Syracuse SuperDirt Week

If you are in the local area close to Syracuse,   New York,   the Fairgrounds are holding their end of year races which started on the 8th and clouds tomorrow (Saturday).   Located not too far from the Great Lakes this mile long dirt/clay surface is one of the big events scheduled at the end of the season and run by the World Racing Group out of Charlotte,  NC.

Pictured above is one of the tracks greatest drivers of all time,  a shoe-in hall-of-fame kind of guy.   The track is fast and they can have as many as 150 cars or more and from countries like Canada,  USA, Australia and New Zealand.    The World of Outlaw Sprint Car Division also competes in those four countries and the competition is highly competitive.

http://superdirtweekonline.com/index.php/results

http://superdirtweekonline.com/

Modified and Sportsman drivers gain momentum leading into their biggest races of the season

WEEDSPORT, N.Y. – October 9, 2014 – Matt Sheppard, of Waterloo, N.Y., and Dave Marcuccilli, of Cayuga, N.Y., kicked off NAPA Auto Parts Super DIRT Week XLIII right, picking up wins at Weedsport Speedway Wednesday, Oct. 8.

“It’s the perfect weed to get on a hot streak. Hopefully we can keep it going right on through Sunday,” said Sheppard, who battled Western New York small block star Chad Brachmann for the 75-lap DIRTcar 358-Modified Series win Wednesday night.

Sheppard started third on the grid after placing sixth overall in time trials and winning his heat race. Ryan Godown, of Ringoes, N.J., started on the pole and took the initial lead over Sheppard at the green flag. World of Outlaws Late Model Series star Tim McCreadie, of Watertown, N.Y., started second but fell to third at the start of the race.

By lap 13, the leaders had reached heavy traffic, Godown still leading over Sheppard. In lap 16, Godown tapped the inside wall in turn 1 and slowed enough for Sheppard to pass him. In lap 17, Brachmann maneuvered through lapped traffic to pass Sheppard for the lead.

Brachmann held onto his lead through cautions in laps 27, 37 and 38, fending off Sheppard’s advances off the double-file restarts. By lap 50, leaders were again forced to handle heavy lapped traffic, and Sheppard took his opportunity when he had it. Sheppard passed Brachmann for the lead in lap 54.

“When Chad drove by me, I thought, man we’ve got nothing for him. I was about a straightaway behind him,” said Sheppard, a three-time Super DIRTcar Big Block Modified Series champion. “But then I really felt my car start to come in a little bit. We started gaining on him in the lapped traffic and a couple of those restarts I was able to hang with him on the top. The thing just came to me the longer the race went.”

Brachmann stayed at Sheppard’s tail for the rest of the race, but wasn’t able to reclaim the top position.

“Unfortunately, the lapped traffic played a role in this tonight,” Brachmann said. “But, it is what it is. One of these days I’ll catch the break I need and come out on top in one of these big races.”

Godown finished third after Brachmann. Rounding out the top five are Tim McCreadie in fourth and Anthony Perrego in fifth.

Marcuccilli battled Boyd MacTavish and Steve Gray to pick up the DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series win Wednesday at Weedsport Speedway.

“We love coming here,” Marcuccilli said of the track, a newly refurbished pristine facility 30 miles west of Syracuse. “It’s probably the place we know the best.”

MacTavish drew the pole and Marcuccilli started third on the grid. MacTavish claimed the initial lead, but Marcuccilli kept up, gaining enough momentum by lap 7 to race the leader wheel-to-wheel. In lap 9, Marcuccilli made the pass, cruising by MacTavish on the front stretch.

The leaders entered traffic in lap 15, and Marcuccilli maneuvered around lapped cars to keep his spot. A late-race caution slowed the pace in lap 27, but Marcucilli kept the lead off the restart and through the remaining laps.

“We got into lapped traffic there and we didn’t know what to do. They were racing two-by-two,” Marcuccilli commented. “I guess the caution kind of saved me. I think Steve (Gray) would have gotten by me if it weren’t for that.”

Steve Gray finished second and early leader MacTavish third. Rounding out the top five are Rocky Warner in fourth and Gary Lindberg in fifth.

NAPA Super DIRT Week continues Thursday with qualifying for DIRTcar 358-Modifieds and Super DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds. Friday afternoon features the Futures Races while Camping World Friday Night Lights includes the fan-favorite Triple 20s for Big-Block Modifieds, Twin 20s for 358-Modifieds and Triple 10s for Sportsman Modifieds.

