HOT DOGS FOR THANKSGIVING DINNER

Source: Dave Grayson
Date: 10/25/2007

Is there a viable alternative to all of this? You bet there is. We can all leave home and spend November 22nd at a race track while enjoying hot dogs for Thanksgiving dinner. Then we can spend the holiday weekend eating more hot dogs and watching even more racing. That's exactly what yours truly and my long time racing partner Six Pack Eddie will be doing. You'll be surprise just how easily this can be arranged.

The racing fans Thanksgiving holiday begins on November 22nd at the Irwindale Speedway near Los Angeles. The fastest half mile paved oval in the southwest will be serving up their annual Turkey Night Grand Prix. This night is an open wheel racing fan's dream come true and features high flying action from the USAC Sprints, USAC Midgets and the K&N Ford Focus Midgets. Making the night even better is the fact that this race traditionaly attracts some of the biggest names in open wheel racing and has even been visited by NASCAR stars in the past.

Now comes the really tough decision. Where are we going to spend Thanksgiving weekend? There are four possibilities we're considering here. All four will be featuring great shows guaranteed to whet the Thanksgiving appetite of any racing fan. Let's start with the Thanksgiving 200 at the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway in Blythe-California. Track manager Greg Scheidecker really goes all out during this weekend. It all starts on Friday, November 23d, with a test and tune session for visiting race teams as well as a pit pass bar b que. We're not talking hot dogs here. We're talking about a first class buffet effort. The following evening the I 10 will feature racing from the West Coast Pro Truck Series, the Pro 4 Modifieds, the EZ Up Legend Cars, the Torco Race Fuel Street Stocks and the Bandeleros. We attended this event last year and believe us when we tell you that the hospitality, food and the racing was top notch.

Also putting out a strong effort Thanksgiving weekend is the Havasu 95 Speedway in beautiful Lake Havasu City-Arizona. Track managers Dennis Rudin and Bill Rozhon put on a fine show on any given weekend and their staff always comes up with special contests to enhance the enjoyment of the racing. Thanksgiving weekend on their quarter mile paved oval begins on Friday with a test and tune session as well as a pit pass bar b que. Saturday's racing line up is strong and will be highlighted by the JJ&B Late Models running a 100 lap feature as well as the Modified Division who will run a 50 lap feature for double points. The show is also supported by the track's Street Stock and Ladies Factory Stock Divisions. During the intermission fans will be invited to participate in the annual turkey bowling and mashed potato eating contests. Like I said, they really have a lot of fun at the Havasu 95 Speedway.

For those of you who believe that dirt is for racing and asphalt is for getting you to the track then you may want to take in the annual Turkey Classic at the Victorville Auto Raceway. Track manager Mike Gibson has been enjoying a really good year, at the three-eighths of a mile oval located at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds, and it appears that he has the making of a fine show Thanksgiving weekend with nine racing divisions running for a combined $20,000 purse. Those racing divisions include the 410/360 Non Winged Sprints, Modifieds, Super Street Stocks, Street Stocks, Mini Stocks, Dwarfs, All American Stocks as well as the Hornet and Hornet Juniors. All of this action starts with a practice session on Friday, heat races on Saturday and 35 lap main events on Sunday. Fans will be pleased to hear that the racing starts at 1 pm on all three days. That's a good thing because it can get pretty cold in Victorville at night.

Last, but certainly not least, is the Wild Turkey Classic at the Imperial Valley Speedway a three-eighths of a mile dirt oval located in Imperial-California which is just a few miles north of El Centro. While I haven't had the pleasure of visiting this speedway I have heard a lot of good things about it and it's winter racing program. This event is being presented by the Southwest Racing Association, led by President Earl Rosenbaum, and will be highlighted by the Street Stock/Pro Stock Open Comp Race which will pay the winner $3,000. That alone should guarantee a healthy car count in just those two divisions alone. The show will also be supported by the presence of the Mini Dwarf, Pure Stock, Factory Stock and IMCA Modified divisions. Heat races will be on Friday at 6 pm with the main events on Saturday beginning at a weather and fan friendly 2pm.

Again the only question left is which track will we be spending Thanksgiving weekend at? In case you're wondering the answer is yes: Six Pack Eddie and I will be visiting the track's souvenir stands to purchase gifts for our loved ones who actually gave us permission to go racing on Thanksgiving.

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