










TODAY’S HEADLINES
Ever had a speedometer “hologram” in
your rental car before? …….…….details in “Rental
Car Update.”
Option A or option B, which would
you pick?.................details in “The
Strategy.”
I flew into
IN MEMORY
I was saddened to learn of the untimely death of Hawkeye Racing News
reporter, Ruby Sorensen. Ruby died in a
car crash in her home town of
AND THE READERS RESPOND
From time to time interested readers write me about one thing or
another. Many times, I feel that my
readers would be interested and/or amused by the comments I get. Here’s what a SoCal reader had to say about
our recent visit to the Mormon
Church in
Randy’s note: “Thus, we joined up with Sister Jorgensen. She was a pleasant older lady of about 60
years of age.”
Michael’s reply: “Hi Randy, ‘she was
a pleasant OLDER LADY OF ABOUT 60!!!!!! ??????
Randy, I’m 58. I feel like I’ve
just entered puberty, and
IF YOU WOULD
PREFER TO READ THIS TRACKCHASER REPORT DIRECTLY FROM WWW.RANLAYRACING.COM
AND SEE THE PICTURES FROM THIS TRIP SIMPLY CLICK ON THIS LINK OR COPY AND PASTE
IT IN YOUR BROWSER:
http://www.ranlayracing.com/jun8102007.htm
GREETINGS FROM
I WOKE UP IN
PEOPLE/STRATEGY/TRAVEL NEWS
The Strategy
Trackchasing strategy requires
making choices. In order to have
choices, you must have options. When I
was deciding about this trip, these were the two options I considered. Which would you pick?
Option A
I could sleep in until 8 a.m. or so
on Friday morning. Hey, I’m retired,
where do I have to go? Then I could get
up and eat breakfast. Yes, Carol
prepares a better than Denny’s quality hot breakfast for me every morning. Then I could go out on the deck and watch the
surfers for a while. When I tired of
that, I could drive the 10 minutes over to my country club and play golf in the
Don Robbins Friday golf group. I would
finish up there about 4 p.m. Then, I
would come home and shower. When I was
all fresh, I’d take Carol out to dinner at one of the many fine eateries in
Option B
Option B was much different than
hanging around
I sat in this middle seat that would
not recline between two large men for five hours. Of course, the woman seated in front of me reclined
her seat for the entire five-hour flight.
As luck would have it, when I boarded the plane they had no more room
for carryon baggage. This meant I had to
check my bag. This also meant a
20-minute delay for me while I waited for my bag after the plane landed.
From there I was off to get my
rental car for the 120+ mile drive to tonight’s track. The weather forecast had called for a 10% chance
of rain in the area tonight. That’s why
I came here rather than going with my original plan of
Option A or Option B?
So, there you have it. Which option would you have picked? Option A, a day at the beach and a round of
golf, or Option B, a day “out among ‘em”
across three time zones and several weather patterns. That’s what great about
The Trip
I now make my final trackchasing
plan about 48 hours before I walk out the door of my
Yes, I know that planning 48 hours
in advance might seem like an eternity to some of my readers. However, sometimes I don’t even have that
much time to preplan the event. The night
before I was to leave for this trip I noticed the weather was turning bad in
the greater
So…..with less than 12 hours before
departure, I changed my travel plans. I
know that some folks think the only reason I can trackchase the way I do is
because of the airline sponsorship deals I’ve been able to strike. I would disagree with that assessment on two
counts.
First, check my stats. I went to 182 new and different tracks during
the 2005 season. I didn’t have any
sponsorship when I was able to pull that off.
I doubt that I or anyone else will ever top 182 new tracks in a season,
sponsorship or not.
Secondly, the advantage of my
sponsorship is not cost, but flexibility.
I am able to change arrival or departure cities on less than five
minutes notice. The key to my being able
to make these changes is there is ZERO financial liability associated with the
change. Yes, it’s nice to get free or
dramatically reduced airfares. What’s
really nice in having the ability to change the flight plan at the very last
minute without it costing a penny more.
It’s a lot like having one’s own private trackchasing jet.
My new plan had me beginning the
trip in
Changing the plan did require me to
leave my house at 5:15 a.m. rather than 9:30 a.m. with the original plan. It did require me to drive about 120 miles
upon arrival rather than about 35 miles that the original plan called for. It did require me to clear airport security
three times during the trip rather than just two. However, none of this really bothered me. You see, I will do whatever it takes to make
a trackchasing plan work. That’s just the
way I do it.
The People
I meet some interesting people when
I trackchase. Tonight I met a fellow
named Steve Millen. Steve is the track’s
announcer. Steve became aware of my
attendance when he received a trackchaser press release from RANLAY Racing.
The south is a friendly place and
the Boyd’s
I did my rifle training in Marine
Corps boot camp at
Nevertheless, announcer Steve
actually came down to the grandstand and sat with me for a few moments while
the track was being ironed out. He told
me the track has been running here since 1952.
It has had a paved surface on two different occasions but now races on
dirt.
