Good Happy thoughts?

[BlingxBling]

Alright guys and gals, I think we all used enough space on the board with angry posts, so I am going to turn it around. As you know, there is the NEETS newsletter that rolls around each event giving the review of the previous race, and sometimes other information. Most of the time, not much, because there isn't much info that can be supplied. So why not spice it up some, give those readers something to read. Learn a little bit about you. I am looking for stories about the most memorable Enduro racing experience you have ever encountered? Good stories about winning, or your friend winning, or perhaps a not so good one where you crashed your car, or maybe rolled it. Details are great. It will also give me a chance to learn a few more things about all of you.

I will actually start this post with one of mine...my very first enduro, in which I had attended was not this past year, but the year prior. I had only ever been to one previous enduro, which was at MVS. 30 cars were registered to take the green for that event. I thought it was absolutely wild. Well, I did not know what was in store for me when I showed up at my first NEETS event. There were like 100 cars starting the 4cyl race. 100!!!!!! That's nuts, or so I thought just seeing the line up. When the cars took the green, I was in near shock. Still not able to get over the 100 cars. I had one of the best times ever watching this race. I really couldn't tell you who won, because I was uneducated at the time. The 6/8cyl came up next. There was one car that stood out to me. It was bright ORANGE (my fav color) Caprice looking car. Well, this car was flying...around and around and around. Well, sure enough, in turn 1 a disabled car sat. Well, as this orange car got higher and higher, it lost control, slamming the backend of his car into the disabled car, then proceeded to bounce off the wall. That wasn't even the shocking part, but when it drove into the pits for quick repair and came back out looking almost like a truck, my mouth smacked the ground. Looking at the rear, you had the ability to see the frame, due to the impact. This is just one of the many, many, many, many memories I have. Mine isn't as entertaining, since I'm just a fan watching, rather than driving. I hope to read all of yours as well.

[EnduroFromDE]

I remember watching my first Enduro race at Mountain Speedway, like it was just last year, wait, it was last year, at the Labor Day show, I believe it was a Monday. It was me and my dad in the pits to see what the big Enduro hype was all about (NOW I KNOW). We had a car at the house that we were building to bring up there the next race (FRANKENDURO). I beleive it was about half way through the 4cyl race and my dad and I were talking about if it was possible to flip a car at this track , being they're only going 65 mph, tops, going into the turns. Well no more than two laps later, there was a little white Civic hatchback (I think) coming out of turn 4, and got clipped in the back left 1/4 panel, and sure enough, spins down into the dirt sideways, clips a stalled car, and over he went, two times, I think. Luckily, he was un-injured. That got me hooked, too, knowing you can flip like that and just climb out and laugh about it .

[Geno]

Thanks Bling. The newsletter from BwH should be done in, let’s say a week. I am still surprised with the response to the thread asking where everyone is from. That information goes a long long way & also helps the announcer dude tremendously. We send the press releases to a bunch of local papers. I only get one of them & the BwH recap was in there today. It mentioned everyone from the area that ran in it & where they finished. Honestly, without those hometowns, they probably wouldn’t have put anything in it. If anyone wants to throw out the names of their local papers, I would be more than happy to add them to the Newspaper PR list. Also, if you saw the results/recap in any local papers, share it with us.

[EnduroFromDE]

Geno, which paper was running the story? I just checked my paper (The News Journal, a Delaware paper), Nothing didn't really think anything would be in there, but you never know.

[ststock23]

Hey Geno,
The Trenton Times has a sports writer that has been around a long time. His name is Harry Blaze. I bet if you included him on your pr list, he'd at least give us a mention.
Tim

[BlingxBling]

Steve, yeah that would have been Mr Spencer in his 4 door little cavalier. That happened right in front of me. Scariest thing I have ever seen, he looked unconcious when they put the car up the right way. Thanks for that memory of yours..have you got any from when you drove in your first NEETS Enduro?

[EnduroFromDE]

It was at the Frankenduro in Oct. It was my first race, and everyone I talked to seemed fairly nice. Well, about 1/2 hour before drivers meeting, a young man came up to me and asked if he can use our generator and air pump to pump one of his tires up. We said yeah, and he goes and get's this beat up little purple thing, with a 19 on the side. (yeah, Jimmy White) Anyway, he pumped his tires up, and well to make a long story short, he end's up winning the race, with my air. And how dare he not split the winnings with us. , just kidding, congrats on the win......I'm just mad I only did three laps that race

[spier racing 93]

I remember one of my first couple of races...It was only 4 cars...2 Verwys, Art Kulik, and me. I ended up doing horribly because I had very little experience racing a car, let alone driving one. But at the end of the race, my right front wheel broke right off entering turn 2. That sent me into the ground and skidding along, while my wheel went BOUNCING all the way down the backstretch. That was my first (and only) trip back to the pits via a wrecker. Not a very 'happy' memory, but a memory nonetheless.

