RacingWest: Ron, a lot of us know you as the promoter of Yakima Speedway
and the ASA NW Tour, but could you give us some of your racing history, how
you got involved and all that good stuff?
Ron Bennett: I started racing stock cars in 1962 at Soap Lake
Speedway in Central Washington – Married my wife, Gale on a Friday, raced
Saturday night and went to Evergreen on Sunday to watch late models –
After over 40 plus years of marriage she now helps with the operation of Yakima
Speedway – Won a few championships along the way but mostly just enjoyed
the people and friends in the industry – I have worked in the automotive
field my entire life.
RW: When you think back to all the good times in racing, is there a
race that brings a smile to your face? How come that race is such a special
memory?
RB: My last win in a late model, many years ago – Had
a very close race with Brad Tidrick and Sam Rose – won by about two feet
in a three wide finish – The boys had started racing and somehow I felt
this would be my last win – Time to turn over the wheel.
RW: Of all the drivers past or present, who is Ron’s hero? What
is the most admirable quality of that driver?
RB: Bobby Allison – Came to race at Yakima a
couple of times – Took time out for my young family at the time –
Locally, have to mention Jack Jeffery, Don Dowdy, Harry Jefferson and from a
long time ago, Gordy Hanes – How they conduct themselves both on and off
the track – Driving abilities are very important, but how they treat fans,
other drivers, officials and families are more important to me – I have
watched great racers, but how they conduct themselves, especially under trying
situations, is what makes them great, either on a local level or on the national
scene.
RW: We are making tomorrow’s good ol’ days, today. Isn’t
that odd to think, something you are doing today will be the memory of a fan
or driver tomorrow? Making good memories is probably not as easy as it was in
the past. How is promoting today different?
RB: More demand for the entertainment dollar –
More expense to keep a track going and generally hard to make a buck –
Racers face the exact same issues – Racing in general is a much more difficult
challenge today, in any class, than just a few short years ago.
RW: You do a great job of announcing out at Yakima. I know because
I have heard you. What is the most challenging part of being an announcer?
RB: Thanks for the compliment but there are many good
announcers out there – I try to inform the fans about special talents,
interests, hobbies etc. that the race teams, not only the drivers, are involved
in – Sometimes, we as announcers, forget that new fans are in the stands
– They need to be informed of the things we take for granted – where
the restrooms are – What are the differences in the cars – What
is the format for the days racing – And one of the hardest things to do
is to try to make qualifying entertaining for the fan – If the announcer
can get excited about a driver setting a best personal time, for example, then
the fans seem to react to what is usually a dull portion of the evening –
Excitement during time trials seems to set the tone of the crowd for the evening.
RW: As the Promoter of Yakima, what accomplishment are you most proud
of?
RB: My actual title is track manager – Ted
Pollock owns and is the promoter of Yakima Speedway – We work very closely
in the promotion of the old track – If I have any accomplishments, it
is my relationship with the majority of the racers and our fans and sponsors
– They may not always agree with me, or me with them, but know that I
will listen and consider their thoughts and ideas.
RW : What kind of year have you had at the track this year? And how
does that compare to previous years?
RB: 2006 was the best year ever for Yakima Speedway, according to Ted,
in gross revenue – As I said before, the expenses are also up for everyone
– This year we are on about the same pace – Car counts are coming
up in our upper divisions and recent promotions have put more fans in the seats.
RW: For those of us that are not in the NW, but love learning more
about the drivers from the NW, could you give us a few names that we may know
that called Yakima their hometrack?
RB: I have always felt that Yakima Speedway has helped
produce some of the best racers on the West coast – Pete Harding has always
called Yakima his home track, even though he lives in Canada – Harry Jefferson,
Don Dowdy, Neal Newberry, Jack Jeffery, Harry Jefferson, Sam Rose, Brad Tidrick
and for the more recent drivers, B.J. Tidrick and Travis (Bennett) are two of
the younger drivers that have moved up in divisions in the Northwest and the
West coast - Others that raced at Yakima on a regular basis, but may not have
called it their home track reads like a whose who of drivers – Derrick
Cope, Chad Little, Bob Fox, Garrett Evans, - Hard to name just a few, many great
racers form our area, some that have moved on and others that, for whatever
reason, are not able to make a move up the ladder, mostly due to the financial
commitment needed, but are great racers and people.
RW: Before I start being nosy about the ASA NWT, I would like to clear
the air. I received from the ASA NWT a media a release on “Tires”
which I posted on RacingWest. For some reason there was a mix-up and I was accused
of changing the release as well as casting a negative slant on the NW. Do you
still think I changed the release and/or cast a negative slant on the NW? If
so- why? If not do you think that we media are looked at as a friend or enemy
to tracks and series?
