As my husband I were driving up route 31 on the way to Pocono Speedway we passed many familar stores, houses and schools. Then we saw a sight that made us pull the car over and pause. Across from the Flemington Dept store was not our beloved, dearly departed Speedway. It was a sprawling shopping center, anchored by a Lowes store.
My first thought was how could they have done this? Aren't there enough malls in NJ. Drive 5 minutes or less in any direction in NJ and you will find a mall. My husband just stood there speechless. We couldn't bear to stay there for more than just a couple minutes. It was just too painful.
Tom and I met at Flemington. He was the driver of the #99 modified; a bare bones race team. I was just starting out as a motorsports reporter. Tom always greeted me with a smile and cold drink. I asked him for an interview many times but he always said that he wasn't much of a story and would point towards 'a better story'. The Speedway became my 'second home'. After a year or two of hanging out by his trailer, Tom and I went on our first date. A night of racing at East Windsor Speedway.
When that sad day came when Flemington Speedway closed. My heart was broken. I could not imagine calling any other track my home track. Eventually, I got used to visiting other tracks but Flemington will always live on in my heart and memories.
I guess what really hurt most of all about seeing the former site of the speedway is that there was no sign that the speedway ever existed at that location. Eighty some odd years of racing history and glory, gone like it had never existed. Not even a marker sign stateing that 'this was once the home of Flemington Speedway'.
Good bye my old friend, Flemington Speedway. I and those many other who loved you will NEVER forget you.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Wall Stadium, Here I Come
I'm looking forward to a great night of racing at Wall Saturday night. Right now the weather looks good for once and the 'Fenders only night' program sounds like it will be a good one.
A lot of the drivers I used to watch race at Flemington Speedway will be there, like Pete Brittain and Jimmy Wismer. It will be great to see them face off against the Wall regulars.
Ever since Flemington Speedway closed, Wall Stadium has been my adopted home track. I am so glad that it has come back from the grave, hopefully to stay. I felt so lost in'08 with it closed. The dirt tracks were nice but they just weren't the same as asphalt. Other than the great racing action, the best part of going to Wall is seeing the many friends I've met in the grandstand, that I only see on raceday.
I think Wall is a better track now since it reopened. The program moves at a faster pace so that we get to come home at a decent hour instead of around midnight. The staff is so pleasant and professional. I love watching Floyd the flagman in the flaggers stand because he is energetic and waves the flags with style.
Here's hoping for clear skies and good racing this weekend.
http://www.wallspeedway.com/news/2009/062209.html
A lot of the drivers I used to watch race at Flemington Speedway will be there, like Pete Brittain and Jimmy Wismer. It will be great to see them face off against the Wall regulars.
Ever since Flemington Speedway closed, Wall Stadium has been my adopted home track. I am so glad that it has come back from the grave, hopefully to stay. I felt so lost in'08 with it closed. The dirt tracks were nice but they just weren't the same as asphalt. Other than the great racing action, the best part of going to Wall is seeing the many friends I've met in the grandstand, that I only see on raceday.
I think Wall is a better track now since it reopened. The program moves at a faster pace so that we get to come home at a decent hour instead of around midnight. The staff is so pleasant and professional. I love watching Floyd the flagman in the flaggers stand because he is energetic and waves the flags with style.
Here's hoping for clear skies and good racing this weekend.
http://www.wallspeedway.com/news/2009/062209.html
Monday, June 22, 2009
Kart racing at Wall Stadium
Recently I started racing my kart at Wall Stadium on Sundays. All my karting experience has been on road courses, so racing on Wall's oval is a new experience for me. I started coming to this track because this is where my husband Tom races a Microstock and I don't like to come to a racetrack alone.
The first thing I noticed about oval racing is that it is much easier on the body. In road course racing, every race felt like a workout. Oval racing is just a little tiring on the arms. Oval racing is more about finesse and subtleties. Moving your racing line just a few inches one way for the other make a noticeable difference in how fast you are on the track. The big key is to be smooth and not jerk the wheel as you enter and exit the corners.
Between my races, I like watching my husband race the #99 microstock because he is a very talented driver. I love watching him weave his way through the field.
The track food at Wall is great and the officials are very pleasant. Another great thing about racing at Wall, is that there is a team of professional race photographers there every week. I've only raced there a few times but I was able to buy several high-quality photos of myself and Tom racing there.
