Hack at the Track

There’s only two drivers who have a chance at winning the 2008 edition of the Feather Falls Casino Friday Night Points Series, so I’ve got a proposition.

Why don’t we just have Oroville’s Sean Becker and Auburn’s Andy Forsberg race one-on-one?

OK, that wouldn’t be all that exciting. Plus we want to see some of our other favorite drivers. But that’s essentially what tomorrow’s show will be all about.

Forsberg has nine points of breathing room ahead of Becker and that’s surely not enough to last him if something goes bad on the track. But if the two of them do what they’ve been doing all year, consistently finishing in the top 10, Forsberg definitely has the advantage.

Becker’s got a few things working for him, though. He posted the fast time last week in qualifying in record-setting fashion with the fastest lap EVER in the Friday night series and he’s also got four heat victories under his belt this year.

But points mean more than momentum, so Forsberg gets the nod here. I’m looking forward to watching it all, hope you’ll be out there too.

It’s 8:11 on a Friday night and the usual suspects are doing their usual routines in the press box at Silver Dollar Speedway. It’s a good thing everybody is pleasant and gets along, because otherwise it could turn into disaster.

You see, us people up here have to share a small amount of space. And we have to make it work. So while track announcer Troy Hennig has his laptop, walkie talkie and cell phone going, I am sitting in the middle typing blogs and agate files. And then there’s Gary Thomas, who stays in the press box as research for his promotions gig with the Golden State Challenge-King of California series.

Us three fellas clean up our language and our act when Beth Miller comes up to sing the national anthem, of course, but other than that it’s more like three friends goofing off while at the same time working hard.

I always wonder what the people in the crowd think about of us people here in the ivory tower. I mean, press box. Are they jealous? Does my seat up here in the box make me a VIP? Do they know we have a swamp cooler here?

That last question doesn’t mean a ton on a day like today, where it was 100 degrees when I showed up at the track around 7 p.m.

We get to look down upon all the action and all the fans from up here, and while I have a general stand-offish nature with press boxes, the one at Silver Dollar is one of my favorites.

I would say come up and say hi, but we have plenty enough distractions. So just wave.

It’s 8:11 on a Friday night and the usual suspects are doing their usual routines in the press box at Silver Dollar Speedway. It’s a good thing everybody is pleasant and gets along, because otherwise it could turn into disaster.
You see, us people up here have to share a small amount of space. And we have to make it work. So while track announcer Troy Hennig has his laptop, walkie talkie and cell phone going, I am sitting in the middle typing blogs and agate files. And then there’s Gary Thomas, who stays in the press box as research for his promotions gig with the Golden State Challenge-King of California series.
Us three fellas clean up our language and our act when Beth Miller comes up to sing the national anthem, of course, but other than that it’s more like three friends goofing off while at the same time working hard.

I always wonder what the people in the crowd think about of us people here in the ivory tower. I mean, press box. Are they jealous? Does my seat up here in the box make me a VIP? Do they know we have a swamp cooler here?

That last question doesn’t mean a ton on a day like today, where it was 100 degrees when I showed up at the track around 7 p.m.

We get to look down upon all the action and all the fans from up here, and while I have a general stand-offish nature with press boxes, the one at Silver Dollar is one of my favorites.

I would say come up and say hi, but we have plenty enough distractions. So just wave.

Racing fans here in the north state are due for a treat this weekend, something missing from Chico’s Silver Dollar Speedway for about nine years. And it’s coming fast.

The Western All-Stars DIRTcar Late Model Series is back at the dollar on Saturday and track announcer Troy Hennig described it as “NASCAR on dirt” in his weekly press release. From what it sounds like to me, these are similar to the dirt modifieds that are part of the Feather Falls Casino Friday Night Points series, only with some more oomph to them.

Click HERE to see the Western All-Stars Web site.

