GREETINGS FROM TAURANGA, NEW ZEALAND

You are about to begin reading a multi-part series that will detail our 17-day trackchasing and touring adventure to New Zealand and French Polynesia.  The format of this Trackchaser Report will differ from those you have been reading all season. 

 

Our activities will be listed chronologically by day and divided into “Trackchasing” and “Tourist” categories.  You will get a glimpse into how another family approaches and takes a long and exotic trip like this.  I hope you enjoy reading about our adventures, until you and your family head out on your next tour of the world.

 

Warning:  If you do not want to experience the feeling of “being there” I recommend that you not read the descriptions of what went on or view the pictures of what was seen.  I would not want any future visits to these faraway parts to be ruined by the realism you are about ready to experience in words and pictures.

 

If you are receiving this Trackchaser Report via email, you can view the pictures at www.ranlayracing.com.

 

 

Part I

 

 

 

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

 

TOURIST ACTIVITY

 

Today we would check out of our Auckland-based city centre hotel and then began our exploration of Kiwi country.  However, before we left Auckland we wanted to visit Kelly Tarlton’s Antarctic Encounter and Underwater World (www.kellytarltons.co.nz).  This sight is less than five miles from the center of downtown.

 

The attraction offers some unique visual experiences for the admission price of $28NZ.  They have an interesting and detailed life-sized replica of the living quarters of Captain Scott’s Antarctic hut from his pioneering expedition.  During the 1910 era there was a race to see who could first discover the South Pole.  By the way, the average winter temperatures down there range from -40 to -94 degrees Fahrenheit. 

 

Kelly Tarlton’s is also an aquarium.  They have a unique setup where the spectator steps on a moving walkway.  The viewer is then transported through a clear acrylic like tube.  The fish swim to the sides and over each visitor’s head.  They have an extensive collection of stingrays with wing spans at about eight feet.

 

Probably the most unusual aspect considering we’re in a major city during the summer is their live penguin exhibit.  We hopped in a heated snowcat and took an 8 ½ minute ride through a virtual Antarctica.  The penguins were shorter than I expected, but this was the most fun part of Kelly Tarlton’s.

 

This attraction was built in the mid-80s and is becoming a bit dated. By the time we left around noon, the place was jammed packed with families and their children.  Carol enjoyed the penguins best but wished we could have spent more time with them.

 

By the way, they offer several add-ons to their visit.  One is called “Shark survival.”  They describe it this way, “Take the plunge, without any protective caging – for an adrenalin fueled, underwater dive in the shark tank - $175.”  I had Carol all signed up but she declined!

 

We spent part of the afternoon driving south to tonight’s racing action in the Tauranga area.  We stopped for a few minutes for some “tramping.”  No, we were not looking for ladies on the wrong side of town.  Tramping is a form of hiking where folks just walk back into the forest.  We’ll probably do more of that later in the trip.  We crossed two suspension bridges.  These are the kind that really get to swaying when one person (like me) jumps up and down on them in hopes of scary the daylights out of another person (Carol).

 

The traffic was much heavier than I expected.  I guess the Christmas holidays are the reason.

 

 

TRACKCHASING

 

It began to rain ever so lightly about 3 p.m. on our drive down to Tauranga.  It didn’t look like a rain that would cancel the races……but it did.  Yes, we were rained out tonight at the Blue Chip Speedway at Baypark.  That was a bummer, but the bright side is tonight’s races were rescheduled for tomorrow night.

 

The evening was not a total washout.  In advance of today’s meeting, I had corresponded with track promoter, Willie Kay.  He was kind enough to invite Carol and me to be his guests for the evening.  He had also arranged to have us talk with the local newspaper the, Bay of Plenty Times about our hobby of trackchasing.  We are always happy to promote the cause of trackchasing.

 

Even though we knew the races were rained out, we headed out to the track to see what was going on.  We ran into Mr. Kay as he was closing up his “storage shed.”  This was not a normal storage shed and the facility is not a normal racetrack facility.

 

Long-time readers will recall our visit to the Lucas Oil Speedway earlier this summer in Wheatland, Missouri.  That track is the nicest short track dirt facility I have ever seen…..until tonight.  The Lucas Oil Speedway is still the nicest local dirt venue I have ever seen in the United States.

