the greater Willow Springs complex we were headed to “Speedway Willow Springs”. This is a nearly flat quarter-mile asphalt oval track. This track has a very creative promoter in Andy Daddario. He runs a little bit of everything. It’s a trackchaser’s dream. Three months ago at Speedway Willow Springs. Just about three months ago in mid-June I was able to add three new tracks to my resume at the Speedway Willow Springs complex. Those three new tricks included a temporary asphalt road course and two temporary ovals that competed at the SAME time. Back in 1995 I had seen racing on the quarter-mile oval. Several years ago back (2006) Carol and I visited the Willow Springs “big track” road course. That was Carol’s first visit to Willow Springs. I had first been to the big track in 1991. On that late afternoon nearly ten years ago our daughter Kristy and her husband to be James came along with us. This was the first race the James had ever attended! A first for Carol. Tonight Carol was making her first ever appearance at the Speedway Willow Springs oval. Anything she saw tonight would be “brand-new”. However it should be noted that Carol and I almost never go to a facility with the primary objective of adding a new track for her. The only exception might be if we are already out of the trip somewhere and I have nothing to see for my own list. Carol is more than happy to play a secondary role in the counting of tracks. If we have a free night when I’m not trackchasing we’re going to explore our other entertainment options and stay clear of racetracks if at all possible. There’s just too much to see and do to spend EVERY night at a racetrack. Yelp! This afternoon we used to Yelp! to find a decent Mexican restaurant in Palmdale, California on the way to the track. I’m in a mode of writing reviews on Yelp! I see my contribution as a thank you and pay back to all of the people who help me over the years with their Yelp! reviews. However, Yelp! isn’t perfect. In reality it might be more accurate to say that the people who own restaurants are not perfect. One Mexican restaurant came highly recommended. It was the Guadalajara Taco Grill in Palmdale, California. Most of the reviews were glowing. However, one reviewer told of showing up during normal business hours only to find the place closed. That being the case I called the restaurant at about 3 p.m. on Saturday afternoon. Were they open? Yes. What time did they close on this day? 8 p.m. Off we went showing up some 30 minutes later. The place was not easy to find. A sign on the door read, “Back in 30 minutes”. Wow! Disappointed. On time and ready to go. Tonight racing was scheduled to begin at an early 6 p.m. The day’s high temperature was going to be in the low 90s. When we arrived it was 89° but felt like it was about 73. That’s what low humidity will do for you. We paid her $10 general admission price and pulled into the speedway at 6:10 p.m. They had just completed the “skid plate” racing. That meant they started on time. That’s always a good thing. I would have loved to have seen the skid plate racing. There were several classes of stock cars including some good looking late models. Destruction in the Desert. Tonight was going to be one of their “Destruction in the Desert” promotions. They had all kinds of things going on. I was happy to see so many families and their kids in the stands. They started out with their four classes of asphalt oval stock-car racing. They also had a race for their mini stocks where the four cars that were competing raced backwards for a few laps. I’m sure I’ve seen that but Carol didn’t think she’d ever seen a backwards race. Of course that doesn’t count as anything unique in the trackchasing rules. I know. Shocking right! This is what we had come to see. Next up was the five-car figure 8 race. Tonight that figure 8 race was conducted on a “mixed surface” layout. You’ll see what I’m talking about when you view the video. The cars raced over the dirt infield at both ends of the eight and used the asphalt covering in the center of the oval track as the figure 8 “X”. Although I might have seen a mixed surface figure 8 track in the past nothing comes to mind immediately. Carol didn’t think she’d ever seen such a thing. If I haven’t seen it she hasn’t seen it. When the figure 8 race was complete we stayed over for the mini stock oval feature event. Wait. There’s more! I thanked Andy for providing all the information that he had up to this point about the program. He told me that a special event was happening later in the evening. The hornets would be racing on a dirt road course, which would be different than the asphalt road course that I saw last time. We were committed….elsewhere. However, in another FIRST, we didn’t stay for this dirt road course. It was painful but we had to move on. I’m trying to catch Gary Jacob for the all-time California trackchasing lead. A new California track like a dirt road course in Willow Springs would’ve been more than helpful. However I already had a big plan for tonight and tomorrow. I couldn’t stay at Willow Springs any longer. Maybe Andy and his folks will run that promotion