Some personal stuff, and lots of racing

I ended up staying home from work again today, because my wife was feeling very poorly. She's having heart troubles, and someone had to stay and take care of my mother, so I was elected since Linda couldn't do it. She's had an overnight stay at St.E's Hospital and then another trip to the ER at Bryan LGH. Despite I don't know how many tests, they can't find out what the cause is. We've discussed the wife's problems with several of Linda's doctors, and Ed Raines of course, and we'll talk it over tonight after I get Mom in bed and make our decision then as to what we're going to do. Her cardiologist and Dr. Raines both said she should probably have a pacemaker, so we'll decide on that and go from there. We've got insurance, but the co-pay is going to be a biggun I'm afraid. I just pray that I don't run out of vacation time before the end of the year. I sure can't afford to take a day off without pay since I'm the sole source of income in the house.

Mom's doing as well as can be expected, so we can be thankful for that. I cherish every day that she's with us, and want every one of them to be the best that they can because those days are numbered.

Speaking of Ed Raines, it was SOO nice to chat with him again, even considering the circumstances. I miss him terribly already, at the track and outside of it. We were never really close friends outside of racing, but it was a great comfort to know that he was available whenever we needed him. I doubt that will change, and I wish him well wherever he lands. I know he'll do great, and many lives will be saved thanks to him.

Speaking of racing; we've actually gotten 4 of the first 5 race nights in this year. If you recall, that's pretty good compared to the last couple of years. The only one that we missed out on was the World of Outlaws. That really bummed me out, because it's been 3 years since they've been at Eagle and I really miss seeing all of my friends on the tour. The race has been rescheduled as a mid-week show in September. Let's all keep our fingers crossed that Mother Nature doesn't rear her ugly head for that one!!

USAC will be coming back on August 3rd to hopefully get in the first USAC 410 wingless sprint car race ever held in Nebraska. That's another one that I'm very jazzed about seeing, since I've never seen them before and grew up with the wingless sprints. The topless super late models will be running with them, so it should be one whale of an evening. After last year's rain-out, we need good weather for that one too.

The first 2 nights this year were the Icebreaker Challenge, and it was CHILLY both nights. The first night saw plenty of racing; even a C Feature in the IMCA Sport Modifieds. Last year's IMCA Sport Modified Champion Jesse Sobbing was there and won as he seems to do so often. Jay Noteboom came down and took home the IMCA Modified Main. Kaley Gharst won the ASCS 360 Sprint Car Feature. Kaley has been showing up every week, and there are rumors floating around that he intends to run the high banks every week this season. Stay tuned to find out if that's true or not.

The second night of the Icebreaker was a real treat for me and probably 10,000 others. After Tony Stewart announced that he'd be running that night the fans came in droves!! Heck, I bet that we had over 1000 just in the pits. Brandon Johnson won the IMCA Hobby Stock A, with Johnny Saathoff winning the IMCA Modified Feature and Ole Olsen coming home in first for the IMCA Sport Compacts. Then came the most exciting race that I've seen at Eagle Raceway in quite awhile. Last year's points champion Stu Snyder snagged the lead on lap #3 with Stewart and Jack Dover right behind him. Stewart used lapped traffic to grab the lead on lap #11. The race ran from green to checkers without a caution or red flag and I can tell you that all of the fans got their $15 worth just in that 1 race. Stewart was the master racer that he is throughout, but he never ran away from Stu! I still get excited just recalling it. Although Stewart had said that there would be no autographs, he stayed in the pits for over an hour and a half until everyone that wanted to got their autograph. I had interviewed the other winners and ended up standing off to the side for over half an hour before I could talk to him. I reminded him that I had told him earlier that I needed to interview him and he said "C'mon man! I have to be up at 8:30!!!" and it was already past midnight. As he walked into his trailer he repeated "C'mon!" indicating that I should follow him. I would have been okay with not getting the interview, considering that he still had to drive out to the other side of Lincoln, take a plane to Kansas City and then drive to the track; only to get a few (very few) hours of sleep before racing the next day, but was thrilled when he said he would. He seemed to be extremely impressed with all of the improvements that had been made since he was there 18 years before. He also praised the track conditions, which obviously were to his liking given his performance. His statement was “This track is just awesome, and it’s the perfect size and shape. It was easy to run anywhere I wanted; top, middle or bottom. The racing is fantastic. I didn’t want to get down off of my hauler for my race because I was having so much fun watching the sport compacts. I mean they were running 3-wide behind the leader!”. I gave him a picture that I had printed out of him and the trophy from his last visit to Eagle. When he saw it he called his crew together and said "Look guys!! I WAS skinny once". I hope he comes back soon and often, because he is one whale of a racer and seems to be a pretty nice guy to boot.

