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I feel bad about not posting this earlier;
For the first time in at least 10 years (probably closer to 15), I took in Auburndale Speedway a few weeks back. We got there late (my fault, & AB195 will NOT let it go!) and was unsure of what to expect. Turned out to be a great surprise.
The track itself is racy, the grounds are well kept, cleanest bathrooms around, excellent sound system... and old Dave Westermans voice booming out of it.
I really like the fact that most cars carry HUGE iron bumpers, and not very much in the way of body rules. These are built like tanks, can take a beating and keep coming back for more. Not that they drive them like tanks, but on a small 1/4 miler, contact IS gonna happen... and at least they are built to take it.
The Figure-8 class was pretty wild, with wings on the roofs, OWM style bodies, Dirt LM-style bodies, etc... no cookie-cutter cars here!
All in all, I had such a good time, we made the trip for the following week as well. The racing was very good, and I got to see the old Pro, Dave Dunkin win the Sportsman feature. This really brought things full circle for me, as A-Dale was the very first track I ever went to in FLA (other than a Daytona 200 for bikes), and if memory serves, Dunkin won that very first race. Still the same shade of blue, and forever the number 71.
Afterwards, while hanging around, drinking beer, we wound up meeting up with Dave, and met for the first time, reporter Steven Cole Smith (Old Yeller around here), Ted Head & track owner Rex Guy.
Honestly, I had heard a few things about Rex, and I wasn't sure what to expect. What I found was a VERY cool man that loves this track, racing in general, and seems like he's in this for the long haul. He has confidence in his people to do their jobs. He would like for racing in general to grow, yet he knows what his core audience is, and he won't compromise what THEY want, for what what the rest of US want. He seems to have a good rapport with Citrus Cty Speedway, who not so coincidentally seems to cater mainly to the audience that comes from 20 miles away or less.
The man even bought me a beer! First time in 41 years of being a racefan that the track owner bought ME a beer!
Didn't mean this to turn into a novel, but I did want to say that if you haven't been there lately, if ever, it is well worth the trip. They might not be doing what everyone else is, but then again, they don't have to or want to. What they are doing seems to be working, and who can argue with that?
A-Dale will be seeing me there a LOT more often than once every 15 years!
For the first time in at least 10 years (probably closer to 15), I took in Auburndale Speedway a few weeks back. We got there late (my fault, & AB195 will NOT let it go!) and was unsure of what to expect. Turned out to be a great surprise.
The track itself is racy, the grounds are well kept, cleanest bathrooms around, excellent sound system... and old Dave Westermans voice booming out of it.
I really like the fact that most cars carry HUGE iron bumpers, and not very much in the way of body rules. These are built like tanks, can take a beating and keep coming back for more. Not that they drive them like tanks, but on a small 1/4 miler, contact IS gonna happen... and at least they are built to take it.
The Figure-8 class was pretty wild, with wings on the roofs, OWM style bodies, Dirt LM-style bodies, etc... no cookie-cutter cars here!
All in all, I had such a good time, we made the trip for the following week as well. The racing was very good, and I got to see the old Pro, Dave Dunkin win the Sportsman feature. This really brought things full circle for me, as A-Dale was the very first track I ever went to in FLA (other than a Daytona 200 for bikes), and if memory serves, Dunkin won that very first race. Still the same shade of blue, and forever the number 71.
Afterwards, while hanging around, drinking beer, we wound up meeting up with Dave, and met for the first time, reporter Steven Cole Smith (Old Yeller around here), Ted Head & track owner Rex Guy.
Honestly, I had heard a few things about Rex, and I wasn't sure what to expect. What I found was a VERY cool man that loves this track, racing in general, and seems like he's in this for the long haul. He has confidence in his people to do their jobs. He would like for racing in general to grow, yet he knows what his core audience is, and he won't compromise what THEY want, for what what the rest of US want. He seems to have a good rapport with Citrus Cty Speedway, who not so coincidentally seems to cater mainly to the audience that comes from 20 miles away or less.
The man even bought me a beer! First time in 41 years of being a racefan that the track owner bought ME a beer!
Didn't mean this to turn into a novel, but I did want to say that if you haven't been there lately, if ever, it is well worth the trip. They might not be doing what everyone else is, but then again, they don't have to or want to. What they are doing seems to be working, and who can argue with that?
A-Dale will be seeing me there a LOT more often than once every 15 years!
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