Economics 101: Class is in Session
By Paul Pittman
Stevens Point, WI (Jan 27, 2006): I'm baa-ack! At least for now anyway. And you all thought you were safe. Safe from whom is my question. It seems the powers at be have been taking advantage of their down time thinking up ways to save teams money again. Yep! So get out your check books and credit cards! Here we go again. You would think that if history has taught us anything, it's that every time a rule is changed or added, it costs money. The reasoning doesn't matter in the end. Oh yeah, I forgot the weight rule. Well, yeah I guess it worked but how much money was spent on making the car faster and more powerful to compensate for the weight? That's what I am trying to get at here. It's not so much questioning those rules; it's the end result, let alone the justification of them that I don't get. Throw in the misplaced logic and you have a recipe for more controversy. Who knows? Maybe the powers that be have been watching a little too much WWE wrestling lately and are looking at ways to boost interest through controversy. I suppose it would work. Hell, anyone who knows me already knows that is how I do some of my research for shows. Studying what fans feed off and what they are buying tickets to and figuring out how to convert that into front gate tickets at a sprint car race is something that takes both a clear head and a twisted mind. (You figure that one out for yourself)
Nope, the powers that be already had their minds made up long before "soliciting" input from drivers and teams. By the way, did the car owners get asked? They are going to set the world on fire, again. They are going to make a difference in sprint car racing, saving it from the greedy manufacturers of components and materials. They are going to make a difference and make sure teams do not go broke trying to keep up with the Kinsers. If you don't believe them, just ask guys like Ty and Tim Bartz, Kenny and Scott Biertzer, Ed Gifford and Joe Symoens, along with the other hundreds of teams across the country. Ask them when you see them having to buy the new equipment to replace the old stuff that is no longer good or can't compete any longer. Ask them just how much money that last rule change saved them.
While much of what I am directing this at is more on a national level, (I'm already waiting for the phone calls and emails to come in from the IRA guys), I have to wonder just how much is due to the chaos at that level. Each body trying to distinguish itself from the other and liken itself as "The Answer". Eventually though, all those rules and conflict do in fact make their way down to the guys we support each and every week at the local track, or even the regional series thinking that they are safe from those elements.
Don't get me wrong, rules are there for a purpose and are fine as long as they do not interfere with the spirit of the sport, but those who are making rules for the sake of making them, with the premise of saving money should keep one rule in mind. Devise REAL rules that save REAL money.
OK, classes are dismissed but do your homework and remember the test at the end of the year, when filing your taxes or just trying to balance your budget. Now let's get on with some news.
News and Notes from "The Infield":
Not a whole lot going on in all reality so I'll touch on some things of interest to bring you up to date.
Scott Young has been hired to drive the #1H that saw Matt Folstad and Gregg Bakker take turns at in 2005. Matt, who was hurt at Antigo drove the car to two track records along with several legitimate shots at wins. Gregg stepped in toward the end of the year and proved that he was just as fast and also saw victory just slip through his fingers. Gregg will be focusing on WISSOTA and Jackson duties in 2006 so the Wiuff's went looking for another driver. There was speculation of several being hired including Joe Roe and Travis Whitney, but as of January 26th, the job went to Scott Young. Scott is very excited about the opportunity and is committed to the 2006 IRA Championship, which he just missed in 05. Scott also brings equipment along with his ability to the team, solidifying it that much more so unlike 2005, when a sleeper entered the picture by winning the 1st race of the year and stayed in the picture all year long, Scott and Ronnie have served notice that in order to win the IRA title in 06, you are going to have to try and beat the #1H. Easier said then done.
With the 06 season creeping closer, the IRA schedule nears completion. Several 2-day events dot the schedule as the series continues to advance. "The Masters" at the Cedar Lake Speedway is back once again and we'll have to see if the sprint car portion of the event is treated in the same respect as it was in 05. I say that simply because, entering the 05 version of "The Masters" the IRA was basically viewed as a support division for the high paying Late Model show. Proving to provide a very exciting back-to-back show (and converting more than a few late model fans along the way) it would seem to me that the 06 version might be looked at just a little differently. I'm not taking anything away from the Late Model shows, just saying that the event has all the potential to be more than the way it was billed in 2005. Also appearing on the schedule will be the 2-day Summer Sizzler in Antigo along with new venues as well as returns to classic stops. You can watch how the schedule evolves and start circling dates by visiting the IRA's website at www.irasprints.com.
Speaking of Joe Roe, the 9-time IRA champ journeyed to the Chili Bowl once again to do a little winter midget racing indoors. Bad draws really were the story of the weekend for Joe and in a field of 260 entries, drawing well is probably the single most important aspect of a good weekend. A 7th place finish in Saturday's 2nd D-Main would be the culmination of the weekend. But hey, why despair? Open wheel racing in January: Come on, everyone wins!
Wayne Johnson had a good run on Saturday carrying the FattFro Challenge decals. Wayne, who entered the event as a rookie, ran the alphabet on Saturday, starting in Saturday's 2nd F-Main and advanced all the way through to a 23rd place finish in the A Main. Wayne thrilled his hometown fans, passing a total of 53 cars along the way. Wayne will race in ASCS competition in 2006 as FattFro Motorsports parks the 14AJ 410 sprinter. Although an occasional visit or appearance is not ruled out in the future, the immediate plans for FattFro lies in a different direction. Somewhere in Knoxville, someone is breaths a little easier.
Don't forget the Bartz's fundraiser on Feb 18th in Howards Grove. Tim and Ty put on a great party and have some great ideas to make this year's even better. Click on the date on the IRA's website for complete details.
Not a whole lot going on up in Antigo right now, except for preparation for the awards banquet which will be held on Saturday, February 25th. Complete details and ticket order forms can be found at their website located at www.langladespeedway.com. The 2006 schedule will include the same divisions at the speedway as in 2005, with the Indian Summer Classic crowning the season off again. That schedule will also be posted very soon as it is nearly finished. Work on the turn one and two guardrails will commence immediately after the snowmobile race at the end of February.
Well, that should pretty much do it for now. You'd think that after almost two months, I'd have more but hey, what can I say. Sometimes, no news is good news. Besides, it all seems to be happening at the national level and so, until they get that all sorted out, I choose to stay out of it and let them sort it out themselves. The rules issues above is probably enough to get me in hot water already with them, but I'm used to that. So, that all being said, it's time to start working on taxes. For anyone who doesn't know how to already and want to complain that I am missing the mark again or how meaningless my thoughts are, (and I'll remind you all that long before gas prices became a big part of planning a weekend, I told you it would so put that in your pipe and smoke it too!) you can still reach me at ira@arpppix.com.