Defending dirt mods champ Richard Papenhausen, a Chicoan, will get his chance to take on the series’ top drivers and defend his home turf all at the same time. Papenhausen is the defending modifieds champ at SDS and often has a hard time finding places to compete in the late model races. Most take place in Bakersfield, along with stop-bys in Las Vegas, Antioch, Quincy, Santa Maria and Hanford.

Any time we can get something new and interesting to come to Chico it’s always a good thing, and I’m intrigued to see how just how fast these folks can drive on the quarter-mile dirt oval. And it would be that much sweeter for Nor-Cal if Papenhausen emerges victorious.

I used to think that the Knoxville Nationals were in Knoxville, Tenn. and didn’t understand why everybody at Silver Dollar Speedway was always talking about Knoxville this and Knoxville that. It’s comparable to the Super Bowl in terms of sprint car racing, I’ve heard, and a few regulars from SDS are taking part.

Tim Kaeding, from Campbell, is one of few California drivers to get his name on some of the leader boards I found online. And Jason Meyers of Clovis is another recognizable name. Oh, and Chico’s Jonathan Allard has to be there.

There’s really not much of a local connection, though, so the Knoxville Nationals won’t likely be making it into the sports section. But the good news is that you can catch the action Saturday night at 7 p.m. on the Speed Network.

For those of you looking for a place to get up-to-the-minute results, and are without the Speed Network, I found a Knoxville Speedway site that can fill your appetite. Click here to access it.

Let’s take a trip today. I know Chico is back to its beautiful self after all the fires and smoke, but let’s get out of town for a bit.

There are a handful of tracks in northern California aside from our hometown Silver Dollar Speedway and I’ve only been to one of them. So one night while I was sitting here with not much to do (it happens a lot during the summer), I started browsing the Web for some pics of other tracks. Now you get to enjoy the fruits of my labor.

Hope it tastes good.

First we have the Ocean Speedway in Watsonville, a city in between Santa Cruz and Monterey. It’s surrounded by those beautiful, rolling hills that Monterey County native John Steinbeck wrote of, and it looks to have a nice scoreboard and a decent set of bleachers. It doesn’t have a whole lot of differentiation between the track and the infield, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and say that it looks different when the track is wetted down.

You can find more info on this track by CLICKING HERE .

The Antioch Speedway doesn’t look too nice. Of course I had a hard time finding any pics of it online. Still, I just don’t see anything to write home about. But I will write a blog about it.

I’ve always had a disdain for communities in the Delta area of northern California. Maybe that’s why I am sour on Antioch Speedway. Nonetheless, take a look.

Antioch Speedway has a Web site and you can find it by CLICKING HERE.

And now comes my “home” track, the Placerville Speedway at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds. I must admit, though, that it doesn’t rival Silver Dollar. The track is a tight one with high-banked turns and provides for jam-packed racing, which is fun. The atmosphere is OK, I suppose, though the grandstands don’t provide a stellar view. See for yourself:

John Padjen also does promotion for the track in Placerville, and you can find info on it by CLICKING HERE.

Today it’s time for another game of “What do the race car drivers drive when they’re not driving race cars?”
We’ve all seen what they commandeer at the track - now you’ll get the dirt on what they drive during the regular work week.

Andy Forsberg is a great person to start with because he doesn’t drive too much. It’s been mentioned here that he rides a scooter from his home to his shop, the byproduct of such a short commute. He doesn’t have to hit the roads too often, but when he does, Forsberg trusts a 2001 Chevy Silverado. And it’s a lightly used model, because he said he’s only racked up 1,800 miles on it in 16 months.

Kevin Sharrah’s is the opposite. The Chico driver does his cruising around town in a 1994 Chevy Tahoe.

“It’s a beater,” he said. “I had a Ford F-250 but had to sell it because of diesel prices.”

And then there’s Dan Simpson, of Rio Vista. Dan prefers to take his vehicle on and off road and utilizes a 1-ton Chevy ranch truck, he said.

“It’s another world, it doesn’t even compare. The race car is such an adrenaline rush.”

And a preview for tomorrow: A look at some of California’s other top dirt-track racing venues. Come on back and check it out!

