GREETINGS FROM CORDELE, GEORGIA

 

 

PEOPLE/STRATEGY/TRAVEL NEWS

 

First class airfare from Los Angeles, CA to Jacksonville, FL - $1,329

 

Two nights at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL - $575

 

Upgraded Mercedes-Benz rental car - $287

 

First new track of the season – Priceless!

 

 

 

That MasterCard commercial pretty much says it all.  It has been a long cold winter of no trackchasing for me.  Well, not exactly.  Actually, it’s only been 35 days since my last new track visit of 2005 in Roseburg, Oregon.  It wasn’t that long ago that I routinely took off 3-5 months from the late fall to the early spring from trackchasing.

 

It hasn’t really been that cold either.  Our lowest “high” temperature in San Clemente during those 35 days was 60 degrees.  We had to put an extra log on the fire that day!  We even topped out at 89 degrees on January 6.  That’s hot for us and I was complaining during my entire four-hour golf round about the heat.

 

Yes, it’s true I haven’t had the usual amount of off-season from trackchasing that I normally get.  I blame that on my trackchasing competitors.  These fellows all live in cold weather states like New York, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.  Those boys go “Ice-racing” during the winter.  It’s sort of like ice fishing but there are racecars rather than fish.  I went ice racing in Quebec once and that was enough for me.  It was -38 degrees Fahrenheit and I’m not exaggerating.

 

Like lots of things, you get the most out of something you put the most into.  That being the case I have been pouring over the websites of the tracks I have yet to visit.  I have never put more time into trackchasing research of future track dates than I have this winter.

 

As I write this, I have 1,230 tracks I have never seen in the U.S. and Canada.  Of that total, 771 have websites.  Before long and throughout the season, I will visit each and every one of those sites.  I’ll be looking for their 2006 racing schedules. 

 

This is a lot like putting a jigsaw puzzle together, which by the way I have never enjoyed doing.  Each website is a piece to the puzzle.  When I can identify enough pieces, a trip comes together.  I’m always trying to see as many countable racetracks with as few flying and driving miles as possible. 

 

Part of my pre-season preparation is getting all of my information technology equipment up and running.  I’ve added a lot of cool stuff over the past 2-3 years.  Because of the information technology I have, I actually believe it was easier to see 182 tracks in 2005 than it was to see my 60 tracks of 2003.

 

I only added one new piece of hardware in the off-season.  That was a Christmas gift from the blonde Santa woman of the house and turned out to be a noise canceling Bose headset.  This will make my airplane time and maybe my rental car time much more pleasant and restful.  That’s important when I’m logging in all of those trackchasing miles.

 

Our sons, Jim and J.J. also deserve a pat of the back with my off-season preparation.  They were home for Christmas from Honolulu and Atlanta, respectively.  First, J.J. restored the continuity of my internet connection.  For days, my connection would drop every couple of minutes or so and I would have to log in again.  This happened for a couple of weeks until he arrived and replaced the router.  I can easily spend 8-10 hours a day on my laptop unless I’m golfing or traveling.  A reliable high-speed connection is an absolute necessity.

 

Son, Jim took the time to show me how to “Burn DVDs.”  I bought a new video camera back in July.  I use it to record the racing activity when I go trackchasing.  Trouble was, I didn’t know how to playback what I had recorded.  For all I knew everything I had recorded since July had never “Taken.”  Now I have converted all of my digital tapes to DVDs.  They’ll last longer and take up less space this way.  I may even offer them for sale to the trackchasing community.

 

Of course, our daughter Kristy had to get in on the trackchasing hobby as well.  She’s actually the biggest race fan of the threesome.  You can see her at www.ranlayracing.com taking care of the RANLAY Racing publicity work, most notably with her partner in crime, James on a recent PR visit to Madison, Wisconsin.

 

I could never leave out wife Carol.  She won’t be making this trip.  I can’t take her with me all the time.  Who would do the housework and other household chores?  Just kidding.  Mostly!  Nevertheless, Carol will go to her share of races in 2006.  Although I can’t speak for her, I suspect she will once again be the #1 ranked woman trackchaser in the world this year.