 

The Blue Chip Speedway at Baypark is the nicest dirt track facility I have ever seen outside the United States.  Comparing these two tracks is like comparing a BMW and a Lexus.  There are folks who could make a convincing argument for each.

 

Anyway, back to Mr. Kay’s storage shed.  This huge building housed the 16 sprint cars when the World of Outlaws paid a visit to the track last January.  Tonight there were several sprint cars and other track equipment all neatly arranged.

 

A wealthy local businessman built the entire facility just five years ago.  Unbelievably the place seats 17,500 people, each with their own individual plastic chair.  The pit area is the size of several football fields and has a surface of brand new concrete.  There were several race cars and haulers in the pit area even though the show was washed out.  The cars were in the pit area, but there were no people.  Where was everybody?

 

They were inside the banquet hall having drinks and eating a buffet dinner.  Underneath one of the main grandstands is one of the largest banquet halls I’ve seen.  We were just beginning to notice this was a special place.

 

Willie took us on a tour of the corporate suites.  There are 30 of them and they rival any professional sports venue in their quality and accessibility.  They are all fully sold out for the season.

 

Willie Kay has a substantial background in United States racing.  Back in the mid-70s, he crewed for Gary Bettenhausen.  He’s thinking he may have seen the trackchaser minimum of 200 different tracks in order to be listed.  I’m going to encourage him to submit his list. 

 

Willie has just returned from a trip to the Reno, Nevada race promoter’s workshop.  You can tell he is quite the promoter.  Prior to coming to Blue Chip (the track naming rights were acquired by a local real estate investment firm), he was the promoter at the Western Springs Speedway in Auckland.  He left there after being outbid and running into a less than supportive city government staff.

 

Willie told us they had a crowd of 14,000 people earlier this season for a normal night of racing with fireworks.  There are not five short tracks in the U.S. that draw that amount of people for ANY of their events.

 

Tonight’s racing program had a cover that read “USA Super Saloons plus 100% Sprint Car Series.”  The program is a slick looking 32-page color brochure.  Willie recognized both Carol and me in the welcoming comments in the race program with these words,

 

“A very warm welcome to all of our race fans, both visitors and our regulars who are here tonight.  A special welcome to our visiting American drivers, and the Super Saloon competitors from around the country who have traveled here to contest our international competition.  We also welcome a special guest, Randy Lewis, from San Clemente, California.  Randy is the World’s #1 track chaser and he and his wife are with us tonight, making Blue Chip Speedway Randy’s 1,133^rd race track he has visited.  You can read more on his exploits in our Pit Bull column.”

 

This was from the program’s Pit Bull column,

 

“We also welcome Randy Lewis, the world’s #1 ranked track chaser.  Randy is here tonight to add Blue Chip Speedway to his list of tracks making it the 1,133^rd he has visited.

 

What is track chasing?

 

It is the a hobby and it is to go to as many tracks as possible.  There are six “track chasers” in the World that have seen racing at more than 1000 tracks.  Randy is the top of them, and he will visit several in New Zealand during his stay to make this the ninth country he as been to races at.  Motorcycle races don’t count neither do drags.  Only ovals, road or street courses and even figure eights can count toward the tally.  During 2005, Randy set another record, visiting 182 tracks in 27 states of the U.S. and 7 other countries.  (182 tracks in a year average one every day for the whole year with just one day off!)  Of the 1,132 other tracks he has been to so far, we are sure Baypark will be one of the best.  Wanted to follow his travels and exploits?  Check him out on www.ranlayracing.com.  Welcome Randy, congratulations on your #1 ranking and safe travels.”

 

Mr. Willie Kay thank you for such kind words.  Carol and I will look forward to coming back to the Blue Chip Speedway tomorrow night under more favorable weather conditions.

 

 

Thursday, December 28, 2006

 

TOURIST ACTIVITY

 

 

Carol and I have traveled all over the world.  We like to see a good museum or waterfall as much as the next traveler does.  However, if we can experience an “adventure” vacation it’s even better.  That’s what we did today.  We went Blokarting!

