Sunday, April 29, 2007

Making Lemonade

Plainfield, IN (April 28, 2007) – Because the sunshine failed to show up on time to fulfill its contractual agreement, and we were rained out at Gas City I-69 Speedway, we have decided that disciplinary action is required. We are officially announcing that the sun has been fined $10,000 and put on probation for the rest of the season. We will no longer tolerate this type of behavior.

We did not find out about the rainout until 3pm Friday, and by then we were almost to Indianapolis, so it was time to make a decision. Should we waste the precious fuel that cost us almost $3 per gallon, turn around and head for home, or buck up, spend the night and wager a meteorological gamble that Eldora would not fall victim to the same fate? For four race-starved fans who have already been shorted, even this early in the season, it was a pretty simple choice to make.

Rolling on into Plainfield, we found a hotel, checked in and unloaded. Spring and I settled in pretty quickly, tuning in SPEED so we could watch some of the Busch qualifying coverage. We took a break to meet the guys for dinner, had some dessert, watched a bit of the Cardinals game, and then spent the rest of the evening watching the ARCA race and brainstorming our next big idea. We were really excited to see former USAC driver, Josh Wise do so well in the ARCA race. Way to go, Josh!


It would have been easy to feel that the weekend had turned sour because of the rainout, but we decided that it was a whole lot more fun to make the best of things and enjoy the little break from our usual family responsibilities. Spring and I stayed up until pretty early in the morning, working on the future plans of GGR. We are brimming with ideas, and the funny part is how often one of us says something, and the other just laughs because they were thinking the same thing. I guess that’s what it’s like to have a really great friend.


Saturday morning dawned blue and beautiful, and since we had plenty of time to kill before we needed to hit the road for Eldora, my Dad came up with the briliant idea of heading over to the Brickyard to visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. Before walking through those hallowed halls, we took a bus tour of the grounds, which was narrated by our driver, Jim. We enjoyed talking and joking around with him. It is so great when you meet someone who is enthusiastic about racing, and is willing to open up a little.

The museum was wonderful. I have visited several times, but this was the first time I had seen Tony Stewart’s Home Depot Car on display. I had a great time taking pictures and walking around. The history that is housed inside that museum is astounding, and the cars are works of art. It is very interesting to me to see how they have evolved through the years.

Before leaving the grounds, the sound of formula cars practicing on the track lured us to a grassy hillside nearby where we stood watching and taking photographs. Those cars are a lot harder to catch on camera than anything else I’ve ever tried to shoot. Getting the timing down would definitely take a lot of practice. We were able to get right up next to the fence, and although I got a lot of wonderful shots of empty pavement, I know Spring managed to get some good ones.


It was finally time to head on down the highway, so we loaded up and rolled on down the road toward the evening's destination: Eldora Speedway.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Indiana/Ohio or bust!

Well, it's Friday morning of a weekend that I thought would never get here. In just a few short hours we will be hitting the highway for our first road trip of 2007!

Spring and I, along with my Dad and brother will be heading east to Gas City tonight, and then hopping over the Ohio state line for the famed Eldora Speedway tomorrow night. The USAC Sprint Border Wars are on the menu, and a tasty dual entree it is!

We can hardly wait to see these two great tracks, catch up with old friends, and make new ones. And of course, we are always excited about all the photos we are going to take.

This should be a great weekend of Sprint Car racing and we will share it all right here as soon as we return.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Green flag drops (finally!) at Tri-City Speedway

It's offical. Tri-City Speedway has ushered in a new era of racing in the St. Louis area.

After several weather delays, the gates opened on the 2007 racing season at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach and it looked as if every driver and fan in the area turned out to see what all the fuss was about.


With the pits filled to capacity, a tightly packed parking lot, and grand stands bursting with people, it was clear that all of the hard work the Gundakers have put into this facility was well worth it. The new 3/8 mile, high banked track has everyone standing up and taking notice. The show moved along very well, and the action was lightning-fast.


My Dad and I made the trip over by ourselves, and had a really good time. We got there about a half an hour after the gates opened, and haulers were backed up all the way to the road. It was clear that parking would be at a premium, but they managed to squeeze everyone in. The new pit area outside of turns three and four helped a lot.


I walked around and took a few shots of various things, which you can see on the web site. One of the more interesting vantage points was from inside the flagstand. I've been to most areas of the track before, but this was my first time to take in the best view in the house! It was fun being up there for the opening festivites, which included a parade of beautiful classic race cars.


There was a lot of excitement in the air, and I know folks will be talking about opening night for weeks to come. After watching Late Models boogie around that track, I can't wait to see how the Sprint Cars do on it. We'll find out on May 4th when the World of Outlaws come to town.


Before then, we are headed up to Gas City, Indiana and Eldora next weekend for the USAC Sprints. Our first road trip of the year should be a whole lot of fun.


