Post a little about you

[flagone]

This is definitely the thread of the year. Really good stuff.

[Highwayman]

This is definitely the thread of the year. Really good stuff.

Let there be Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all men.

[dirtcrazy4u]

Cool thread, well here goes. Been a western pa guy most of my 65 yrs. My father owned a couple Sinclair stations were I grew up and he was known as the mechanic. I've been around dirt racing since I was 4 yrs old, going to Heidelberg and south park tracks. Jalopies baby. My father's driver was jerry mayer.

At 16 started attending races at lernerville. There will never be another promotor like Don martin. Got to work on many of the cars of yesterday. Drinking beer, busting knuckles so we could get to the next nights racing. We would go to N. Hills as spectators on Thursday night, load the car for lernerville on Friday, Scmuckers a really fast 1/2 on Saturday. Then to probably the craziest place we pulled into motordrome. There was more guys that got cold (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)ed than that place.

As time went on I got to know some guys from out east and fell in love with reading and then onto sprint cars. If I will ever regret 1 thing I had the opportunity to move east and work for one of the best crew chiefs the east has ever produced. 1 son kept me in western pa. I stayed involved in the local seen until 1997. Just a fan today that likes to see a good race. Like Lance Dewease beating Ole donnie at the grove. That 82 yr old crew chief doesn't need someone telling him he needs a 60K powerplant

[B_K]

Small world..I lived in Fort Oglethorpe, Ga from about 2003-2009. Got many friends that work at the Lowes in Dalton. (I worked for Lowes for 15 years) The store manager and several of the assistant managers are good friends of mine. Several friends around North Georgia/Chattanooga. My son lives in Jasper,Tn with his mother.. so I'm there from time to time. Not so much now that he is old enough to drive to my house lol.

I made one trip to North Georgia Speedway in 2009 before I moved back home to paducah. Cleveland Speedway was my favorite in the south. Boyd's was fun cause it was so close. Made the trip to Atomic one night when I was 18. Racing was so-so for what I remember, but glad i can say i went now.

I can make it smaller for you.... My wife's younger brother moved to Fort Oglethorpe a couple of years ago and is a department lead/manager at.....lowe's.

Boyd's is actually closer to me as I live between Dalton and Ringgold, but I grew up going to NGS, Dixie, Rome, and Cleveland more than anywhere else. You got to North Georgia too late as the downward slide had already begun.

That surprises me about Atomic. In its day, I would have put it up against anywhere in the country. Carson Branum may have had some faults, but his racetrack was the usually fantastic.

[15b24fan]

I grew up in eastern Iowa and still live there today. My grandparents were the ones who got me into racing around the time I was a little more than five years old. This would be around the mid 90's. Every Friday we made the trip to the 1/2 mile at the Farley Speedway and Sunday would be the trip to the 3/8 mile Dubuque Speedway. Fast forward to today, I rarely go to a weekly race. I rather spend my money on bigger shows, but having a young family limits it to 10-15 shows a year. I enjoy different forms of racing - late models, sprint cars, Indycar and yes, even Nascar. Racing is something I do with my friends (and hopefully my boys as they grow up). My other hobbies are baseball (Cubs), hockey (Blackhawks) and deer hunting. My favorite track is Knoxville, my favorite drivers are Brian Birkhofer (now Mike Marlar) and Jeff Gordon (now Chase Elliott). I was fortunate enough to see Birky win his second Knoxville National and Jason Johnson win his Knoxville National, but I would have to say nothing is like the experience of the Indianoplis 500. (Lastly, it is fun to occasionally watch cars turn left AND right at Road America.)

[cdustyr1]

Age 40, have a daughter graduating high school this year and headed to college in the fall. Worker for the State of Illinois, yes I am one of those state workers. Also own the simulator that operates at Fairbury and Farmer City as well as produce coloring books for some drivers. Grew up at the race track living here in Fairbury. My dad Randy drove a #48 six cylinder class and later modified division. He went on to be a part of the track prep at Fairbury until stepping away for the most part last year. My brother took over driving duties of the 48 modified for a couple of years before having his own family and stepping away.

Favorite driver for me growing up was Tom Reints - so we did a tribute wrap to him on the simulator for this season.

https://www.facebook.com/RhoadsRacingPromotions/
https://www.facebook.com/DirtTrackColoring/

[1forthe$]

I can make it smaller for you.... My wife's younger brother moved to Fort Oglethorpe a couple of years ago and is a department lead/manager at.....lowe's.

Boyd's is actually closer to me as I live between Dalton and Ringgold, but I grew up going to NGS, Dixie, Rome, and Cleveland more than anywhere else. You got to North Georgia too late as the downward slide had already begun.

