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Boredom: Act 1
"The Infield" by Paul Pittman
Stevens Point, WI (Oct 18, 2004): Here’s a statement you don’t hear much
around my house. “Thank goodness for NASCAR!” Before you go getting your
skirts in an uproar, it’s not because I am not a fan. In fact, I do try to
follow what is going on as much as possible in all of the divisions. Face it,
one thing we can all agree on is that motorsports have become America’s
sport and NASCAR is largely responsible for the recent interest and
growth.
So why is it unusual to hear that statement? Because, when you are on the road
racing nearly every weekend from April through September and October (now),
watching a race on TV isn’t something that really stirs the pot. Why now?
Hey, we’ve been off now for what, almost two whole weeks! Even the kids are
missing it. “Daddy, we going racing?” was the question my three year old
asked while buckling her up in her car seat. “No hunny, we’re done for
this year,” was my response. You would have thought I just told her Santa
Clause was retiring or something. “We go next week!!” with that look of
anticipation in her eyes. “Soon baby, we’ll go soon.” My hope now is for
the holidays to soon capture her thoughts and help her put the roar of a race
engine in the back of her pretty head. Oh the trials and tribulations of a
child.
Looking back briefly on the IRA season, the first thing I have to think about
is Scott Neitzel’s championship. We’ll have time to examine his efforts
and share his joy later on during the upcoming cold months, but what hits you
is simply, Damn, he did it! If there is one thing the past few seasons have
taught Scotty, it is to be a realist. Coming so close for so long, he knows
probably better than anyone, things don’t always go like you want and it’s
never over until it’s over! When I approached him about doing his
championship interview, he was understandably a little reserved. Modesty was
some of it but Scotty has seen too much to start counting on things before the
final checkered flag waves. After some quick talking, we sat down and talked
about the season and what was different about 2004. Wait a minute, I’m
getting ahead of myself here… Tune in a little later for those thoughts. I
will say that his accomplishments have not gone un-noticed and his addition to
the list of IRA Champions is well deserved. While I’m at it, I want to also
take this opportunity to congratulate him on one more accomplishment. Scott
finally tied the knot with his biggest fan, Brenda-Lee. Congratulations to Mr.
and Mrs. Neitzel!
Another thing that comes to mind are phone conversations from back last
February and March with yet another up-and-coming driver, Andy Hunt. It was
time to move on. Time to step up from the 360s to the 410s and Andy wanted the
Rookie of the Year title with the IRA. “The rookie deal with the IRA is a
great thing. There is a lot that comes with it and there are some very
respectable names already on the list”.
Shane Dayney came out and started the season hungry, and why not? This second
generation driver grew up traveling with the family, watching his dad Greg
muscle his way through fields of sprint cars from Iowa to Ohio and about
everywhere in between. 2004 was his turn in the spotlight and he was quick to
make a statement. Shane continued to show promise all season long, but the
cost of maintaining a competitive team would take its toll on the family
funded operation. By the three-quarter point of the season, there were no more
motors for Shane and you can’t win anything without one of those. Running in
competition with Shane for most of the season gave Andy the chance to pace
himself with someone else.
As Dayney’s chances at the title diminished, Hunt began to exert himself and
by the mid-point of the season, was now watching points himself. “We bought
this car and 410 to race and we’ve have a lot of fun this year. We learned
so much. But that’s what we came here to do. I just can’t say enough about
this team and everyone in the series.” Wait a minute, I’m getting ahead of
myself again… We’ll go into more depth on Andy’s season as well.
Thought number three. The rain! Holy cow, the rain. Does anyone out there
remember a season when was impacted this much by the weather all season long?
I know we always seem to complain about the weather for one reason or another
but, come on! The IRA lost 5 races alone to rain and ended up working with
promoters to reschedule or shuffle dates around to get in their dates which
were affected by the wet stuff. Heck, it took three trips to West Union alone
to get in the Echo Valley date. When you take into account the costs to put
one of these shows on, you can understand why promoters want to make every
effort to try and recoup their investments, but rescheduling is not want
promoters or fans want to do. Usually, it’s a loosing game but a necessary
evil. Case in point, Terry McCarl’s Spring Challenge had all the potential
to be a huge event when originally scheduled. Early in the season, the IRA
teams already had a race or two under their belts and Knoxville hadn’t
started yet, so there was this feeling that, hey, the playing field may be
equal. After rescheduling it, that enthusiasm was gone. That’s not to say
that the racing was any less spectacular. In fact, it really showed many a
preview of what we would see all year long. Good, close racing as intense as
it can get every time the green flag flew. The rain just plain dampened the
spirits. It also took its toll on the fans! For those who did show up though,
they did see some good racing and the beginning of some changes in the
mid-west. 2004 would see a lot of seat changes and the tone was set.
Without a doubt, the name Guy Forbrook has got to be one of the most respected
names in sprint car racing. For years, he’s been winning races and keeping
fans wondering who would be his next driver. Jeff Mitrisin, subbing for Tyler
Walker, picked up Guy’s first win with the IRA at that very race in
Oskaloosa, but soon there would be another sub in the seat of the number five.
Brooke Tatnell would soon be turning heads all over. Taking advantage of off
nights from his regular ride in the Trop-Artic #66, Brooke is a racer, and
racers need to race in order to put some money in the bank. Win number one
came at Jackson in a clean sweep. Number two came at Superior, along with
number three in preparation for one of the biggest races of his year, the
Jerry Richert Memorial. I had the chance to talk to Brooke after finishing
second to Terry McCarl. I know how much that race meant to him. It also meant
just as much to McCarl in his winning effort. McCarl’s decision to sacrifice
a very potent race engine, his own engine, in order to win the race showed
that it was indeed that important. Tatnell would come back and pick up the
season ending race at Plymouth, becoming the second driver of the season to
pocket four checkered flags.
Mike Reinke also made a statement in 2004. He was back! Mike was on fire in
August. A win at Antigo sparked a streak of three straight wins while we all
wonder what might have happened if Manitowoc hadn’t rained out in the midst
of that streak. Back to back wins at Farley (IA) and at the Echo Valley
Speedway (yeah finally), made the yellow 02 the car to beat in August.
Mike’s win at the Dodge County Fairgrounds gave him win number four for
2004.
Well, we’ll leave the remaining winners for upcoming columns along with some
of the other highs and lows of 2004. Before I go, I do want to address those
who think that my recent series of columns were a little off subject. Racing
is something that I take very personal! I do not care if it is the IRA, World
of Outlaws, Knoxville, PA or NASCAR. Racing is something that we all enjoy
being a part of and in a very real sense, we are all a part of it. I have
tried to illustrate why each piece of the puzzle is so dependant on the other
and it takes every piece to make a complete and successful picture. The issues
I touched on affect everyone and are things to be considered. Whether you
agree or disagree, like or dislike my views, I could care less. The bottom
line is, if you read them, you thought about them. If you thought about them,
then I did in fact, succeed in my mission of provoking those thoughts. So with
that in mind, my daughter is waiting for me because she hears race engines.
Even though they are on TV, she already knows that a race is going on and,
unfortunately, is learning a hard racing lesson. We will have to wait for a
few months before the first race of 2005!
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