NASCAR Has It All, So Why Am I Happy Watching the Races at Lizard Creek?
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05/10/2017 Frank Buhrman |
While
an increasingly smaller but still significant slice of the world was watching
the restrictor plate wreck-fest at Daytona Saturday night, longtime buddy Tom and
I were in about as different an auto racing environment as you can get:
watching the races at Lizard Creek Speedway in Hanover, West Virginia.
While
the knowledgeable segment of the TV audience might have been scandalized by a
Daytona race lacking a full field of cars, we were likewise disappointed that
the increased purse for the “crate” late models at Lizard Creek failed to boost
the turnout beyond seven entries - and that was tops among the four adult
classes (plus one for kids) on the schedule. The five divisions drew a total of
24 entrants.
So
why do I think I had a better time than the folks in Daytona? Why would I
decline to change places?
Lizard
Creek - formerly known as Thunder Mountain Speedway and Hatfield McCoy Speedway
before that - is located in a crevice/hollow between the mountains up Lizard
Creek Road, just past a new school complex. One description says it’s where the
FEMA trailers used to be (except that it looks like one of those has been
converted nicely into a concession stand). It probably cost about as much to
build the place as the Monster/Cup tracks spent to take out all those seats
over the past few years.
It
has no website, but its Facebook page announces upcoming events (without giving
results of past ones, unfortunately). Crate (limited) late models and dirt
modifieds are the featured classes; in both, everybody outside the top four
finishers takes home $100.
So
Saturday night we had races starting seven, five, five, four and three cars -
and it was pretty dusty - so you’d think Tom and I would have left early for
our lengthy, winding two-lane trip back to the motel.
No.
The racing was actually pretty good, with battles for the lead in most
divisions. Cars could race side-by-side, and there was lots of broadsliding. The
concession stand food was good and cheap (I had no idea Southern West Virginia
shared North Carolina’s love for hot dogs with chili and slaw), and everybody
was friendly and welcoming. If the dust had been blowing in our direction, I
might have felt differently (I did bring goggles), but as it was, I was happy
we’d made Lizard Creek our Saturday night stop. If the place wasn’t
six-and-a-half hours away, I might just go back.
Here’s
a video of the crate late model feature from Saturday, evidently (judging from
the background commentary) shot by someone who likes the eventual winner.
There
wasn’t a big crowd at Lizard Creek - maybe 400-500 exclusive of the race teams
- and the place may not survive (there really aren’t that many people nearby to
begin with), but I’ve reached the point where the honesty and grit of a place
like this has an attraction that the polished, corporate, rules-bound,
incomprehensible point-systemed, over-priced world of
NASCAR can’t offer.
Somewhere
in between these two extremes is something that might preserve “major-league”
stock car racing, but it has to have some of these elements:
Ø MAJOR cost-cutting
rules
Ø No charters or
provisionals
Ø A level playing field
for outsiders or occasional competitors
Ø A point system the fans
can understand
Ø Rules the fans can
understand (and transparency about those rules)
Ø Drivers who are
measured by past performance, not bank balances.
Ø Affordable prices (for
tickets, programs, concessions, clothing, etc.)
Short
track racing isn’t perfect, but if you like real racing, these days it’s got
NASCAR beat hands-down, at least for this longtime fan. Thanks to everybody at
Lizard Creek for reminding me how to have fun on Saturday night.
P.S.
- Google Maps still calls the place Thunder Mountain and actually shows it as
located where the school is, instead of just (literally) UP the road, but
here’s what you see from the satellite. Note the general lack of residential
areas nearby and figure this place has to work hard to get fans.
Here’s
my t-shirt.