I highly recommend Wall Stadium as a cool place to see racing, Ssturday night or Sunday afternoon.
To learn more about racing at Wall Stadium, check out these links.
http://www.wallspeedway.com/
http://wtssundayseries.synthasite.com/
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Rain Vs Race Promoters
Racing is at the mercy of Mother Nature, unlike stick and ball sports. Racing is a sport that needs a dry surface.
Many a race this year has been call due to rain. This poses a problem for the track management. Race track staff work constantly to atract local racers to come to their track because a consistantly high car count attracts fans by word-of-mouth. If the weekend is plagued by heavy rain, the event and all the promotion and preparation for the event is for naught. If too many race nights are rained out, there is a danger that some of the racefans my get in the habit of doing something else Saturday nights, like watch NASCAR Sprint Cup racing on TV.
In some respects the rain hurts the dirt tracks more than the aspahlt tracks. If the rain is brief, the track crew and use jet dryers to dry the track and as long as they have the light to race, can resume the race program. Dirt tracks soak up the rain and can be difficult to dry to a racable surface if the rain is intense.
It is even worse when the rain deluge occurs before half of the race program has been completed. Then the track operator still has to pay for the ambulance, the track crew salary, the workers at the concession stands, the cost of the lighting and the rain-check for the fans and competitors who will get to come back next week's event at no charge and many other incidentals that cost the track operator money. This also means that the revenue from the next race is greatly reduced, even though the operating expenses remain the same for the night's activities.
Race track management and promotion is not for the faint of heart.
Many a race this year has been call due to rain. This poses a problem for the track management. Race track staff work constantly to atract local racers to come to their track because a consistantly high car count attracts fans by word-of-mouth. If the weekend is plagued by heavy rain, the event and all the promotion and preparation for the event is for naught. If too many race nights are rained out, there is a danger that some of the racefans my get in the habit of doing something else Saturday nights, like watch NASCAR Sprint Cup racing on TV.
In some respects the rain hurts the dirt tracks more than the aspahlt tracks. If the rain is brief, the track crew and use jet dryers to dry the track and as long as they have the light to race, can resume the race program. Dirt tracks soak up the rain and can be difficult to dry to a racable surface if the rain is intense.
It is even worse when the rain deluge occurs before half of the race program has been completed. Then the track operator still has to pay for the ambulance, the track crew salary, the workers at the concession stands, the cost of the lighting and the rain-check for the fans and competitors who will get to come back next week's event at no charge and many other incidentals that cost the track operator money. This also means that the revenue from the next race is greatly reduced, even though the operating expenses remain the same for the night's activities.
Race track management and promotion is not for the faint of heart.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Kart Racing at Englishtown's Raceway Park
Raceway Park, located in Englishtown NJ is one of my favorite kart racing tracks. I think the facility as a whole is pretty awesome. The first thing we see as we drive our kart trailer thru the gate is dirt motorcross bikers jumping over the hills on the motorcross course. Sometimes we pull over and watch a few minutes of the action before continuing on to the kart track entrance. On the opposite side of the road is the recently-built, paved, sportscar road-course. A few times a year the karts race on that course. I haven't had a chance to do that yet but I hear its fun.
Sunday road-course kart course I usually run on is really a parking lot behind one of the dragstrip's grandstands. In between races, karters often go up in the stands to watch the bracket-racers roar down the drag strip. Twice a year the NHRA national drag racers take over and karting takes a break. Raceway Park is a motorsports venue that is unique in NJ. More than one type of racing calls Raceway Park home.
The kart road-course is created out of 2-foot high, 4-foot long plastic rectangular blocks. A definite improvement over safety cones that were hard to see when the sun was setting. I love racing on that course because it is so challenging. A driver has to be really on top of the wheel. There is only one straightaway and 10 corners. Most of the corners are very tight curves. It's like sharp left, sharp right, carousel turn lap after lap.
The only problem I have with racing there is I need to do weight lifting for a couple months before the season begins in order to race there. Before I started lifting weights, I would be in such pain. My arms would be soo sore that I would have trouble just driving in the feature race. Being competitive was out of the question. The first two 8-lap heat races would just pound me flat. The exhilaration only lasts so long. Then arm fatigue overcomes the adrenalin.
