Does this remind you of a certain Fri. night track?

Brandon Paul

Brandon Paul

Free agent score guy
Go to luvracin.com, click on the "writers" button on the right side of the screen, and click on the "State of Dirt Track Racing" column by Dan Bennett.
I think you'll all think I wrote it about, well, you know what track. :D
 
I read it, and I think the guy needs to stay home. He claims as much as he can stand is 2-3 hours at the track. This aint a hollywood movie, it aint a little league baseball game. Its racing, and there are many unknowns that can eat up the clock: debris from breakages on the track, hauling off broken cars, push trucks to start stalled cars, wrecks, even fights on the front straight all take time to deal with.

2-3 hours for the whole show? I would feel like I was getting ripped off. I paid 10 bucks, I better be getting at least 3 1/2 to 5 hours at the track for that.

You cant watch any pro sport competition in that amount of time. It leaves me wondering how he would react to an International Cricket match. Game length? 5 days. lol
 
Hate to admit it, but I agree with the author on a majority of the issues. 3 classes is plenty for a Friday night track, no matter how well run the place is. If I may use Godfrey as an example, the classes that supported the track all year would be the ones invited back for 2005. That would be a 3 class show of UMP Late Models, B-Modifieds and Street Stocks. It's not that the other classes didn't put on a good show, but there weren't enough of them on a regular basis to carry their end of the bargain when it comes to funding the purse. Quality of racing has nothing to do with paying the purse when you barely have a dozen cars show up. Time to trim the fat.
 
Doug...are you saying that only those classes should be invited back or only those classes WILL be invited back by the new promoter??
 
t.nie said:
2-3 hours for the whole show? I would feel like I was getting ripped off. I paid 10 bucks, I better be getting at least 3 1/2 to 5 hours at the track for that.
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Three or four hours would be fine if each class had 3 or 4 heats(and that means a MINIMUM of 7-8 cars in each heat) and a legitimate semi--one that eliminates more than just 1 or 2 cars--to run. But re-read his column. He's talking about programs where the classes barely get two heats taking several hours to run.
 
I agree that to short of a show leaves me feeling ripped off, but I get really annoyed with long cautions to get a car pushed or pulled off when most tracks can get it done in secconds, or long delays to relign the field. Recovery crews, scorers, and on track officials have to be both good at their jobs, and eager to get it done and get the race restarted. If I were a promoter I would spend alot of time coaching those staff members, trying to get them better if my track had delays, or letting them know they are doing it right and keeping them doing quickly without being unfair to racers in the process. I will also add that I have been to more tracks that have problems with long cautions and delays between races than tracks that do not. My biggest peave is tracks that ramrod the racers and force you to line up two or three races in advance and then have you sitting there forever as they cannot get restarts lined up, or crashes and stalled cars cleaned up and off the track, the worst part is that is most tracks these days.
 
Dean said:
My biggest peave is tracks that ramrod the racers and force you to line up two or three races in advance and then have you sitting there forever as they cannot get restarts lined up, or crashes and stalled cars cleaned up and off the track.
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Me 2. I HATE sitting forever in staging. It isnt always the slow cleanups etc, sometimes its just stupid driving and unnecessary spin after spin on the track that causes it. But I hate that waiting forever stuff too.
 
These tracks need UMP Late Models, UMP Modifieds, and some form of Street Stocks. I would like to see one group of tracks (Godfrey, Highland, and Tri-City) run a traditional street stock class and the other grouping (Belleville and Pevely) continue running their Sportsmen classes. The thing is that Belleville is in more need of a quick show than anyone right now and their fans love their Bomber class so a cut would be difficult. I personally like a three class show and in the Kansas City area it is much easier to get away with, because of the absence of Late Models. That makes a Modified, charger (sportsman), and Factory Stock show very reasonable both to the track management and to the fans. I think that cutting the A modifieds at a track that has B modifieds is irresponsible. It beats up on the entire purpose of creating a feeder class of modifieds. I personally think that B modifieds are an unneccesary class, because they serve the same purpose as sportsman cars. Modifieds are needed, because for some drivers they are the highest possible class that certain people can afford in the area. They also offer the only class in which you can take a car minus tires and motor and run it about every dirt track from the Colorado/Kansas Border clear through Illinois and from the Canadian to the Mexican border.
 
I want to make sure I have this right your saying a promoter cut a class (b-mods) that has between 30 and 40 cars and keep a class (a-mods) that has 15 and 25 cars. This just doesn't seem to make sense to me, but I've been wrong before.
 
If you want to go to a Friday night track, that does'nt mess around, and gets the show in, in a timely mannor, usually done by 10:00 to 10:30 every night, you should consider coming to Jacksonville. Always great racing in all of the classes, the limited late models are always very competitive, as well as the Sprints, street stocks, pony stocks, and micros.
I, was not overly impressed with the way they handled the rescheduling of there last big race, but it does'nt change my opinion of the racetrack, and the way they run their show.
If only they could get together with U.M.P. and have some big Late Model, and or Modifed shows in 2005
 
CHEWIN_DIRT said:
Doug...are you saying that only those classes should be invited back or only those classes WILL be invited back by the new promoter??
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Guess it depends on who the promoter is. If anyone wants to back me financially, get in touch! :cool:
 
I think I have been hearing the same thing you guys have. If its true everyone will agree that the food will be really good.
 
Damn Devils Advocate..you got some good informers!! Lol..i heard the same thing..and i hope..personally its true. Not knocking Chad..he's done a good job..all together. Just Smith has money...wont put up with any bull...and heard there will be some changes...guessing we will have to wait and see.
 
Dean said:
I think I have been hearing the same thing you guys have. If its true everyone will agree that the food will be really good.
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So if I'm reading between the lines correctly, are you saying that Godfrey will likely have Allied officials, TTG, GPS, and a promoter that also runs a music store?
 
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