when I try to describe a sprint car verbally to an "unenlightened" one they almost always ask, "you mean a dune buggy?".....DRIVES ME NUTS!!!!!!!!! :O:

As a Field Service Engineer, I only see most of my coworkers a few times a year. Currently, the company I'm contracted to is completely staffed with New Yorkers and New Jersey-ites. I've been working on them, though. Another FSE is a guy who immigrated here from Guyana, in South America. He's a big time NASCAR fan. The weight-horsepower ratio comparison between my favorite kind of racing and his definitely has him interested in seeing a sprint car race. Most of the rest of the people there just look at me like I'm from another planet when I talk about this. I think most of them have trouble with the concept of earth that isn't covered in concrete.

Jerry

:help::headbangThe reply I get is sprint cars at Lawrenceburg.That's where the gambling boat is is it not. I did not know Lawrenceburg had a dirt track.What is a sprint car anyway . Drives me nuts . Most of my co-workers live in Ohio and are older.When i try to explain to them what a sprint car is .There reply is o no , way to loud or to much dirt .

The folks in my department don't understand my addicition to sprint car racing (don't you get dirty? doesn't it smell? isn't it loud?). Yes, yes and YES! What's there not to love? I tell them they should check it out and they give me a polite "We'll see if we can make it..." but they don't.

I am lucky to work with the guy who won the last sprint feature at Paragon so when I have the need to speak to someone who knows what the heck I'm talking about, I call him!!! :checkered:

Not only is it hard to explain what a sprint car is or why I like it so much, it is really hard to explain where some of the tracks are. Where is Gas City, Vernon, Brownstown, Flora, Haubstadt, Jacksonville, Boswell, etc... and why you drive that far to see a race? These are questions only true sprint car fans can answer. Sprint car tracks can be an educational geography lesson.

If this is a contest, this is the winner! How many times have I gotten that "just dipped out of a septic tank look", when I mention racing "midgets"! How numb these folks are, there are 2 things that God created, for man to enjoy, and this is one of them! Bob:applaud:

I've only made 2 races this year, but I managed to get a newbie to attend each one with me :thumb... my g/f had her first racing experience @ the Burg and now I'm taking her down to Charlotte for the NAPCAR race....:doh:

I can justify this by saying we are being put up for free by a close friend, not to mention we will be hanging out with a few NNS drivers all weekend and them boys now how to have a good time :kookoo:O:

I live in North Carolina. Need I say more?

Worse thing to ever happen was when Nextel/Sprint became the title sponsor of NASCAR. Now, whenever I say I'm going to a sprint car race, they automatically think NASCAR and start telling me that Little E is their favorite. I then tell them I don't give a damn about NASCAR and then they just look confused.

I'm reminded of a bumper sticker I used to see that went something like: Eldora, if you have to ask, you'll never understand.

I quit trying to explain and usually just tell people I'm headed north to visit family.

So can we expect you this weekend?

Jerry #66j
www.joshspencer.com

Various people ask me about racing that know me. When someone overhears me talking they usually ask this Qo you race? A:Yes, I own a car. Q: You don't drive it? A: No. Q: Why spend all that money and not drive? A: Because I love it. It makes me happy and gives me somthing to do. Q: What do you race? A: Sprint cars. Q: What's that? A: Open wheel cars, 1300#'s, 800HP. Q: Where do you race? A: Everywhere that there's a race I want to go to, like Gas City, Kokomo, Lawrenceburg, Putnamville, Eldora, Terre Haute. Q: You drive all the way to Terre Haute and come back in the same day? A: Yes, and sometimes go to work the next day. Then the conversation usually takes this type of direction::: My uncle used to have a '71 Chevelle that he would drag race on the street and it had like 1000HP. It had a 3/4 full race cam in it and a Holly Carb. Is that kind of like what you do? A: Have a nice day!
So, no I don't take people to the racetrack anymore. I learned my lesson long ago. I am definately not an ambassador to the sport I dearly love. No reason to spoil a perfectly good sub-culture with people who don't have respect for something that takes so much commitment. However, when I do take someone new to a racetrack, I can usually tell after hotlaps if they will ever return. The ratio so far is about 5:1.
Also, people automatically assume that you are a dirty street stock racer and are suprised you have all of your teeth. HAHA!