The Stress of Pursuing a Championship

It's tough to keep your cool when you're in the hunt for a championship. The pressure, I'm told, can be incredibly overwhelming. It takes a real cool head to maintain your balance and keep things in check to allow you to perform at your very best. Sometimes, words come out of your mouth without your brain kicking into gear first.

I've tried very hard to not name names when I do a blog entry like this, but it would be virtually impossible for anyone who's following the championship battle in the NASCAR Late Models at La Crosse to NOT know who I'm referring to in this one.

Todd Korish has professed that his friendship is "over" with Shawn Pfaff and Kevin Nuttleman, because the two teammates are, in his opinion, in cahoots with one another to stymie his charge to the front of the field. 

I don't necessarily fault Korish for making the comments he did after Saturday night's feature. He was mad. I just think his anger is misdirected. His car was not performing as well as he had hoped or expected it to do. That was fairly obvious if you watched the race or the video of it,  which I have on the RacingNuggets.com website. Korish was struggling to pass on the outside--as was everyone else.

Despite a notable "hiccup" in Nuttleman's forward progress at the start of the feature, Korish took five laps to decide to finally go to the outside groove and eventually roll around Tim Nelson.  When he got to Nuttleman, the elder racer actually moved to the upper groove and gave Korish the preferred lower lane as the two entered turn one.

If Korish still felt that he was cut short of time to improve his position, he could have chosen to move to the outside groove when the laning cone came out after the caution. But he didn't.

In a discussion with some people after the races, we all agreed that the collective jaw dropping was audible, when first, Pfaff, then Steve Carlson, Brent Kirchner and finally Korish all opted to stay in the low groove when the laning cone came out after the caution in Saturday night's feature. It wasn't until Cole Howland came from deep in the pack, that the outside pole was finally filled for the restart.

Astounding? Hell yes! So suffice it to say--Korish, Pfaff, Carlson and Kirchner were not feeling the love with their cars on Saturday night--at least when it came to the outside groove at the La Crosse Speedway.

But this point aside, there's another factor that has played a role in the tightening points battle. Qualifying. We've stated this countless times on our pre-race radio show. Championships are won with solid finishes, coupled with solid qualifying efforts. This season alone, Pfaff has made up 15 points on Korish, just in qualifying.

Mind you, I'm not trying to bash on Korish here, regardless of what you think. I'm just trying to illustrate that when a driver is in the heat of a points championship, they find all kinds of reasons why their success is not what they expected.  An "off night" can sometimes cause one to engage their comments before considering it thoroughly in their brain. It was incredibly obvious that Korish (and many of the racers for that matter) wanted nothing to do with the outside groove on Saturday night.

I'm a firm believer that Korish will reconsider his harsh comments toward his one-time friends, Pfaff and Nuttleman and realize that this is just stiff competition. Korish is a hard-nosed competitor and he has a great sense of humor. Just look to the whole "Insane Clown Posse" on the hoods of their team machines. Plus, I've witnessed him shuffling around a dance floor on occasion after having a few cocktails. He can be a fun guy. He's just embroiled in a very high pressure situation right now. 

We haven't seen a cooler head than Korish this season, since the years of Nuttleman's dominance in the division. Unfortunately, he slipped and lost his cool on Saturday night. He let the pressure get to him and went off like Yosemite Sam at his former friends and competitors. 

I'm hopeful he can gather up his emotions and get things realigned in his mind, so that he can be fully prepared for the championship battle that he has worked so hard to garner for so many years. Pfaff won't make it easy on him. No one should. What's the joy in earning a championship if you didn't have some blood, sweat and tears involved? Victory will taste even sweeter because of it.

Good luck to both drivers. I'm not pulling for either of you. I just want to enjoy the on-track battle as a fan and hope that friendships can stay solid off the track.

Road Rage on the Racetrack

I'd be the first to admit that I have a temper. I try very hard to keep it in check and do so with success most of the time. When I'm tired, that's when I'm at my weakest for self-control. I'll even own up to having "thrown the bird" or tossing off a string of ear-burning, four-letter words on occasion. Unless your name is Sister Mary Margaret, you probably have done the same at some point behind the wheel.