Nobody’s really been happy about the fact that gas has finally crept down to where it’s almost less than $4 a gallon. People have noticed, obviously, but still seem shell-shocked about the whole experience. Buying gas in the past year has become a stressful endeavor.

The same goes for the folks out at the Silver Dollar Speedway. Factor in that their gas costs more than that of the Shell or Exxon variety, and that their high-powered machines consume a lot of gas in extraordinary short distances.

Auburn’s Andy Forsberg said last week that his team consumes about 40 gallons of fuel, somewhere around $200 worth, in one night of racing. That usually means 10 or so hot laps, two qualifying laps, a heat race, maybe a B Main, and an A Main. (I can never seem to remember how long heat races are supposed to be. We’ll say eight for now). That’s about 45 laps without a B Main.

And he said it costs around $5.50 a gallon to buy the special alcohol blend at the racetrack. He gets it by the barrel back at his shop in Auburn and that saves money, but the overall high prices have affected his team indirectly as well.

“Our sponsors, their bills are high and they’ve been changing sponsorship (amounts),” he said.

Most drivers agreed that car counts haven’t been affected that much at SDS, yet many also admitted to hesitating on the long trips to places like Washington and Canada. Dan Simpson, a Rio Vista driver, said his team can afford it this year but will reconsider certain trips next year if prices remain high.

And his way of not letting the prices get to him? Dealing with it.

“We’re committed to a certain number of races,” he said. “We just grin and bear it.”

And Simpson has one of those massive, tractor-trailer combinations that could double as a big rig cargo truck. He said teams also have to pay higher prices to get their equipment to the track in the first place, and that hurts the pocketbook as well.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported Monday evening that the nationwide average for a gallon of regular gas is $3.96 now, which is 11 cents less than a week before then. That was according to the AAA auto club. California's average remains substantially higher, at $4.32, but it fell 12 cents in the last week.

The article went on to say that the national average for a gallon of regular remains $1.06 higher than a year ago and that California's average is $1.24 higher.

Forsberg seems to have his own little solution, though. He’s got an electric razor scooter that he rides from his home to his shop, which lies on his property. It obviously doesn’t compare to the rush of sprint car racing, though he’s saving enough money to continue driving his 410 winged sprint car.

Even if it costs $5.50 a gallon to drive it.

We had a small problem getting my Thursday Hack at the Track newspaper column on the E-R Web site. So maybe that's why I didn't get an angry mob with pitchforks waiting for me at the office.

It made it to the newspaper, and a few people commented to voice their opinions. One guy, Glenn Drobny, dropped me an email to voice his opinion, and as you all are figuring out, I like that a lot. So take a look at Glenn's counterpoint to my point, and especially notice that last disclaimer. The first few words sort of sum up how I was feeling when I wrote the column.

I just wanted to ruffle some feathers, and I figured a not-so-popular opinion would do the trick. They aren't athletes, if you ask me. So take a look, and respond if you want:

Dear Mr. Gordon

Hoping your grandmother will be able to drive for many more years, sincerely,
Glenn Drobny
glndrobny@yahoo.com

The races this week are good for kids and animals, two things in this world that amuse me.

Kids Night is the theme for the Feather Falls Casino Friday Night Points Series, so the two free bieks plus complimentary popcorn and soda are sure to put smiles on all the young’uns faces out at Silver Dollar.

And as for the animals, Brett Miller is putting it out there that his team is making a major effort to help the Butte Humane Society this season. Miller’s grandfather, Bill Bell, said the crew will donate 20 percent of all winnings to the humane society this year, and Miller has said that shirt sales will be a big part of that as well.

It’s a great connection, and it’s an honest-to-good effort to make our community a better place. So I’m going to provide you with some resources to help, if you so choose:

To see some pics of the animals and their human companions, CLICK HERE .

The humane society is always looking for community help, and it has a lengthy wish list. To take a peek and decide if you can help, CLICK HERE .

Racing is supposed to start at 7:30 p.m. Friday.