That surprises me about Atomic. In its day, I would have put it up against anywhere in the country. Carson Branum may have had some faults, but his racetrack was the usually fantastic.

That's is awesome. I lived right over the hill from that Lowe's ( on Elaine Circle). I'm sure I still know a couple people that work there.. but all my close friends moved on.

I think the night I went to atomic I was just messing around on the internet and since I had a babysitter that night, i decided to take off and go. I had heard my grandpa talk about it too much to pass up the oppurtunity. I think it was just a weekly show we went to.. I remember at intermission they had spectator racing. One lap 1 on 1. I think the final race was like an old station wagon and a brand new Camaro. It was a pretty close race till the got in to three... the station wagon was on the outside and drove her off in there and never lifted. The Camaro backed off as he drifted up toward the wagon. Me and everyone in there was cheerin on that crazy bastard in the Wagon tho. He had won like 3 or 4 races to make it to the final lol. I think the racing wasnt terrible. just not what it had been built up to me as. That was also the first time I went to a race with no heat races. I think it was probably my first race south of Clarksville Tn..so i felt like a fish out of water. Probably would've been a better experience had I gone to a special..or known any drivers. IDK.

My trip to N.Ga was for a Lucas race I believe. I remember Bloomer and the big boys were there. Spring/Summer of '09 I think. I loved how u paid by the car..reminded me of a place back home in Ky..(Central City). Even sat in the grass and thought that was cool. The racing... meh. Lol

I always wanted to go to Bulls Gap.. but never made it while I lived there. But I will soon..bet ur ass on that. Lol

[1forthe$]

I grew up in eastern Iowa and still live there today. My grandparents were the ones who got me into racing around the time I was a little more than five years old. This would be around the mid 90's. Every Friday we made the trip to the 1/2 mile at the Farley Speedway and Sunday would be the trip to the 3/8 mile Dubuque Speedway. Fast forward to today, I rarely go to a weekly race. I rather spend my money on bigger shows, but having a young family limits it to 10-15 shows a year. I enjoy different forms of racing - late models, sprint cars, Indycar and yes, even Nascar. Racing is something I do with my friends (and hopefully my boys as they grow up). My other hobbies are baseball (Cubs), hockey (Blackhawks) and deer hunting. My favorite track is Knoxville, my favorite drivers are Brian Birkhofer (now Mike Marlar) and Jeff Gordon (now Chase Elliott). I was fortunate enough to see Birky win his second Knoxville National and Jason Johnson win his Knoxville National, but I would have to say nothing is like the experience of the Indianoplis 500. (Lastly, it is fun to occasionally watch cars turn left AND right at Road America.)

I've probably made way too many post on this thread..but it has turned into a pretty cool thread.

With a little liquid encouragement at lunch, myself and 3 other firefighters snuck into indy motorspeedway back in April. We were in town for the Firefighter convention show (FDIC). we snuck through the pits and made it almost to the bricks when the pace car pulled up and asked what the hell we were doing. After explaining and one of the guy s being a silver tongued devil.. the pace car guy was so impressed with our efforts he told us to kiss the bricks, take a picture in victory lane and then get out before we got him in trouble. I documented some of that mission on Facebook live and also posted pictures.

[play4kps]

Awesome thread!
I grew up in Toledo, Ohio.Im 54 years old, Im a toolmaker, My dad was an auto mechanic, he worked on race cars and drag race cars on the side. I grew up on asphalt racing, Toledo speedway, Flat Rock, Berlin and others in the Ohio-Michigan area. I moved to the Dayton area when I was 24 and lived here since. I started going to killkare and shady bowl and honestly never saw a decent count ever at those tracks. I saw an ad in the Dayton daily news for racing at Eldora and this was mid to late october, cold as can be, had no idea what to expect, got there and was blown away and was hooked immediately, there had to have been easily over 200 cars there, this was around 1989, winged sprints. late models, 360 sprints and modifieds. Right then I knew I was wasting my time and money at Kilkare and shady bowl. The following years I have made it a point to support local racing, Eldora, Florence, Oakshade, Moler, KC raceway and Attica when I could, and always loved North south, world, dream and the final leg of the summernationals. I even got my dad hooked on dirt racing, (he was an avid asphalt driver and fan) and I have awesome memories of Oakshade raceway with him before he passed 2 years ago. I love dirt racing and would love to see in grow again. God Bless you all and Happy new year!