 

Have you ever heard of it?  Blokarting is the world’s number one land based sail sport.  We were going  to go blokarting at Blokart Heaven located within two miles of the Blue Chip Speedway.

 

The sport of blokarting combines elements of go karting and wind surfing.  The “kart” is a three-wheel affair.  There are two wheels in the back and one in the front.  A huge sail anywhere from 2-4 meters tall provides the forward momentum.

 

New Zealand can be a very windy place.  The location of Blokart Heaven was picked out because it sits in the middle of a windy pass.  The blokart track has an asphalt surface with a series of ovals that can also be connected to form a road course.  Blokarts rent for $15 for each 15 minutes.  The size of the sail given to each blokarter depends on his or her experience (perceived or real).

 

You can easily reach speeds of 30 M.P.H. and it is ever so easy to dump one.  I figured it would be best to send Carol out first.  If she broke her collarbone or something, I could still get a refund on my ticket.  Just kidding.  I sent her out first, so I could take pictures of her blokarting.  When riders hit the wind just right, they can lift up one rear wheel or the other.  This is the signal to let go of the rope that keeps the sail tight.  With the sail is limp it doesn’t catch much wind.  Carol was able to lift here rear wheel a couple of times which adds to the excitement.

 

Soon it was time for me to go out.  By the way, each rider is given a helmet and leather gloves.  I had the max height sail of four meters.  My kart could really go.  Early on in the proceedings, it got away from me.  It was just like an out of control sprint car.

 

We’ll all seen the car dart left, the driver over corrects to the right, the car “catches” and then begins to execute a barrel roll flip.  Well, that’s exactly what happened with my blokart.  It started so quickly that I couldn’t do anything about it.  The kart went left, I overcorrected to the right and the thing jumped up in the air, with me in it, and flipped.  I had the good sense to keep my hands on the steering mechanism (as instructed).  The flip left me hanging up down saved only by my seat belt.  Carol was snapping away and I’m sure having a very good laugh at my expense.

 

Once the track workers righted me, I was back on the track.  After awhile I began to get the hang of it.  There were two very experience blokarters racing with their own blokarts.  Whenever they would go by me, I would try to pick up their racing lines.  This really allowed me to pick up speed.  Soon I was going around corners with one rear wheel lifting off the ground as high as two feet.  Check out www.ranlayracing.com for photos.

 

Carol never felt comfortable with the near prone racing position.  She says she thought I was dead following my flip.  She also says I didn’t follow directions properly and remain stationary in the kart until help arrived.  She’s probably right.  Nevertheless, we had an action adventure with blokarting.  I recommend it to everyone.  Get more info at www.blokart.com.

TRACKCHASING

 

BLUE CHIP SPEEDWAY AT BAYPARK, MT. MAUNGANUI, NEW ZEALAND – RANDY’S TRACK #1,135 & CAROL’S TRACK #291 – 12/28/06

 

My comment after our first night of New Zealand racing at the Western Springs Speedway was, “Wow!”  What would I say after our SECOND night of New Zealand racing?  “Double wow!”

 

I’m not just talking about the racing, which was excellent, but most importantly the people and the overall ambiance.  I’m not even certain where I should begin.

 

Our visit to the Blue Chip Speedway at Baypark was rained out last night.  Fortunately, for us they decided to use tonight for their make-up date.  Carol and I spent a good deal of time talking with track promoter Willie Kay both last night and tonight.  Willie is the most gracious gentleman you are ever likely to meet in racing.

 

Willie sees racing through the eyes of the spectator.  So many racetrack promoters (I’m mainly talking about U.S. promoters) see racing through the eyes of the competitor.  Satisfying racing spectators and racing competitors are two distinctly different things.  In fact, what satisfies one of these groups is likely to dissatisfy the other.

 

Willie told me that his main reason for canceling last night was “commercial.”  Since it had rained all day and was raining at race time, he felt the rain would hurt the crowd.  He told me, “I don’t want the race fan coming out here on a cold and rainy night.  If he does, he likely to go home unhappy.  I can reschedule for tomorrow and maybe, if the weather is nice, I might get 50 more people.  Of course, that’s a plus.  The real plus is that the people who come to the races tomorrow on a good weather day will be so much happier with their race experience than they would have been on a cold and rainy night.”  In my opinion, that’s a pretty simple but brilliant way to look at it.

