News And Rumors

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News And Rumors

So, I think it was back in October when I had a conversation with my good friend Don O'Keefe Jr. I still hadn't wrapped up my regular-season efforts, but we were talking about some of the things that we've been hearing for 2020. Don suggested that I could write a News And Rumors column. For those of you who don't know or don't remember, at one time Don was active with his own racing news page. At the time, he was helping me put my stories out for a bigger audience, plus he was writing his own observations and taking his own pictures.

He came up with the column as a way to kind of get people thinking. Me and Don have long joked about how we would talk about things that we thought could come to pass based on the signs that we've been seeing, and then suddenly they would happen. It wasn't necessarily that a race track was talking about doing something. However, we'd be talking about it and find out a couple months later that it was happening. Or, we might actually start the talk ourselves and help the idea along. I always got a kick out of the News And Rumors part of things. He would simply say, these can either be news or rumors, but it's up to you to decide.

I don't remember the last time Don wrote one of these columns, but they are archived on his website. Last year, as we were in the midst of the offseason, I decided to borrow Don's column and put up a rumor regarding Worden Speedway in Oregon. That property has been sitting there with the race track not being used for over a decade, and I feel that's a damn shame. This is the place the Klamath Falls racers could call home, but the gates remain closed. I put up a rumor in that column last year. I said the property would be sold.

Unbeknownst to me, it was announced (only among a few people at first) a day or two later that the property was up for sale. Because somebody I knew was entertaining the possibility of getting the track open at the time, they were a little disappointed that I put this out. They understood that I was just putting out a rumor and it was just luck that it turned out to be true, but I voluntarily amended the rumor so this person could proceed. Nothing came of it, but the property is still for sale. Last I heard, $400,000 gets you a dirt track in Worden, Oregon. There's work to be done, but it would make a nice track with a built-in car base in neighboring Klamath Falls.

Of course, I don't have a lot that needs to be said right now. everybody is wondering what's going on at Antioch. I have remained mum on speculation, and I have good reason for that. I don't think speculating on the situation helps as it's a very sensitive time right now. What needs to happen is announcements need to be made by the powers-that-be regarding next season and beyond, and people need to unite behind that and help make the track better. That's really my main concern for the situation right now.

Everybody knows that Chad Chadwick is interested in purchasing Antioch Speedway, and I am aware that this has been the case for two or three years now. Negotiations picked up this year, and Chad was able to convince John to allow him to promote the West Coast Nationals in October. Chad took the risk, and in the end, he didn't lose. It was a close call, but some good sponsorship certainly helped. I think Chad got a glimpse of some of the potential the place has and also got a bit of an education of the work that will be involved. However, it didn't scare him off.

I can point out that I stuck around in Antioch longer than was initially planned. My first decision to extend my stay was so that I could help Chad with my publicity efforts. My second decision to stay was because I was told there might be a deadline on October 31st as to whether this deal would be made. I knew when I boarded my train, however, that negotiations hadn't ceased yet. That's all that I'm really willing to say right now other than the fact that Antioch Speedway was represented in Reno at the annual RPM Reno Promoter's Workshop.

The Antioch rumors are certainly running wild, but I'm sure some of those rumors will be put to bed before banquet time. I've heard the intriguing possibility of a big Dwarf Car event, possibly a Regional or Nationals show, which would be sanctioned by the Western States organization. I've also heard the Hunt Wingless Spec Sprints could make a visit or two. True or rumor? I've also heard IMCA sanctioning rumors surrounding Antioch Speedway, and I'm not alone in that. I do understand what it would take to make that happen. I have sort of a love-hate relationship with the sanctioning body, but unless you rolled the dice and brought in NASCAR, I'm certainly not opposed to IMCA sanctioning both the Modifieds and Sport Modifieds. It just makes sense to do what the other tracks in the area are doing. However, I stop short of putting any other divisions under that umbrella just yet.

The IMCA sanctioning is important to the people at Southern Oregon Speedway, and they'll be happy to know that Modifieds and Sport Modifieds will remain sanctioned. Big things are being talked about, but it's a little bit too early for the reveal. It seems to be smooth sailing ahead with regards to planning the big Roger Haudenshild Tribute and R Charles Snyder Salute. There could be a big announcement regarding the Cottonwood Classic Late Model show, which I find very cool. 

