let's see....

[Scott Prentice]

Bill Chapman is going to re-open Orlando
Bobby Deihl is going to revive the trucks AND Late Models in the state- not to mention save Charlotte County Speedway
Gary LaPlant is going to re-open and save Citrus County Speedway
Ann Young has things under control at Bronson
we have a megalomaniac at the helm over at Sunshine
tracks that are in the same series run SLM against each other on the same night as a series race
and at Auburndale we have Rex Guy- 'nuff said....

shit all we need now is for Kevin Williams to come back in some capacity and all should be good

hey Phil Jacques, you were right, paved short track racing in Florida is just fine

ps- yes I'm living in the past=> Bert Ashleman and the Florida Pro Series, the United Speed Alliance during Kevin Durden's reign.... or the TBARA, remember them?

[UREZ2PASS]

Phil Jacques is a quitter. 😜

[Scott Prentice]

Phil Jacques is a quitter. 😜

LoLerz- I don't think so, he's just fed up and frustrated- as I am also- with this mess of a state that was once so mighty in the paved SLM short track world.
Where I came from (WI, MN) coming to Florida was a big deal and up until 15 or so years ago that was still true.
Now the only race anyone comes down for is the Derby- and that has become so ABC body, psudo NASCAR BS that you will see fewer and fewer entries in the next couple years- watch;
what once drew 60-70 cars will be around 55-60 this year and 40-50 next year
Money ruins racing and so do young rich kids who never drove a Street Stock....

[Phil Jacques]

Scott Prentice, it's nice to see someone that is realistic, although it's unfortunate that you have to be. Florida has every single part of the puzzle available, but no one seems to figure out how to put them together. I absolutely stopped posting because it's not worth my time to talk to a wall anymore. There are many I respect here, including some of those that feel it necessary to try and put me down, though to me that shows me they realize I am right and don't know what else to do except go into defense mode because I am the only one with the balls to say what I say. The only track in FL with any sort of consistency is Showtime, and even though people seem to not like Yoho, he has something figured out. My fear is however, that his overhead is going to catch up with him eventually. Only time will tell and I pray that he is able to maintain and continue to be the role model for the state. I pray daily maybe someone can figure out what he is doing right and make it work at their track... But they are so hard headed, that's not likely.

The fact is, no, I don't have all the answers and I could probably never run a track myself, but there isn't a single one of you doing anything either so tell me why I'm wrong and you're right? You can't. I live in a place with the most successful asphalt short track programs in this entire country bar none. I don't always agree with how things are done here either, but when they do something right here, they definitely hit it out of the park and all the tracks communicate to try the same or similar things and 9 times out of 10, it works for them too. We are a COMMUNITY here. Not individual tracks fighting against each other. See the difference?

You guys go ahead and do things the way you want to and we will do them the way we do, and we will continue to have good car counts and full grandstands, and you can continue to... well... yeah. As EZ says, I am watching. I may comment from time to time. But I am absolutely 100% done with regular posting here. It's just not worth it anymore.

And Scott, you're 100% right. More people need to start in street stocks and learn and earn their way up. Like I am doing with my "trailer queen" lol

I could have bought a Late Model or Modified ready to go for the money I have in this car. I've run other peoples stuff prior and had some lucky runs towards the front of the fields, and I have run in the back. The reason I stuck with this type of car is to learn. I came into this sport as a crew member/driver only 4 years ago. Prior to that I was a fan who raced karts and drag cars. I learned how to work on my own car through building my own car and that is absolutely how it should be. Not like it really is where most of these kids are inside playing xbox while their dad is out in the shop working on the car. Money and spoiled kids absolutely are killing this sport. Unfortunately, there is not much we can do about it. I am not trying to honk my own horn here, as I definitely have a ton to learn STILL. But you never REALLY know it all, now do you? I bet even some of our older veteran drivers on this board are still learning new things regularly.

