Hi Tom : You brought up a name I will never forget ( Perris Raceway ) Way back in 1973 I was an a trike racing group called the American Tri-Wheelers and we held race events all over the California desert and we had one race that was at the Escape Country Moto Cross track and I was in that race with my Tri-Sport. We set up a race down in Perris and it was a flat track and to make it more interesting they bulldozed a off road section off the main track around rocks that were big as houses. And then we went back up onto the flat track section. The return ramp was cut too sharp and the trikes were getting as much as 8 feet off the ground and didn't always land in a three point landing. So they added more dirt to the ramp and we had some great times there.
We were allowed to attend the Saturday night flat track races and camp out overnight and have our races on Sunday. Well the announcer talked to the crowd about our tricycles having races the next day well the tricycle comment made one of our riders mad and he challenged the racers there to a 10 lap shoot out Trike against their track champion. That was a rider on a hot triumph bike and the race started and on lap 7 or 8 Jerry Smith lapped the track champion and it was a thrilling race to see the Trike do the high speed power slides. We also did the same type of track and off road course at the Corona Speedway Track. Those were fun times for us Trikers.
Steve
We were allowed to attend the Saturday night flat track races and camp out overnight and have our races on Sunday. Well the announcer talked to the crowd about our tricycles having races the next day well the tricycle comment made one of our riders mad and he challenged the racers there to a 10 lap shoot out Trike against their track champion. That was a rider on a hot triumph bike and the race started and on lap 7 or 8 Jerry Smith lapped the track champion and it was a thrilling race to see the Trike do the high speed power slides. We also did the same type of track and off road course at the Corona Speedway Track. Those were fun times for us Trikers.
Steve
Thanks. None of this has much to do w/minis, but it occupies a lot of my time and is fun to share w/other motorheads. Barber Motorsports Park includes the museum, racetrack, school etc. It's about about a twenty minute drive from downtown Birmingham. I will definitely go back there if the chance comes up again.
Home - Official Site of the Barber Motorsports Park
Home - Official Site of the Barber Motorsports Park
It starts all over again tomorrow. After a winter of hanging out in local horse barns I get to go back out on the road to follow the AMA Pro Flat Track series, starting with Daytona Beach. I think I'll get to attend around ten of the fourteen races and will see some that I haven't been to before. I'm really excited for this summer's prospects. Here's a Google Earth shot of the Daytona track. It's a crushed limestone 1/4-mile oval that sits outside the Speedway's turn 1-2 banking. They will run a double-header, with racing on Thursday and Friday. On Saturday the Daytona 200 road race happens inside the speedway.
As our plane descended through cloudy and somewhat bumpy skies on final approach to Orlando this afternoon, we were still a few miles out when the aircraft accelerated and began to climb again. Then a calm voice came over the speakers.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the captain. Sorry for the delay, but we've had a problem with the flaps and will have to go around again. We ran through some checklists and we'll land in five or six minutes, but at a higher speed than normal. Don't worry. Orlando has really long runways and this is the sort of thing we train for all the time on the simulator."
The landing seemed ordinary, but there were fire trucks, ambulances and other emergency vehicles lining the runway. More were waiting nearby as the plane pulled up to the gate.
Welcome to Florida. :laugh:
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the captain. Sorry for the delay, but we've had a problem with the flaps and will have to go around again. We ran through some checklists and we'll land in five or six minutes, but at a higher speed than normal. Don't worry. Orlando has really long runways and this is the sort of thing we train for all the time on the simulator."
The landing seemed ordinary, but there were fire trucks, ambulances and other emergency vehicles lining the runway. More were waiting nearby as the plane pulled up to the gate.
Welcome to Florida. :laugh:
This morning's flights from Orlando to Denver, and then on to Portland were uneventful.
But as United flight #1175 from Denver began its final descent into Portland from the east early this afternoon, the Boeing 737-900 began to shake from side to side, and to gain and lose altitude faster than your stomach could follow. The movements worsened as the ground approached. Passengers gasped and looked at each other.
The Columbia River's Glenn Jackson Bridge could be seen passing below, but the plane was over the river instead of the runway, which runs parallel to it. You could see whitecaps on the water.
The bridge and freeway roughly mark the airport's eastern boundary. Once you reach that point, ground contact is seconds away. But with the aircraft now heaving violently, the engines roared and the plane climbed upward. The flight attendant's nervous voice came over the speakers.
“Ladies and gentlemen, for those of you who are wondering what just happened, we have apparently experienced a missed approach. I assume we'll be going around try again.”
Several minutes later, the plane started its descent once more. There was less shaking this time, but it still felt near what must be the edge of control.
The airplane touched the ground and bounced, touched again, slewed sideways and seemed to skid as the tail swung to the right, just as though the pilot was backing it in on a dirt track. Then it straightened and rolled to a stop.
For the second time in a week our flight ended with the sound of applause filling the cabin. People then sat quietly for several moments instead of the normal rush to the aisle.