RB: First off let me issue a very public apology to
you and your staff for the mix-up – I do not feel you changed the release
– As I sometimes do, I shot from the hip and made a huge mistake –
only one of many that I always seem to do, the misunderstanding was entirely
mine and I am very sorry for the situation I caused – The answer to the
next part of the question is hard – Your site, and others like it, do
a tremendous service to the racing community – One, that at times, I wonder
how we ever got along without – The message boards, especially ones like
the *Red Trailer are
a source of concern for me – Many great suggestions and ideas are shared
on these forums, but the personal attacks and hateful thing said do not give
racing in general a good impression, especially to the casual observer –
Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing and one not to be taken lightly, but
the bashing of racers, fans, tracks, associations, without trying to help come
up with a solution is sometimes hard to take – We are all very passionate
in what we do – Running a web site, promoting a track or series or racing
– We are all trying to do what we feel is best – Feelings run high,
because of the passion, and the more positive we can all be about the state
of our sport, the better off we will all be – contrary to what some believe,
track owners and promoters do not sit in a dark room and try to screw over the
racers and fans – They do sit and worry about how to keep their business
and probably their passion profitable – Running a race track is a little
different than running most any other kind of business – Everyone seems
to have an idea that will make the racing better, cheaper and cars will come
out of the woodwork if only we would listen to them – Before I took over
as track manager, I thought I had all the answers, the truth is, I did not have
a clue to what all it takes – I have been around circle track racing my
entire adult life and am learning more every day – I look up to long time
promoters like Marion Collins, Ted Pollock, Mickey Beedle, Joe Doelifeld and
Butch Behn – They have dedicated their lives to racing and would be very
successful in any business venture they might have chosen, but have given us,
as fans and racers, a place to fuel our need for speed.
RW: On to the ASA NW Tour. It has been a rebuilding year after NASCAR
scrapped the series. What have been your greatest joys with the series? What
do you feel you are doing right and want to carry forward?
RB: Boy, another tough question – Just seeing
the Tour continue is a joy – It has not been the huge success we had all
hoped – Car counts have been the major problem – Racers have taken
a wait and see attitude and I cannot blame them – As the season winds
down, we will see more cars – the interest is growing for 2008 –
We felt we had to make a switch in the engines and chassis departments –
The Tour type chassis was developed by NASCAR for the bigger tracks such as
Phoenix – The most common car in the Northwest is of a straight rail design
- The Tour engines have become too expensive – We are opening up our rules
to encourage spec heads and a cheaper chassis – We will be trying to do
this without making the current type of Tour chassis and engines obsolete –
We do not want to force the competitors that have supported us to throw away
their equipment – with the continuation of the Tour in 2007, we have given
the teams extra time to use up their equipment and make the change when possible
– So far, results of these changes have been encouraging – Same
left side at 56% and all engine combinations with a 390 carb or a restrictor
plate, seems to even the playing field – This will be a work in progress,
but most feel we are on the right track – Our team is working hard to
secure dates at tracks we did not have an opportunity to visit this year but
have high hopes of showcasing the ASA Aero Exhaust Northwest Tour in 2008.
RW: I know you have been under pressure. People want to know why you
don’t go to the races, why the car count is low, on and on. What have
been your biggest disappointments? What have been your biggest challenges? What
has been your biggest frustration with all of this and what are your hopes for
improvement with regards to the same?
RB: I took over the administrative end of the Northwest
Tour for a couple of reasons.
After a couple of failed attempts to keep the series alive, Melinda Mouliason arranged for a meeting/party to talk about the future of the series – After this meeting, I was contacted by racers, owners, track operators about heading up the effort – I also feel that the Northwest Tour has been the brass ring that many Northwest racers hope to attain and myself and others, wanted it to continue – Too many great racers and good equipment to throw away -Remember that I am employed full time by Ted Pollock at Yakima Speedway – Ted has been good enough to allow me to work on the operation of the Tour – I cannot attend all of the Tour races because of my obligations to Ted – I feel that with Scott Ellsworth and Jim Mikelson doing all of the race day duties, the series is served very will with their knowledge – If possible, I would love to be at every race, but at this time, it is not possible – Does this cause a problem? – I honestly do not know – I have had very little negative feed back due to my inability to attend all of the events.
RW: If there was a convention to show case the series to fans and drivers,
what would be the selling point of the ASA NWT in the future?
RB: In a short period of time, we have attracted a national
sponsor, Aero Exhaust, we have the top of the line equipment and drivers with
a diversity of engine, chassis combinations
RW: Sort of out of place, but what is your hope for the crate engine
being introduced to Yakima?
RB: We have made provisions for the crate engine to run in
out Late Model class at a reduced weight – Our Late Model class runs a
restrictor plate under the carb – With 100 lbs weight break, the crate
motor is about a third to fifth place contender – We will probably lower
the weight to 2700 lbs – I have been reluctant to lower the weight this
year because, Chad, my oldest son, is the only one running a crate at this time
– As more competitors opt for this combination, we will address the issue
-
RW: If you had the Genie in the lamp there to grant you three wishes
for the 2008 racing season (for all racing, whether, Yakima, the ASA NWT or
Motorsports in general) what would your three wishes be?
RB: Can’t do it with only three wishes – More race
tracks or at least not losing any more – Cheaper racing for the fans and
competitors – Higher profits for track owners – More racers –
Bigger and better sponsors for racers and tracks – No Saturday night NASCAR
Cup races lol – I could go on but the lamp just blew up.
RW: Thanks Ron. I really appreciate all your time and hope we can do
this again before the start of the 2008 season to follow your progress as you
continue to rebuild the NW Tour.
RB: Thank you Janet, and once again please accept my apology
for the misunderstanding – We are all in this together and mistakes are
made all the time, it is how we react and learn for those miscues that will
shape our future – I think racing on the West coast and in the Northwest
is on the upswing – Racing seems to go in cycles and I think we have reached
the bottom and are moving up again to good days – Thank you
* The RedTrailer is a pay to view site, not open to public viewing and blocked from all search engines. There is very little if any discussion regarding the Northwest in the RedTrailer.
