North Country Race Talk

There has been a lot of talk about rules, but what about staffing? Hopefully there will be qualified personal running the show with plenty of experience. We do not need the same delays etc.... that we have seen on race day at AIS. Hopefully there will be a good well experienced staff running the show. We need individuals with years of experience in the race scene and know how to put on a quality show.

i know alot of the people that worked for caprara stayed at can am so i dont know who they will get, like i said before though, i believe adrian flath was the best tech guy when we run the junkyard class but i dought he would come back with jeff racing the sprint cars, now i am not sure if both techs from can am are staying there, i know Lloyd is staying but not sure of the other guy, i hate to say it but i have a feeling alot of the ais officials are probably tring to get into evans mills, might not be a bad thing aslong as paul isnt there to reverse tech rulings. i know there is a need for more than 1 tech, it would almost be nice to have a rep for each class that we can go to for tech, rules or any questions we might have.

For the good of short-track racing at Evans Mills, PLEASE, PLEASE do no allow the use of two-way radio communication between drivers and teams. If we leave any of the B.S. & mentally retarded ideas from AIS behind, let's make sure it's this silly waste of a teams cash! I have never heard of entry level cars/classes having to spend that kind of money to create that kind of block-fest. It's one thing to get beat by a better driver, but to get beat/blocked by a radio is completly insane. Bad enough guys would rather out-spend on engines/tires etc. but a two-way radio really crosses the line and puts the "have-not's" WAAAYYYY behind the "Have's".

Having a spotter barking in your ear to block a faster car/truck lap after lap, leads to (trust me); the chrome horn, and then, the audio-assisted driver takes issue with being moved out of the way. Kinda the way it is with short-track racing (anybody ever see a race from Bristol?), but the tears always flow after getting "dumped".

JMO. I know everybody who blew the $400 or whatever on a radio set-up last year will lobby agaist my use of logic & common sense, but please, think about ways to grow entry-level racing at Evans Mills, not ways to scare the 1/2 poverty-stricken, wanna-be racer out of the sport.

With the close proximity of the housing development, we may want to consider requiring mufflers in all the classes to be more neighborly. Maybe planting some fast growing trees (Norway Spruce Seedlings) as a sound barrier between the track and the development showing we're making an effort before noise becomes an issue. Just thinking out loud.

Instead of mufflers lets doze the housing and make a bigger track! or get everyone in the housing to come to the races since the bigger track probably is out of the question

nah we can just go over there and make a road course through the housing, i bet they would watch then. on a serious note, if we think we need fans, i think the first week or two should be a fan appreciation night. not charge fans or drivers, no purse just go out have fun. i know they would lose money but in the long run we might be able to get more fans on a weekly basis. hell i just want the trophy at the end of the night, i dont care about the money.

I completely disagree with not allowing radios.......

People will block regardless, most can hear a car coming from behind, and know to "protect the bottom". Radios in my opinion are one of the best ways to prevent safety situations. In my entire setup (2 radios, headset, and some cords from radio shack..) I have 200.00 total (gotta love ebay)

I had posted this before, but two years ago, without radios, I had a front caliper stick. It cooked the right front rotor, wheel bearing, spindle, etc. Now it was painfully obvious to all that this was happening, as the entire right front was glowing red. To me in the car, I had no idea... With a radio my spotter could have told me this, had me pull off, and save a lot of points, a lot of money, and a lot of late nights in the garage getting it back together. Not to mention I was lucky the right front broke loose as I was enetering the pits.

Fast forward to this year, I had a right rear hub brake, destroying the rear brake, igniting the brake fluid on fire. Again this was in practice, the tower had no idea this was happening, but my spotter who was solely focused on me could tell me this, get the car stopped, and I knew from him to get out because of a fire. Without a radio I wouldn't have known.

Again, people will always block in racing.... They'll find a way. A better thing to do is if it is suspected that the radios are being used for blocking, have the teams give their frequencies to the tower, and have them check in on the transmissions from "time to time" to make sure this doesn't happen.

Sounds like if the tower had been "on it" they could have told you about both of the situations you describe.

Does anybody know of any track other than AIS to allow entry level classes radio communicaion (but not mirrors?). Safety can't be the sticking point, as that is the reasoning behind mandating the one-way. Gotta have somebody competent enough on the transmitting end to do the job right.

An easier way to prevent radio-blocking would be to do what every other short track does: prohibit the use of two-way communication in entry-level divisions.

I don't expect radios will be forbidden, as the people who matter have already spent the money and bought the block in a box. Evans Mills was a one-groove deal without the use of radios, this will be a freight train fest with you guys using radios.

Yep, keeping the guy behind you, behind you is the point, but make them find a way, don't gift wrap it! Let the driver drive.

