So What Do We Do Now?
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Last
weekend, I actually made it to a race, something I think most of us are
increasingly going to have a hard time doing. It was a go-kart event, not my
normal choice, but this one – King of the Klay – was being held on a temporary
track inside a horse arena, and since it was only a bit more than half an hour
from my home, the novelty was worth the effort to attend.
Kind of hard to freeze
the action with my camera in a low-light arena, but this is what things looked
like at King of the Klay.
Kart
racing is about the competitors, first and foremost. Spectators are welcomed,
but they’re expected to understand that there will be LOTS of practice and LOTS
of feature events for flat karts classes that, to the newbie, all look alike. I
accept that.
Friday’s
racing also ran REALLY long, first due to practice running late, then to lots
of spins on the slick, tricky surface, and then to an intermission that didn’t
start until after 10 p.m. and still ran nearly 45 minutes. Barely into the
feature racing, everything screeched to a halt again because a trailer caught
fire in the parking lot,
It
was getting close to midnight when kart engines finally cranked up again, and I
only watched a couple more races before leaving. I might have been the last
spectator not attached to a driver or team.
Friday
night at the horse arena won’t bump any of my top ten races of all time out of
their spots, but I did get to see a race, and it’s starting to look like we’re
going to have to make even more drastic adjustments to feed our need for speed
in the coming weeks. Welcome to the new reality.
What are we to do with ourselves these days? A
lot of people would point toward iRacing, and last weekend’s event got quite a
bit of coverage, thanks to Dale Earnhardt Jr. and several other Cup drivers
taking part. Eventually, I’ll have to take a look, but not yet. “Virtual” may
be taking over our lives in more ways than this, but I’m still the guy who
prefers a real book to a Kindle, and consistent with that, I’m tempted to scour
the attic and basement for some of my son’s Matchbox and HotWheels cars and
hope it stays warm enough to build my own 1/1,760th of a mile dirt
oval track and see kids having their own
races in the dirt with those little cars, the kid in me wants to join in.
With a little
encouragement and a few old Matchbox/HotWheels cars, I think I could get into
this.
The
problem with my childhood dream track is that it doesn’t accomplish “social
distancing” – keeping us far enough apart that the germs can’t leap between us.
That makes television a safe alternative, and with the events available on
YouTube, you might be able to hold out for a while. Those great old Southern
500 films alone ought to fire up the NASCAR fan’s heart.
I
think I’ll try to do a little historical research, too. If the wonderful
librarians at the Eastern Museum of Motor Racing keep their space open, I may
head up there later this week and spend another day immersed in crumbling,
ancient copies of National Speed Sport News, then come home and look at
newspapers that are available online. For me, it doesn’t take much of that
activity to shift my imagination into high gear and imagine those stockers,
modifieds or “big cars” slinging the dirt half a century or more ago.
There’s just something
cool about seeing NSSN coverage of the first race you ever attended, more than
half a century ago.
None
of this means I won’t miss seeing races in person. The go-karts got my blood
racing a few times and watching a few videos later last weekend reminded me why
this virus-enforced exile from sports is going to hurt. But if I survive the
virus, I think I’ll survive the exile, too, and that first race when things
return to something approaching normal will be something else.
Frank’s
Loose Lug Nuts
Speaking
of the racing history research, I want to pass this one along. Below is an ad
from National Speed Sport News in 1951. Note the promotion of Bill France
(“Under Personal Direction of” and “Famous President of” NASCAR), but also note
the promotion: “Have you ever wondered just how fast your own car would really
go? Now you can see!”
They don’t advertise ‘em
like this, anymore.
That
was STOCK car racing. Granted, it was dangerous, but it also won racing hearts
that previously had belonged to midgets and “big cars.”
Today
you could hardly pitch a Cup race as having anything to do with what you drive,
other than sharing a nameplate. You know how I feel about that, so no further
comment is needed.
Keep
washing your hands and reading the latest. One day – maybe sooner than later –
we’ll have racing to attend and watch again.