The main events on Saturday include the USAC Silver Crown “Salt City 78” at 1:30 p.m. followed by the “Salute to the Troops 150” for the 358-Modifieds. On Sunday, the DIRTcar Sportsman and Pro Stocks will compete before the premier Syracuse 200 for the Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modifieds takes the green flag at 2 p.m.

“Racing’s Biggest Party” runs through Sunday, Oct. 12. For more information and the latest updates on NAPA Super DIRT Week, click www.SuperDIRTWeekOnline.com, follow on Twitter @SuperDIRTWeek, or find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SuperDIRTWeek.

DIRTcar 358-Modified Series at Weedsport Speedway (Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014)

A-Main (75 laps): 1. 9H Matt Sheppard; 2. 3B Chad Brachmann; 3. 901 Ryan Godown; 4. 4 Tim McCreadie; 5. 18 Anthony Perrego; 6. 91 Rick Laubach; 7. 14 Stewart Friesen; 8. L99 Larry Wight; 9. 33 Mike Mahaney; 10. J99 Jimmy Phelps; 11. 42p Pat Ward; 12. 20 Brett Hearn; 13. 93 Ryan Bartlett; 14. 38 Ryan Susice; 15. 14J Alan Johnson; 16. 14B Peter Britten; 17. 02 Roy Bresnahan; 18. 22c Mario Clair; 19. 16w Lance Willix II; 20. 25 Erick Rudolph; 21. 27J Danny Johnson; 22. 6 Mat Williamson; 23. 323 Neal Williams; 24. 66x Carey Terrance; 25. R70 Ryan Arbuthnot; 26. 16 Dany Creeden; 27. 70 Brady Fultz; 28. 29 Jeff Brownell, Jr.; 29. 10c Tim Currier; 30. 12 Brian Sage.

B-Main 1 (10 laps): 1. 10c Tim Currier; 2. 12 Brian Sage; 3. 93 Ryan Bartlett; 4. d17 Danny O’Brien; 5. B42 Kevin Bates; 6. H25 Bobby Herrington; 7. 71 Mike Bowman; 8. 9J Jordan McCreadie; 9. 1 Tyler Dippel; 10. 21 Yan Bussiere; 11. G14 Brian Gleason; 12. J19 John McKenney, Jr.; 13. 1R Jeff McGinnis; 14. 39a Alan Therrien; 15. 678 John Smith

B-Main 2 (10 laps): 1. 38 Ryan Susice; 2. 16 Dany Creeden; 3. 27J Danny Johnson; 4. 66x Carey Terrance; 5. X21 Randy Chrysler; 6. 39 Clement Therrien; 7. K21 Kyle Weiss; 8. R70 Ryan Arbuthnot; 9. 22c Mario Clair; 10. 44 Zach Aubertine; 11. 16w Lance Willix II; 12. 66 Kyle Dingwall; 13. 3m Bill Mullin; 14. T21 Roger Chrysler

Qualifying Heats (8 laps, top 4 transfer, top 2 redraw)

Heat 1: Ward, Fultz, Williamson, Hearn, Currier, Terrance, Bowman, Clair, Dippel, Mullin

Heat 2: Godown, Laubach, Friesen, Phelps, Creeden, O’Brien, Arbuthnot, Herrington, Willix, Smith

Heat 3: Brachmann, Williams, Rudolph, Brownell, Sage, D. Johnson, A. Therrien, Aubertine, Bussiere, Roger Chrysler

Heat 4: Sheppard, Mahaney, Britten, Wight, Susice, McGinnis, Randy Chrysler, McCreadie, Weiss, McKenney

Heat 5: McCreadie, Perrego, Bresnahan, A. Johnson, Bartlett, C. Therrien, Bates, Dingwall, Gleason, Shield, Reakes

Time Trials: 1. Fultz 17.543, 2. Ward 17.561, 3. Weiss 17.579, 4. T. McCreadie 17.638, 5. Williamson 17.641, 6. Sheppard 17.641, 7. Creeden 17.661, 8. Hearn 17.699, 9. Godown 17.716, 10. Bowman 17.730, 11. Currier 17.734, 12. Brachmann 17.745, 13. Terrance 17.785, 14. Williams 17.808, 15. Perrego 17.821, 16. Laubach 17.828, 17. Wight 17.879, 18. Rudolph 17.891, 19. Susice 17.893, 20. A. Johnson 17.898, 21. Dippel 17.916, 22. Britten 17.952, 23. McGinnis 18.012, 24. Friesen 18.017, 25. Brownell 18.044, 26. Sage 18.102, 27. Bresnahan 18.104, 28. Phelps 18.109, 29. Clair 18.126, 30. Herrington 18.158, 31. Randy Chrysler 18.158, 32. J. McCreadie 18.166, 33. Arbuthnot 18.183, 34. C. Therrien 18.200, 35. Bartlett 18.214, 36. O’Brien 18.216, 37. Mullin 18.428, 38. A. Therrien 18.445, 39. Gleason 18.470, 40. Willix 18.573, 41. D. Johnson 18.678, 42. Bates 18.839, 43. Dingwall 18.957, 44. Bussiere 18.988, 45. McKenney 19.081, 46. Shield 19.170, 47. Roger Chrysler 19.210, 48. Aubertine 19.528, 49. Smith 19.681. Light: Mahaney. No Time: Reakes