The next weekend was the first points show at the track, and the temperatures weren't too awfully bad during the day, but then the clouds rolled in and the temperature dropped but the wind didn't and again it was a 3 sweatshirt night for this Pit Shack Guy. We got over 180 cars in the pits that night! How many dirt tracks would KILL to say that? Jesse Sobbing came back and won from the front row in the IMCA Sport Modifieds. It just isn't fair to give that good of a racer a front row spot, because pretty much everyone else is running for the rest of the purse. Jesse VanLaningham took the victory in the IMCA Hobby Stocks, Chris Alcorn was first in the IMCA Modifieds and Nick Lindblad won the IMCA Sport Compact Feature. Mike Boston got his first win of the season in the 360 Sprint Cars. Another great night of racing.

Last Saturday saw another great turnout of cars in the pits and a really great crowd in the stands. The racing was no less spectacular than the preceding weeks either. The biggest change was that instead of freezing, we were all sweating (well, as least I was) as the afternoon temperatures were above 90 degrees. The wind was relentless again (that seemed to be the rule every week so far) and the track turned dry-slick again, but that didn't mean that the racing was any less great. The competition was still 3-wide in the features. Max Harder won the IMCA Sport Modifieds. Chad Bassinger was the winner in the IMCA Sport Compacts after Scott Spellmeier was DQ'ed for a modified rear suspension. Lee Kracht won the most intense A Feature so far in the IMCA Hobby Stocks as he and Justin Busboom battled tooth and nail for the lead throughout. Johnny Saathoff again won in the IMCA Modifieds and Jordan Boston won a truly fabulous 360 Sprint Car A main, passing for the lead on lap 12 and holding off 3 really tough competitors in Trevor Grossenbacher, Mark Pace and Jack Dover.

Despite being dry-slick most times this year, the track has been extremely smooth and racey. The addition of George Bogue to the track prep crew to help out Larry Tombs seems to have resolved the problem with the dip in turn 1 right over the spring that has been a problem for as long as I can remember. I even kidded him that he and Larry should try putting some water on the track and he said "We started watering at 9 this morning!!". With winds and temps like Saturday, I don't think that there IS enough water for the track. Keep up the great work guys, it's well appreciated by the drivers and fans. Even if we do have to eat a little dust, when the racing is as good as it's been, who cares???

The crowds have been good, the racing has been great; what more could we ask?? I heard that Eagle Raceway had been named the #2 dirt track in the country. I haven't verified that, but I will look into it more and see where that was published if I can. I love working at and watching racing at Eagle, so it doesn't surprise me at all that such accolades should befall the facility; because last year it was named the #2 fan venue in the state behind Memorial Stadium. Roger and the staff must be doing something right, huh??

If you want to see the complete stories (written by yours truly) and the complete results, just go to http://www.eagleraceway.com/EagleRaceway/ and find whichever week you want to know about. There is also a complete schedule and lots of other information. Check it out.

As always, I welcome any and all comments so feel free!!

I'll try to at least get results up every week, but with caring for both Linda and Mom plus working a full-time job and at Eagle it's been tough. I have 3 unfinished articles and 1 in the works that I haven't had time for either. Hopefully soon things will settle down and life will return to it's normal level. Please keep my 2 special ladies in your thoughts and prayers. Until next time, I hope to see you all out at the track!!

Home life, Tony Stewart and more

Well, it's Sunday again and it has not been a good one. My wife is having a horrible day, so that leaves my mother's care to me. I don't mind, and it's not hard work, but it leaves me unable to do anything else like get the yard work done. The lawn needs to be mowed and "weed and feed"ed, but I'm stuck in here so maybe tomorrow night after work.