[kazual]

Great thread. When we take time to look in to people and their backgrounds we find they aren’t an ogre with one eye in the middle of their forehead after all. I look to be the senior citizen at 68, glad to have made it this far. Fortunate in life with family and employment. My Father introduced me to short track racing around 7 years old, been an ardent fan since. When my friends were reading Playboy I would have the latest version of Speed Sport News. Was tempted but never fell to being an active crew member, driver, or owner, no regrets. Quit working at the end of 2017, spent last 20 years as a regional sales manager for a recreational products company headquartered in the Midwest. It had been a dream job but the hotel and windshield time were beginning to wear on me. Traveled 50-60k miles a year on average which allowed me to visit tracks across a dozen states, somewhere around 80 over 20 years. I miss the tingle I used to get when pulling into a track for the first time but we have a handful of tracks close to us that we attend 20-25 times a year, my wife is my racing partner now. As just a fan I appreciate the perspective of people that have busted their knuckles working on race cars and doing the promoting. I’m an entrepreneurial guy and often feel empathy for promoters or race car owners, i.e. the people that put vast amounts of money towards entertaining me after I paid a measly $15-30 to watch. I’m uncertain where short track dirt racing is headed and may not be around to see the results down the road but I have high hopes for you younger guys that you can do this for 60 or more years like I have, and I’m not done yet. The internet and social media has put an entirely different set of dynamics into play on most every aspect of our lives and it’s good to see a thread that humanizes us a bit instead of jumping to conclusions. Here’s to your health and well being and that 2019 is a great year for you.

[fastford]

KAZUAL , i think you are the no. 2 senior on here so far , Montana disclosed he is 70 , lol , this is a great thread and thank all of you for sheering ........

[dirtrace09]

Really nice thread. It is neat to hear from where you are all from and what you do.
I am 45 year old junior high math and science teacher. I grew up in central Illinois and am surrounded by dirt tracks. I made a late move into them after growing up with my dad helping me race motocross. Some of my closest friends all are into dirt racing. I am lucky enough to race a dirt modified.

[kazual]

I’ll play second fiddle to Montana any time, his contributions and perspective exceed mine so much it’s not even funny.

[RayCook53fan]

26 Years old, Single, Work as a franchise executive assistant for 1-800-Packouts in contents restoration.
Born and raised between Ellijay, and Blue Ridge, GA, only around 3 miles from Blue Ridge Motorsports Park.

Slept on the concrete grandstands at Sugar Creek (Now Blue Ridge) and North Georgia Speedway from the time I was just a small kid.
My family had Cantrell's 4x4 salvage yard in Ellijay and co-owned Shannon Bearden's late model, as well as my dad worked on the pit crew from 1985ish-95ish.

My dad doesnt fish or hunt, what me and my dad did together was go to the races. The 2 aforementioned tracks, but also Cleveland, Dixie, Rome, Toccoa, Lavonia, Charlotte, Smokey Mountain, and of course our favorite, Atomic. I remeber like it was yesterday being 10 years old and watching the UDTRA late models from the infield at Atomic... I was blown away.

Grew up helping Shannon Bearden with his limited late model until he sold out in 2012.

For the past 2 seasons, I was the weekly announcer at Blue Ridge Motorsports park, but have given that up to be able to play more music. I play banjo, mandolin, bass, and guitar... and actually won the Georgia State Banjo contest a few years ago!

[B_K]

26 Years old, Single, Work as a franchise executive assistant for 1-800-Packouts in contents restoration.
Born and raised between Ellijay, and Blue Ridge, GA, only around 3 miles from Blue Ridge Motorsports Park.

Slept on the concrete grandstands at Sugar Creek (Now Blue Ridge) and North Georgia Speedway from the time I was just a small kid.
My family had Cantrell's 4x4 salvage yard in Ellijay and co-owned Shannon Bearden's late model, as well as my dad worked on the pit crew from 1985ish-95ish.

My dad doesnt fish or hunt, what me and my dad did together was go to the races. The 2 aforementioned tracks, but also Cleveland, Dixie, Rome, Toccoa, Lavonia, Charlotte, Smokey Mountain, and of course our favorite, Atomic. I remeber like it was yesterday being 10 years old and watching the UDTRA late models from the infield at Atomic... I was blown away.

Grew up helping Shannon Bearden with his limited late model until he sold out in 2012.

For the past 2 seasons, I was the weekly announcer at Blue Ridge Motorsports park, but have given that up to be able to play more music. I play banjo, mandolin, bass, and guitar... and actually won the Georgia State Banjo contest a few years ago!

Probably been to a car show or two growing up I'd imagine too huh?

Weekends weren't made for the woods or the lake in either one of our houses.

[dirt crow]

Finally got time to do this. And I’m no writer so I’ll probably be all over the place....

I’m 45 years old. A 2 time loser in the marriage department. First wife, I was young and dumb. Only thing good outta that 8 1/2 years of he!l was my son. He is 17 now. And when child support ends a year and a half from now, that extra money, gonna be hitting that race bucket list hard. 2nd wife, much better, but unfortunately it just didn’t work out. We just couldn’t make a built in family work with previous kids.