After I started lifting weights pre-season, I didn't fell any soreness until after the feature race. Whats more, when the next morning came, my arms didn't throb. The highest I've finished so far is second place but I am happy to say I am racing with the pack at the front of the field. That's a big improvement from how I raced when I started 4 years ago.
The only downpoint I have about Raceway Park is their food. Their food stand couldn't cook a burger to save their lives. They are always burnt, even if you ask them to start from scratch and cook a new burger. it always turns out black. So we just pick up a couple subs and chips from a deli on the way to the track.
On the whole, we always have a great time racing here.
Monday, June 1, 2009
A interview with Ron John Koczon
Ron John Koczon is a regular competitor at New Egypt Speedway. His skill behind the wheel combined with his friendly, outgoing personality has made him a fan favorite. Although he races on a limited budget, he is able to hold his own against some of the biggest names in local dirt modified racing. I had a chance to talk with Koczon before the modified feature Saturday.
Q. How long have you been racing at New Egypt Speedway?
A. Ever since they changed it back to dirt in 1998. I ran a sportsman here three years until I won the (Sportsman track) championship here in 2000. I raced previously in 1997 at East Windsor Speedway and I won a championship there. After 2000, I moved up from Sportsman to Modifieds and I’ve been there ever since.
Q. How do you like the Modified division?
A. I like it a lot. Very stiff competition. Unfortunately you need to be well financed to do well at it. We’re doing the best we can with what we got. I hurt my performance last week by not having the finances to fix some parts that should have been changed. We enjoy it though. It’s a passion. You go out and give it your all with the best equipment you can afford. Sometimes we can’t afford to get new parts for the car but still go out there and compete.
Q. Why did you start racing?
A. It was because of my uncle RJ Brown. He raced his #6 at Reading pa , Flemington, East Windsor and Bridgeport Speedway. He built cars for (famed driver) Bud Olsen. My father Ron said that if I wanted to build a race car from the ground up with a few of my buddies, that he would help me with the financing of the effort.
Q. What has been your most memorable moment in racing so far?
A. Hmm, wow. That’s a good question. Its hard to pick one, there’s been so many that stand out. I guess I would say it was my first feature win in 1996. The Tri-State 50, which was held at east Windsor speedway. It was the biggest race of the year for street stocks at East Windsor. It paid a lot of money to win and that was my first feature win ever. I also won most popular driver that night and finished high in the point standing for that year as well. The next year, I went on to win the track championship there.
Q.What would you do if you weren’t racing?
A. Hmm, I really don’t know what does a non-racing person does with their free time. Ha ha Hmm. I guess if I wasn’t spending all those hours working in the garage, I would spend more time with my son and my wife. I really enjoy spending time with them.
Q. Would you like your son to follow in your footsteps?
A. I would really rather that he didn’t. I want to keep him around racing but not as a driver because of the financial difficulties involved in having and maintaining a competitive car. There’s a lot of heartache and sacrifice involved. (pause) In a way, I would want him to race but at the same time, I want to spare him the financial headaches involved with racing. I’d rather he became a professional golfer or a baseball player or something like that. ha ha.
Q. Is this your favorite track?
A. I do love New Egypt. In fact I live just a few minutes down the road from here. I ventured to Grandview Speedway once for a race and I loved the high banks there but, New Egypt is so close to my home and the competition level here is great. I love coming here every week, racing with my buddies and seeing the local fans who come here every week. I’ve been here so long, that I know a lot of fans who come here. The fans here are awesome. I think that’s why I stay here until the last car leaves.
Q. How does New Jersey racing compare to racing in Pennsylvania or New York?
A. I don’t believe that racing is as established in New Jersey as in Pennsylvania or New York. I can’t really compare it to the other states because I don’t really race there but, I think its because of how close we are to the shore. There are a lot of other things people can do on a Saturday night in New Jersey, so the tracks in New Jersey have to fight to attract fans and that makes it a bit tough.
Thank you for the interview.