again. Heck, they might even run a figure 8 race on just the asphalt portion of Speedway Willow Springs some time in the future. Maybe another visit to Willow Springs? In trackchasing three track configurations count. Those are ovals, road courses and figure 8 tracks. Each of THOSE configurations can be counted separately depending upon the racing surface being dirt, asphalt or “mixed”. That’s nine combinations right there. THEN if the tracks are separate, like the permanent road courses are at Willow Springs are then they can be counted separately. Remember I didn’t write the trackchasing rules. I just try to adhere to them. Today had been a full day and I was just getting started. Tonight I would be departing on an 11:50 p.m. flight out of Los Angeles international Airport. LAX is about a 90-minute drive from Willow Springs. To make sure that I didn’t miss that flight we left Willow Springs at a little past 8 p.m. We had seen more than two hours of racing. Carol added two new tracks and I had added one. That was a pretty good result for trackchasing’s #1 couple. I will definitely keep an eye on what’s happening at Willow Springs to see if they run the hornets on the dirt road course again or maybe the figure 8 race on the all asphalt portion of the track. This place is building its fan base and business. Willow Springs is in a fairly remote location. They have a good promoter and are building their crowd up. Fans park their cars and campers right up next to the fence. They sit in their lawn chairs and watch the races just a few feet from the racing surface. Thanks to Andy Daddario for being a creative promoter. There are not many of those anymore. Also thanks to Andy for all of his information sharing. There are not many places, nowadays, where we can add tracks and never leave one single grandstand. Now it’s off to a location that will have me flying about 2,500 miles one way for an afternoon race tomorrow. If all goes well and the planes are on time I should add a very unique track to my list. Stay tuned. Good evening. Click on the link below to see the “Video Plus” production from my two 2015 visits to the Willow Springs Speedway. This video includes a compilation of several race formats from “backwards” racing to their staple, asphalt quarter-mile oval racing, and everything in between! Click on the link below to see the one-minute “Video Lite” production featuring figure 8 racing from Speedway Willow Springs.
. . Click on the link below to see the one-minute “Video Lite” production showcasing enduro car inner oval and road course racing from Speedway Willow Springs.
Click on the links below to see a photo album from my trackchasing visit. Double click on a photo to begin the slide show or watch the photos at your own pace. Hover over a photo to read the caption. Photos from my September 12, 2015 Speedway Willow Springs visit to see their figure 8 racing program. Speedway Willow Springs – Figure 8 racing . . Photos from my June 13, 2015 Speedway Willow Springs visit to see their inner oval and road course racing programs. Speedway Willow Springs – North and South inner oval racing and asphalt road course racing 
I woke up in San Clemente, California and went to sleep in the same bed this evening. That is most unusual. This is what happened today.
TRACK
CITY
STATE
DATE
COUNTRY
Ascot Park
Gardena
California
5/25/86
UNITED STATES
Santa Maria Speedway
Santa Maria
California
9/11/87
UNITED STATES
Cajon Speedway
El Cajon
California
4/1/89
UNITED STATES
Orange Show Speedway
San Bernadino
California
6/23/90
UNITED STATES
Ventura Speedway
Ventura
California
4/28/91
UNITED STATES
Calistoga Speedway
Calistoga
California
7/6/91
UNITED STATES
Twin City Raceway
Kenai
Alaska
8/5/95
UNITED STATES
LaSalle Speedway
LaSalle
Illinois
8/31/97
UNITED STATES
Irwindale Speedway – 1/2 mile
Irwindale
California
5/25/99
UNITED STATES
Northhampton International Raceway
Northhampton
6/26/99
ENGLAND
Hednesford Hills Raceway
Hednesford Hills
6/27/99
ENGLAND
Coventry International Motor Speedway
Coventry
7/3/99
ENGLAND
Irwindale Speedway – 1/3 mile
Irwindale
California
8/6/99
UNITED STATES
Paramatta City Speedway
Granville
New South Wales
c 1999
AUSTRALIA
Little Log House Speedway
Hastings
Minnesota
7/28/06
UNITED STATES
Elko Speedway (outer oval)
Elko
Minnesota
7/28/06
UNITED STATES
Elko Speedway (inner oval)
Elko
Minnesota
7/28/06
UNITED STATES
Elko Speedway (F8)
Elko
Minnesota
7/28/06
UNITED STATES
Chickasaw Big Four Fairgrounds
Nashua
Iowa
7/29/06
UNITED STATES
Buffalo River Speedway
Glendon
Minnesota
7/30/06
UNITED STATES
Willow Springs International Speedway
Rosamond
California
11/12/06
UNITED STATES
Marinated and spiced slices of Beef stacked on a spit and grilled against an open fire.
Marinated and spiced slices of Chicken stacked on a spit and grilled against an open fire.
Crushed Garbanzo and Fava Beans, Split Peas, mixed with exotic natural spices and deep-fried in peanut oil.
A paste made of blended Garbanzo Beans mixed with sesame sauce, fresh garlic and topped with salad oil. 
TRACK ADMSSION PRICES: RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2006 (** not the first time to visit this track)