We knew early on that Mark Herz was on board for another year as sponsor of the Cascade Wingless Sprint Car show. Both this and the big Late Model event happen in August along with Hall of Fame night. I can't get into rumors, and there's some really cool news that will be coming. I can say that it appears as if the Memorial Day Iron Giant Street Stock Series show will happen once again. Once again, it will be a Medford-Yreka weekend, which makes sense for drivers towing from Willamette or even further north.

Willamette is certainly a track that has people talking. The house that Clair Arnold built has been in danger of being closed due to certain code violations, and the sale Jerry Schram was in the process of making to new owners has apparently been stopped. Jerry is back at the helm, and he and his people are making sure the racers who competed this year will have a banquet. He has told different people different things in regards to the 2020 season. Rumors have floated around that the track won't open at all, Jerry has said maybe 8 or 10 big shows there and it has also been suggested that business will go on as usual as long as the track is up to code. What's the real truth?

Schram holds the cards with one of the big series that takes place during the year, and there were some things being said in Portland that didn't sound very encouraging with regards to how that series would be scheduled in 2020. However, I'll leave it at that as I have a hunch that could change. Schram dealt a bit of a blow to the Street Stock division when he made the decision two seasons ago to begin running IMCA sanctioned Stock Cars. With a good sponsor coming on board prior to this last season offering point find money, car count has grown. Jerry also added IMCA Stock Cars to Sunset Speedway.

What saddens me is that while California has seen its Street Stocks division evolve into something different, Oregon has kept Street Stocks pretty much true to what they were 25 years ago. We call them Hobby Stocks in California, but some places in California are even letting that get out of hand. I like that the Street Stock division has been guided so well in Oregon, and it's just sad to see IMCA Stock Cars being introduced into the equation when you have a working Street Stock division.  It isn't even that I'm against the IMCA Stock Car idea, per se. I like the look. Bakersfield Speedway has certainly proven you can coexist with an IMCA Stock Car division and Hobby Stocks, so perhaps things can be the same in Oregon?

Obviously, there are a couple of things I'm tracking that have a big impact on my personal future, let alone my involvement in the sport. I guess you can draw the conclusion that what happens at Antioch Speedway is one of them. I'm not going to lie, I am considering the possibility that I can relocate to Contra Costa County and be involved in that track should an offer be made to me. I am currently affiliated with Southern Oregon Speedway and as of today I am looking ahead to next year. There are other factors at work that I won't get into.

One thing that needs to be stated first and foremost is that I am very proud of my involvement at Southern Oregon Speedway these past four years. I feel I have helped contribute to the turnaround effort that has made things substantially better than they were before we got here. There is work to be done, and I have no doubt that I can contribute to that. I even have some ideas of things that I didn't do as well or at all that I could do to help make it better. Other than that, I will say it's been an honor to know so many great people in the Medford area that I've been able to be around.

There was some very interesting talk regarding the possible creation of an IMCA Sport Modified Speedweek. To my knowledge, nothing has come of it, but this one would involve some Northern California tracks and would go all the way to Southern Oregon. it's known that there is a good base of drivers in the Marysville area that are interested in something like this, and the Southern Oregon racers have been voicing their approval for something like this as well. Although nothing may happen this year, there are promoters intrigued by the idea. The only question is, how many Speedweek Series do we actually need. If you're asking if the Sport Modifieds can get enough cars for something like this to get big in a short amount of time, the answer is yes.

I started this post after recording an audio show. Usually when I do one of those shows, I link them to the latest blog post. Therefore, I figured I needed to put something together here. The offseason is the time when promoters gather in Reno and Portland before that. They discuss the latest trends and things that they've been doing to promote their race tracks. They get together and make deals between the tracks and form alliances. I heard a significant rumor come out of Portland that I can't share now as my hope is that somebody's just blowing hot air and won't make the ignorant move they're talking about making. I haven't heard much coming out of Reno other than most of the tracks you would expect were represented. Leaders from Yreka, Hayfork and Orland reportedly have something in the works.