A man seated nearby vomited into a bag. Another person cried. The basketball team from a local Christian college was on board, and some of them could be heard quietly giving praise.
“Have a wonderful day,” announced the flight attendant as the cabin door was opened. “We look forward to having you back soon.”
Arriving home, the TV news was filled with stories of disrupted flights and moderate damage across the area from a windstorm that moved through just as the plane was landing.
Welcome to Oregon. :laugh:
But as United flight #1175 from Denver began its final descent into Portland from the east early this afternoon, the Boeing 737-900 began to shake from side to side, and to gain and lose altitude faster than your stomach could follow. The movements worsened as the ground approached. Passengers gasped and looked at each other.
The Columbia River's Glenn Jackson Bridge could be seen passing below, but the plane was over the river instead of the runway, which runs parallel to it. You could see whitecaps on the water.
The bridge and freeway roughly mark the airport's eastern boundary. Once you reach that point, ground contact is seconds away. But with the aircraft now heaving violently, the engines roared and the plane climbed upward. The flight attendant's nervous voice came over the speakers.
“Ladies and gentlemen, for those of you who are wondering what just happened, we have apparently experienced a missed approach. I assume we'll be going around try again.”
Several minutes later, the plane started its descent once more. There was less shaking this time, but it still felt near what must be the edge of control.
The airplane touched the ground and bounced, touched again, slewed sideways and seemed to skid as the tail swung to the right, just as though the pilot was backing it in on a dirt track. Then it straightened and rolled to a stop.
For the second time in a week our flight ended with the sound of applause filling the cabin. People then sat quietly for several moments instead of the normal rush to the aisle.
A man seated nearby vomited into a bag. Another person cried. The basketball team from a local Christian college was on board, and some of them could be heard quietly giving praise.
“Have a wonderful day,” announced the flight attendant as the cabin door was opened. “We look forward to having you back soon.”
Arriving home, the TV news was filled with stories of disrupted flights and moderate damage across the area from a windstorm that moved through just as the plane was landing.
Welcome to Oregon. :laugh:
Daytona Beach, Fla., was a blast. Last Thursday and Friday was the doubleheader season opener for the AMA Pro Flat Track series. I believe that more than half of the racers are still in their teens. Everyone is fresh faced and full of optimism for the coming season. The bikes all have fresh plastic and graphics, the riders have new outfits and everyone is happy to be together again and in a warm place for a few days. Besides the racers and their families, I got to reconnect with the organizers and other reporters and photographers that I last saw in October.
I love covering this event. The light-colored crushed limestone track makes a good backdrop and there are multiple sight lines for shooting photos. The track is small so I don't have to walk too far, and the infield is nice and grassy. I took more than 2,000 photos, interviewed nearly a dozen racers, and wrote a couple of race reports and an opinion piece. It was a lot of work and I loved every minute of it. I wish I could make a living doing this but that's not likely to happen. The organizers made some changes to the program that were good. There was a decent turnout of spectators each day and the shows ran smoothly.
On Thursday night while the riders were being introduced, one fellow dripped to his knee and offered his marriage proposal to his girlfriend. She accepted on the spot, to everyone's relief. He must have been pretty confident. The racers from my area had their ups and downs, but were able to visit the main event awards podium.
On Saturday I went inside the speedway to watch the Daytona 200 road race. Last year I got to watch from the top of a friend's transporter. He wasn't there this year, but another spectator invited to watch from the top of his "Redneck Taj Mahal." I have a credential that would allow me onto the course, but this place is huge and you need a different lens setup than I have to really do it right. Here are a bunch of photos.
I love covering this event. The light-colored crushed limestone track makes a good backdrop and there are multiple sight lines for shooting photos. The track is small so I don't have to walk too far, and the infield is nice and grassy. I took more than 2,000 photos, interviewed nearly a dozen racers, and wrote a couple of race reports and an opinion piece. It was a lot of work and I loved every minute of it. I wish I could make a living doing this but that's not likely to happen. The organizers made some changes to the program that were good. There was a decent turnout of spectators each day and the shows ran smoothly.
On Thursday night while the riders were being introduced, one fellow dripped to his knee and offered his marriage proposal to his girlfriend. She accepted on the spot, to everyone's relief. He must have been pretty confident. The racers from my area had their ups and downs, but were able to visit the main event awards podium.
On Saturday I went inside the speedway to watch the Daytona 200 road race. Last year I got to watch from the top of a friend's transporter. He wasn't there this year, but another spectator invited to watch from the top of his "Redneck Taj Mahal." I have a credential that would allow me onto the course, but this place is huge and you need a different lens setup than I have to really do it right. Here are a bunch of photos.
I missed a chance to go down to San Diego for the Del Mar indoor short track. Turns out they run actual old minis, so I'll have to see about getting this on my schedule when it comes up again.