 

With this preamble I welcome you to the 2006 season.  Going into the year, I’ve already seen 991 different racetracks.  As each year goes by, it gets a little more challenging and a lot more fun to try to find those tracks that make sense visiting.  I’ve got the hardware and systems in place to have a very productive season.  Thanks for joining me.

 

 

 

RACE TRACK STATS:

 

WATERMELON CAPITAL SPEEDWAY, CORDELE, GEORGIA #992 – 1/14/06

 

This Georgia track is my 15^th in the Peach state.  Of course, it’s just my first trip to Georgia for the season.  I am in 8th place in the state behind Knoxville, Tennessee resident John Moore.  John has seen 34 tracks in Georgia.

 

 

RACE TRACK NEWS:

 

WATERMELON CAPITAL SPEEDWAY, CORDELE, GEORGIA

 

Today was my first new track of 2006.  I am pleased to announce that the efficiency of the short track auto racing industry has not changed a bit since 2005.  They are still terrible at advertising accurate starting times and then sticking to them.

 

Last week Carol and I went to a Los Angeles Lakers-Los Angeles Clippers basketball game.  By the way, Kobe Bryant scored 40 points in just the second half in one of the more remarkable athletic feats I’ve ever seen.  The reason I mention this is that these games are advertised to begin at 7:30 p.m.  You know what?  They ALWAYS start the basketball festivities at 7:30 p.m.  They never deviate.

 

Now let’s take the case of the short track auto racing industry.  No, let’s be a little more specific.  Let’s take the case of the Watermelon Capital Speedway.  Their track website said racing was to begin at 4 p.m.

 

Today I woke up in Jacksonville, Florida.  I would be going to the races with my good friend Jim S. of nearby Ponte Vedra Beach.  Jim and I have been going to races together for 20 years.  Our plan today was based upon the 4 p.m. start time.

 

Just to be safe I called the track this morning and learned via a recorded message that “Racing would begin at 3 p.m.”  Of course, this new starting time forced us to adjust our plan and rush around a bit more.

 

We arrived a few minutes before the newly learned 3 p.m. start time.  They were just beginning practice!  Maybe they thought practice was “Racing” but I didn’t.  They didn’t even meet the web site promised starting time of 4 p.m.

 

It was about 50 degrees on a clear sunny day.  However, the wind blew 20-25 M.P.H. making the wind-chill temperature near 40.  It was cold.  I had my stocking cap, gloves and an extra blanket Jim had thought to bring and I was still freezing.

 

The first heat race did not start until 4:35 p.m.  That heat race was for the Bandeleros class with drivers in the 8-15 year old age group.  As avid Trackchaser Report readers know, we only count “Adult” racing.  Even the most liberal point of view, would probably not consider anyone in the 8-15 year old range an adult.

 

The first countable trackchaser event (a legend heat race) began at 5:07 p.m.  We had been sitting in the grandstand in uncomfortably cold temps since just before 3 p.m.  We did sit in the car for a few minutes during the second round of practice for each class.  Can you imagine a Lakers game starting more than two hours late (compared to the track phone message) or more than an hour late (compared to the track website.)  The short answer is no!

 

There were several classes of automobiles racing today.  They were two bandelero groups and two for the legends.  Each legend class had 16-18 cars.  There were also modified mini-stocks (8), pure stocks (11) and super late models (5).  The final division was the claimer group.

 

We watched the two bandelero heats, four legend heats and the single mini-stock heat.  It was now 6 p.m. and 2-3 hours after the official start time (depending upon your source of track information.)  It was time for a break from the numbingly cold conditions.

 

We had noticed a steakhouse just three miles from the track.  We took off for dinner and enjoyed the Cutter’s Steak and Buffet restaurant.  At 7:15, we were back at the track.  Surprising to no one it had not gotten any warmer!  It was 43 degrees with a strong wind.

 

The semi-pro legend feature was just starting for their 10-lap affair.  The pro masters legend group then ran a 20-lap 17 car main.  They were followed by six mini-stocks going 15 laps (much too long) and then 11 pure stocks racing for 15 laps.  At this point, we left.  There wasn’t much racing left and we were just too cold.