[SmallCar18]

I'm going with my most bizarre enduro racing EXPerience.... This happened in my very first NEETS race. It was June 2003 and NEETS was making its first of 2 stops at MVS. I raced at MVS the night before, and won for my very first time, so I decided to leave the car/trailer there overnight to run again the next day and see what NEETS was all about.

It was a very beautiful, but extremely hot (90+ degrees) and humid day. I remember being concerned which would overheat first, the car or me . The race got underway and was going pretty good. We were about 20 or 30 laps into it, and I was racing side by side with our own announcer, Geno. I was so focused on him I never saw the official furiously waving the red flag on the "backstretch". Don't know how I didn't see him - from the looks of it, on the endurocam, I practically ran him over! Coming down the "frontstretch" I'm not sure which I saw first, the flag man waving the red, or the entire field of cars stopped going into turn one.

I hit the brakes and they immediately locked up. As I'm skidding to a stop, I see a NEETS official already on the track directly in front of me trying to get all of us stopped. I thought for sure I was going to hit him. Out of the corner of my eye, and this is the bizarre part, I see an old lady in a nightgown, I think she was also wearing slippers, using all her might to climb over the turn 1 wall onto the track! I only caught a glimpse of her for an instant as I was skidding past to a stop. I sat there for a moment in the now sweltering heat and I'm like "what the ^$#@^ was that"! Did I really see that? Am I suffering from heat exhaustion? I thought I was going crazy. I tried stretching around to see what was going on, but couldn't see anything. The ambulance came out and eventually left the track and the race resumed.

After the race, I asked around to see if I really was going crazy, or if I wasn't, to find out if the woman was OK. Apparently she had wandered through the woods and came upon the track. I'm assuming she had Alzheimers. My grandmother had it and I could've pictured her doing something like that. I guess in a way, it's good she wasn't very mobile anymore at that point.

[Geno]

LOL, how about it Kerry? Man, I bet that was definitely a first to throw the red Rumor has it that she heard I was running & figured she could beat me on foot

Speaking of heat exhaustion that day...uh, nevermind!!

[winky417]

One of my favorite memories was back in 1999, at MVS, I was racing my white Nova.(the original417) This was my first enduro race, I'm running good, and just passed this #10 car (the Tide car) going through turn 2, when all a sudden, "wham" I see the infield, the wall, and this Tide car passing me. I still have the picture from this incident on my rec. room wall. Well, then I realized what just happened and the MADDAWG in me came out. I floored the ol Nova, caught that Tide car and spun his a$$ out. Came around and did it again as he was coming off the wall. Well, that shot ended up putting a hole in the radiator and I ended up overheating. When I pulled into the pits, lots of people came up to my car, some clapped, some said what are you nuts, and some just looked at me like I was crazy. Then up came this guy, I won't mention his name, but he said buddy you better load up and get outta here before you get your a$$ kicked, you were messing with the wrong guy out there. This really had me worried, but the adrenaline was kickin. So like an idiot, I go find this guy! Well, let me tell ya's he was big, real big, I don't know, but like 6'4 275 lbs!!!!! Just guessing. I yelled at him "what the **** was that about?". And he did the same. Crowd starts gathering, and I'm starting to think how this is probably gonna hurt. We both calmed down and talked it out and he reaches out to shake my hand, says, "welcome to enduro's rookie". Lesson learned!! We shook hands and stood around talking for a while. Lonnie Behler, one of the nicest guys I've met at a race track. (till ya get on the track.) Story kind of ends like Billy's, we raced side by side, mostly me trying to catch him or wondering where did he come from, the rest of the season, without incident. Became friends, learned a lot following that Tide car, I don't know if I ever beat him, but sure had a lot of fun trying !!!! The following season we both won Championships, Lonnie in the 8cyls and me in the 4cyls.... Funny thing, we both forgot to thank our wives (stupid racecar drivers) during our speeches that night. I get reminded all the time, and I'm sure Vicki reminds Lonnie about that too !!!!! AHHH, memories, Not to worry, I thanked Jody when we got home and along came Jacob.