Meanwhile, check out all of this week's photos. I got to use the new zoom for racing for the first time, and I love it! It's great to be able to get up close to the cars, and I look forward to getting better at it as the weeks go by.


Thanks for dropping in!

Monday, April 16, 2007

Random Notes

It never fails that after our racing season is delayed by two weeks, we finally get perfect weather...on a Monday. Oh well, who can complain when it's sunny and 70+ outside? Not me!

Despite all the delays, it looks like we will finally kick off the season the weekend of April 27-28, starting at Gas City I-69 Speedway in Gas City, Indiana, and winding up at the famous (or is it infamous?) Eldora Speedway. USAC Sprints will highlight the race card both nights.

Spring is gradually getting better, and as of right now, she will join my Dad, my brother and I as we make the journey to Indiana and Ohio. None of us have been to Gas City before, but I have heard a lot of great things about it. Neither Spring nor I have been to Eldora, so that will definitely be a treat. Now all we have to do is hope that the weather holds.

When we do head off to the races, we'll be easy to spot as we roll down the highways. Just this weekend, I installed the vinyl graphics that were made by our friend at 87 Designs on the back window of Ol' Blue. Hopefully, there will be time to get Spring's done sometime this week, but we'll have to see how it goes. The vinyl turned out great, and I hope Chris knows just how much we appreciate his hard work.

My van wasn't the only thing to get a little racing TLC this week either. On Saturday, my hubby installed a phone in my "office" which is just a little corner of the basement that I've taken over. The phone wouldn't be such a big deal except that it's a Lightning McQueen phone. How cool is that? Also new in my office is my fancy new barstool/desk chair. I bought the chair, minus the seat, for $5 and my Mom and step-Dad fashioned this awesome one-of-a-kind seat. I absolutely love it. Getting the chair so cheap was good, but having a custom-made seat is icing on the cake. Thanks guys!

The highlight of this day, besides getting the just-finished chair back from my Mom, was getting a postcard in the mail from the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame. It seems they have selected one of my photos for display in their "Salute to the Shooters" tribute at the museum. The photo I submitted is a close-up shot of Tim Siner in his Silver Crown car last year at DuQuoin. It's one of my favorite shots from last year, and I feel truly honored that the photo has been chosen for the display.

So now we just sit back and count the days until we head out for our first race road trip of the year. Thanks for checking in!

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Doing the Right Thing

Last weekend was supposed to be the start of our local racing season, but Old Man Winter just keeps hanging on and messing things up.

Tri-City postponed their Play Day to tonight and thier opener for Friday. It's still mighty breezy and looking a bit wet for tonight but I hope they get it in.

Saturday was supposed to be the World of Outlaws race at I-55 which was finally called late Friday night. I was really glad to hear it and I think it was the right decision for the fans and the promoter. It would have been a really lousy night for racing, and I think after seeing the effect of the cold on the crowd Friday night at Paducah, the World of Outlaws officials realized that.

So now it looks as if our first race will be at the end of the month. We are looking at the USAC Sprint events at Gas City and Eldora, and Spring is hoping to be in good enough shape to go. We had lunch together today, and she seemed to be doing pretty well. I hope that she continues to improve and is able to make the trip, because I know we would have a great time.

If the weather gets better, I will probably head over to Tri-City for their opener Friday night. I am really anxious to see how folks like all the changes over there. It's pretty exciting stuff!

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

A dash of optimism

Here in Missouri, we have a saying: "If you don't like the weather, wait a few minutes and it will change." Unfortunately, the saying is also true when you do like the weather, as evidenced by what has happened here in the last 24 hours!

For the past two weeks, our weather has been balmy, with a few bouts of rain thrown in. Perfect racing weather between storms. Yesterday, the temps were in the low seventies and we got a couple of rounds of thunderstorms. Overnight, the mercury began to fall and it is now 32 degrees outside. Great weather for building a snowman (if we had snow) but definitely not the best weather for racing. I'm still holding out hope that things warm up a bit before the weekend, but it's not looking good.

Right now, the meteorologists, both national and local are predicting highs in the forties for Friday and Saturday, which means dressing warm for Friday night's opener at Tri-City and Saturday night's World of Outlaws race at Pevely. It's been a number of years since I've had to dig out my gloves and warm winter coat to take in some racing action, but it looks like I don't have much choice in the matter!

My hubby and I are still planning on spending our 23rd wedding anniversary at I-55 Saturday night, but I don't know how I will shoot photos with frozen fingers! It should be very interesting, to say the least. As of right now, it is doubtful that Spring will make our kick-off weekend. She was still in a world of hurt when I took her to physcial therapy on Monday. Please keep her in your prayers!

Speaking of prayers, it is Easter weekend, and if you haven't figure out yet that it is about more than bunnies and chocolate eggs, I encourage you to check out your local church this Sunday. May God bless you on this, the greatest holiday of the year.