For more information for times and directions and also the races themselves please go to the site directly.   Fortunately our weather is cooperating and it might be a bit chilly and windy with highs in the upper 50s and lows near 40.    The only precipitation might come from some random lake effect storms.

Otherwise enjoy and it is well worth the time and money and does have a covered grandstand.

It’s Not Just a Black Thing – Bingo Long’s Travelling All-Stars

The above movie was made in 1976 and it was a semi-historical look at the Negro Major Leagues of the 1930’s.    It starred Billy Dee Williams as a charismatic star pitcher in a league of undiscovered talent.   Also manning his team was James Earl Jones,  being one of the Negro Leagues most prolific homerun hitters.  And lastly and who can forget Richard Pryor trying to pass himself off as Cuban.   Talk about fuzzy math…

Below is that movie and I think,  it should be understood the context of the times the true greatness and soul of a people starving for their own heroes,  on their own terms.   Rather than do something construction it becomes all about you.  It is political correctness run amok.  It

http://youtu.be/bCJ_INhdW9M

The movie is comic ‘gold’ and with it gives us an impression of a world largely unknown to whites.    And for the people who talk about Blaxploitation go take another bong hit.   It is criticism with no object except self-aggrandizement.   It is not about you.   It is about Jackie Robinson, Willie Mays,   Hank Aaron and Bob Gibson and many more.   People who suffered Jim Crowe and have to listen to white people playing politics with all our lives.

We are all human and all have the potential for good.   We can try and make a difference  finding a way to unite us and break down stereotypes from all sides.   It is looking for good and turning over rocks to find things that make us shout in one voice about harmony than discord.

A good series about how things are changing from the heartbreak of the 60s both from the black and white perspectives is ‘The 60s’.    Julia Stiles goes through a lot as does her brother who comes back broken because of the Vietnam War.

I have ties to the Tuskegee Airman and I have a project in mind that could ultimately make a difference for all.   We can make a difference and I promise to make an impact where mainly people just rant,  trying to score points and kiss up.

I want MLK Day to be more than a holiday.   What does it do for anyone in the way it is celebrated?  This is all about inclusiveness and what Martin Luther King had in mind.

 

 

Black History Month and Bob Gibson.

I think much of America lives in a dream world.   It is kind of like fast food and they get their news in a drive-through window.    It is also Black History Month and that is a noble cause for sure.

But nothing is really changing.   People live in their glass houses and throw stones but never entertaining the notion of actually changing.  Then to justify their odd behavior,   they watch the news and that news and agree with their favorite pop view of what is going on.

In this case,  we have the same ole recipe.   We name streets MLK or a Newscasters who feign concern over the plights of the poor.   But like Scrooge they hoard emotions and follow carefully nuance scripts full of hyperbole and the kinds of generalizations that make no sense.

Don’t get me wrong,  we should change but those changes are to investigate stories of minorities and whites.   Expand our lexicon to include people who have done well for their own community.

I am white and male and I am not intimidated by stupid people who do only what is expected and no more.  We become a reflection of what we despise.   I live close to Greensboro, NC.    The place where four black men decided to do their own part in integration and they are heroes and rightly recognized in that very building where Jim Crowe’s spirit thrived.

That building is now the Cultural Center and I had the opportunity to visit that place and came away with a further appreciation for history that is often overlooked.  So it is my intention to bring my own appreciation and it concerns a baseball player.   An unique player and he did not wear the number 42 or was he named Robinson.

My childhood hero was black.   I wanted to be him.   I practiced my high leg kick and pitched for hours on a makeshift mound and rubber.    I had a bucket full of balls.  These green and brown balls were stained by dirt and other grime and eventually the seams would break until they were not any longer serviceable.   These flights of fancy put in the front of adoring fans.

I was Bob Gibson.   A flame-throwing right-hander with an attitude.    The real Mr. Gibson dealt with a childhood that was dangerous,  growing up in the projects of Cabrini Green. (A notoriously violent ghetto).  He fought daily and commonly they were racial in nature and sometimes he had white friends fighting along side him.     There was also twice as many whites as there were blacks (Negroes back then).   Even as a kid,  I hated that term and the larger N-Bomb I heard from my own father.   He said,  “they smell among other things”.