One other thing... Have pride in what you build and race. Hard work does pay off. Wednesday night I got to actually race my car for the first time. Didn't set the world on fire and we had some small issues with the car with a power steering failure during the feature (my entire upper body feels like jello lol) but the sense of pride finally getting this car out was huge. More kids need to feel and experience that because it absolutely makes everything all worth it. This sport at our level was built on pride. This isn't the Sprint Cup series... We don't get huge purses. We make just enough to get us home in most cases. Other than that, it's about pride. Have pride in your SPORT... Before it disappears.

[scottgarrity07]

Nice job Phil. With the post AND the car.

[UREZ2PASS]

Phil, Did you know I'm a psychology major ? LOL !

[Benny The Mule]

That is a fine looking automobile Phil.

[MJM10]

LoLerz- I don't think so, he's just fed up and frustrated- as I am also- with this mess of a state that was once so mighty in the paved SLM short track world.
Where I came from (WI, MN) coming to Florida was a big deal and up until 15 or so years ago that was still true.
Now the only race anyone comes down for is the Derby- and that has become so ABC body, psudo NASCAR BS that you will see fewer and fewer entries in the next couple years- watch;
what once drew 60-70 cars will be around 55-60 this year and 40-50 next year
Money ruins racing and so do young rich kids who never drove a Street Stock....

I've been to the Derby the last five years and it's been pretty steady as far as entries go, I think there were actually more cars this year than previous two or three years. You say it like 60 late models is a bad thing, have you ever been and seen what 125 late models (between the pro's and supers) looks like in the pits? It's something to see...whether its 150 or 100 or 50, that kind of car count does not show up anywhere else in the country. I'm not sure why you would think the ABC body is a bad thing? I've seen sportsman, modified, and street stocks that have more than an ABC body is in their cars, it keeps it fair in my opinion.

[Lurkin]

Pins and needles, needles and pins.

[jacko241]

I've been to the Derby the last five years and it's been pretty steady as far as entries go, I think there were actually more cars this year than previous two or three years. You say it like 60 late models is a bad thing, have you ever been and seen what 125 late models (between the pro's and supers) looks like in the pits? It's something to see...whether its 150 or 100 or 50, that kind of car count does not show up anywhere else in the country. I'm not sure why you would think the ABC body is a bad thing? I've seen sportsman, modified, and street stocks that have more than an ABC body is in their cars, it keeps it fair in my opinion.

That may be true for the top bucks up Late Model teams, but that is the main reason I will most likely never run a Late Model again. During my time running a team in Grand Am, we were running cars that would reach 180mph on super speedways, and no template rules. It is absolutely silly to me to have Saturday night racers runing on 1/4 and 1/2 mile tracks spend hours in the shop trying to get the ABC body to fit the templates again after a minor collision. I have talked to other small time campaigners and they say exactly the same thing. Probably fine for the guys going to the Derby, but it is most likely a big reason the weekly LM car counts are down.

[OldSchool+]

Phil,

Good to have you back, bro!

Here are some pertinent quotes from you, cherry picked as usual to suit...me!

"The fact is, no, I don't have all the answers...You guys go ahead and do things the way you want to and we will do them the way we do...I pray daily maybe someone can figure out what [Yoho] is doing right and make it work at their track..."

Letting go of expectations regarding others is beneficial to one's own peace of mind, and of course praying is always a good thing!

Good looking ride, also, sir.

[Phil Jacques]

Phil,

Good to have you back, bro!

Here are some pertinent quotes from you, cherry picked as usual to suit...me!

"The fact is, no, I don't have all the answers...You guys go ahead and do things the way you want to and we will do them the way we do...I pray daily maybe someone can figure out what [Yoho] is doing right and make it work at their track..."

Letting go of expectations regarding others is beneficial to one's own peace of mind, and of course praying is always a good thing!

Good looking ride, also, sir.

Don't worry, I am not "back".

[OldSchool+]

Aight, good to have you "not back".

A man of mystery, you are.

(Phil loves to play "hard to get").

ps--We got that, ya know, Southern Pride. We just are looking for a new symbol. Maybe a red and blue pyramid...