Originally Posted By peeaanuut Ok looking at the memory smell thread I see there are a few race fans or at least some people with a racing history. So why does noone talk about it on here? So if you are a racing fan...what kind? driver? Do you go regularly? Do you follow regularly? Come on all you racing fans....come out of hiding.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 I grew up around racing during my childhood. My dad pitted for many drivers up in the NorCal race scene. My great grandpa is in the Sprint Car Hall of Fame. He raced at the old Oakland Speedway and such and all over the western states. My dad mainly worked on midgets and sprints, some sportsman and super modified cars. We were never into drag. We drove down to the old Ontario and Riverside speedways to watch Nascar in the 60's and 70's. I was a huge Andretti fan as was my dad. He traveled the Outlaw circuit for sprint cars. I've met and become friends with a lot of those drivers and their families. They adopted my sister and I while we were living in Chicago for a few years. Bobby Davis Jr, Sammy Swindell, Jac Haudschild, Brad Doty, Stevie Smith, etc. I grew up watching Pombo, Sargeant, Boyd, Opperman, the Caruther Brothers, Butcher, Recino, etc. So many drivers to name and remember. I stopped going on a regular basis when I became a teen and was traveling to play softball. As an adult up until my dad passed I'd go to the Outlaws weekend at Calistoga because it was one of my favorite tracks of all time. The last driver my dad was crew chief for was Andy Forsberg, he's known on the sprint car circuit up here. I haven't been to a race since my dad died, I just can't do it. Maybe someday. The weekend my dad passed they videoed Andy doing a memorial lap with the checkered flag around the track at Tulare. I still haven't watched it. My mom, sister and I sponsor a main event race at one of the shows each year on the anniversary weekend of my dad's passing. We call it the "Hard Chargin Award" to the drive who comes from the furthest back to the best finish.
Originally Posted By peeaanuut those seem like some good memories Lisa. Sorry about your dad, but it sure seems like you had a great time when he was here.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 Most definitely. I helped him in the garage, rode with him in the truck to all the races as a kid. My mom actually wrote for Wheels, the weekly racing newspaper in the early 70's. I'd help her keep time trials and such. We were most certainly a racing family. I almost went to a race last season, it'll be three years this June since my dad died. We'll see...
Originally Posted By peeaanuut my racing history with my dad has sort of fizzled. We used to go to the desert races when he raced in SCORE and SNORE. He also worked with Danny Thompson in the Mickey Thompson series. Now as I have gotten older we have grown apart as racing goes. Now its more Jayna and me. We go to as many events as we can. From Monster Trucks, supercross, AMA Superbikes, sprint cars, Nascar, Indy cars at long beach, Local nascar series out in Irwindale (that is only recent Thanks to Dave), short track Speedway motorcycles at Costa Mesa Speedway, NHRA at Pomona and now COLA off road at Pomona. Oh tons of stuff for Jayna and me. She doesnt like watching it on TV as I do but we both LOVE going to live races.
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb Wooo my racing history... I waited until getting home, because I didn't want to type a novel at work. My very earliest memories were of going out to the California dessert on weekends. My dad used to race motor cycles cross-county. He was in the first four Barstow to Vegas races. There's a quick shot of him racing in one in the movie "On Any Sunday" which featured Steve McQueen and HIS racing obsession. We would camp out in the dessert all weekend and at night we'd all gather around big camp fires. I guess if there's a "about me" memory question about sounds from our childhood the sound of motor cycles waking me up at dawn would probably be it for me. My uncle used to race out there too and until I was 6 or 7 I probably saw more of my cousins out there than at family events. In fact that was how my cousins' parents met, through our dad's racing together (their mom is Dad's sister). When I was in first grade my dad quit motor cycle racing, he said it was too hard on his knees. I remember being very upset, I had a hard time with kids teasing me at school and the races were my only happy time. I later found out my mom was thrilled he was packing it in, she hated it out there. Then during grammar school and JR High, my dad started helping some friends out with a Top-Fuel dragster. We didn't tag along as often, but when we did it was in the same camper we used out in the dessert. I remember Irwindale being a particular favorite race of mine. Back then the push truck was really a push truck instead of a chase truck. We would ride in the back while the driver would kick the truck up to what felt like 80 MPH pushing the race car to get it started and then the back of the truck (it had a shell) would fill up with nitro/alcohol fumes. Oh the burning! Good times. We kids used to run around the pits getting pictures and autographs. The cars weren't in the "encampments" like you find now, it was just a couple of trucks a trailer and the race car with driver and crew hanging out and getting the car ready for the next race. As we got older Dad started to step away from the drag races and concentrate on his Roadster. About the time Dad quit the motor cycles he started building a Bonneville car. A fuel modefied roadster (AA/FMR). He built the car in his garage the summer of '71 or '72 and raced it at every Bonneville meet that wasn't canceled due to rain until he sold it in '93. I believe the newest owners are still running it, but they've ruined it in looks and safety to the point that dad won't admit to having built the 'thing' they're running. It's really an embarassment to the family, the car was