 

Tonight’s facility is state of the art.  I described some of the many amenities in my trackchasing notes of yesterday.  Heck, the place has seats for 17,500 people.  These are not just wooden bleacher seats, but individual plastic molded folding chair seats.

 

The pit area was a remarkable sight.  They were racing six classes tonight including sprint cars, saloons, super saloons, stock cars and mini-stocks (red and blue).  The all concrete pit area had each class in its own lane of cars.  Each lane had the class descriptor in bold red letters on a huge sign.  I’ve never seen that before.

 

The promoter gave Carol and me the run of the place.  We were allowed to enter the driver’s meeting behind closed doors.  Each class had it own meeting.  I’ve never seen that before.  The drivers had some very pointed remarks to make toward race officials regarding two drivers who were injured the previous week.  I loved that Carol was being able to see such a behind the scenes approach to the races.

 

They started on time at 7 p.m.  There were 20-25 cars in each class except for the super saloons that had 14.  Each racing class ran two heat races and a feature event.  The UNIQUE thing about EVERY ONE of these races was that each car started in each of their classes races.  As an example with some 22 sprint cars, the first and second heat started every available sprint car and the feature did as well.  In reality, we were seeing three features for each class, not one.  I’ve never seen such a thing, but it was entertaining for the fans.

 

There were food stands set up around the entire facility.  We ate from the catering truck (very much like the U.K.) in the pit area.  My bacon and egg roll was excellent.  Carol went with the “American” hot dog.  I’m not sure what the regular hot dog looked like.  The track also hosted a hot sitdown buffet in a room that seats 650 people.  I’ve never seen that before at a short track race.

 

The racing surface was unique.  The quarter mile or maybe slightly larger slightly banked oval had a bright orange clay surface.  Its consistency reminded me of Ascot Park.  It stayed moist all night and when I walked on it after all the races were finished the clay stuck to my shoes.  I don’t see that very often.

 

Tonight two American drivers were racing in the super saloon division.  Super saloons are very similar to dirt late models.  The two American drivers Steve Casebolt (www.stevecasebolt.com) and Dwayne Chamberlain are both from Richmond, Indiana.  Carol and I hung out with them the past two nights.

 

This was Steve’s second racing trip to New Zealand.  The track had a special hot lap session for just these two drivers.  They were racing all white Pontiac GTOs with red and blue American flag graphics.  The track was so sticky that when Steve went through turns one and two the car actually bicycled up on two wheels.  The car came within a micro inch of doing a series of barrel rolls.  Seeing a dirt late model flip over from its own inertia is unheard of.  It came oh so close.

 

Dwayne Chamberlain races late models at Eldora Speedway.  He won four features there this year.  During his interview with the track’s announcer, he revealed that his flight to New Zealand which took him from Indianapolis to Kansas City to Los Angeles and then on the Auckland, New Zealand was his first airplane ride ever!!  Wow, what a way to start.

 

Tonight there were tons of major wrecks. A double sprint car flip cost them nearly 30 minutes of time as a driver appeared to be hurt badly.  A female mini-stock driver did a barrel roll through turns three and four right in front of us.  The mini-stock driving age range is 12-16.  She appeared to be very shaken up.  The stock car division was very similar to U.K. Formula 2 racing.  They had several spectacular flips in this division as well.

 

Despite all of these delays for flips and major wrecks, the final checkered flag flew at about 10:05 p.m. after a 7 p.m. start.  That’s not bad for what amounted to 15 feature events with 15-25 cars in each race.  They really hustled to finish the feature events because the track has a 10 p.m. curfew.

 

Even though time was tight, they had a brief interview with me in front of the grandstands.  The announcer, Grant Moffat, and I talked about trackchasing in the oval’s infield.  I spoke with the promoter after the races were finished.  He was disappointed that there had been so many accidents.  I asked him if he disliked the 10 p.m. curfew.