Despite fantasies of right-rearing an idiot on the public roads, I would never do that. That would be just plain heinous. Unfortunately, it would seem that road rage has reared it's ugly head at the La Crosse Speedway for some drivers.

There's been a flurry of this kind of stuff as of late. I've caught much of it on tape, as I record the races each week. Sometimes, it's hard to tell if it was just a product of hard racing gone awry or if it was deliberate "road rage" on the racetrack. Regardless, it's horrifying to watch, knowing that one wrong move could spell a very serious situation for any of the combatants. People could get maimed or killed. It's not like that hasn't ever happened at a racetrack.

If someone drives you crappy, it doesn't give you the right to wreck them. And while you might feel the need to retaliate, you're only showing that you've stooped to their level. Nobody likes a reckless driver on the track and videos will immortalize those stupid actions forever.

Finesse is what separates the asshats from the pros. There are ways to handle situations on the track without engaging in road rage and without wrecking another racer. It's the ability to move a guy who is being a road hog, without it looking like you did anything. That's a talent that comes with time and patience.

Then there's also the option to actually go and talk to a driver you have an issue with after the race. Talk. Not scream or act like a moron, as that doesn't solve a thing and will just exacerbate the situation. If two people actually discuss the bone of contention between them, many times they find that it was just a misunderstanding. Sometimes a lot can be solved over a beer or two, with honest discussion.

Road rage doesn't belong at the racetrack. Period.

The Blame Game 

My grandfather always said, "For every finger you point at someone, there are four others pointing back at you." This was always said after he broke up a scuffle. Grandpa was pretty smart. He knew that it takes two to tango, or as was the case with this latest incident at the La Crosse Speedway--it's a threesome. (But definitely not in the way that you may have seen on Cinemax late at night.)


It would seem those words of wisdom bear repeating for several drivers at the race track. Yet again, we've had another big accident in the NASCAR Late Model division involving a lapped car with front runners attempting to pass--going into a three-wide game of chicken at turn one. And everyone, whether they are racers or spectators, are quick to toss blame onto the one of players in the incident.


Two rookies and one track champion were involved. Some are quick to blame the lapped car. Others either of the rookies, based upon their "lack of experience." And some are haranguing the champion for losing his head.


Me? I think all three are to blame. Mostly by virtue of choosing to race, as wrecking is a chance you take every night you slide behind the wheel and strap into your six-point harness. But we all love this sport of racing, so one cannot seriously blame it. That would just be plain blasphemous. 


Some points need to be made first and foremost.  You're not racing for a million dollars. I'm all for a win, but does first place really pay that much more than second? I'm only asking rhetorically, because making a brash move to gain a few more bucks and just four more points, hardly seems worth it when the potential consequences are a smashed up car, WAY less money and WAY less points at the end of the night. And if you asked any of the serious drivers at the speedway, they are not in this game to make money. They're here for the competition and the thirst to win.


The bottom-line is that I do indeed fault all three players in that incident. Bob Manske, who was being lapped by the leaders; John Olson, who was fighting to hang onto the lead and J Herbst, who was angling to take over the top spot by using the lapped car as a pick. They all bear a portion of responsibility for the incident that demolished their cars and several others who found themselves caught up in the carnage.


Wasn't it Wisconsin short-track legend, Dick Trickle that said, "To finish first, you must first finish?"


So what could each of those three players done differently to prevent the destruction on Saturday night? As I've said before, I'm not a driver, just an observer and videographer. In my opinion, I think Manske could have gotten a little lower on the track. It was turn one. A place where most everyone dive bombs lower than they should anyway. He had plenty of room to go a little lower, after hearing the tower tell him the leaders were coming hot on his tail. Olson perhaps could have moved up a bit more prior to the entry of turn one, in an effort to negate Herbst's desire to take the outside groove with the lapped car there. And Herbst could have realized that going three-wide--and pinching it tight down into the lower groove is not exactly going to yield a good outcome. There's plenty of blame to go around.