My dad took me to the old Gadsden Raceway in Hokes Bluff Alabama when I was 12 and was hooked. Fell in love with late model racing. My favorite then and to this day is Ronnie Johnson. I began racing myself at age 17 in pony stocks (4 cylinders). First win was the biggest race for that class in 1991 at Green Valley Speedway. Took home a $300. My late father called it big bucks! Lol. Raced pony for 3 more years, 5 wins, and finished 7th, 4th, and 2nd in GVS points. Moved up to late models and we were way over our heads. Bad equipment and not enough funds. I was that driver you was cussing for spinning out in the back. Lol. Back to limited late models for a stint, then sold everything and went back to pony class driving for someone else. Fall 97 was my last race I believe and didn’t know it would be. Man I was driving for got laid off during winter when Gadsden Steel Plant was closed. And that was that. Have raced at GVS, TST, Fyffe Speedway now Ft Payne Speedway, Rome, and EAMS. Full time fan from then on.

I was at the first Bristol dirt race. Still feel bad for Balzano. At the Eldora Million. Only DTWC I been to was the god awful one at Bardstown. Think we left at lap 30 of that train race. Show Me at West Plains for Auklands win. The heat he won that weekend is still the best heat I’d ever seen. 12th to 1st I believe. Topless, USA Nationals, PDC, Colossal, East Bay Winternationals, Dirt Million, Gateway Dome, and that one major event at the Delta Bowl in Mississippi. So you should be able to figure out my bucket list. Lol. Started going to Eldora in 89 and I’ll go until I physically can’t. There’s nothing like the Big E.

3 jobs in my life. Buggie pusher, or shopping cart for you yankees, at Walmart after high school for 2 years. Averitt Express as dock worker and eventual driver for 16 years. Economy collapse of 08 got me there. Now driver for Southeastern Freightlines in Birmingham for almost 9 years. Love my job.

Don’t hunt, fish, shoot paintballs, or Xbox. My hobby is dirt super late model watching period. Love the beach. Love the Burg (Gatlinburg) Love Coors Light. Poison ivy / oak eats me alive!!! Hate onions with a passion! Like country western and heavy metal. What a combo huh. Lol. Roll Tide! F auburn! And long live Larry Bird!!

[Phatdaddy]

41 y/o white male. Some say i look like a cross between Brad Pitt and Bradley Cooper.

[Trax53]

28 Years old, single. Gastonia, NC / Born & Raised. I work for Essex Parts Services & AP Racing in Cramerton, NC. We sell brakes and various other parts to racers all over the world. I drive the weekly delivery truck route to deliver to all of the NASCAR teams in Mooresville, Concord & Welcome, NC. Its a neat gig I get to see alot of cool stuff on the NASCAR side.


I have been attending races since I was in diapers, its in my blood. My favorite drivers as a kid would have been Freddy Smith, Mike Duvall, and Ray Cook. I spent alot of Friday nights at Carolina Speedway. Saturday nights at Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, or I-77 Speedway in Chester, or numerous other places, too many to list here. I have been to right at 100 tracks now.


My first job was selling the RACING NEWS papers at Carolina Speedway at age 12. I got a camera and started taking pictures at races with the profits from selling papers. That has been fun!
I went to college at RCCC in their Motorsports Mgmt program. Worked for Richard Petty Driving Experience while attending school there.


My favorite DLM races to attend are: the World 100, the Dream, the North South 100, & the Blue Gray 100. I spend most of my weekends in search of a race or live music. Hoping to make it to FALS this season to see what the fuss is about. See everyone at Golden Isles Speedway in February!

[dirt crow]

I forgot to put where I’m from and for some reason I can’t edit. ...Northeast Alabamian all my life. Born in Gadsden. Lived there and surrounding suburbs, and Anniston Al. Now reside in Boaz Alabama.

[cprince07]

49 yr old married male. Been married 24 years to Gina(best thing that ever happened to me). I live in Macclesfield,NC. I work in Wilson,NC as an auto technician(mechanic) with 29 years experience. I was a drag race guy until my buddy talking me into go to a dirt track race in 1990. And i was hooked.I was a crew chef on a local dirt team from 1991 until 2013 when i gave it up. We ran T&L/Sportsman most of the time,winning 10 or 12 championships and a lot of races at our local track.We tried steel head late model with an old GRT we picked up. Won 5 races and the championship our 2nd year in the class. It was alot of fun. When the car owner retired in 2013 i quit also. Now i just watch. Being from eastern NC the Dunn-Benson Motorsports #1 is my team. I also have a few Mustangs i restored and take to car shows or cruise-ins now.