1. Made it to I-96 Speedway Friday night to check out the newly configured 3/8-mile track. There was no shortage of excitement with Rusty Schlenk going from 3rd to 1st in the final two laps to get the win in the Sunoco ALMS sanctioned event.
2. Jeep Van Wormer made it look easy in in Saturday's ALMS race at Oakshade while Matt Miller held off Jeep's late rally Sunday at Eldora. Are there any two drivers whose names are more synonyms with Eldora than those two drivers?
3. Really, really happy to see Davey Johnson get the $20,000 win at Tyler County this weekend. It seemed like a mid-90's STARS race with Davey J. winning and Chub finishing 2nd.
4. This weekend, I'll take advantage of a rare opportunity to watch Dad race at 250 Speedway on Friday. On Saturday, I'll hit one of my favorite tracks...Ohio Valley Speedway.
5. Just a little over 3 weeks away from this summer's big racing trip. More details in the coming weeks, but...it's gonna be epic. Six races in nine days.
1. The "Summer of Babcock" continued this weekend as he notched two more victories, one at Attica in the Late Model and one at Eldora in the Modified. As a matter of fact, he's finished no worse than second in five of his last six outings.
2. Have I mentioned how much I love seeing drivers get their first Eldora win? It happened again Saturday night at Eldora with Nick Bowers rolling into victory lane in the Stock Car division. Three of the four winners in Eldora's Stock Car class have been first timers.
3. The BOSS Sprints cranked out another phenomenal race Saturday night with Chase Stockon and Robert Ballou putting on a show over the final few laps, trading sliders and swapping the lead. Stockon came out victories in a hard fought win, making his first ever appearance in the Big E's victory stage.
4. Memorial Day weekend always bring out some great racing and solid car counts. I'm personally looking forward to this weekend's Sunoco ALMS triple-header at I-96 Friday, Oakshade Saturday, and Eldora Sunday.
5. My 2014 racing vacation is booked and just one month away. Where am I heading the fourth week of June? You'll soon find out...but I'm thinking a few new states are in order...
1. For the second time in the last three years, Attica Raceway Park's catchfence did a masterful job in keeping a race car in play and preventing several folks from getting injured...or even killed. Two years ago, Danny Smith had a frightening accident while qualifying his Sprint Car at Attica and went full throttle into a fence that separates the race track from the staging lane and pit area. This past Friday night, during the Late Model feature, Chris Ross (uninjured) was forced up into the catchfence near the end of the front straightaway and, just like it should, it kept Ross's car from careening into the grandstands. In just 23 minutes, the Attica Raceway Park staff fixed the fence and support poles and we were back racing. I can't help but wonder how many tracks have safety features like catchfences and guardrails that are simply for looks and wouldn't have held up in a situation like this. Maybe some track owners need to ask themselves, "If a Late Model went full speed into my catchfence, would it keep the car on the race track?" If you even have to think about your answer, it's probably time to do some work.
2. Bound and determined to go somewhere Saturday after Eldora cancelled, I ended up staying home. After holding out for I-96 (MI) Speedway, their 12:30pm rain out left me with just a few options. Brownstown (IN) Speedway and Lawrenceburg (IN) Speedway were both rolling the dice, but I decided not to and it paid off as both programs eventually fell victim to rain. The lone track within four hours of home to race..? Surprisingly, it was Crystal Speedway in Crystal, MI, where Zach Olger bested a field of 21 Late Models.
3. Hat tips are in order for Brad Neat and Bub McCool for their WoO Late Model wins over the weekend. It's always good to see new faces in victory lane and these guys are two of the most likable driers in our sport.
4. An early check of the local weather forecast for the upcoming weekend shows (no surprise) scattered thunderstorms for both Friday and Saturday. And, of course, in an unrelated story...
5. ...Limaland Motorsports Park is set to host the Sunoco ALMS Late Models this Friday, an event that has been rained out four straight years. The last Late Model show held at the 1/4-mile track...? May 11, 2007. Duane Chamberlain capitalized on a late race mistake by Jason Montgomery to grab the ALMS-sanctioned win over Montgomery, Rick Combs, Jerry Bowersock, and Brian Ruhlman.
I'm guessing most of the people who read this blog are fairly hardcore Dirt Late Model fans, with a few others sprinkled in here and there. But the question is, what other classes besides Dirt Late Models are your favorites to watch?
As for me, I love taking in a Big Block Modified show whenever possible. I wish there were more shows close to me but, understandably, there are virtually no Big Block Mods in this area and, getting those guys to travel can be extremely difficult. However, on Tuesday August 7th, the Super DIRTcar Big Block Modified Series will be invading Ionia, Michigan's I-96 Speedway, so that may be a date to mark on your calendar if you're like me and enjoy watching those cats race.
Locally, the NRA Sprint Invaders (360 Sprints) seem to put on an absolutely outstanding show practically every time I see them, especially at Eldora. As for the 410 Sprints, I'm usually hit-or-miss with the winged-wonders, but I've found Attica's weekly show to have some of the most talented drivers and best side-by-side racing for the 410s of anybody around.
Open Wheel Modifieds just continue to gain in popularity (we had 44 for a regular show Saturday night at Eldora) and have a nice mix of young up-and-coming as well as some old veterans and former Late Model pilots. I'll take a good UMP Modified show any day of the week.
I guess, in summary, Dirt Late Models are where my heart lies, but I'm simply a RACE fan. If it's on dirt, I'll typically watch it.
However, I'm curious to hear from some of you as to what your favorite "other" classes are. What do you enjoy watching besides our beloved Late Models...??
