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Written by Administrator
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A dedication to racing memories....
When I was a kid... my dad, my brother and myself would pull up to
Colorado's famous Lakeside Speedway in our 1967 Plymouth Fury, we would park the car and
proceed to trudge through the gravel parking lot with our army green
racing blanket under our arms (that we would eventually spread out in our favorite seats inside the Speedway).
You could hear the midgets warming up as we walked towards the entrance
of the race track and you could smell the Castor oil being burned in those offy powered
Kurtis beauties! The anticipation of getting into our seats was almost
unbearable!
We always sat in the same spot at Lakeside. Our favorite place was in
the backstraight grandstands in the covered section towards the very
top, at the turn-two end of the stands. My brother and I often sketched
midgets on the wall behind us (I wonder if those sketches still remain?).
When the lights went out and the green flag dropped is was like a
spiritual experience that I will never forget. The noise... the
cheers.. the daring moves by the heroic drivers - amazing!
Going to the restroom was even a memorable experience because I would run
across the bottom row of seats jumping the gap of each isle, what a
daredevil!
Yet the pinnacle of the night was when the pit crew members would push
out each shiny midget on its way to being lined up for the feature
event. Wow! I get goosebumps just thinking about it.
At Lakeside there was never more than 2 or 3 divisions running on race
nights so when the races were over you always left wanting more, not
feeling like you received a season full of racing in one night which is often the case these days. After
the feature was complete there was usually time to head down to the pits
to get some autographs and possibly get to sit in your favorite race car.
On the way home I would fall fast asleep, dreaming of winning the
feature by making a daring last lap pass and kissing the trophy girl. The next week... we would do it all over again.
These are the memories..... these very special memories (and I am sure you have your own similar memories) that drives AutoRacingMemories.com.
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