Steve is a very entertaining
announcer. He had more southern phrases
than “you could shake a stick at” as my
grandmother used to say. In addition to
these southern witticisms, Steve handled the track prayer AND sung the national
anthem. I can count on one hand the
number of times the announcer has done that.
Most importantly, he did it very well.
Some of Steve’s calls and
descriptions that I recall include:
“Dag blame it”
“No bout a doubt it”
After the flagman waved the green
flag on the very first lap and the green cloth flew off the flagstick and fell
20 feet to the ground, “He slung it plumb off the pole”
After he made an announcing mistake,
he told the crowd,
“I’m a member of the
“He’s got a dangling
deck lid. I know there’s a rule in our
rule book about a dangling deck lid somewhere.”
“Yellows gone, green
is on.”
“We need your business
to be a sponsor of the track. Really we
need your money!”
“We need butts in the
seats, so ask your neighbor or best friend to come out to the races.”
“Give the lord a hand
for making that sunset.” Editor’s note: It WAS a beautiful sunset.”
I missed so many other sayings of
his!
RACE TRACK STATS:
BOYD’S
This was
my 20th lifetime track to see in the Peach state. I moved up one position and am now tied for
seventh place with Paul Weisel. I’m just
one track away from gaining two more spots in the state that calls the live oak
it’s state tree.
Track
details
Website: http://www.boydsspeedway.com/
Weather: Thunderstorms in the area, sprinkled, then it
got beautiful with temps of 75 degrees
Track
type: oval
Surface:
Length: 1/3 mile
Grandstands: 10 row wooden bleachers
P.A.: Very good
Announcer: Informative, funny
On
time: “Racing”
was to begin at 8 p.m. First race, 8:03
p.m.
Pit
area: Beyond turns 1 and 2
Classes: A hobby (6), B hobby (5), Frontrunners (12),
Limited late models (16), Pony stocks (13)
Radio
Frequency: 464.5125
Concessions: The chili cheese nachos were above average
Scoreboard: No
Extras: Having the track announcer sing the national
anthem was special.
RACE TRACK NEWS:
BOYD’S
This was not my first attempt to
attend this speedway. I was here back
when the place was called the Tennessee-Georgia Speedway and was rained out. The track was sold at auction last fall and
re-opened as Boyd’s
The driver’s meeting was held under
the big oak tree in the pit area. The
pit area sits just beyond turns 1 and 2.
It is also only a driver and crisply hit 6 iron from Interstate 75. I was told the state lines of
Back in March, I visited the Toccoa
Speedway, also a quarter-mile bullring type of dirt oval in
There were some significant
differences between Toccoa and Boyd’s.
Toccoa started one hour and 15 minutes late. Boyd’s start three minutes after their
scheduled start time. Toccoa wasted the
fan’s time by running time trials in the middle of the program. Boyd’s did not run any time trials. In the first three hours after the scheduled
start time at Toccoa, they had managed to run two street stock heats and a
10-lap bomber feature. Three hours after
the Boyd’s program began, I had seen their entire program and was already 50
miles down I-75 on my way back to
When I make comparisons, a critical
remark or offer gushing praise, I try to make my conclusions data based. The above paragraph offers examples of
that. With all of that being said, it’s
not impossible that on any other night, my conclusions might have been entirely
different. Remember, too a trackchaser,
the track only gets “one chance to make a good
first impression.”
I must admit that I was a bit
skeptical about Boyd’s organization when I arrived. I didn’t really know what time the races were
scheduled to start. With rain in the
area, I arrived at 7 p.m. It seemed to
me like they were wasting time with the weather threatening. While they were running hot laps it began to
sprinkle.
Some of the fans may have driven a
few blocks to come to this race. I had
flown nearly the entire width of the
It seems like I run into more
questionable calls that must go before the Trackchaser Commissioner than all of
the other trackchasers combined. Our
trackchasing rules state that we must see “competitive
racing” before we can count a track.
Tonight the “A
Hobby” stock cars were the first heat on the track. The weather was threatening. The cars roared down toward the flag stand. The starter threw the green flag and the race
was on. I mean he “really threw the green flag.” You see, when he waved the green flag the
green cloth flew off his flag stick and landed on the ground some 20 feet below
where the flagman was perched. With that,
the starter displayed the yellow caution flag while the green cloth was
retrieved.
My questions is this. If the skies had opened up with a downpour of
rain at this point, could I count the track?
The green flag had been waved, the cars had raced competitively if only
for a lap or less before the yellow flag came out for a fallen green flag. Fortunately, it did not rain and the races
continued. I would not have wanted to go
to the TC with track counting issue.
The announcer really interacted with
the fans. He stood in an open press box
just 20 feet from many people in the grandstand. He yelled at them and they yelled at
him. That’s how they do it down here. He frequently reminded the patrons that they
were not allowed to “sit on the red painted
sections of the grandstand.”
These were the aisle ways. Too
many tracks don’t say a word about this and it makes it very difficult to go up
and down the grandstand.
The announcer told the crowd that the
insurance company required them to keep their grandstand exits clear. Later in the program a driver injured his
hand in a fierce wreck on the backstretch.