It's a situation that makes me sick, because I know how much time, effort and money it takes to put those machines back together. It's hard on everyone involved, but it could've been avoided with clearer heads behind the wheel. We can only hope that the finger pointing will subside by this weekend. However, I have a feeling it will be replaced by certain fingers being extended in an upward direction, instead. Bad blood is brewing and will make for a very hairy rest of the season with these players.

Crazy Train of Chaos

I think we all knew it was only a matter of time before chaos broke out on the track at La Crosse Speedway.  This past Saturday night was that night, particularly for the NASCAR Late Models.  I think there were a few different factors going on for many who were strapped into the machines.


It appeared to me that several drivers are still struggling to get their cars dialed in to run that outside groove effectively.  Some of them realized that and chose to restart after the cautions in the bottom groove.  Others boldly charged to the outside to improve their position, but then attempted to saw down into the low groove ASAP.  I guess that's one way to get it done.  Kind of a cheap way, but to each their own.  I'm not a driver, so I can't comment with any authority on driving etiquette in a race car.  But I do know that I've heard plenty of times--how you race another driver is generally speaking, how you should expect them to race you.  Bottom line:  If you saw other people off, you will need to zip your lips if they "return the favor" to you at a later date.


Probably a bigger issue in the NASCAR Late Model division--and it's becoming a more glaring problem--cars that find themselves lapped within the first 5 circuits of the 25-lap feature.


Please understand:  I am not knocking those cars and drivers.  I'm grateful that we have such a large contingent of competitors that want to throw their hat into the ring each Saturday night at La Crosse.  Short-track racing as a whole has been struggling as of late with car counts, but by all rights--here at La Crosse, we have very healthy numbers.  My concern is when drivers who don't have their vehicle up to a minimum speed and then struggle to get out of the way when the leaders are roaring up behind them.


I have a scanner chirping in my ears all night long.  It helps while I'm videotaping to keep track of the laps and other information that the race control tower puts out over that frequency.  When I hear Connie Garbers say, "half way," "two to go," or "one to go," it is the guidance I need to maintain my focus on the race as a whole.


But I also get to hear Race Director, Jeff Garbers say, "Car ___...leaders are coming, stay low."  And he says that repeatedly each time.  Sometimes the slower cars listen and duck down enough to allow the pack to pass safely.  Other times...it's a crap shoot.  Especially if they are all entering a turn together.


Needless to say, those are the times I make sure I have the video camera focused there.  And I even caught some of the fallout of one of those situations this past weekend.


Granted--it's not entirely the fault of the slower car.  When two drivers are engaged in a dog fight for position, it becomes a game of chicken.  Who's going to back down and avoid a 3-wide situation going into a turn?  Generally speaking, it's never going to end good.  Carnage will happen.  Feathers will get ruffled.  Rivalries will dig deeper.


If you missed the heated action from Saturday night--you can watch it here.  Take a look and feel free to share your thoughts with me.  Drop me an email.  

Stout Competition in 2012

The 2012 season at the La Crosse Speedway is going to be one of the best, in my opinion.  Already in just the first two nights of action, we've seen some familiar faces, who haven't been around for a while and always are a threat to take the checkered flag.  Granted some of these characters aren't planning on running the full season, but they are still sure to create some real excitement when they do show up to run.

Take for example, the 2010 Sportsmen champion, Rick Schermerhorn.  When I'm videotaping at the track--I know to keep the camera on him. He's got a swagger behind the wheel that warrants capturing his brash moves on the track as he picks his way to the front of the field.  Rick has told us that he won't be running the full season, but you can bet that every time he pulls his car into the pits, his competitors know they will have to battle harder for a win.

In the Thunderstox division, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that Adam Moore is back after sitting out a whole year, due to lack of funding to move up to a higher division full time after winning the support division championship in 2010.  He's another one who the video camera seems to gravitate to, merely because he knows how to slice his way through traffic and set others up to get around them deftly.  Like Schermerhorn, he's just plain fun to watch.