One day at the supper table we rebelled at our own risk and pointed out dropping that word was offensive and it was all five of us kids.    It was a seminal moment and we didn’t have  cue,  we got it and made the point that that kind of bigotry was unacceptable!

Bob Gibson was an All-American basketball player at Creighton University and then the Harlem Globetrotters.   He also signed with the St. Louis Cardinals and stopped playing basketball at the insistence of Bing Devine,  the Cardinals General Manager.

As Gibson matured into one of the greatest right-handed pitchers ever.  I used to listen to the games on K-M-O-X in St. Louis, a very famous radio station that aired all the games and I almost always heard  their games.

In one season he had 12 shutouts and an ERA of 1.12.   Both of those are exceptional and legendary especially the ERA.   Gibson said the pitcher mounds were lowered just because he was black.   And he is probably right.

In spite of the racial hubris,  Gibson was loved in the City of the Arch but the same hospitality was not afforded him or the other black Cardinal players.    They had to live in segregated housing in Sarasota,  Florida instead of the hotel in St. Petersburg.

The next year,  the Cardinal’s owner August Busch bought the motel,   declaring that all his players  were equal and would be treated the same no matter their race.

This was also a great selling point for me.    Not only that but many players of that age named Gibson as the greatest pitcher ever.

April 15th of every years all teams and all players wear the #42 of Jackie Robinson.   I wish that only one player would wear that number and preferably a team’s best player.   I  believe that the Cardinals do the same thing each year.   A living memorial to players who clawed through the hell that players suffered through back then.

It will be a sad day for me when he dies.  A part of me will die with him and there are other teammates who were black that also inspired me, such as Lou Brock,  Ozzie Smith and Willie McGee.   I would adopt their personas playing baseball and softball.

In high school I made an unassisted triple play which is a legacy that is still recognized today and that was many passes around the sun by the 3rd Rock from the Sun.

All I know is this is the day that we can make a difference.   Let us get outside of our comfort zone and look for redeeming qualities and I am sure we can.  I would hope that all peoples recognize the inherent beauty of each other and let’s not hate on each other for our race,  political party or skin color.

Lakeside Speedway Colorado – 25 years later

As I child I did have the horror of seeing race tracks close.    You might ask what is horrible about that?   Nothing!   But for some it is a way for them to take over.   It might be a parking lot or a high-rise apartment and that sits fine with them.   These bitter acolytes and self-proclaimed do-gooders are a bunch of mean-spirited old hags and crotchety old men.

In their wake of bitter self-interest they lay waste to good clean fun.   And while there  might be that occasional row between drivers and fans it is wholesome.   And most of the local drivers are not rich.    So naturally they may be inclined to watch ‘Duck Dynasty’  or have NASCAR stickers prominently displayed on their trucks,  cars and race car haulers.     Many like country and some like rock but most don’t fancy ‘snooty music’.    They might just use Moonshine instead of pricey wines and beers from Germany and France.

Now this track I am going to mention was closed quite a few years ago.    And racing had been there from around 1938 to 1988.  Fifty years of legends,  urban legends and a culture of competition that includes families who race and people who actually know the drivers.   The older drivers will pine about the day they drove at a track like Lakeside.     Some will have pictures lovingly maintained reminiscing about a past that lives on with the people of that day and the offspring who were told about the ‘good old days’.

By and by most signs of the track disappear little by little when they are abandoned or redeveloped.    One of the most saddening sights is the race surfaces with blades of grass piercing the track.   A challenge to the track by nature,  perhaps a loss of interest from owners and investors.    Or maybe even the ravages of a cruel winter and the unrelenting rains of springtime.    And yes,  springtime,  would invariably carry the bright hope of watching racing once again and you do NOT have to pay for an autograph.  The drivers actually appreciate the fans and by race day the excitement builds.

The racing family usually has to put up with a dad (for the most part) who is seemingly always working on this car and the idea of gracing the winner’s circle.    One time at East Bay in Florida,   the family of one of the drivers (who was usually in the back)  would stand up and cheer each time he went by.       It was kind of odd yet kind of quaint.   Here you will find some people who may be marginalized for being different.     One may call it ‘hillbilly,  redneck or low brow” ,   but seriously who asked them?

