Hiatus

It’s been over a month since I’ve seen an A feature. That’s saying something since there has been no time since 1984 that I’ve been gone from Eagle for a month. MAYBE in 1996 when we were touring with the NCRA, but definitely no time since I’ve been away from a race that long.

I could say that it’s been that long since I’ve been to a race, but I made the trip down to US36 Raceway in Osborn, MO for the ASCS show last Friday night.

I say “A feature” because I left after Jordan Boston capped off one of those “should’ve hung it up nights” (he had motor issues early) with a flip in turn two that tore down the catch fence during the B feature. That was six sprinters on their head for the night, with two more coming later.

At the time of the wreck, I was in the parking lot with photographer and traveling partner Joe Orth and a few other fans who made the trip down from the Lincoln area. The telltale zing of the motor in the background and the screech of brakes tipped off the red flag and Joe and I decided that we’d had enough. Joe recalled that it was the first time in a long while he had left a race..it was almost becoming the norm for me.

A three-hour trip home and things to do for both of us the next morning made the decision pretty easy. Boring pics (at least mine) were another. I have to admit, it’s been about 4 years since I made the trip down to US36 - and I remember why. It’s a humid ravine with calf-high weeds in the infield, one way in and out, a catch fence that would be better used to snag fish and enough lights to allow one to make out that there is some sort of four-wheeled vehicle circumnavigating the place - most of which were B mods - and a scant two push trucks - thankfully provided by our Eagle regulars.

OK maybe it’s unnecessarily harsh. We need all the tracks we can get.

Races there can be dicey and exciting. And that night’s field of 28 was well-stocked with the likes of Jack Dover, Danny Lasoski, Randy Martin, and Trevor Grossenbacher. The hot dog with kraut and one of my favorite white-trash treats - Frito Pie - sat surprisingly well in my belly. It was a nice evening and the people there are nice. It’s always good to see a few of the Eagle gang making the trip too and also ran into a few people I hadn’t seen since I worked at Eagle during the Cormack days.

The trip down and back was pleasant, with interesting conversation and the half-day vacation was a nice break from my work (a lot)-dad (some)-sleep (a little) schedule of the past nine months.

Sometimes, it’s more than just the racing. I think my favorite time at Eagle over the past season or so has been the time spent before the show, shooting the breeze with friends and usually meeting one or two new people per week. I actually liked it more than the few times I had post-race beers afterward - especially as my days watching the trailer races are long behind me.

So, what’s with the delay? Well, the demands of being a parent took some precedence, and some help at home on the weekends was needed. And to be honest, it was a better deal in my eyes. Time with the family was important.

The thing was, getting home around midnight (on a good night) and feeling like dog crap the next day wasn’t helping things. I finally got to the point of almost viewing going to the track as a chore - and I had NO obligation to be there.

Five classes is about two too many for my taste. Save me the “if it weren’t for ___, you wouldn’t have ____” bit. That’s a bigger insult to your intelligence than mine because you should be smart enough to know that I realize that. It’s a necessary evil in this day.

But it’s evil nonetheless and doesn’t make things much more palatable - or at least in constant doses. I get it, some can’t get enough and would gladly sit six or seven hours.

They got their wish the week before with a seven-hour makeup of the previous week’s features.

I think the problem is we’ve felt this obligation to create endless amounts of sub-classes where the goal is set the bar just high enough so the winner isn’t just random chance, but low enough so nobody can use the excuse that racing is expensive and to keep that license fee coming. I’m waiting for the C-mod to debut in 2015 given the number of ‘claim’ cars well outpaces the ‘crates’ in the B mods.

So, if this is the way it must be, what can change? I’ll discuss that in my next piece.