Just my random thoughts about a night at the dirt track.
As most know I have been concentrating a lot of time and resources on opening VCS and due to all the setbacks decided to race the rest of the summer and make a decision about VCS in the fall. Last night I headed out to Grants just hoping to get some laps in on a new car and get the cob webs out of the old helmet. It’s been awhile since I have been to grants and things have changed since my last visit. After a walk around the pits greeting some of the racers I haven’t seen in awhile and the customary walk around the track then my mind went to analyzing everything good and bad that has changed around the facility. No matter how or who runs this track good or bad there are some unchanging factors like some of the local racers that have been here year in and year out and can tell stories spanning back to the early 70s. Next is the track itself. This is a track that never lets down, I have raced here on nights that if you don’t drive in with your hair on fire someone just passed you and have been here on nights that were so dusty the fans had to wait for a yellow to see who was leading. Yet there is no denying the action on track is always good. Tonight the car counts were low and the stands had more extra room than I ever remember seeing but even with the low car counts the folks in the stands got a good show on the track. This track can put on a great race with the fewest of cars.
This is where the important message lies. We had issues and were going to load up the car after hot laps when something special happened whether it’s called sportsmanship or camaraderie or just hometown hospitality. Help came in to see what was happening and didn’t just let us load up but insisted on getting me back out to finish up the night. We had help not only diagnosing the issue but rounding up the parts to fix the car. The parts were volunteered from a fellow racer that I am not sure I have spoken to before last night. We managed to enjoy all the laps in the main event and loaded up with no damage that wasn’t self inflicted. Thanks to all those that helped us out, you guys are what made racing at UCS great. On the way home the main topic of conversation was how much I love this sport and it reminded me why I love to be at the track on Saturday nights. Bill Waltman