Saturday Night at the Races by junge1
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Description
Grandview Speedway off Rt. 100, Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania. A 1/3 mile, high banked, clay race track.
Bechtelsville is near Pottstown. There are hundreds of dirt tracks like this one all over rural America. I am a fan of Formula I where teams with budgets of 100s of million develop race cars on computers and test in wind tunnels to get the edge on the competition. So this race track seemed kind of simple.
It starts with buying a ticket. Take credit card? Not here. Smoking may be hazardous to your health! Either never heard of it or couldn't care less. Second hand smoke may be offensive to those around you? So what? Being overweight may shorten your life expectancy! Who cares!
This is a part of America that is rarely seen by tourists from abroad. Yet these folks vote, they are aware of their right to own and bear arms, and they work, mostly blue color - and folks like these are the backbone of this country.
The track is watered down and graded before the races, but a couple of 10 lap elimination races and the clay is drying and small clay pebbles begin to fly around. Solution - wear glasses to protect the eyes. A couple of more races and it begins to get dusty.
The cars, that don't look like much are powerful and finely tuned and they are fast and loud. All part of the excitement! Seldom are more than two or threes laps completed before an accident happens. Some of these accidents are spectacular. The good thing is, that laps run under caution don't count. If it is a thirty lap race, it means thirty laps of racing.
The drivers of these cars have regular jobs, racing Saturday night is more of a hobby, and they don't make much.
I probably smoked the equivalent of 2 or 3 cigarettes of second hand smoke, but who cares? This is simple fun, as much fun as eating a real Philly Cheese Steak sandwich in Philadelphia or a home-cooked meal (all you can eat) somewhere in Amish Country.
Going to these races has become a must when we come to the airshow at Reading.
This picture was taken on 4 June 2011 at 8:40 PM,
Sig...
Comments (20)
kgb224
Superb capture my friend. God Bless.
bazza
Great capture of this dirt track racing.. Sounds like the place to be Sig..
lyron
Great image!!
flavia49
fantastic capture and place!
flaviok
Impressionante captura meu amigo, excelente, aplausos (5)
auntietk
Oh my friend, you describe this so well! I can see you there, smiling and enjoying yourself to the limit. :D It's a whole 'nother world, isn't it? Excellent image and narrative ... you make me feel like I'm there!
bmac62
I remember these races from my teenage years...they were a blast...along with "professional" wrestling featuring such characters as Gorgeous George and Hat Pin Mary. I loved the way you described the blue collar atmosphere. Only addition I'd make is the smell of burning rubber added to the dusty air. Pardon me, it is time for a shower:-)
nefertiabet
Nice shot and lighting!!! Have a wonderful week, hugs elke
blinkings
Terrific shot. It's a type of motor sport I've never been too but I bet it's exciting!
Sea_Dog
Well done - a great capture of the action and excitement of these small, local tracks. For years there was a paved oval just a mile from my house. On most Saturday nights we could hear the cars roaring down the straightaways and screaching through the turns. We attend the races every few weeks and it was great. Most of these drivers have weekday jobs and race for the love of it. Great shot - thanks for the memories.
Faemike55
Wonderful capture and great narrative I can smell the cigarette smoke mixed with the smell of burnt rubber and car exhaust
annie5
Great capture..exciting! :)
junge1
Phoenix is know for the PIR - the Phoenix International Raceway. It is one mile oval and is part of the NASCAR circuit, the ROLEX circuit, and is used by the various races held by the SCCA - the Sports Car Club of America. But Phoenix also had Manzanita, located in South Phoenix, a dirt track similar to the one shown in this picture. Well, after more than 50 years, Manzanita closed last year. A victim of development.
drifterlee
Cool races shot!
emmecielle
Superb night capture! Excellent image and narrative! :)
farmerC
Exellent shot.
Richardphotos
smoke is offensive to me.just this morning I took a copy of the City of Dallas smoking ordinance to a MickeyD just so the manager could not claim ignorance which is probably a requirement this shot takes me back to Sportsman class racing(Busch Series now)
sandra46
SUPERLATIVE IMAGE!
Minda
Great place and nice shot sig.
bebert
superb shot !