The fans will probably make out best though; guys will tire quickly of being cut-off and blocked, and will then dump the radio-wielding no-drive. Cars will be torn up, tempers to flare, fights will follow! It'll be great from the stands, for sure!!!

let's be honest, with a class of 20 + cars on the track, there is no way the tower can monitor all cars, and see all potential problems at all areas of the track. It's not physically possible. Now a spotter, that is solely watching your car, can. That is my point.

"The fans will probably make out best though; guys will tire quickly of being cut-off and blocked, and will then dump the radio-wielding no-drive. Cars will be torn up, tempers to flare, fights will follow! It'll be great from the stands, for sure!!!"

I'm pretty sure I saw this plenty of times two years ago in certain classes without the radios. They didn't need spotters to help "dump the radio-wielding no drivers??". (sounds like we're a bunch of renegades running zig zag all over the track....)

Again, racers will find a way regardless of the radios if they so choose.

Why not have a great safety item, use it the way it is needed, and police it correctly. All that is needed is if blocking is suspected, listen to that frequency and if that is happening, they lose the radio. That simple. Why penalize and get rid of a great safety tool when it can be implemented properly.

I see another side of it. I run a full containment seat. I'll be honest it is difficult to see over my left shoulder due to the head restarint. The radio allows my spotter to tell me if someone is under me in a corner, and then I need to give room. I would rather run cleanly and give room when I need, rather than fix my car all week long because I was in the wrong and did not give room. Now the choice is mine, run a safer seat with a radio, or a cheaper, less safe seat because I can't use a radio but need to see. I think I'd rather have the safety.

20 cars? I must have missed that day!!

Looked like a bunch of guys rolled something in Zig-Zags from where I sat last year...

Again, I hope we all know that the point of the game is to keep the guy behind you, behind you. It's just my hope that some talent and a good car set-up should be more important than the ability of over-funded teams to spend the money on a radio. Again, JMO (& yes, poverty sucks).

The one-way levels the playing field a bit... I understand your point about safety, but the tower has to be aware of what's happening on the track, and if this is the case, the drivers will get as much SAFETY information as they need. Yes, it would be great to have somebody who cares about the car/truck you are driving watching out for dangers to your car, but that's not what's going on every lap.

I admit that I do not know how the 2-way works, can the driver still hear the tower? If not, that's a major issue, b/c let's remember, your spotter can't keep track of 20+ cars either...

I read in an ealier post that most can hear a car coming from behind, and know to "protect the bottom". Unless a car has a full containment seat?? If the bottom is your line, protect the life out of it. If you are aware enough to know that a faster competitor is making a move on the outside, then by all means protect your position.

Not here for a pee-pee contest, just trying to save shoe string-budget guys some money, think of ways to better the show and try not to find new ways to grassroots motorsports in NNY. And, as I say, I don't expect common sense or dollar saving thinking to prevail in this discussion, I assume that radios will be allowed in 2010, sleeper racing will more than likely result.

i would add no 3 disc or 2 disc lightweight clutches like some teams had last year.im all for more left side,NO RADIOS. THANKS ANGRY DAVE.

i like the id of the radios but i cant afford them.....

i didnt see them stop JR from winning"good job by the way JR"and he didnt have a radio, dinzler didnt have one either " YOU WILL GET THEM NEXT YEAR" good old dave did have one either...
so tell me that the radios help them win!!!

mike had one but i didnt see him use it to hurt anyone or use it to block... i got to watch a lot of races from the pits last year "damm bugs" lol...

there was 7 drivers out of one shop and two or three may have radios and they did not block for jason

all the guys i talk about are the guys i watch when i was driving truck.... they are the best of the best on the track and there so many to talk about but no time
i have learn alot from all of them...

so with or with out the radio i will be back next year racing in the super stock class... lol... as long as those damm, bugs dont come back... i like to race on the track and not watch it in the pits... lol.....

oh ya lets just be thankful we have a race track to race at....

thank you billie, charlie and to the VanTassel's for making this happen for all of us weekend racer....

see you in the spring

HEY CHUCK GET IT RIGHT! THE ONLY ONE WE BLOCKED WAS STEVE BURTON BECAUSE
HE WAS RUNNING A BIG BLOCK LAST YEAR,OTHERWISE HE WOULD HAVE WON EVERY WEEK. NOW HIS SECRET IS OUT AND NEXT YEAR HE WILL HAVE TO RUN BY THE RULES! SORRY STEVE DIDNT MEAN TO THROW YOU UNDER THE BUS

Scott,

It's OK, there are days when that's the best hiding spot so my wife can't find me!

Rules are so over rated anyway. They are like speed limit signs...just suggestions, right? They do lead to some interesting whining on these forums though! Hope the rules stay the same so I can run my nitrous-powered Corvette legally! Next time you're bumped from behind though, look in that illegal mirror of yours or have your spotter tell you it's ME knocking on your door and to get out of the way!

Can hardly wait for Racing Season!

Dont worry about the spotter, he speaks in braille and I havn't figured that out yet