Mom is having a pretty good day actually, and for that we're very thankful. She even got up and walked around with her walker today; a really good day for her. Supper's going, so I'm taking a little time to do the blog that I promised in my last posting. I'll finish it after supper and getting Mom in bed and then publish it.

First off, I got a call from the owner/promoter at Eagle Raceway Friday. Nothing unusual in that, but the news he had was definitely out of the ordinary. He told me that Tony Stewart (yes, THAT Tony Stewart) was coming to run with the ASCS sprints next Saturday night at The Icebreaker Challenge at Eagle. So, after it became official I started getting the word out to the public. I received several differing responses with my announcement; and I was surprised by some of them, even though I probably shouldn't have been.

As with all famous people, Tony evokes many differing emotions in the general populace. They range from those who fawn over him, to such comments as "Big deal!!" or "He's a jerk" to "What a big ego" and even "We don't want him there!!". I even experienced a couple of folks who didn't know who he was. Now THAT surprised me, since the 1000 pound gorilla known as NASCAR is so ever-present that it seems odd that anyone could not have some inkling as to who "Smoke" is.

Quite a few said that they would come out and bring their friends just because he was going to be there, and that's the whole point. When you run a dirt track the most important thing is to fill the stands, and it looks like that will happen thanks to Tony.

I'm not worried about that so much, because I think that is a given. What I AM concerned with is that we'll have so many "NASCAR groupies" that it's going to be a disaster. It happens quite frequently it seems, because at a Sprint Cup event you have absolutely NO access to the drivers, whereas at a dirt track race you can go right into the pits either during the evening (with a pit pass) or after the night's contests are finished with no extra cash outlay. And when a certain part of the populace finds out that someone like Tony will be there they lose all common sense. They HAVE to be there!!

At Tony's own track, Eldora Speedway, they have a big late model race every year, The Dream. There also is a race with late models the night before that is called "Prelude to the Dream"!! Most of the competitors in the Prelude are NASCAR drivers or personalties past and present along with a few from other racing endeavours such as USAC and even drag racing. This year Danica Patrick is slated to race in fact. All of the proceeds go to charity, and from what I gather, the stands are PACKED!!! I've heard more than 1 dirt track fan and Eldrora regular complain about all of the "NASCAR people" who are only there to see the Sprint Cup stars. I'm hoping against hope that it doesn't happen this coming weekend. I've also got my fingers crossed that some of the folks who make their first trip to Eagle end up really enjoying the racing and become regulars. The only way that I know of to get folks hooked on dirt track racing is to get them to go to one.

We'll provide extra security for Tony and his team, but not just because he's a star; but still partially due to that fact. He has given and continues to give back not just to dirt track racing but also to charities in significant amounts. I personally think that he deserves the right to use his free time as he wishes. If that means going to and competing at a dirt track like any other racer, so be it. We provide the same courtesy to folks such as Larry the Cable Guy who has made numerous trips to Eagle Raceway. Larry wanted the ability to just sit and watch the races with his family, and we made sure that he could do exactly that. Just because you're famous, or rich, doesn't mean that you can't have some peace and quiet when you want it.

The long and short of it is, Tony wants to be just another sprint car driver for the night. He doesn't want to be pestered by autograph seekers, or drooling fans who want to get close to a star. No autographs, no pictures with your kids, none of that. Seems like a fair request to me. Should he give the autographs and take the pictures? Maybe so, but that's his call; not mine or anyone else's.

I admire Tony's accomplishments in the racing world today. Many people have deigned him the modern day AJ Foyt; a designation with which I wholeheartedly agree. He can drive and win in almost any type of race car. He's a past NASCAR Champion, IRL Champion, USAC Champion, he won the Triple Crown, even snagged a World of Outlaws race win last year. He drinks plain old beer, plays poker, and enjoys what he does best; RACE!! If I weren't just a lowly pit shack guy I'd love to be able to pal around with him because he seems to me to be just a regular guy who makes a VERY good living racing. Sadly, not everyone sees it that way.