a proven 300 MPH car and it was gorgeous to boot and now it can't even go 200 MPH and it looks like doody. In '93 Dad started building his Lakester (AA/FL) which he finished in '96 and debuted it the same time we took my son (his first grandchild) to his first race at the age of 7 weeks . Moving on, Bonneville... Mom and dad would tow the car out every year for Speed Week. I learned how to help a driver back a truck into a trailer as a kid as they were getting ready to leave, good memories. It was always their only vacation for the year. So us kids never got to go. As an adult I can see why, there is so much more to do out there now and I don't take my kid unless we have a camper for him to hang out in and play video games. We'd have been bored out of our minds. Also back then Speed Week took place in September after school started. Finally in '81 at the age of 15 I was invited to go along. I was glad I got to go, but I remember mostly hanging out in the back of the truck in line waiting to race. My mom did teach me to drive out there on that trip, which I thought worked really well. I didn't have to worry about traffic or lines or anything. She just drove me out away from the pits, told me the basics and put me behind the wheel of the truck. I think alot of Bonneville kids learned to drive that way out there . I also remember hanging out in the casino in the evenings and playing slot machines. I was worried about being kicked out, but every employee who came up to me just asked me if I wanted a complimentary drink, lol. Funny thing, I had fun playing the slots on that trip but haven't liked them since. Oh well. In '83, close to 10 years after giving up the motor cycle racing, Dad took my sister, my friend and me out to El Mirage, close to where we went for races 10 years prior. El Mirage is a monthly meet where he could take his Bonneville car and race for a whole different set of records. Over the last 20 + years we've watched that race evolve and grow and in '86 I even raced my street car out there. In fact I spun it out about 90 minutes later and 100 MPH slower than my dad had spun his car that day. Shortly after that they instituted the role bar rule, stating that a car could not run more than once with out a proper role bar installed, hee hee hee. Now every year MY vacation is taken at Speed Week, only instead of racing I work there as a vollunteer. I take pictures for the web site, check the entries into the computer and work in the timing tower. Although I would love to have an extra vacation week to go to WDW at the end of the year before my cruise, I'm not giving up Speed Week to do it . There have been other racing events in our life (like going down to Ventura to watch the 3/4 Midget races on Friday nights when I was a teen) but these are the big ones.
Originally Posted By avromark My brother loves racing, NASCAR in particular. I watch the occasional race on TV. While I loved Dale Sr. I don't know why but something about Junior rubs me the wrong way. Call me weird but something about him irritates me. I may go to a NASCAR race eventually with my brother, he wants to get the rest of the family into it. A side note: my mechanic is a pit crew chief in CASCAR.
Originally Posted By peeaanuut hey thats close. Cascar was recently purchased by Nascar in hopes of some growth in that series. So it looks like I will be headed to supercross next weekend. That works out to about 2 major events a month for me in the first 4 months of the year. Cant wait for the racing season to swing into full gear. Deb: I was looking at the schedule at El Mirage. Looks like I can fit one of the early events into a weekend for me. I will keep ya posted.
Originally Posted By thenurmis Racing history... maybe a little burp : ) I was always found of the two wheel crew, and took up road racing motor cycles about six months after I bought my first bike. I was never really great at it , although I would finish in the top 10 of most of the local races, Still I had a ball for my three years of knee dragging. It is funny that something I did over 20 years ago , is still so fresh in my mind, must have ment something to me , eh? But my few years of racing were some of the most passionate of my life. I don't know any one who raced , not to take it to semi unhealthy levels.. It really gets into your blood, and consumes all your being...kinda spooky really. I have often wondered what sort of person you have to be to hit the top of any motor sport field. I think most have to very insain,( I mean that with all the love in the world) The focus, the drive is really hard to exsplain, but I can tell you that a short 10 lap heat race could be as draining as any 12 hour shift I have ever had at "work". The only down side about racing that I could ever think of is that it really killed my desire to ride on the street, simply I just couldn't go as fast, and the fun seemed to fade from that. miss it a lot, maybe thats why I have watched a rase since I quit. fun memories, good topic, thanks nut
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo I love racing - bobsleigh, luge, Horse, Formula 1, Indy, Derby, Drag - it's all good (except track and field). Sad thing is, I never get time to follow it (except I make time for F1 - it's the easiest to follow in Europe).
Originally Posted By peeaanuut there is always time for formula 1. Usually it is at 4am for us states side, but still there is time.
Originally Posted By Bucky N Satchel Hey Peeaanuut let me know which meet and I'll make sure to be there and I'll let you know how to find me. It's different from any other racing experience! Don't forget your camera, lol.
Originally Posted By Bucky N Satchel Well I DID add a "lol" to the end of that sentence, the "Duh" was implicit. ;P
Originally Posted By Bucky N Satchel Ahhhh you haven't read my "Confusing Name Situation", this is Autopia Deb. Because the log in page is blocked at work, and I was logged in under my Bash ID before said blocking, I'm stuck posting under this ID M-F/8-5.
