Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

Seems every time there is a race at Eldora all I read is about how shitty the track prep is and how great it used to be before the old man retired and sold to Stewart. Maybe it's time to give a shout out to the best track prep crew around, Fred Putney at Lincoln Speedway in Hanover. Send Tony's crew out there for a season to train and learn how to make a track look and work great. A Tuesday night show (after they just raced on the track Saturday night) of Mud Busses (modifieds) and 360 Sprints, 4 heats each and 2 consi's showed minimal to no dust and plenty of grooves to race upon. The track didn't become one groove until about lap 25 of the final race of the night a 60 lap modified feature. Every trip to Lincoln Speedway provides some of the best 2 and 3 wide racing around in a Sprint Car and the Modifieds were 4 wide on numerous occasions (although not pretty 4 wide on that track).

And of course Lincoln and Eldora are the same exact type of dirt right? And the exact same track configuration?

Then why start another thread on the same topic?

The cars don't go fast enough at Lincoln to create dust...I'd rather drive 8 hours to Eldora anyway.

I heard the URC took over control at Lincoln Saturday night

_

Sounds like Tony should have sold it to a crane outfit for storage and bought Manzanita instead. JMO.

Sean,

Tucson.

!!SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL TRACKS!!
!!Get Well Shane!! 

Fred Putney must have taken a vacation day when USAC was on their eastern swing.

In the year 2011, I wonder why EVERY track in the country still uses water trucks? Pretty much no matter what track you normally frequent I'm betting the best shows you see (track prep wise) happen after a good amount of rain!

Picture this for example...ELDORA SPEEDWAY Saturday afternoon at the Royal: They walk around the track and open valves to the water line system thats installed on top of the wall (like a huge sprinkler system) and get all the water they can on it. Now send out the push trucks and MAKE the race cars wheel pack!!!!!

Just my opinion

do it in the dirt

A huge AMEN. Last year was an absolute joke. Lincoln's surface is no better than their restrooms.

Luna's Ford engine style that won 2 WoO titles and 3 
Kings Royals before a weight rule against the best EVER
in their prime and now DOMINATES super dirt late model
racing is no longer allowed/wanted in a WoO sprint
car.... Was Luna a miracle worker?

I've seen some pretty crappy surfaces at Lincoln as well.

Easy to tell you have never prep a track

It is not all how much but where you put the water

Drivers love to wheel pack

Why not just put asphalt on them and call it done?

Ask Frank

I've only been to Lincoln once but, the track prep that night was phenominal. Late into that evening the skys opened up and a very hard down pour came. The track crew got to work on the surface right away and it was just as good as it was before the rains and it didn't take them long to get it back in shape.

I can't speak for any other occasion but, I was definately impressed that night.

...

silly me, stupid ass statement once again! I forgot how when it rains the race track gets different amounts of water in certain places, thats what makes them fast! Ya i know nothing about prepping a race track, never done it, never will, im just a big waste of oxygen and skin. and if the drivers want to quit bitchin about track prep, they'll F*****G wheel pack!

do it in the dirt

Actually the sprinkler system is not a bad idea at all. The Ditch at West Memphis had a sprinkler system for many, many years. I personally remember it being used as far back as 1981. They would turn it on Friday evening and let it run all night. The new owner removed the sprinkler when he bought the track in late 2006 and now uses a water truck. Apparently the water truck must be broken down some, or else he doesn't have the budget to buy gas for it. This track advertises "incredibly tacky" on the T-Shirts it sells. It isn't that way any more, but it used to be when they had the sprinkler system. Now I hold my breath and hope for the best when I travel up there for a race. Last time it was OK, but it was horrible in 2008 when I went up there for an ASCOC race.

$40K sprint car engines aren't built to idle around filling the oil pan with methanol. And methanol is so much cheaper than gasoline plus 410's get great fuel economy too. How hard is it to get a few POS cars that can't pass inspection, bolt on some Late Model wheels, and have a couple of 16 year old kids circle the track to pack it.

Maybe Eldora should buy some John Deere Farm equipment and then invite Tom Helfrich to come up and test drive it for him.

The Helfrich's dont seem to have to much trouble keeping Tri State Speedway in Haubstadt Indiana in top shape despite the heat.

There's no doubt Tom is number 1 in this field Andrew but he is working with an entirely different clay and therein lies a major difference. I had many conversations with him back in the day and he certainly had it down to a science but you have to work the track OFTEN to maintain it which is what I think may be the problem at the Big E and has been for some time now....

Yep, to prepare a good surface, you must have good clay to begin with. Skagit owner Steve Beitler had been hearing the complaints from drivers and fans about the dust for a few years, so he traveled speedweek taking samples from all the other tracks in the NW to have them analized for moisture content, and other qualities. Seems that there are fewer complaints these days. Track prep isn`t rocket science, but maybe some science would help!!

.... track prep in my opinion has not kept up with the technological advancement of sprint cars in the four decades that i have been a fan...

some thoughts that i have wondered about...

underground sprinklers...

and growing grass on the track in the off season...?

(no... not the kind for a bong...)

I can remember when Earl b. owned track there was a picture of fans in a corner. They had goggles and face breathing mask on. tHEY WRE COVERED WITH DIRT.