Probably the most obvious face that has tasted a ton of success already is NASCAR Late Model driver, Mark Lamoreaux.  With two solid performances in the first two nights--Lamoreaux finds himself in second place in the points.  Lamoreaux, like Schermerhorn, has said he won't be running the full season.  As a matter of fact, he was originally not scheduled to run this coming Saturday, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him here.  It would take a lot of gumption to NOT come back and run after getting off to such a stellar start in the season.

Then there are those who are seemingly flying under the radar--like NASCAR Late Model driver, Brad Powell, who is returning full time after sporadic appearances over the past several years.  Powell came back with a big splash on opening night--despite qualifying getting rained out--he won his heat race and the feature.  He backed that up with a top five finish last weekend and finds himself perched on top of the points.  

Then there's Greg Scheck and last year's Rookie of the Year, Brian Hesselberg.  Both are having excellent success already this season--sitting second and third respectively in the points.  Chad Rosendahl, another dark horse, quietly grabbing great finishes.  And while he hasn't been a full time racer in the Sportsmen division for a while, he finds himself in the thick of the battle right now--sitting fourth in the standings, just eight markers behind leader, Randy Humfeld.

Humfeld is one who I believe everyone knows is capable of winning on any given night--and even the Sportsmen championship, but for whatever reason, the title seems to elude him.  Perhaps this will be his year?  That division is so thick with championship contenders--even without reigning champion, Danny Gilster, who has to sit the season out or move up to Late Models or his brother, Jimmy, who is expected to return at some point this season and is a contender in his own right.  The Sportsmen division is by far--my favorite for that very reason--such a deep pool of talent.

Like Humfeld, NASCAR Late Model driver, Todd Korish has been poised to win features and ultimately, the championship.  He's quietly plucking away at the season, posting the fastest qualifying effort last Saturday.  With a seventh and eighth place finish to his record this season so far, he is likely to flip the afterburners before too long and get himself into a position to be a threat for the championship.

There are more than a handful of drivers in all of the divisions this season who can be contenders for grabbing the checkered flag--or even the championship--and that is what makes this season shaping up to be the best in a while.  If I were a gambler, I'd be at a loss as to who to plunk my money down on for the 2012 titles.  What do you think?  Drop me an email.   

Toxic Cocktail

It was quite night of racing that was served up at the La Crosse Speedway on Saturday night.  After having to postpone the season opener due to a very crabby Mother Nature, we were able to fire up the engines at the track and go racing!  Combine the overwhelming, pent up energy in the drivers together with a full moon hanging overhead in the sky...and well...that's a potentially toxic cocktail.


I was holding my breath and my video camera trying to keep the first laps of the night framed in the viewfinder.  Waiting for the other shoe to drop, we motored through a great portion of the races on the docket without much incident...until we got to the Sportsmen feature.


Cue the dramatic music.


We had a caution every one of the first three laps of that race, with that third one being the most explosive.  Tight, side-by-side racing is always a part of the action at any race track.  There will be some bumping and banging.  It's the nature of the beast.  


From what I could see in my video, Jake Arneson's car was bobbling, coming off of turn four, and he was working the wheel to try to hang onto his machine.  As Arneson slowed and began to chase his car up the track, Randy Humfeld, with the field bearing down behind him, had no where to go.  Contact was made with Humfeld's right front and Arneson's left rear, effectively turning him head-on into the oncoming freight train.


I held my breath and tried to focus my camera on his car, bracing myself for what would likely be a very heinous and injury-filled impact for Arneson.  Oh, there WAS impact.  But thankfully, the injury was primarily to his car and not to him.  It was brutal.  Did I mention that I have it on tape?  It hurts to watch it.  See for yourself.


I suspect Arneson had a cocktail of the non-toxic variety, afterward to nurse his wounds and his emotions.  What a horrible feeling to have to load your once beautiful race car, that is now a big pile of wreckage, back onto the hauler.  I hope he's able to piece it back together and come out again to race at La Crosse.  He sure had one of the better looking rides out there.  And I appreciate a racer who takes that kind of pride in having a good-looking car.