I once wrote an article for a long-defunct website that I titled "But I paid for this ticket". It was basically telling the average race fan that the price of a seat in the stands did not entitle them to anything but a good show. They didn't buy the right to pry into or discuss the drivers' personal lives, or those of the owner or promoter of a race track, or those who put the teams out there for our enjoyment. I think that goes for the present situation especially. Do people come to where you work and pester you for an autograph, or a picture of you with their children or themselves? Doubtful. And don't give me the same, tired old excuse of "They're famous. They aren't like everybody else". Of course they are, they're just famous. If you don't like what you DID pay for, you can complain. But, if you complain, you'd better be able to offer a better way of doing what you didn't like. A reasonable way that actually will work without bankrupting the track or causing more headaches that it solves.

And that takes me off of the soap box and onto another subject that is reflected above. A certain bloviator....excuse me; blogger; embodies to the Nth degree the sort of thing that I mentioned above. Although they admit to being nothing more than a grumpy fan (read bleacher creature) he constantly berates promoters as if though they were second class citizens, not normal human beings. Where this attitude springs from is up for debate, and his actions are a matter of humor even to his friends. I've been told that more than once in fact. This person also is constantly putting me down for my attitude towards race tracks and their owners & promoters. My only belief is that the owner/promoter that I deal with constantly is a great guy. He took over a track that the previous owner was losing large amounts of money at and was prepared to sell to the highest bidder. It didn't matter to him what the purchaser wanted to do with it. Land development, housing or keep the facility going; it wasn't important. The new owner didn't want to see the track close, so he not only purchased it, he made a go of it, and is finally turning a profit at it. I read that Eagle is the second highest attended fan venue in the state, behind Memorial Stadium. No, it doesn't hold the most, but over a year's time, it draws the 2nd highest amount of people. I believe an average weekly show is around 2500 people. Pretty good for a dirt race track I'd say, and the envy of some much more well-known ones. With so many dirt tracks folding every year, it's a shining example of what can be done at one.

One wish I have is that this person and his fellow complainers would actually have control of a dirt track for just 1 year. After they implemented all of their fantastic innovations and lost a huge amount of money and failed miserably in their attempt they most likely would STILL refuse to believe that they didn't have the know-how to run such a facility and would blame it on God, the previous owner or something else. Maybe if this blogger would actually WORK at a track and be a part of the inner workings of said facility they might realize that a lot of what they think are brainstorms are really only brain farts!!

Oh well, I suppose that will never happen. And the blogger will keep on complaining about tracks and promoters with no workable solutions  to remedy what is perceived by them as a problem. And, they'll probably insist on continuing their 5-year old game of "I know something that you don't want to be told and if you aren't careful I'll tell!!". Just another perceived but untrue situation that I know the truth of. There is no problem, as both parties involved were pleased with the arrangement that was agreed upon and fulfilled.

Alright; Mom is in bed and I'm heading there shortly. Take care, and I hope to see you out at Eagle Raceway soon. If you make the trip; and you should; stop by and say hello. As far as I'm concerned, you're either already a racing friend or one that I just haven't met yet. We may not agree on everything, but what friends do?? We need to remedy that situation!!

Long time no blog

As a lot of you know, my mother is not doing very well. She moved in with us about 2 months ago in a hospice situation. She will be here until she leaves us forever, and we wouldn't have it any other way. My saintly wife cares for her while I go to work and we share the duties while I'm home. This, coupled with her having spent the previous months in and out of the hospital offset with stays in assited living facilities has meant little to no time to spare for things like blogging. For this, I apologize. I will do my utmost to keep up my duties as a blogger to the best of my ability under the current constraints.

Eagle Raceway's season starts in less than 2 weeks. The 19th of this month will be an open practice night for any and all classes. Front gates open at 6 with free admission for everyone. Pit gates open at 5 with pit passes just $10.

The following 2 nights are the Icebreaker Challenge, featuring the IMCA Modifieds. Friday night's support classes will be Lucas Oil ASCS Sprints and IMCA Sport Modifieds. Front gates open at 6 and racing starts at 8. Adult admission is $12, youths 6-12 are just $5 and 5 and under are free. Pit gates open at 4 with pit passes costing $25.