I don't know what was discussed in Reno at the actual seminars, but I have an idea of what needs to be discussed. Mike alluded to the fact that he brought up a similar topic in Portland, but it didn't seem like the other promoters really got when he was trying to say. Whether this was on the agenda in Reno, I don't know. I never saw an agenda. Plus, I never got a response from them in regards to potential press credentials. My hope is that if it wasn't on the agenda, it becomes a significant part of the agenda in Reno and Portland next year.

We are becoming an aging fan base. While watching a video asking what is wrong with the NASCAR Cup series, one of the things they brought up was the declining number of viewers in NASCAR. Numbers are also declining in the other major sports. Numbers have declined a little bit on the short track level, and promoters do what they can to make good enough numbers to pay the bills. Some tracks do better than others. However, we need to address the fact that we're not attracting the new and younger fans who become regular supporters of the sport. What can we do to change that trend? 

I first became aware of this trend when Mike decided that we would begin doing Facebook Boost posts leading up to each race as a way to advertise at Southern Oregon Speedway. It's affordable advertisement, and I recommend every track do this. If you're only spending $40 a week to reach somewhere between 5000 and 7000 people in your area, chances are you're going to make that $40 back in ticket sales and more. We have managed that. Radio ads are a crap shoot and a lot of people listen to Sirius radio and those types of things. If you don't listen to the specific radio station that's been targeted, you're not getting the word. Everybody seems to be looking at Facebook these days, and a targeted area may result in casual fans seeing a post advertising the next race.

What I found out was the significantly low number of people in the 18 to 32 year old bracket were looking at our boosted posts. Bottom line is the bulk of our fan base goes from anywhere from 40 to 70 years old. We're getting older. One reason is that kids aren't as enthusiastic about fast cars as they once were. Kids back in the day had more of an understanding about the mechanics. There was auto shop or kids would be hanging out in the garage and learning from their dads. That's not happening the way it once was. The other thing is kids these days would rather pretend they are race car drivers with things like iRacing and other simulations than actually getting a race car or going to spectate at the track. 

I want to get away from actually generalizing about age brackets. Too much of the time we older people are being dismissed as out of touch. You've seen it on social media where they flippantly respond, okay boomer. The older generation probably started this by dismissing younger people's opinions as that of some snowflake that's overly sensitive and will just melt away from their tears. This is beyond stupid in my opinion. Rather than delve further into that, which would derail this column, I'll just say this.

We need to find out how to get the interest up from the younger generation, or the sport will go by the wayside. Tracks will start closing down, and it will become survival of the fittest. Some tracks will make it through, but some beloved tracks won't. The benefit of an all day long seminar on this subject is that through their resources, promoters can come to some sort of conclusion. What sorts of tactics can be used to get these younger fans to come? What can be done to get these younger fans interested in cars to the point where they may want to build one?

I understand the challenges we face with evolving technology. This is having a huge impact on the automobile industry itself and people building race cars in their own garages. It's also has an impact because we are an instant gratification society due to the technology that is involved by way of our smartphones and computers at home. Many of us find ourselves drawn to our phones looking at what the latest posting is, and the younger generations are increasingly coming up on a time when they won't know life beyond that. You and I may understand that once upon a time we didn't have personal computers, cell phones or any of that. 

However, we've got a generation that's grown up and are adults and even have children who don't know life without at least a personal computer at home. Another generation is growing up that will not know life without a cell phone that enables them to get on social media and do those things. This also means that people's ways of thinking are changing. I'm not standing here telling you that I know the answers. I merely suggest that we need to start figuring out the answers and trying to do things to reverse the trend before it's too late. Gathering all the minds together to work on solutions is the way to go. As Mike suggested in his comments in Portland, we could become a sport that is pay to play. Racers could be paying $100 or more per race to compete in front of empty grandstands.

This is a far cry from where the sport was back in the day. You went to newspapers to get the articles, and there was a lot of coverage there. You would hear radio commercials, occasionally TV commercials. You might see your local track on TV or hear it on the radio. The Golden Age had some good people involved in helping spread the word. Recently, I was overjoyed to learn that Johnny Sass is still with us at 90 years old. The voice of Merced Speedway is a hero of mine. If the day comes when they start a Hall of Fame, which they should, I'd like to be there personally to induct this legend.