So, let's all raise our glasses and toast to Jake Arneson--that he is personally OK after a horrific accident--and that he may get the financial support to put his car back together and return to the La Crosse Speedway.  It could have been worse.  And it can always get better.  I know a guy who swears every time he's ever had to rebuild a car after a horrific wreck--it has always run BETTER.  Here's to hoping Jake has that same experience!  Good Luck Jake!

Mother Nature is one mean...

So we didn't get to go racing tonight at the La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway.  Mother Nature just wouldn't let up with the rain and at about 12:45pm, I got a text from Dave Noelke with the speedway to let me know that they had decided to "pull the plug" on the events for the night.

Unfortunately, no matter which decision the speedway made--someone would complain about it.  For every person who I heard applauding officials for calling it early--there's one who will complain that they should have waited on that call.  "Look, the rain has already stopped!"  

Sure it did.  But the air was so saturated with moisture and it was incredibly cold--it would've taken a miracle to completely dry the track--and keep it as such, should the rain start again.  I'm pretty sure that track promoter, Chuck Deery doesn't have a crystal ball.  If he did, I'd be snagging it to get the Powerball numbers early.

Where ever there is a race track, there are hundreds of "armchair promoters," who think they can do the race track promoter's job better.  Good luck with that.  There's a lot more to running a race track than you likely realize.  Imagine what it would be like to have everyone second guessing you at your job and calling your decision-making into question at every turn.  It would Suck. (Yes, with a capital "S.")

It would have been pretty miserable to be outside on a night like tonight.  I'm not being a whiner.  I'm just stating a fact.  I've long ago packed up my snowmobile suit, so it would've taken some serious effort to get it wrangled out again.  We barely had winter this year.  There are two new snowmobiles pouting in the garage at my house as proof.  So, it only makes sense that Mother Nature would turn the end of April into a winter-like feel.  She's a cruel...you...know...what.

Regardless, hopefully the extra week will allow some of the procrastinator type racers get their cars ready to roll for next Saturday.  Now if we could just get Mother Nature to be a little more supportive of everyone's efforts--we could get the 2012 season underway!  

Fire in the Belly: Not Just for Drivers

Fire in the Belly: Not Just for Drivers

Confidence is at an all-time high for everyone right now as we prepare to start a new race season.  The pits are filled with colorful, pristine race cars. Rivalries have simmered and everybody seemingly has a "clean slate" again.  I love this time of year.  Hope is huge and you can see a flicker of delight in every driver's eyes as we draw nearer to firing up the engines for opening night at the La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway.


Racing isn't easy.  It requires skill, but before that--it actually requires funding.  Sponsorships are so important for racers.  They are the notorious "make or break" piece of the puzzle for a race season.  And they can be incredibly tough to come by for anyone who lacks the skills to put together a decent proposal or present their sales pitch effectively.  That's why I cringe whenever there's a bad wreck at the track.  I'm fully aware how much money goes into putting a machine together to "play" on the weekends.  The repair bills can be staggering.


Yet, inevitably, I know at some point during the season, I will capture heinous carnage with my video camera.  It's just the nature of the beast.  Traveling at upwards of 100-mph--mere inches from one another is bound to eventually result in some twisted metal and the boiling over of hot tempers that had been in hibernation during the off-season.


The highs from a successful race can be breathtaking and the lows of a bad night can be depressingly devastating.  One week a driver and his team can seemingly do no wrong and the proverbial "golden horseshoe" is firmly lodged in that orifice where it continues to deliver lucky breaks.  But without fail, it will only be a matter of weeks before someone's nose gets out of joint over some on-track incident.  It always does.  And while it can make for some high drama--it's downright magical to watch the fans who support their respective drivers with such dedication.


I always get a kick out of the crowd reactions when the feature winner climbs out of his car on the front stretch as he is being introduced.  Sometimes they are met with deafening cheers...or boisterous boos.  Often times, it's a mixture of the two.  The passion that the fans have for their driver (or the one they feel maligned their driver) is what fuels this sport we love so much.  And I am looking forward to drinking it all in once again this season, high atop the speedway from my little videotaping perch.  So whether you're cheering or jeering--you're playing a vital role in making this sport what it is--an awesome high-speed roller-coaster ride.