 

He said absolutely not.  “People don’t go to five hour movies.  People don’t want to sit at a racetrack for five hours.”  Amen.  Willie Kay was speaking to the choir.

 

Following the race, I met up with Colin Smith, sports editor of the Bay of Plenty Times.  This daily newspaper is the second biggest in the region behind the country’s leading paper, the New Zealand Herald.  Colin is a very knowledgeable racing journalist.  He gave me one of my most indepth newspaper interviews I have ever had.  Colin promised to send along what he writes about the hobby that Carol and I are enjoying in his home country of New Zealand.  You can  see it yourself by clicking on the “Media coverage” tab at www.ranlayracing.com. 

 

We also met up briefly with Matthew Percival.  He’s known as Percy in New Zealand and writes racing reviews about his NZ track visits.

 

Overall, it was an absolutely perfect night of racing and trackchasing.  I owe an extreme debt of gratitude to promoter Willie Kay for the graciousness and hospitality he showed Carol and me during the past two days.  I hope I can repay him someday.  It was also great meeting with Colin Smith.  His interest in our hobby was both refreshing and gratifying.  So far, the people of New Zealand have been absolutely above and beyond.  Our vacation could not have gotten off to a better start. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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 – 1,135

2.  Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania – 1,073 (-62)*

3.  Rick Schneider – Bay Shore, New York - 1,060 (-75)*

4.  Gordon Killian, Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania – 1,042 (-93)*

7.  Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 962 (-173)**

 

* 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.

 

31.  Chris Economaki, Ridgewood, New Jersey – 301 (+10)

32.  Gary Jacob, Turlock, California – 301 (+10)

33.  Ron Rodda, Lincoln, California – 297 (+6)

34.  Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California - 291

35.  Johnny Gibson, Grand Island, Nebraska – 290 (-1)

 

 

 

 

 

2006 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

 

1.  Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California - 144

2.  Mike Knappenberger, Reading, Pennsylvania - 106

3.  Ed Esser, Madison, Wisconsin – 102

4.  Roland Vanden Eynde, Vilvoorde, Belgium – 87

5.  Paul Weisel, Orefield, Pennsylvania – 86

6.  Roger Ferrell, Majenica, Indiana – 68

7.  Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania - 67

8.  Allan Brown, Comstock Park, Michigan - 64

9.  Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California – 60

10.  Gordon Killian, Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania – 56

 

Tracks have been reported from 41 different worldwide trackchasers this season.

 

 

 

 

LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS

 

2006 (current thru 10/29/06)**

 

1. Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California – 7.08

2. Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, Pennsylvania – 7.10

3. Allan Brown, Comstock Park, Michigan – 7.86

 

**Lifetime NGD results could be affected by current track counting proposals

 

  

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

 

Randy Lewis

#1 Trackchaser Living West of the Mississippi

 

Your best bet is to work your butt off, reach your goals and enjoy your rewards.

 

 

 

CUMULATIVE TRAVEL DISTANCES:

 

AIRPLANE

 

Los Angeles, CA – Sydney, Australia – 7,490 miles

Sydney, Australia – Auckland, New Zealand – 1,340 miles

RENTAL CAR – AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

 

Auckland International Airport – trip begins

Driving all over New Zealand

 

 

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES:

 

Western Springs Speedway - $20NZ

Blue Chip Speedway at Baypark – Free

 

 

 

 

 

 

Past trackchasing reports are available at:

www.ranlayracing.com

 

Official trackchaser standings can be viewed at:

www.trackchaser.net

 

Some of my standings data comes from trackchaser.net

 

 

 

 

 

UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS

 

G’day, mate.  Yep!  We’re down under in the beautiful country of New Zealand.  We plan to see many new tracks.

 

 

 

 

 

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

 

1,083. Miller Motorsports Park, Tooele, Utah, - August 4

 

1,084. Atomic Motor Raceway, Atomic City, Idaho - August 4

 

1,085. Mission Valley Speedway, Polson, Montana - August 5

 

1,086. Rock Creek Race Track, Kimberly, Idaho - August 6

 

1,087. Stevens County Fairgrounds, Morris, Minnesota - August 9

 

1,088. Norman County Raceway, Ada,