The Pace Lap June 20, 2008

This week I run down the Eagle Nationals and request a recess.

It’s another possible two-day weekend for me, with a trip to Knoxville for the USAC Knoxville “Midget Nationals” and ASCoT (ASCS National Tour) sprint cars. I’ll be returning to Knoxville after nearly 12 years, having last been there in the fall of 1996 when we ran the 1BK with Don Droud, Jr. behind the wheel on the NCRA 410 Outlaw Circuit.

One of my racing photography desires has been to shoot at Knoxville, and yeah it isn’t the nationals, but the best USAC midget drivers and the best 360 drivers are certainly no second-rate show! Nebraska Auto Racing Hall of Famer Joe Orth and I will be making the trip.

Once again, the Eagle Nationals have come and gone, with some pretty good racing both nights. Not all of it was wheel-to-wheel but there was a fair share of drama both nights. Chris Roseland opted to take the “Back Row Challenge” on Friday, starting at the rear of the field with a $1000 bonus if he won the A feature.

A couple of helpful cautions and red flags combined with a fast car led to Roseland sitting in second place on the lap 20 mandatory red flag. Unfortunately Mike Boston was in 100% form and sprinted away on the restart. Still, it was a great run by Roseland and a good feature for the fans.

Generally I root for the underdog, but watching some drivers do their magic sometimes is just as satisfying. Seeing Chris Alcorn cut through a field of Modifieds is really something to watch. It’s so methodical. It takes me back to watching Ed Kosiski wind through a field of Late Models on his way to his 16-win season in 1998, or watching countless number of Kevin Larkins back to front runs at Eagle in the 90’s. When I see performances like that, it’s almost disappointing if they DON’T win.

The tracks both nights were very good, and Saturday’s was outstanding. My favorite: fast in the heats, with a cushion, dry in the middle and a little on the bottom for the A.

There were fans who missed the two-day World of Outlaws experience (I’m one of them), but I can safely say that the losses on some of those two-day shows were a major contributor to the change in management at the track.

Saturday’s crowd was very good, but not the kind of crowd to justify a two day experience. Friday’s crowd wasn’t anything special either. I don’t blame the track so much as I do the economy. Word is you can still get very good Knoxville Nationals tickets even NOW. A few years ago, you were in a low corner of the backstretch by this time, if you got tickets at all. Things are tough all over.

I’m thankful things are going OK for me but I’m busier than cat covering crap right now at work and it will only get busier – and when I’m home, I got other things to do and sometimes updating the site isn’t one of them.

To add to it, I’m admitting to being a bit burned out after 28 years of being at a racetrack on a spring and summer Friday, Saturday or Sunday night save for rainouts. Since 1997, I’ve been at Eagle every night except for three, and one of those nights I was at another track.

Long story short – I’m going to take some time off from the frequency of updates to this site for a little bit, and I’m not talking a few days.

I freely admit that now I like photographing racing more than writing about it, and this season collecting and editing results/news from tracks has been more labor intensive than in the past. I believe that the money crunch prevents getting detailed and frequent information out when track staff are busy with so many other tasks.

I’m going to focus on the photography on this site and thus, the updates will be less frequent. I may even take a weekend or two off from racing entirely (!). But I need a break. Thanks to everyone for reading.