Thanks for the "treat" kenny rodgers

[gutter7]

I guess the fact that you were off track in the first place could be blamed on the wet conditions.

[BIGDADDY64]

in my opinion the track was really wet but as stated we just need to be patient i think we need to do that cause if the kenny bashing keeps up we might lose the oppuetunity to race here. i dont know about anyone else but i dont want to see that happen

[Poppop]

I'm with you 100 percent Big Daddy.

[CJfilms]

Good morning!

Ok, I'm going to try to hit all topics covered here in this reply...it may be a little lengthy...

Starting at the bottom and working my way up:

Big Daddy: Patience is a virtue, right you are....as well as Kenny may not take the abuse online and eventually pull the plug...so, everyone needs to calm down and help us work things out.

Gutter: I almost want to say that I like your idea to stage a sit-out until the track dries....however, we all know about 20 or so cars will pull in to the infield and the rest will go racing. Once the guys in the infield realize we aren't stopping the race since half the cars out there are racing, they'll either start late and end up REALLY ticked off at the end of the day or demand their money back.

Poppop: Good idea, less water around the high side may prevent the wall from being hit so much...

RK1714: Wet track for open wheeled cars weighing practically nothing (in comparison to even a Small Car) will result in nothing but a slide fest, they won't event get traction to start moving and IF they do get moving, they will just spin, spin, spin... As for dust....I saw it too, they were throwing a great deal of dust out into the stands and pits by the end of their feature....

***Saturday night enduro***
The idea to run a Saturday night enduro came from Kenny at the beginning of this season, where he told me he would really like to see what our guys can do on a well-prepped track. My question was, why isn't the track well-prepped for ALL of our races? It has still not been addressed, also, the Saturday night idea was washed out a while back....

Philter: I'm glad you had a blast out there! I know of a good number of drivers who enjoy racing under any circumstances...thank you for being understanding, but see what I have to say to the Captain next....

Shon: Call me tonight and I will fill you in on the details...

Danger: You are right about impatient drivers. You admit to having a slower vehicle, you hold your position....if they have the faster car and they want to get around you...they need to get AROUND you....not through you. This is a whole separate issue that needs to be addressed.....remember everyone, we are out there to have fun. If racing is all about the money and the rewards...you are racing for the wrong reasons!

Jag: 30 laps of patience is a lot....

And finally, Captain!
I'm calling you out here Captain! I hope you still have the helmet you showed me in the infield....unwashed. Please try to get a photo of that helmet and upload it on the forum....or email it to me directly.

The Captain showed me his helmet which was smeared with mud....no, caked is more like it. He ran out of tear-offs by mid-race, and as Shon even said that he needed one before the green flag fell. He asked me, "Is this safe?" I can answer this honestly and tell you NO.

NEETS promotes safe and affordable racing....however, when drivers max out their tear-off supply and are out before the end of the race...something is not right. I believe that no one is tearing them off as soon as a tiny bit of mud hits your visor, however they are called tear-offs for a reason and eventually....they need to be torn-off! If drivers are losing the ability to see on the track due to something that can be corrected...it has to be corrected. We requested less water on the track and our request was denied.

I want what you want...I want what I believe Kenny wants. You want the track well-prepped and just right. Kenny wants to set it and forget it (no pun intended), so the track holds up for you for the whole race without having to stop a race to wet the track down. Not one single fan in the stands wants to be sand blasted with dirt, but they also come to see racing.

The solution needs to be that we run a drier track at the beginning of the race...one time at the very least....and work out the bugs. We've tuned up a variety of things over the years, making the show run faster and smoother...this needs to be addressed ASAP.

IF we have a drier surface and it does not hold up....the red flag comes out and we wet the track down with a few passes of the water truck. It will slow up the race at numerous times, instead of just once at the beginning. However, the slower racing at the beginning seems to be lasting longer and longer each race and as it was already said by Jag...30 laps of patience is a lot to ask.

I am MORE THAN WILLING to run the next event with a drier track...not VERY DRY, but not soaking wet. If Kenny will give us the opportunity to run on the track we all prefer, then we should all have no problems. If we cannot control this situation and drivers start to veer away from racing with NEETS or at Grandview...will it be too late to begin to try to work with them? If we start bleeding drivers, the cut will not heal.

I appreciate everyone for voicing their opinions here in a respectful manner....although the Captain did pick an interesting title.........just remember, WE want what you want.

[richardpetey]

Even with our government trying to destroy our constitutional rights we still have the right to express our opinions..........................
IMHO, if that track was any wetter you'd need a life raft.........................
How do you think 30 to 40 dirt modified drivers would put up with what happened to us.......................................
Somebody needs to groom that track so the moisture stays in the track for the entire feature, IT CAN BE DONE!......................
I've been racing enduros for a few years and I stay loyal to NEETS because all the other tracks and promoters never gave use any RESPECT.....................
Somebody is trying to turn what we consider enduro racing into a 1 ring circus and a wreck-fest side show..........................
I'm all for showing a little patience but but where does it end and your "pain tolerance" begin..........................
When you clean off all that "grandview" from your enduro and see all the hidden damage and go through it time after time, maybe the "RESPECT LIGHT" will finally turn on................................................
I'm a little frustrated, my car seems to be half way competitive, I'm gett'en the hang of the dirt thing again but 13 flats and torn sheet metal is all I have to show for it................................................ ........
Many unhappy enduro drivers out there..................What do we do?....................
UNCLE PETEY............................