Saturday evening the Lucas Oil ASCS Sprints will again be racing, but the Sport Modifieds will be replaced by the IMCA Hobby Stocks and IMCA Sport Compacts. Front gates will open at 5 with racing beginning at 6:30. Adult front gate admission will be $15 while the youth and children's admissions prices remain the same. Pit gates again open at 4 with pit passes again being $25.

The 27th and 28th of April there will again be a double-header weekend. On Friday night the World of Outlaws presented by SLS Promotions make their return to the high banks of America's Home Track after having been absent the past 2 years. The best 410 travelling series in the world will have the mini-sprints as their support class. Front gates open at 5:30 with time trials at 6:30 and racing at 7. If you wait until the day of the show, adult front gate admission is $35, youths are $15 and 5 and under receive free admission with a paid adult. There is a package deal with both a reserved seat and a pit pass available for just $5 more. You can save $5 on adult admission by visiting participating NAPA stores. You also can purchase reduced price front gate tickets online at SLS Promotions tickets for Eagle Raceway or by calling 1-815-344-2023. Pit gates open at 4 P.M.

Then on Saturday the Nebraska Lottery presents the SuperMania 2012 Season Opener. All regular weekly shows will consist of the Budweiser 360 Sprints, Nebraska Drive Shaft & Radiator IMCA Modifieds, NAPA IMCA Sport Modifieds, Valentino's IMCA Hobby Stocks and Exhaust Pros IMCA Sport Compacts. Front gates open at 5:30 with racing at 6:30. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for youths 6-12 and 5 and under are free. Pit gates open at 4 and pit passes are $20.

There will be lots of fun for all ages with give-aways, contests and other fan interaction to go along with plenty of racing action. As I always say, "Going to the races is an event", and the events at Eagle Raceway will have you planning your next trip back there even before you leave.

The next big event will be held the 8th and 9th of June when TBJ Promotions presents the Eagle Nationals featuring the Lucas Oil ASCS National Sprints. Friday night the IMCA Sport Modifieds and IMCA Hobby Stocks will also be on the card and Saturday evening IMCA Modifieds and IMCA Sport Compacts will be the support classes. The Eagle Nationals is always one of the most exciting and hotly contested events of the year as the Eagle regulars attempt to protect their home turf against the national touring drivers.

August 3rd the Amsoil National Championship 410 non-winged Sprint Cars will make their first ever appearance in the state of Nebraska at the Rumble in the Bullring. The event was originally scheduled for last August, but unfortunately Mother Nature decided that the previous week's lack of rain needed to be remedied and the event had to be cancelled. The NCRA/MARS Super Late Models will be running topless and the other support class will be the Mod Lites.

The 2012 season wraps up with two Sunday shows. September 2nd Budweiser presents the Eagle Super Shootout featuring the 360 Sprints, IMCA Modieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, IMCA Hobby Stocks and IMCA Sport Compacts.

The final event will again feature the Lucas Oil Sprints at the Nebraska Cup on September 9th. They will be supported by the IMCA Sport Modifieds and IMCA Hobby Stocks.

The entire 2012 Eagle Raceway schedule can be viewed at Eagle Raceway 2012 Schedule and the website is updated regularly during the season with results and news.

Eagle Raceway should be on everyone's bucket list, and there is no better time than the present to check that one off!!

I'll try to get another blog posted yet this week, as there are some things being said that need to be addressed; so stay tuned!!!

As always, your comments are welcomed and even encouraged!! So sound off.

A bad couple of nights, a sad couple of weeks

Well, the last 2 nights at Eagle haven't been the greatest. We got to the track a little after 3 on Friday, and went to the office to pick up the money drawers and bands to put on the people coming into the pits. While we were standing outside waiting it decided to rain; and I DO mean rain!! It came down for about an hour, long enough that the night couldn't be salvaged. After a very long and very intense discussion between the owner and Jason from USAC, it was decided that there was no way to make it work. They also discussed a possible make-up at a later date, but it just couldn't be worked out.

We headed home around 5:30 and went to the drug store to pick something up. We came out to more rain and got into the car to sit it out. After 10 minutes of a downpour, I said "The heck with this, I'm heading home". Not the smartest move on my part as it rained even harder!! I could barely see the road and the gutters were running full. Guess USAC and Roger made the right call, huh??