A call over the radio said that if he had indeed broken his hand an “accident report” would have to be completed. They also displayed the yellow flag a little
too often for my tastes due too on track debris. Sounds to me like they’ve got a new insurance
company.
I was most pleased to see there were
no mid-program time trials at tonight’s track, which is normally a southern
dirt track tradition. The heats were
finished in just 52 minutes. The car
counts were not large, but most classes were big enough for a track of this
length. It’s a recipe for yellow flag disaster
to start 20 cars or more on one of these tracks.
The limited late models put on a
good feature event. The driver who broke
his hand hit the freestanding backstretch wooden wall head-on at full
speed. He came to a sudden stop just
feet from the initial impact point and rolled over on his top. The wreck looked bad. Fortunately, the driver was not seriously
injured.
Overall, I was relieved to get this
track in tonight. I enjoyed the
announcer and it was fun to see a racetrack that sits right on a state
line. I’ve seen one other track,
Stateline Speedway that sits on the Ohio/Indiana border.
RENTAL CAR UPDATE
The
This rental car had something I’ve
never seen before. It had a hologram of
sorts. From the driver ’s seat, an image
appears when I look through the windshield.
As if by magic, just a foot or so above the hood line, three pieces of
information are displayed just like they are hanging in mid-air. The car’s direction, speed and outside
temperature are shown in green digital numbers and letters. It’s the dangest thing I ever saw!
I drove
this car 260 miles. I paid an average price of $2.96 per
gallon. This is one dollar less per
gallon than last week’s gas prices in
LIFETIME TRACKCHASER STANDINGS UPDATE:
These worldwide trackchasers are within 100 tracks (plus or minus) of my current trackchaser total.
1. Randy Lewis,
2. Allan Brown,
7. Ed Esser,
* Warning, you are within 50 tracks of being removed from this list.
** Special exemption.
LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS
2007 (current thru 5/14/07)**
1. Randy Lewis,
2. Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs,
3. Allan Brown,
**Until the end of the year, NGD rankings are unofficial. Rankings are affected not only by the leader’s activities but also by other trackchasers impact on the leader’s position in each state.
Other notables
These worldwide trackchasers are within 10 tracks (plus or minus) of Carol’s current trackchaser total.
30. Dwight Bucks,
31. Carol Lewis,
2007 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS
1. Randy Lewis,
2. Ed Esser,
3. Roland Vanden Eynde,
4. Carol Lewis,
5. Mike Knappenberger,
6. Guy Smith, Effort,
7. Gordon Killian, Sinking
Springs,
8. Roger Ferrell,
8. Bing
10. Rick Young,
10. Pam Smith, Effort,
Tracks have been reported by 34 different worldwide trackchasers this season.
Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,
Randy Lewis
If you’re lucky enough to live at
the beach, you’re lucky enough.
CUMULATIVE TRAVEL DISTANCES:
AIRPLANE
Orange County, CA – Atlanta, GA – 1,919 miles
RENTAL CAR –
TRACK ADMSSION PRICES:
Boyd’s
Some of the data in this report comes from www.trackchaser.net
and my Garmin GPS
I was dodging the weather when I
changed my arrival point from
1,139. Meremere Dirt Track
Club,
1,140. Meeanee Speedway,
1,141. Top of the South Speedway,
1,142. Woodford Glen Speedway,
1,143. Robertson Holden
International
1,144.
1,145.
1,146. Angels Stadium of
1,147. Angels Stadium of
1,148.
1,149.
1,150. Grand Prix De
Lanaudiere,
1,151. Ste-Eulalie Ice Track,
1,152. St Guillaume, St
1,153.
1,154.
1,155. Northeast Pond Ice
Track,
1,156. Lee Pond Ice Track,
1,157. New Hendry Country
1,158.
1,159. Honeoye Lake Ice Track –
Road Course,
1,160.
1,161.
1,162. Dawgwood Speedway,
1,163. Toccoa Speedway,
1,164. Tazewell Speedway,
1,165.
1,166. Dacosa Speedway,
1,167. Swinging Bridge Raceway,
1,168.
1,169. Foothills Raceway,
1,170. Mileback Speedway,
1,171. Grand Prix of
1,172. Vegas Grand Prix,
1,173.
1,174. Low Country Kartway,
1,175. Dillon Motor
1,176. Valley Dirt Riders,
1,177.
1,178. Sertoma Speedway,
1,179.
1,180.
1,181. Hollywood Hills
1,182. Meridian
1,183.
1,184. Rocky Mountain Raceways
(oval),
1,185. Rocky Mountain Raceways
(figure 8),
1,186. Modoc
1,187.
1,188.
1,189. Fairplex at the
1,190. Lowes Motor
1,191. Lowes Motor
1,192.
**
1,193. Thunderbird Stadium (figure
8),
1,194. Thunderbird Stadium (oval),
1,195. Whispering
1,196.
1,197.
1,198.
1,199.
1,200. Castrol Raceway,
1,201. Hidden
1,202. Boyd’s