 

The Watermelon Capital Speedway, formerly known as the Cordele Motor Speedway has great facilities.  By the way, the track gets its name because Cordele, Georgia is the Watermelon Capital of the World.  According to the city of Cordele website, they “grow them bigger and more luscious than any place on earth (Hey, I saw the same slogan while driving by a Beverly Hills cosmetics surgery clinic last week.  Ba da bing!).  In fact, we even have a festival - the Watermelon Days Festival June 11th - July 9th- which celebrates the harvest and all that is good about summer in the South.”

It was too cold for watermelons today.  We sat in a concrete poured grandstand.  The one-half mile asphalt oval was top notch.  They had a professional inside pit lane and top of the line pit building located in the infield.  The P.A. was fair and the announcer about the same.  My cheeseburger was thick and warm. 

In my opinion, having a 4 p.m. start time in the middle of January was a huge mistake.  That start time guarantees the program will finish after the sun sets.  The time of year and start time virtually guarantee a very cold evening for the fans and competitors alike.  We left after 8 p.m. and they were still racing.  They should have started at 1 p.m. and tried to finish in the daylight.

When I bought my airline ticket just three days ago, the weather forecast called for a 40% chance of rain.  Nevertheless, I still pressed the “Purchase” button knowing I have good luck with the weather.  This was my 102^nd consecutive trackchasing without a rainout and my 152^nd track without a day rained out.  I don’t know if I will be able to withstand the emotional letdown when I do get rained out which is very likely with my upcoming races in the southeast in the late winter and early spring.

 

JIM’S COMMENTS

 

Jim is originally from Syracuse, New York where he and his dad were regulars at Oswego Speedway.  He had these comments about today’s racing.  “It was too friggin cold for racing!”  He felt the facility was good but the racing was just too disorganized.  Jim liked the legends racing the best.  I thought the legends races were some of the best I had ever seen.  Jim also felt the $10 admission price was a good value.  His comment about the food was simply, “It was the worst hot dog I’ve ever had in my life.”  He should have had the cheeseburger!  Jim also felt a much earlier starting time would have made for a more comfortable spectator viewing experience.

 

 

RENTAL CAR UPDATE:

 

I picked up the National Rental Car Racing Buick Lacrosse with just five miles on it.  You can’t beat that for a $27 per day AAA rate.  Remember when you rent a car always ask for the one with the fewest amount of miles on it.

 

 

 

LIFETIME TRACKCHASER STANDINGS UPDATE:

 

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

 

1.  Rick Schneider – Bay Shore, New York - 1,038 (+46)

2.  Allan Brown, Comstock Park, Michigan – 1,020 (+28)

3.  Any Sivi, Clairton, Pennsylvania – 1,007 (+15)

4.  Guy Smith, Effort, Pennsylvania – 1,005 (+13)

5.  Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California - 992

6.  Gordon Killian, Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania – 988 (-4)

 

 

 

Other notables

 

41.  Andy Ritter, Wellsboro, Pennsylvania - 233 (+3)

42.  Colin Casserly, Stevenage, England 232 (+2)

43.  Carol Lewis, San Clemente, California - 230

44.  Bernie Harlen, Goshen, Indiana - 229 (-1)

 

 

 

 

2006 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS

 

1.  Gordon Killian, Sinking Springs, Pennsylvania – 2

2.  Roger Ferrell, Majenica, Indiana – 1

3.  Randy Lewis, San Clemente, California - 1

 

 

 

 

Thanks for reading about my trackchasing,

Randy Lewis

Trackchasing’s #1 trackchaser of the 21^st century

 

Trackchasing doesn’t have to be fun to be fun.

 

 

 

 

 

CUMULATIVE TRAVEL DISTANCES:

 

AIRPLANE

 

Los Angeles, CA – Atlanta, GA – 1,941 miles

Atlanta, GA – Jacksonville, FL - 278 miles

 

RENTAL CAR

 

Jacksonville International Airport – trip begins

Cordele, Georgia – 221 miles

 

TRACK ADMSSION PRICES:

 

Watermelon Capital Speedway - $10

 

 

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

 

Cross Roads Motorplex, Jasper, Florida – January 15

 

 

 

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

 

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