The Pace Lap - Wednesday July 5, 2006

Well, maybe it's early - or it's late. Whatever. Here's The Pace Lap column

- Word is that Doug Lovegrove is at home recovering from an awful crash at I-80 Speedway Monday at the Ideus Memorial. While leading his heat ASCS sprint heat race, his suspension broke sending his car into a 90-degree turn into the wall, destroying the car and leaving Lovegrove very disoriented. I'll have some photos this week. It should remind us all how dangerous the sport is.

- My compliments to Cam, Speedy and Linda Hill, as well as the Eagle Fire & Rescue staff for responding to a medical emergency in the stands on Saturday July 1. Bob Wulf, grandfather of Hobby Stock racer Justin collapsed in the stands and shortly after had CPR administered. The situation was dire, but fortunately Wulf showed signs of improvement Monday morning. Also, a big thanks to the fans who alerted track officials and gave room to the emergency staff.

- Butler County Motorplex is "officially" for sale. BCM staff made an informal announcement in response to a rumor started on dirtdrivers.com: "Butler County Motorplex is for sale. We made the decision a couple of weeks ago, but have not announced it. It has not been sold to anyone at this time. The rumors that we are closing are not true." Though as I've always been told, EVERY track is for sale, for the right price.

- There are rumors that The Speed Bowl is closing. Those are also not true.

- Beatrice Speedway promoter Tim Fralin announced that they will be holding Mud Drags and ATV races at the Gage County Fairgrounds on Sunday July 30. Details are TBA.

- The I-80 Hornet claim rules have been revised. Click here for details

- Regarding the Ideus Memorial sprint car race, there is word floating about that the 2006 race could be the last. Despite a good field of cars, increased purse from the Ideus family and sponsors and a favorable night for racing, the crowd was thin. As with most ASCS races I've been to, it may be tough to find promoters to take the financial risk to schedule a special event in the future. The easiest option would be to run the race in conjunction with an Eagle weekly sprint show as had been done in previous years, however differences between the Ideus family and previous Eagle management regarding the level of promotion Eagle provided the show resulted in the family moving the show to a different track. We'll have to see if the new Eagle promoters can work a deal.

- Speaking of ASCS shows, I'm not sure how many races we'll see in the future in Nebraska. The races I've been to have seen crowds that were fair at best. (I take pictures of the crowd at nearly every show I attend). How long promoters will work this into increasingly tighter budget is a question. Some tracks are up to two years already to give the regional series (and the former ESTS) a chance. I'm not knocking promoters or the series, it just may be that the economics aren't quite ready to support it.

- On a positive note, both ASCS shows at JMS and I-80 were greeted with excellent tracks. The JMS show was excellent, despite 100-degree temps and low humidity. Delmar told a group of folks he put at least an inch of water on the track that day, in addition to the watering during the week. It was well worth it - if anything the track was too fast as the A feature pretty much finished the way it started, but that's more of the ASCS lineup system than anything.

- The Eagle Raceway water truck which lost its tank July 24 is back up and in service. However, Speedy Hill and the gang used a pickup with a tank to spray areas of the track to prevent another situation with the semi truck and the top portion of the track, which is hard to navigate due to the track's steep banking.

- Question: With people complaining last year about having to rent transponders at Eagle last year, how come I haven't heard a peep or seen one message board post about having to rent in-car radios for ASCS races? By the way I think they're a great idea for Sprints as they can't stop on the track for lineups.

- Both Joe Kosiski and Chris Alcorn swept in double features this weekend in I-80 SLM late models, and Eagle Raceway IMCA Modifieds, respectively. Kosiski continues to lead the NASCAR region II division standings.

- If you're in the York, NE area you can catch Speed Secrets radio on 1370 KAWL AM at 10AM on Saturdays.

- Former Eagle Raceway Late Model champion Mike Kelley made a guest appearance filling in for Dan Rhiley in the Tuner division. He finished 2nd in the A feature.

- Eagle Raceway tuner driver Adrian Dover was offered a $100 bonus to start standing from the infield scale for the first A feature Saturday. It was a heavy penalty as she finished 11th.

That's it for now.