You can learn more about Koczon's favorite track by visiting http://www.newegyptspeedway.net
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Asphalt modifieds vs Dirt Modifieds
Wall Stadium is my favorite local track for many reasons. First, it is asphalt, not dirt. I've been to some nice dirt tracks and they are fun to watch in their own way, but I have a special place in my heart for asphalt modifieds. The first local track I went to, Flemington Speedway, was an asphalt modified track. I loved to watch the fender to fender action. When Flemington closed I transfered my love to Wall. There is just something different about the asphalt mods that I can't put my finger on. The atmosphere of the dirt tracks and attitudes of the drivers are different somehow too. When Wall closed for a year, I tried to fall in love with dirt modified racing, but it just wasn't the same. God Bless Wall's track promoter/manager Jim Morton for finding a way to bring Wall Stadium back to life. I'm so glad that Wall reopened this year.
There is no question the dirt modified driver are very talented but there is something to be said for being able to leave the track at the end of the night's program as clean as you entered. I guess I never got used to being sprayed with a fine coating of dirt while watching the race. This distracts me from the race action. The goggles usually find a way to pinch my face and I feel like I have to shield my drink from the flying dust, which is also distracting. At a asphalt track, I feel like I can relax and just watch the race. I wish there were other asphalt tracks in NJ. NJ Motorsports Park doesn't count because they have sports car and they charge too much for the grandstand admission.
There is no question the dirt modified driver are very talented but there is something to be said for being able to leave the track at the end of the night's program as clean as you entered. I guess I never got used to being sprayed with a fine coating of dirt while watching the race. This distracts me from the race action. The goggles usually find a way to pinch my face and I feel like I have to shield my drink from the flying dust, which is also distracting. At a asphalt track, I feel like I can relax and just watch the race. I wish there were other asphalt tracks in NJ. NJ Motorsports Park doesn't count because they have sports car and they charge too much for the grandstand admission.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Televised Races Hurt Local Tracks
NASCAR says they want to promote and help local tracks but when NASCAR televises a race event on Saturday nights it takes away a portion of the audience that would have gone to see a local short track.
Local tracks depends on full grandstands to survive. In a sense, the grassroots local racetracks have to compete with the upper tier of stock car racing for the same audience when ever a Cup race is shown on Saturday nights. True, the fans could just record the race and watch it the following day, but sitting in front of a free TV is easier and cheaper than driving a half-hour to an hour away to see the racing live.
Half empty grandstands have led many track owners to close down and sell their facilities to land developers. Houses have taken over what once was East Windsor Speedway, the Grounds for Sculpture now stands where the famed Trenton Speedway once stood and Flemington Speedway, once a grand lady of a racetrack, is now home to retail stores. I shed a tear everything I drive by those places.
If NASCAR truly cared about the future of America's short tracks, as they say they do, they would schedule their races so as not to conflict with local Saturday night racing. Watching a Sprint Cup race at night is a spectacular sight but it should not occur at the expense of the roots of the sport.
Local tracks are where young drivers and mechanics learn their craft. If the tracks all dry up, then where will the Sprint Cup stars of tomorrow come from. Local tracks enable the working class guy be qwench his need for speed and strive for that little bit of glory that is victory lane, as the hometown crowd cheers his triumph.
Local short tracks are the soul of NASCAR and I wish that they would give more than just lip service to that fact.
Local tracks depends on full grandstands to survive. In a sense, the grassroots local racetracks have to compete with the upper tier of stock car racing for the same audience when ever a Cup race is shown on Saturday nights. True, the fans could just record the race and watch it the following day, but sitting in front of a free TV is easier and cheaper than driving a half-hour to an hour away to see the racing live.
Half empty grandstands have led many track owners to close down and sell their facilities to land developers. Houses have taken over what once was East Windsor Speedway, the Grounds for Sculpture now stands where the famed Trenton Speedway once stood and Flemington Speedway, once a grand lady of a racetrack, is now home to retail stores. I shed a tear everything I drive by those places.
If NASCAR truly cared about the future of America's short tracks, as they say they do, they would schedule their races so as not to conflict with local Saturday night racing. Watching a Sprint Cup race at night is a spectacular sight but it should not occur at the expense of the roots of the sport.
Local tracks are where young drivers and mechanics learn their craft. If the tracks all dry up, then where will the Sprint Cup stars of tomorrow come from. Local tracks enable the working class guy be qwench his need for speed and strive for that little bit of glory that is victory lane, as the hometown crowd cheers his triumph.
Local short tracks are the soul of NASCAR and I wish that they would give more than just lip service to that fact.
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