GREETINGS FROM GLYNDON, MINNESOTA

 

ALL PICTURES HAVE BEEN UPDATED FROM THIS TRACKCHASING TRIP AT WWW.RANLAYRACING.COM

 

 

 

KRISTY AND I WOKE UP IN ALBERT LEA, MINNESOTA.  THIS IS WHAT TRANSPIRED TODAY.

 

 

IMPORTANT NEWS!

 

Kristy will be participating in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk in Seattle August 25-27, 2006.  This is a 60-mile walk to benefit breast cancer research.  Both she and the Breast Cancer Foundation will appreciate any and all pledges. 

 

You can check out Kristy’s website for more information:

 

http://www.the3day.org/Seattle06/kristylewis/

 

 

Pledges can be sent to me at ranlay@yahoo.com or directly to Kristy at Kristin_r_lewis@yahoo.com.  Thanks!

 

 

 

PEOPLE/STRATEGY/TRAVEL NEWS

 

 

The Strategy

                                                                                        

Our original plan called for a day/night double in Minnesota.  Unfortunately, our afternoon enduro racetrack cancelled because of the heat.  Tonight’s track announcer told us “Several tracks including Casino Speedway in South Dakota cancelled because of the extreme heat.”

 

Overall, three days of trackchasing at three different tracks (six tracks for Kristy) was good.  This is especially true when the first track we saw only races one weekend each year and the second track of the weekend only races two times each year.

The Trip

 

Kristy is a great woman to travel with.  She maintains a good deal of flexibility of thought and she drives.  She did all of the driving (240+ miles) after tonight’s racing. 

 

The afternoon temperature topped out at 102 degrees.  We spent the afternoon touring Fargo, North Dakota searching for a body cooling neck scarf.  The scarf is made to be soaked in water and then placed around the wearer’s neck.  On hot days like this, it can lower an individual’s body temperature a good deal.

 

We never did get to buy one.  A couple of stores were out of them and the final store, Scheels, had the scarves for sale but the instructions told us that for first time use, they needed to be soaked in water overnight.  We did not get what we wanted but we saw some interesting stores.

 

I don’t know if you’ve spent much time in “Outfitter” stores like Cabelas, but they are a tourist treat.  The Scheels store we visited was having their grand opening.  This was a huge and beautiful store for the outdoorsman.  It surprised me that a town of only 90,000 people like Fargo could have a store like this.

 

This store was so large they had a full-sized Ferris wheel giving customers rides INSIDE the store.  They also had sweatshirts and t-shirts with the logos and colors of all the logo high schools.  I’ve never seen this anywhere else to this degree.

 

Scheels (http://www.scheelssports.com/) is a 22-store chain with locations in seven upper Midwestern states.  If you ever have the chance to visit one, I highly recommend it.

 

The People

The people of Minnesota are great.  I had met tonight’s track announcer at three other Minnesota tracks including Willmar, Alexandria and Montevideo.  As I recall we did at least one interview and maybe two at those locations.

 

Tonight he introduced me to the crowd as being “World famous”.  I normally use those words only when I’m explaining the significance of my trackchasing to Carol!

 

After a nice interview with the track announcer, I joined a young reporter from the Fargo Forum, named Matt Anderson.  Matt and I did a quick newspaper interview behind the grandstands for a story to be published in the July 31, 2006 issue of the paper.  If you read his work, I think you will see that Matt has a bright journalism future.

 

Following those two interviews, Kristy and I settled down for a night of stock car racing.  We hadn’t been in our seats more than a couple of minutes when another track official came up to our seat location.  It was Mike, the track’s flagman.

 

Mike wanted to know if I would be interested in throwing the green flag for tonight’s first feature event for the infamous Road Hogs.  I had never flagged a race before so I said yes.

 

Short track flag stands are somewhat unique.  Normally, they are located midway down the front stretch directly overlooking the racing action of the track beneath.  Most are about 10-15 feet above ground with a small platform to support a couple of people.  Many times the only way to get into the flag stand is to climb a vertical or near vertical ladder.  You can see photos of this adventure at www.ranlayracing.com.

 

Everything went off without a hitch.  The Road Hogs ran their 10-lap feature non-stop so I consider my first ever flagging experience a success.  Thanks to Mike and all of the other folks at Buffalo River Speedway for some excellent hospitality.

 

I’d like to also give a shout out to daughter, Kristy.  She was an excellent traveling companion.  We drove all over and saw some excellent Trackchasing Tourist Attractions.  The best thing about the trip was that she said she would like to make this “An annual thing.”  Me too!

 

 

 

RACE TRACK STATS:

BUFFALO RIVER SPEEDWAY, GLYNDON, MINNESOTA - TRACK #1,082 – 7/30/06

This is my 33rd lifetime track to see in the land of the Gopher.  This gives me a sixth place ranking in the state.  I trail the Mssrs. Erdmann and Esser. The first E leads the second E 62-51 for Minnesota supremacy.

 

 

 

RACE TRACK NEWS:

 

BUFFALO RIVER SPEEDWAY

When we pulled into the parking lot, it was 102 degrees for the track’s 6 p.m. start.  We were imagining the worst and it was actually not too bad.  The track’s grandstands run from west to east from the fourth turn to the first turn.  Thankfully, someone thought to leave a small grove of trees in place on the west side of the grandstands.  This allows the grandstands near the fourth turn to be in the shade about an hour and a half before sun down.  When we entered the track we found the lion’s share of the crowd sitting in this shaded area even though the location was at the far end of the track.