Such a shame!! The first time EVER for USAC's 410 wingless sprints in the state and the only appreciable rain in a couple of weeks has to happen!! There were people from all over camped at the track specifically to catch this show, and I can't remember all of the people who called to find out if the races were still on. Most of them said "AHHH NO!! Oh well, we'll be back next year". Throw in all of the racers who towed in for the show; USAC, SLMR, the mod lites and 600cc mini-sprints, and you have an awful lot of disappointed people. I would be right up there at the top of the list, followed closely by the owner. He said to me that this was the show that he was most excited to watch all year!! One of the drivers even told Jason that he had been looking forward to running the high banks with his 410 ever since he did it in a midget! Oh well, we will all just have to start planning our vactions, sick days, etc. for next year in August.

So, on to Saturday night. Another typical August day in Nebraska. Hot and muggy as all get out!! Lots of people in the stands, track was VERY fast but had a few holes due to all of the rain the night before. There was some really good racing in the heats for all 5 classes, with the only real problem being when Gene Ackland caught the hole in turn 1 and went from wheels, to air, to wheels, to air and back to wheels. He dinged the wing just slightly, but I saw on his Facebook page that the frame was junked.

At intermission the drivers gave all of the kids in the crowd rides around the track in some of the cars that were competing that night. Sport compacts, hobby stocks and modifieds had youngsters getting a thrill that they won't soon forget.

So, as I looked around the sky which had been showing lightning in a 270 degree arc around the track, I hear them telling people to get out of the high-rise grandstand. Well, it didn't take long for the wind to shift and the monsoon began!! The lightning flashed, the thunder crashed and the rain came down SIDEWAYS!! So, we sat in the Pit Shack and watched the procession of haulers and half-drowned spectators slowly pass by the windows. After quite awhile it began to let up and lo and behold, there was clear sky out west. We headed up front to check out and went to the car to try and get out of the parking lot. It only took about 10 minutes; a lot shorter than the folks who left right away. I was told that some of them had spent an HOUR waiting for their turn to hit the highway.

2 nights, 2 rain-outs. The bright spot in it is that I and the fans will be treated to double features during Junior Fan Club Night on the 20th. Hope to see you all there.

Now that I've discussed the couple of bad nights, I'll touch on the sad couple of weeks. 2 weeks ago Saturday Gary Grossenbacher passed away at the young age of 65. This was a great loss to our racing family, to say the least. Gary was the crew chief for the "Black Bandit", Lonnie Jensen, and then took on the role for Lonnie's son Tige who is an Eagle regular in the 360 Sprints.

Equally sad for the local racing scene, and even more sorrowful for me personally was the loss of Frank "Zook" Scdoris. Zook raced at all kinds of local tracks from Capitol Beach, to Beatrice where he is enshrined in their Hall of Fame, to Midwest Speedway where he ended his driving career and took up the reigns as flagman. After he stopped racing his daughter Rhonda took over the seat in the 52 sprinter. And now, his grandson Nick races a 360 at Eagle. The Scdoris (and now Bryan) families are in our thoughts and prayers. They are some of the greatest people I've ever met and I'm very VERY proud to call them friends. I knew Frank for what seems like forever, and I'll miss him terribly, but I know that he's in a better place now.

God obviously needed a couple of great guys who knew their way around a sprinter, because he got 2 of the very best. Our loss is his gain, and I know that the 3 of them are bench racing right now and having a whale of a time!! That would be a conversation worth hearing. Lord, please keep these 2 close to you, and hold their families in your heart as they travel through these rough times.

So, there you have it. 2 lost nights of racing, and MUCH more importantly, 2 horrible losses to our racing family. It's life, and sometimes life is hard. The rest of us just have to pick up the slack for our 2 lost friends and carry on the racing tradition that they were such a large part of.

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Questions for the 2011 Eagle Raceway season

Just a little while ago, I posted on Dirtdrivers.com about questions looming for this season at Eagle Raceway. I want to revisit those here, and give my thoughts on them.

With 5 classes again this year, who do you think will take home the championship in each?