My happiness to hear that Johnny is still alive was met with sadness a day or two later when I heard the news that Kenny Takeuchi had passed away. I knew of him as somebody who wrote many articles in Racing Wheels, but I never got to hear him announce. Because I have a similar style where I try to do my homework and tell the fans something about each driver, people were starting to compare me to him. I came to understand what a great honor it is to be compared to somebody of his stature. I don't know whether this comparison is deserving, but I'm honored to be mentioned in the same sentence as him. I learned from another great announcer named Butch Althar that you need to talk to all of the racers, because they all matter in making a show.

Though Kenny might take notes, you'd be amazed at how often he just resorted to his memory. He knew the statistics. Back in the day, he might be able to tell you about Marshall Sargent, Bill Scott, Howard Kaeding, Al Pombo and all of them. However, you were going to hear about the Ken Bowman's and Joe Diaz Jr's of the world too. He would have something to say about everybody, because he knew the importance of that. He knew that if you kept the fans engaged and interested, they would come back. He was the voice of places like San Jose Speedway (the Old Tully Road track). He announced at Kearney Bowl, Clovis Speedway, Madera Speedway and on and on. His articles remain in those Racing Wheels newspapers for people who want to research the past at the tracks he was at. 

As the Legends of Kearney Bowl Super Modified group continued to grow, they had Kenny to announce to the fans. He knew the history of those cars that have been restored and the newer cars that were built. He knew which cars were replicas or tributes to original cars. He knew driver backgrounds and everything. He very much added to a Legends of Kearney Bowl show any time he was there. I'm told that when he was at Stockton 99 Speedway for the race in October, he was doing his usual thing. No signs of anything wrong with him, and he certainly looked like he was enjoying what he was doing.

The real comfort is knowing that at 92 years old, he was still living life to the fullest. This is not unlike Larry Damitz, who died at 87 years old still living life to the fullest. I am greatly saddened by the fact that I'll never be able to meet Kenny and shake his hand. I'm sure we would have had a wonderful conversation. He will be greatly missed by people who knew him. However, he will also be greatly missed by people who didn't know him, though they may not realize it. They don't make announcer/writers like Kenny Takeuchi anymore.

Recently, I also learned of the passing of Joe Diaz Jr. Joe was a longtime racer who followed in his father's footsteps as a Super Modified racer at the old San Jose Speedway. He had driven various different types of cars through the years. As a Chowchilla resident, Joe was the one who begin the popular Chowchilla Barn Burner Series. It was a stroke of brilliance adding this since there are racers looking for something to do during the winter months. 

Needless to say, Joe began enjoying success. It really didn't take long before people started suggesting he take over Chowchilla Speedway. I never really gave it a lot of thought as to how Joe had the success he had with the indoor series, but it's pretty obvious. Where else are the racers going to race? Of course he had good car counts. People thought he could work that kind of magic at the outdoor track, but you're in a whole new world there.

I can't talk about Joe without mentioning the fact that he was the one who drove the final nail into the coffin of that race track. The whole track has since been leveled. Had he been a little bit more realistic in his approach and not tried to run Sprint Cars and Dirt Modifieds on alternate weeks, it might have worked. Twice a month, mid to low tier divisions and maybe we're still talking about Chowchilla Speedway today. There's simply not a lot of money flowing these days, and the track died. He had a hand in putting an end to it. While I do respect his overall involvement in the sport, I still feel like he should be acknowledged as one who helped bring an end to the outdoor track. I have no doubt that he meant well, but he had a plan that was doomed to failure. Regardless, my sympathies go out to his family.

Scheduling is starting to trickle in, and I add this note with the understanding that news could be dropping every day. So far, it's little appetizers such as the Wingless Sprint Series booking four dates at Sunset Speedway in Banks, Oregon. A source tells me the Tri State Pro Stock Series finally secured it's last date for the 2020 schedule, and announcements are forthcoming. Sounds like there will be a big race in Oregon honoring somebody truly deserving of it. Stay tuned for more on that.

Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford was the first outdoor big car oval track to announce its schedule. This is the day after the Micro Sprint schedule has been released for both Delta Speedway in Dixon Speedway. Those two tracks will run about the same as last year, but the schedule in Hanford looks a little bit shorter. King of Thunder Sprint Cars still headline with RaceSaver 305 Sprint Cars and IMCA Stock Cars. Central Valley Mini Stocks will have several dates there, and it looks like the Modifieds will be back as well. Not sure where the Sport Modifieds went. The IMCA Stock Cars have more races scheduled there, and the Mini Stocks do as well. These are Central Valley Mini Stock sanctioned events again as Dan Myrick has put a solid schedule together for his group. Management knew a good thing when they saw it as the Mini Stocks were producing car counts in the mid-20s this season. Also included on the schedule is the annual Cotton Classic that will feature the NARC/King of the West Fujitsu 410 Sprint Cars.