It is more than likely that they would embrace that term.      They really do not care where you are from except if you are from far away and you think that your opinion matters over theirs.    Once the drivers escape the cozy confines of their home-tracks families that can will follow along.   And sponsors are the reason they get to dream bigger.   When you into the more expensive divisions,  the owners and sponsors could buy the hoity-toity type many times over.    It is a passion as a large as a father and son fishing.    Just like with fishing it is not the fish but the time spent together.   Like the tracks,  we come and go.   Yet the history of a community is deeply entrenched in the souls of racing fans.

The song has that same kind of sad ending when a driver or a track goes belly up.    For the new tenants they may never know or ever care.   They will be too busy being city-like while forgetting that most rural folks hate cities.   Less smog and less smug the race fans trundle up to the track and take their positions almost like assigned seats.   Cat calls can  heard especially as the protagonists earn their reputations by spinning out another driver or what the fans perceive to be some injustice.       But this is some of what happens,  there is also the drivers who went on to bigger and better things or drivers who die doing what they like.

And on that opening day,   that race car freshly painted or adorned with wraps, speed by as expectant fans cheer for their guy and the nicer looking the car the better chance that drivers get sponsors and fans.     A lot happens here and the people are the nicest anywhere.  They support us military veterans like Kings and Queens and will most always pay respects to the flag and our country.

Bo Pellini. He is right!

I was watching Bo Pellini,  coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers can be abrasive and even volatile but he has a point.   Sports reporters think they are Woodward and Berstein,  as they try to find some salacious bit of gossip and talk about it until coaches, players and fans get sick of it.

Bo Pellini will have none of it though and even said,  “Go ahead, fire me”.   And I bet a few media scribes were cowering,  thinking maybe he was going to crown them with a ring of fire.    Afterwhich they go to their Word Program and call him a bully.

This whole deal in Miami is largely a media creation and there forte is exploiting the race issue.  Due diligence has gone by the wayside,  as reporters try to get the story first and the net effect is they get it wrong and the damage is done.   Are there any apologies and “my bads”?  Not a chance,  because lawyers will butt their noses in and complicate matters.

So when Bellini takes exception,  he speaks for a lot of people,  especially the coaches and players.   The expectations of BCS games becomes the litmus for success,  in a system that sucks so bad,  I am surprised Oreck is not a sponsor.

Another part of the media are the shows like the Jim Rome Show and Rome is burning.   I guess he got burned when Jim Everett made a point of not calling him Chrissy.  Of course, Rome didn’t count on Everett smacking the snot out of the churlish baiter.   He rails against what he calls his ‘clones’ and then disavows any association when they go over the line,  way over the line.

The above video is another explosion by a coach and these are not uncommon.   The coac has to play it close,  while the media says they are just getting what the fans want.  Oh sure you are.

So while Rome is Burning and the debt ceiling continues to rise,   we have Colin Cowherder,  the ugliest twerp on radio and TV calling fans jock sniffers but then in the same breath,  inhaled the second hand smoke of Lebron Jame’s tailpipe.    As you can see, hyperbole has replaced reporting.

In many cities,  wannabe ballers essentially taunt coaches and when coaches like Pettini and Riley speak out,  they are considered crass.   The media is like that bully that tease their classmates and then run behind their big brother and points at the victim of his taunts.

As a kid,  I remember Craig Morton and Roger Staubach QB controversy and while that was quite a bitter battle,  the media is nothing like it is today.   The situation is so bad,  that this year the Tampa media basically got the QB fired and then had the audacity to cry foul,  implying that the change was somehow racist and even indicating a staff infection in the clubhouse was somehow some kind of conspiracy of silence at the urging of Coach Schiano.

My point to all this is that the media starts fires and then calls the fire department.   These people are no better than the National Enquirer but everyone knows they are as fake as the WWE.   It has gotten so silly that everyone is a bully except Suh and Haynesworth.

They had their fun with Tim Tebow too,  saying that he was no good at football,  yet I wonder how many of them even played anything but intramaural hockey or the spelling bee.   Tebow’s biggest sin was being a virgin and not being aborted.  Oh and he dared mix sports with Christianity.   I bet if he pulled out a prayer rug or suggested Jihad,   he would still be the talk of the town.

His crime, praying and helping the poor in the Philippines.  Do not forget Typhoon Haiyan!!!    This is a good young man.

As it is,  the media are like a bunch of maggots,  who ruthlessly and efficiently eat away at careers and reputations.   With Tiger Woods,  they raked him over the coals for behavior they have engaged in.

The media is more ridiculous than Dog’s wife ‘Beth’.   Rather than have big boobs held together with duck tape,  they are the ones calling a female ESPN host as a lady of the night and this by a guy uglier than Girard Depardeaux. <sp>

I think you get the picture or remember any other person even those misfits on Jerry Springer.