Well, first of all, let's think about having 5 classes at Eagle. A lot of "purists" say that so many classes is a bad thing in and of itself. Quite a few people come to see just 1 of those classes, some enjoy 2 or maybe 3, but darned few want to see all of the events on the evening. Personally, I am one of the darned few. Having seen everything from the old coupes (Hoodoos) at Capitol Beach up to what we have at Eagle today, I can honestly say they all are exciting in their own way. Yes, event the sport compacts! It's probably because I get to interact with all of the racers and their families week in and week out. Ever racer, every member of the pit crews and all of the others in their entourages pay with their pit fees, as well as their sweat and tears (sadly sometimes blood) to be out there doing what they love every week.

As for who will win the championship in each class, I think all of them are up for grabs. What better case can be made than the fact that John Klabunde was victorious in the 360 sprints last year without so much as a single Feature victory??

There are several drivers moving up in classes, so can one of them have a break-out season to remember in their freshman year?

Again, I think it's impossible to even guess about this. Every season drivers make the leap of faith and try something new, challenging and of course, harder. Almost without fail, they have little or no idea of the vast differences between where they were and what they are moving into now. Can it be done successfully? Of course. Will it happen this year at Eagle? Your guess is as good as mine. But, it would be nice to see!!

How will the first-time USAC show be received?

I sure hope it's a success, because I LOVE the wingless sprints. Ever since teams started bolting home-made wings they made from plywood or whatever other material that they had around onto their sprinters, wingless sprints have become more and more scarce around here. That's too bad in my opinion, because removing the lid makes the emphasis SO much more on the driver than on the motor. The crew chief (or whoever does the set-up on the car) becomes invaluable also. Danger, rooster-tails, drive-it-in-hard and come out harder; all these things can be used to accurately describe wingless sprint car racing. And no one is better at it than the USAC competitors. I can't wait, and can only hope that others will be as excited as I am so that we can make this a yearly event.

What can we expect for an outcome at the always exciting Eagle Nationals as the touring pros take on the locals at "America's Home Track"?

I know that there are teams at Eagle that can compete favorably with the "Big Boys" on the ASCS tour. Will one of them get the right breaks that gives them the chance to pull off what a lot of people would say is an upset? I sure hope so. I know that it would make for one WHALE of a party in the pits afterwards. Furthermore, it would be a great focal point for an article in Flat Out Magazine (just kidding). I'm not immune to wanting to be in the racing circle of people associated with winning a prestigious event such as this; moreover it would be a big feather in any racers cap, especially when they call Eagle Raceway their home track. Can any of them overcome the obvious disadvantages they face? Let's keep our fingers crossed.

What lovely young lady will wear the crown at this year's Miss Nebraska Cup contest during Eagle's signature event, the Nebraska Cup?

Wow!! Talk about a tough call!!!!! Unless you are Carnak the Magnificent, nobody has ANY idea on this one. All I can say is that she will be thrilled, and all of the contestants will be well-rewarded. The people associated with the contest have already been hard at work getting gifts for the ladies who want to be a part of the festivities.

Will Mama Nature be kind to Eagle, or will she show her power and be the nasty female that we all so dread?

We call only pray; and I ask everyone to do so so that we don't have a repeat of the 2009 season. That year we lost I believe 7 of the first 8 shows to the wrath of she who wields the weather wand. We can hope that we have a repeat of last year where we enjoyed fantastic weather throughout the year.

Lastly, what creative things will Roger Hadan come up with this season to keep the crowd entertained???

If I thought the other questions were difficult to answer for sure, this one is one for the ages. As someone said to Roger a couple of years back "I come to the track every week to see what kind of crazy stuff you're going to come up with next!". Roger not only thinks outside the box, I don't think he even knows there is such a box. Clowns, mini-van hockey, fire hose riding...only the almighty may have an idea of the workings of Roger's brain; and even he may be unsure.

I would like to add 1 more question that I didn't post on the forum if I may.

Can we break the record for bicycles given away at Kids Night?