ASCS will have Sprint Car races in March at Merced Speedway and Placerville Speedway. If it's a big Sprint Car Series, chances are they will make a stop in Placerville. It's also worth noting that Placerville will make the Hangtown 100 a three-day event from November 19-21 after the successful running of the two-day show this year. As for Merced, nothing General Manager Doug Lockwood does surprises me. He's looking for more big attractions he can give the fans, and he is certainly a Sprint Car minded guy. You can't argue the good racing that's happening at Merced Speedway these days, and that certainly makes me happy to hear.

As an indication of the rapid release of schedules, we are finishing this up today before releasing this column and can report that Lockwood has released his 2020 schedule. In addition to the big Winged Sprint Car show to kick off the season, the Sprint Car Challenge Tour and CRA/USAC Sprint Week race we'll be back. The Hunt Wingless Spec Sprint Series will return, There will be USAC Midgets and BCRA Midget Lites and there are several IMCA RaceSaver 305 Sprint Car dates. IMCA has a four-race minimum policy on championships, meaning that the RaceSaver Sprints and IMCA Stock Cars could crown champions at Merced next year. The minimum total is four races, which is how many visits the Stock Cars will make. 

The track's core divisions, IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Modifieds, Hobby Stock, Mini Stocks, Valley Sportsman and Mini Late Models, are all scheduled this year. One of the Mini Stock dates will be a Central Valley Mini Stock show. The Dwarf Car Nationals two-day event will be back. The Ed Parker Memorial and John Fore Jr Dirt Track Nationals will also be there. Missing from the schedule, unfortunately, is Legends Night. We will take a closer look at the schedule in a future column. You can see the schedule by going to the Merced Speedway Facebook page.

Another schedule that was released today was the NARC/King of the West Sprint Car Series. Over the weekend, they announced that Fujitsu is back as the title sponsor. The group will compete at 10 different tracks during the course of the season, which will kick off at Kern Raceway and conclude with the annual Gary Patterson Tribute race in November. Currently, there is a stretch of five races in a six-day span at the end of August with one date still to be announced. It hasn't been officially announced as Speedweek yet, but it's been known since the NARC name was brought back that Jim Allen is hoping to return the once very popular series to the schedule as well. There could be some more big announcements from the group in the weeks ahead. It certainly looks like they have put together another solid schedule.

The last outdoor dirt track racing event will happen at Mountain Valley Raceway in Hayfork on December 31st. Since moving up from the Central Valley to take on a promotional role in Hayfork, Jerm Smith is putting lots of ideas on the table. The track already has a very entertaining Enduro class, so there's probably enough cars to put on an interesting show, provided the weather lets it happen. However, I'm not holding my breath. I think better focus will be put on strengthening the three core division's car counts, making the Clyde Cordell Memorial and Fourth of July celebration events bigger, establishing the big show at the end of September for the Hobby Stocks and what other touches they can add to make things better. It will be interesting to see how Hayfork progresses.

Tony Noceti verified the pay scale for the New Year's race, which will feature Dirt Modifieds, Sport Modifieds, Bombers and Mini Stocks. The Dirt Modifieds will pay $1,500 to win with a minimum of $200 to start. The Sport Modifieds get $500 to win with $150 minimum to start. Bombers receive $250 to win with $50 minimum to start and Mini Stocks get $200 to win with $40 minimum to start. The Pro Stocks are on the schedule, but I'm not sure what the payout will be. I do know they'll be seen at other times during the season at Stockton under the Tri State Series banner.

Banquet time Is here, and several tracks have had theirs. January will turn out to be a big month for others. Both Petaluma and Merced will be holding their 2019 celebrations in January. It turns out that both Antioch and Medford are having their banquets on the last Saturday of January. I had people asking if I was going to Antioch, but right now that's not likely though not out of the question yet. Right now it looks like I'll be in Medford, though I don't get to MC as I've done the past two years. Cory Penfold will take care of those duties, and if I'm not sitting back enjoying an adult beverage, I'll probably be taking pictures.