[CAPTAIN]

I am posting under the captains name because I don't want to wait to be approved to post. I have been a race fan for 30 years and have been to many different tracks and many different race types, and I have NEVER seen anything like I did at Grandview. Asking for a race car driver to be patient is the STUPIDEST thing I have ever heard they are there to race not for a Sunday drive. Drivers shouldn't have to be patient for a track to come around and FANS should not have to wait 30 laps to see racing or 50 laps (as it was in the 4 cylinders) I dont want to watch a slam fest and worry that the drivers might be getting hurt. I want to watch a race from beginning to end and get what I paid for. This is a DIRT track fans are going to get dirty. I"ve left dirt tracks (Grandview on a Sat. being one of them) with not a clean spot on my face! This includes dirt up my nose and in my ears. That is a part of dirt track racing.
Here is an idea and as a fan I would perfer....wet the track down some in the beginning and make a mandatory caution half way to wet it down. I would much rather this then to see 2 or 3 red flags early on because the cars can't get into the pits!
Big Diamond has no problems with their enduro with the wetting of the track or drivers having to be "patient" so it can be done! Kenny give their water guy a call and ask him how he does it. Nothing wrong with asking for help to make it right and safe, so no one gets seriously hurt because of this issue. Racing is dangerous enough no need to make it worse.
Christine Detweiler

[rpkulik]

Kenny has a tough job, so I have been easy on him. But there was an error in the track prep yesterday. I don't think Kenny was being vindictive, regardless of his performance at the driver's meeting. Air temperature and sunshine are what should determine how much water is needed. Too much water was used yesterday because I believe that the effect of the wind was overestimated. It lasted far too long because the temps were cool and it was partly cloudy. Hopefully, Kenny will adjust his technique to according to weather conditions. I really believe he wants to do the right thing by us. We are not going to get anywhere by bashing him. What is needed is a respectful discussion so we can reach a mutually agreeable solution. I, for one, am willing to go lighter on the water and risk a red flag mid-race to re-wet the track if needed.

[dirtmodfan]

I agree with Bob. If we need to stop it (which I do not believe we need to. Part of the enduro is adapting to the changing track conditions), so be it. But don't slick it up so that it takes 10-15 laps to get to racing conditions again.

Joe will get this handled.

Grandview is a fun place to race. I know things will get better.

[rk1714]

The people who are taking Kenny`s side ,saying that we shouldn`t bash him! Well, how professional was he at the drivers meeting ? I really like racing with the NEETS crew and we`ll be at the next race. My 15 yr. old son started racing this year at Big Diamond, we had thoughts of bringing him to Grandview, but there is no way I would throw him out in those conditions!!!

[CJfilms]

Thank you Christine....it's good to hear from the drivers on a daily basis, but it helps a LOT to hear from the people on the other side of the fence.

I like all of these ideas. I would prefer less water to start and possibly red flag at lap XX, this will allow for MORE racing and less down time.... If they are worried about getting out of there sooner on a Sunday afternoon...what better way than speed up the races? Slower racing means longer races.....

Kenny, along with any of the Rogers, does not want to chase anyone away...we have a good thing going for us all at Grandview, but we need to get past these hurdles already.......it has been long enough now that we should not have these problems. Can't we all just complain about something else now?!??!?!?!? I'm as tired of hearing about how much water is on the track as you are tired of racing in it.....the time to do things right is NOW.

The next event has no conflicts (such as Mother's Day...) so the counts should be up in both divisions! We have a solid 40 car count in the Savage 61 Dodge Big Car Division...I KNOW for a fact we will be topping 50 cars this season....only a question of when....and I'm aiming for June 6th!

Petey....always look forward to hearing your thoughts.... By the way, Kenny did appreciate the dirt you scraped off and returned to the speedway from the last event!

[Poppop]

I couldn't hear anything but static and a faint wisper over the scanner yesterday. I got by because I looked for the flags and waving hands when I heard the static. Did anybody else have that problem or was it just me?

[Doug132]

I have been reading, and thinking and agreeing with much of what has been said. (good and Bad) We (NEETS officials and drivers) can take control of a really wet track.... Don't pull the pace truck off!!!! Pace 15 or 20 laps if we have to. Drivers, move up the track (as hard as it is) and lets run that top line of slime in so that when the flag drops we have some prayer of control. I can tell you, when it came over the radio to "tighten up the pack we are geting ready to go green" I did the old LOL!!!! and thought to my self, "yeah right, not on your life!!!"

Just my thoughts....

Doug

[CJfilms]

We (NEETS officials and drivers) can take control of a really wet track.... Don't pull the pace truck off!!!! Pace 15 or 20 laps if we have to.

Good idea, but it won't work......so long as the pace truck is still on the track, the water truck can come back out. Pacing the field for 15 laps and getting the track to the right consistency will be futile if the water truck would come back out onto the track.

WE will take control of this....but as always I will need everyone's help in doing so.

What about pacing the field with no pace truck? A quick thumbs up/thumbs down from drivers before we throw the green....this way, if it is too wet, we don't throw the green....however, majority rules....if we feel 50% are thumbs up, the green is coming out next lap......if we are running 10-15-20 pace laps....fans will get upset and be extremely bored.

We'll find that happy spot though! Keep the ideas coming.....I'm working up a concoction! LOL!!!

[critter]

all i have to say is i dont know if i will make it back my car is pretty well smashed all the mud nothin but wrecks into me and then the wall hopefully i can make it back , with out mud next time

[mcstockcar]

I couldn't hear anything but static and a faint wisper over the scanner yesterday. I got by because I looked for the flags and waving hands when I heard the static. Did anybody else have that problem or was it just me?

I heard a few beeps and no voices..WITH new batteries! I just watch the flaggers/spotters/lights as Im chasin my tail!