I think that this is a record that not only CAN be broken, but needs to be broken. The whole thing started as a tribute to a young child who was a quasi-member of a local sprint car crew. From a couple of bikes and a few other minor gifts, it has grown far beyond what anyone could have imagined at it's inception. Last year the record fell again, as over 350 bicycles were given away to youngsters. With the Hadans donating 1 bike for every 2 that are purchased through donations, I think that it will be done. If you want to make a donation so that a deserving girl or boy can have a bicycle, contact the track or get ahold of me and I'll steer you in the right direction to be sure that your contribution goes to the right place.

As I said in my post, "Guess we'll start to get answers in just 6 days. Hope to see you all there as the 2011 season unravels".

Again, I ask that you help support the people who make it possible for me to have this blog by clicking on the advertisements that you see on this page. I really enjoy writing it, and hope that you all enjoy reading it. Please feel free to leave a comment; I might even okay it for the whole world to see.

The Rumble in the Bullring

Finally, I get to see the USAC non-winged 410 sprint cars!! Wingless sprinters hold a special place in my heart, because the first sprinters I saw were wingless, because that's all that they ran back then. The plywood toppers didn't come along until I was in my mid-teens, and then not around here until a couple of years later. Although USAC has run numerous times around here with their midget series (the midgets were a staple at Eagle for a lot of years), this is the first time EVER for the 410 wingless sprints to run in the state of Nebraska.

You can see the press release that I wrote here: http://www.eagleraceway.com/EagleRaceway/?p=2913.

This is going to be a really great night at Eagle Raceway. People have been complaining because another race track wasn't going to have the wingless 410's this year, and that there wasn't going to be a Late Model show at Eagle this year after last year's Late Model special lost money. 1 person in particular was VERY vocal about that in fact. Well, now he and a lot of other fans will get their wish. Wingless 410's and Late Models the same night on the high-banked 1/3 mile of "America's Home Track"?? WOW!!!!! What more could you ask??

I'm finally shaking off the mental and physical aspects of my August major surgery, thank God. I finally finished my article for Flat Out magazine on last year's Eagle Raceway 360 Sprint Car points champion, John Klabunde.

John is, as I said in my article, a truly good guy. Very unassuming, humble nearly to a fault, and just your typical weekend warrior. He races because he loves doing it. He never had visions of track championships, or being a big shot in dirt track racing. Heck, he was afraid I'd make fun of him in my article!! After he read the final version he said "Wow! You made me sound like somebody special!". My response was "That's because you are". Maybe he's been reading other people's blogs where all they do is complain about racetracks, NASCAR, drivers, certain classes, other writers and anything else that they think aren't exactly what they believe that they should be. I'll be posting the article about John in it's entireity after it is published, so stay tuned to this blog.

In regards to some people's writing, you will NEVER hear anything negative about a driver, track or the sport of dirt track racing itself from me. That's just not me. I LOVE dirt track racing; all kinds of dirt track racing; like very few other things in my life, other than my family and friends. And even if my mind should ever run in that direction, I still wouldn't. You see, I work for not only Flat Out magazine but also for Eagle Raceway. Not only would any such rants reflect badly on myself, it could possibly do so towards Eagle and the magazine. Although some writers don't mind doing it, I refuse to. Lord only knows I would love to respond, but I cannot and will not. But it does irk me. I doubt that there would be any retributions from either place, but I still won't do it. The thought of dengrating dirt track racing in any way, shape or form just irritates me more than I can possibly say.

Yes, I see things wrong with racetracks, promoters, sanctioning series, drivers, etc. but you can bank on the fact that you won't see it manifest itself in this blog or anywhere else. Racetracks and promoters are businesses and business men who's job is to make money. Series' job is to protect itself (it's profitability) first and it's drivers second. Drivers are people first (people with families)

and public figures second. They put their very lives on the line every week for our entertainment. What right does ANYONE have to question them?? The old saying goes "Walk a mile in my shoes, and then judge me". Advice that I live by, and others should too.

I hate the namby-pamby, politically correct nation that we have become; but I was taught the golden rule at a very young age and still believe in it. Plague, famine, pestilence, war, etc. all are something we need to speak out against. But there are very few other things about which we deserve to feel outrage; and none of these are dirt track racing.

Thank you for taking time out of your busy lives to read my blog. I'm going to make every effort to post something at least every week, if nothing else than my write-up and the results from the weekly racing at Eagle Raceway; so keep stopping by.