With the measured return of racing to the Grass Valley Fairgrounds, I am beginning to wonder what could happen if somebody walked into the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds with a proposal to build a quarter-mile or 3/8 mile dirt oval where the old San Jose Speedway once stood. They're not doing much there these days, and I'm not entirely convinced that the fairgrounds would reject this idea out right. There would obviously be lots of details to be worked out, but you can put up some temporary structures as a means to get it going. Is this a crazy idea or could it be just the thing Bay Area racing needs? Will somebody step up to the plate and give it a try? Lord knows there is lots of potential.

In my conversations with Mike McCann, we've discussed the possibility of an indoor racing venue in Northern California that is specifically geared towards Micro Sprints and Motorcycle racing. Outlaw Karts have plenty of opportunities, but it seems like the only indoor venue doing Micros during the winter is Salem Indoors. One building that Mike has noticed is located at the Glenn County Fairgrounds in Orland. They've done indoor racing there in the past. I believe that involved Motorcycles. We've spoken about this idea for a couple of years now, and I've struggled to wrap my head around the idea that they would just do it on the concrete rather than bringing dirt in for these races.

However, I've now come to realize that the concrete would work just fine. Indoor racing with the BCRA Midgets thrived at a few different venues in California throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Though they ran on the dirt at the Cow Palace, you also had some racing at San Jose and lots of racing at Oakland and Santa Rosa. All three instances were concrete racing surfaces. You're running on a very small venue, and these were Midgets. Very entertaining, and what else are you going to do in the winter?

One might say Midgets would still be a good choice for something now, but there's not enough support to make this happen just yet. Micro Sprints, on the other hand, are doing quite well. This is especially true when it comes to the wingless class. All that needs to happen now is somebody stepping up and putting together a series of six or eight races, and I have no doubt that they would get the count. The Orland building would seem to make a good location for this. Micros and Motorcycles would also make a nice 1-2 punch. Again, what promoter would want to step up to the plate and take a swing at this. You'd be the first, and unlike Outlaw Karts, you're not competing with other venues for cars. Of course, if you succeed as you likely would, somebody else would step up to the plate to compete against you.

A Lot more I can say, but this was not meant to be a long-winded column. I just wanted to check in and say hi to everybody. I am paying attention to what's going on. I'm also looking at ways in which the media effort can move forward and still be helpful to me as well as the sport. I want to help the sport, but you know how it goes. I need help too. I'm monitoring the situation on a few fronts, and if anything comes up regarding news there, I will break it. Pay attention to The DCRR Twitter site as that could be the first place we break such news.

In the meantime, I'm going through 15 things that could be news or could be rumors. As always, it's up to you to decide which is which. 

Long-time Stock Car sanctioning body ARCA is putting together a schedule that will include a West Coast Series.

A full fledged Winged Sprint Car Speedweek series will be announced for several California tracks this year.

A popular Speedweek Series in the Pacific Northwest will radically change it's schedule and could even move the dates that people are accustomed to.

Orland Raceway will attempt to run a limited IMCA Sport Modified Series with a championship by running the minimum dates required by the sanctioning body.

IMCA will get at least one new California track that will sanction both Sport Modifieds and Modifieds.

Worden Speedway will reopen with new management within the next two years, and it will be operated by a well-known local racer.

The Bay Area Hardtop organization will fully embrace their link to Vallejo Speedway and Contra Costa Stadium with at least one other special event in addition to the Chet Thomson Memorial.

NASCAR will add it's fifth California track this year, and one dirt track is interested in joining NASCAR within the next two years.

A south bay group of largely Sprint Car connected people will make a proposal to rebuild a new version of San Jose Speedway at the Santa Clara Fairgrounds.

There will be a new dirt track constructed north of Orland within the next few years. 

A proposal will be made to build a new dirt track in Portland.

One prominent dirt track in Oregon will cease operations within the next two years.

The Stockton dirt track will feature at least one championship point earning division in 2020.

Diamond Mountain Speedway in Susanville will start scheduling visiting divisions in addition to their four core classes in 2020.

We will see the closure of at least one popular Bay Area race track within the next five years.