Return to Del Mar Flat Track 2015 - YouTube
Return to Del Mar: Short Track by the Beach - YouTube
Return to Del Mar Flat Track 2015 - YouTube
Return to Del Mar: Short Track by the Beach - YouTube
No races on my schedule this weekend, but I was able to get out my old Yamaha RD 350 and take a spin down to the local bike swap meet at Portland's See See Motor Coffee Company. This was a really small affair, but there was some interesting stuff to paw through. The hit of the meet was this Indian mini.
My laptop died a few weeks ago. It's a MacBook Pro that I bought in 2011. I've jazzed it up a bit w/more ram and a solid state hard drive. While I tried to self-diagnose the problem I used an older Mac that I'd given to my wife when this one came along. Using hers was a pain because it's, well, just different. I finally visited the Apple store last week, but feared they wouldn't touch it because of the aftermarket bits I'd added. No problem. The tech said the video card had failed and they would fix it for free. Turnaround time was four days. On a four-year-old machine with no extended warranty. Sweet.
In the meantime, I've visited races in Rainer, Wash., and Sacramento and Lodi, Calif. Those were all fun trips. I'll post a few shots after I retrieve them from my wife's computer. This weekend I'm at the Dirt Quake event in Castle Rock, Wash. This is billed as a race for inappropriate motorcycles. There will be choppers racing, and last year there were snowmobiles tearing around the dirt oval, but I haven't seen any of those arrive here yet. There are lots of mini cycles, GT80s, XR80s and such. This is shaping up to be fun. Next weekend I'll be in Lima, Ohio, for a pro flat track event there, and then in DuQuoin, Ill., the following weekend for more of the same. This is the life. Yesterday my wife told me again that she's fine w/this, as long as I've got a day job to pay the bills and I'm having fun.
Check out the vid from last year's event.
DIRT QUAKE USA 2015
In the meantime, I've visited races in Rainer, Wash., and Sacramento and Lodi, Calif. Those were all fun trips. I'll post a few shots after I retrieve them from my wife's computer. This weekend I'm at the Dirt Quake event in Castle Rock, Wash. This is billed as a race for inappropriate motorcycles. There will be choppers racing, and last year there were snowmobiles tearing around the dirt oval, but I haven't seen any of those arrive here yet. There are lots of mini cycles, GT80s, XR80s and such. This is shaping up to be fun. Next weekend I'll be in Lima, Ohio, for a pro flat track event there, and then in DuQuoin, Ill., the following weekend for more of the same. This is the life. Yesterday my wife told me again that she's fine w/this, as long as I've got a day job to pay the bills and I'm having fun.
Check out the vid from last year's event.
DIRT QUAKE USA 2015
The Dirt Quake event was crazy. They ran a regular club race on Saturday evening, followed by a huge party, and then races for "inappropriate" bikes the next day. There were lots of people there who wouldn't normally be at a race, and a bunch of them raced for the first time. Saturday night's party started just before midnight, with the announcer saying "We have free beer and live music starting in the pit area right now." Holy smokes. It only took moments for the impromptu pit bike races to begin, and just a few minutes later someone pulled out a plywood jump and bikes were flying over people lined up on the ground. The music and beer were planned. The mayhem that followed was totally unscripted. Beyond that, there were a number of minis, some cool motorcycles, old campers and cars. It was just a blast.
Last weekend's race was at the Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, Ohio. This was a pro event, so no minis or free beer, like the weekend prior. Ohio is known for pea gravel tracks. The racing surface on this half-mile track is a deep cushion of pea gravel and soil, just like you'd find on a river bottom. Could be dredge tailings for all I know. The bikes sort of swim around in it and throw up huge rooster tails that make me think of what it would be like if gravel shot out of a fire hose. Riding close behind another bike might leave the rider w/that impression, too. Most of the bikes had thick layers of tape covering painted surfaces and shiny bits. And most of the riders end up with bruises all along their arms from being pelted w/gravel, even though they wear leather suits. It rained like heck for two days before the race, so they had to delay the race for a day to let the track dry out. But the gravel drained pretty quickly once it stopped raining and it turned out to be a good event, with a great turnout of racers and fans. By the end of they day it turned dusty and they had to water it. The first shot shows the spray of gravel off a bike's rear wheel. The second shot shows what it's like to be on the receiving end and get a faceful of it.
The weekend we'll be at the mile track at the fairgrounds in Du Quoin, Illinois.
The weekend we'll be at the mile track at the fairgrounds in Du Quoin, Illinois.
On my trip to Ohio last weekend I flew in and out of Indianapolis. I spent a night in Richmond, Indiana, and found the National Model T Museum there. I love stopping at places like this. It was small, w/about a dozen cars, a fire truck and airplane w/Model T engines and some other displays. The docent said it's only about three years old, and owned by the National Model T Club. He said they have chapters in forty-four states. I really liked the cutaway engine/drivetrain display. I whipped out my pocket magnet to confirm the engine has cast-iron pistons.
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