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It took a few years of hoping, but I finally made my first trip to "The Madhouse" last night. Four classes, 98 cars, and a smaller than normal crowd of only 7,000-8,000 by my guess. The locals agreed that this was a calm night by Bowman Gray standards. Yes, there was some good racing, but there was none of the on-track fireworks that has made the BGS legend.
I have to say that I was disappointed with the headline modified class. Yes, they had 20 cars that included the Myers brothers and Junior Miller. I liked the twin 25 format too, and the top 10 invert for the second race. The problem was there was virtually no passing at all on this night. Both races were won from the pole, and once the start settled into line, NOBODY moved. I'm sure they have their moments, but this one was a miss.
Its an unlikely surface to be so successful. Remember Hialeah Speedway in Miami? BGS is like a small Hialeah....only more so. It is flat as a billiard table, with relatively long straights compared to the radius of the turns. BGS is shorter and tighter than Hialeah, but is laid out in the same proportions. The problem is that BGS is very narrow. Only the 4 cylinder class could pass easily. Otherwise, there were precious few changes of position that didn't involve a mistake by the driver in front, or the bumper from the car behind.
This track has amazing LOCAL participation. After reading the program and listening to the announcers, it seems like everyone there is from Winston Salem, or very close by. The large amount of cars and the great turn-out of local fans would explain the MASSIVE sponsor involvement. EVERYTHING carried the name of a local sponsor who was advertising to local fans. Even track procedures, rulings and flags were sponsored. There is no point looking for track sponsors without cars and a fan following, but BGS has both.
They ran a 60 lapper for the Sportsman class and it was a track procedure that made the race great. They used the commitment cone for restarts, and that allowed the drivers to pick if they wanted to start on the inside or outside. Yes, BGS is a track for bottom feeders, but several drivers including the winner chose to restart on the outside, and would advance several rows on each start by doing it that way. We need to use that procedure more in Florida! The drivers that don't like double file restarts can clog up the bottom groove, and the drivers who want to roll the dice and pass can start on the top!
Coolest car at the track? It ran in the street stock class, and was a 1966 Falcon, complete with the original steel body and a straight 6 engine. That class is structured so 6's and 8's run together.
The Stadium Stock (like Florida mini stocks) class left me scratching my head in wonder. Around here, the high dollar mini classes are steadily eroding, and the front wheel drive, modern cars are doing well at a few tracks. BGS certainly has a backwards looking class for rear wheel drive antiques, BUT they had to split their field and run two features for a class that showed up with 33 Mustangs and one Pinto! They must not allow front wheel drive; it looks like an ideal track for it.
I had a good night, but not a great one, so my Bowman Gray experience is incomplete. I'm going back one day. It would be cool to take a car somehow...
I have to say that I was disappointed with the headline modified class. Yes, they had 20 cars that included the Myers brothers and Junior Miller. I liked the twin 25 format too, and the top 10 invert for the second race. The problem was there was virtually no passing at all on this night. Both races were won from the pole, and once the start settled into line, NOBODY moved. I'm sure they have their moments, but this one was a miss.
Its an unlikely surface to be so successful. Remember Hialeah Speedway in Miami? BGS is like a small Hialeah....only more so. It is flat as a billiard table, with relatively long straights compared to the radius of the turns. BGS is shorter and tighter than Hialeah, but is laid out in the same proportions. The problem is that BGS is very narrow. Only the 4 cylinder class could pass easily. Otherwise, there were precious few changes of position that didn't involve a mistake by the driver in front, or the bumper from the car behind.
This track has amazing LOCAL participation. After reading the program and listening to the announcers, it seems like everyone there is from Winston Salem, or very close by. The large amount of cars and the great turn-out of local fans would explain the MASSIVE sponsor involvement. EVERYTHING carried the name of a local sponsor who was advertising to local fans. Even track procedures, rulings and flags were sponsored. There is no point looking for track sponsors without cars and a fan following, but BGS has both.
They ran a 60 lapper for the Sportsman class and it was a track procedure that made the race great. They used the commitment cone for restarts, and that allowed the drivers to pick if they wanted to start on the inside or outside. Yes, BGS is a track for bottom feeders, but several drivers including the winner chose to restart on the outside, and would advance several rows on each start by doing it that way. We need to use that procedure more in Florida! The drivers that don't like double file restarts can clog up the bottom groove, and the drivers who want to roll the dice and pass can start on the top!
Coolest car at the track? It ran in the street stock class, and was a 1966 Falcon, complete with the original steel body and a straight 6 engine. That class is structured so 6's and 8's run together.
The Stadium Stock (like Florida mini stocks) class left me scratching my head in wonder. Around here, the high dollar mini classes are steadily eroding, and the front wheel drive, modern cars are doing well at a few tracks. BGS certainly has a backwards looking class for rear wheel drive antiques, BUT they had to split their field and run two features for a class that showed up with 33 Mustangs and one Pinto! They must not allow front wheel drive; it looks like an ideal track for it.
I had a good night, but not a great one, so my Bowman Gray experience is incomplete. I'm going back one day. It would be cool to take a car somehow...
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