 

The track has a good P.A. system and announcer.  The wind blew strongly but away from the grandstand.  The sun sat at the sides of our faces but we were protected somewhat by the shade of the nearby trees.  The track played good music during some brief down periods.

 

There were six classes of stock cars including the aforementioned Road Hogs (two people per car), Mini-stocks, Midwest Mods, Mod Fours, Modifieds and Pure Stocks.  The announcer told us the car counts were down because of the heat.  Each class had from 9-15 cars. 

 

The racing on the quarter-mile dirt track was fun.  This is a small town local track and most of the drivers were from nearby.  I liked the modifieds best.  As we had a 240-mile drive, we left at 8:37 p.m.  By that time, we had seen five of the six features for the night.  As it was still slightly light, we spent a few minutes in the parking lot repositioning all of our belongings for the flight home.  When we finished doing that, the sixth and final feature was finished.

 

A couple of years ago, there were several Sunday night tracks for me to see in Minnesota.  There are now only two.  My trackchasing resume shows that I have made 13 separate visits into Minnesota for trackchasing. I have enjoyed each of them.

WEATHER CONDITIONS

 

Our third and final day of the trip was the hottest.  The first two days were very hot, but the final day was like a blast furnace.

 

 

RENTAL CAR UPDATE:

 

The National Rental Car Racing Pontiac Grand Prix was offered at a more than reasonable price.  The original price was $98 including taxes and reduced with the AAA discount to just $72 for a three day full sized car rental.  That’s tough to beat.

 

Friday total driving miles – 134 miles

Saturday total driving miles – 320 miles

Sunday total driving miles – 575 miles

Monday total driving miles – 6 miles

 

The driving portion of this trip covered 1,035 miles.  We stopped for gas three times.  I paid an average price of $3.06 per gallon.  The Pontiac Grand Prix gave us 26.8 M.P.G. in fuel mileage at an average cost of 11.4 cents per mile.  The car cost 7.0 cents per mile to rent, all taxes included.

 

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER STANDINGS UPDATE:

 

These worldwide trackchasers are within 100 tracks (plus or minus) of my current trackchaser total.

 

1.  Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 1,082

2.  Rick Schneider – Bay Shore, New York - 1,048 (-34)

3.  Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania – 1,042 (-40)

4.  Allan Brown, Comstock Park, Michigan – 1,021 (-60)*

5.  Gordon Killian, Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania – 1,018 (-63)*

6.  Andy Sivi, Clairton, Pennsylvania – 1,015 (-66)*

7.  Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 918 (-164)**

 

* 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.

 

34.  Sammy Swindell, Bartlett, Tennessee – 278 (+10)

36.  Dale Danielski, Onalaska, Wisconsin – 269 (+1)

37.  Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California - 268

37.  Bob Schafer, Oshkosh, Wisconsin - 267 (-1)

 

 

 

2006 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

 

1.  Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California - 91

2.  Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 58

3.  Roland Vanden Eynde, Vilvoorde, Belgium – 49

4.  Mike Knappenberger, Reading, Pennsylvania - 45

5.  Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 38

6.  Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania - 37

7.  Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania – 36

8.  Roger Ferrell, Majenica, Indiana – 35

9.  Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, Pennsylvania – 32

9.  Allan Brown, Comstock Park, Michigan - 32

 

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

Randy Lewis

#1 Trackchaser Living West of the Mississippi

 

I should never care to argue for anything that would lesson the difficulty of the game because difficulty is its greatest charm. 

 

 

CUMULATIVE TRAVEL DISTANCES:

 

AIRPLANE

 

Los Angeles, CA -  Minneapolis, MN – 1,609 miles

RENTAL CAR

 

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport – trip begins

Hastings, MN – 40 miles

Elko, MN – 84 miles

Nashua, IA – 351 miles

Glyndon, MN – 794 miles

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport – trip ends – 1,035 miles

AIRPLANE

 

Minneapolis, MN - Los Angeles, CA - 1,609 miles

 

 

 

Total air miles – 3,218 miles

Total auto and air miles traveled on this trip – 4,253 miles

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES:

 

Little Log House Speedway – $5

Elko Speedway - $15

Chickasaw Big Four Fairgrounds - $8

Buffalo River Speedway - $9 ($1 senior discount)

 

Total race admissions for the trip – about $37

 

 

 

Past trackchasing stories are available at:

www.ranlayracing.com

 

Official trackchaser standings can be viewed at:

www.trackchaser.com  

 

Some of my standings data comes from trackchaser.com

 

 

 

 

 

UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS

 

I think I’ll change women for my next trackchasing trip.  Wouldn’t it be nice if Carol could increase her trackchasing states total?

 

 

 

 

RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2006 (** not the first time to visit this track)

 

992.  Watermelon Capital Speedway, Cordele, Georgia - January 14

 

993.  Cross Roads Motorplex (asphalt oval), Jasper, Florida - January 15

 

994.  Norfolk Scope Arena, Norfolk, Virginia - January 20

 

995.  Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California - January 21

 

996.  Oregon State Fair & Expo Center, Forster Livestock Arena, Salem, Oregon - January 28

 

997.  Morosso Motorsports Park, Jupiter, Florida – February 4

 

998.  Thunderbowl Speedway of Ocala, Ocala, Florida - February 4

 

999.  Cross Roads Motorplex (dirt oval), Jasper, Florida - February 5

 

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