PA Postscript '08

There is nothing quite like a drive across PA on I-80, especially during the winter. It was nonetheless worth the crappy drive to see so many old friends and to be a part of the MRA meeting that took place there.

In my last column I stated that the last thing that the sport of mud racing needed was another sanctioning body. While I still stand by that, after attending the MRA meeting and hearing what they had going for them, the real question becomes, "Will we need thee, NMRO, in the future"? Don't get me wrong, the MRA has a lot to prove and a long way to go, but the officers and delegates have really put a lot of time, money and effort into this organization. I have been keeping up on the MRA website, and though most of the buzz is centered around the rules, I do think there are a few things that many people don't know.

First, there are set and fairly short term limits to all elected officials. Second, the MRA has set up very specific track construction and safety guidelines. This will include minimum safety personnel requirements, as well as having inspections for track width and shutdown lengths. Driver safety is also a big concern, with the 2008 guidelines becoming mandatory in the years to come. Something else to come out of this meeting was the Fast Mud race dates for '08. The Harvest Fair race will be on August 23, and the Shootout will be October 11. The blower class is also being considered for inclusion at the Shootout, and both races are being considered for MRA sanctioning. There was also a discussion on races that are sanctioned, and ones that are supported. At a sanctioned race, all MRA class, safety, and track rules will be followed, and eventually points will be issued. A supported race will be those that follow most of the rules, but either can't or won't enforce all of them.

As for the '08 season, Mean Streak will be running as many MRA races in this area as we can, and according to prez Mike Zibella, there may be a number of new races up this way. As of right now, the only NMRO race on the schedule for us will be Bloomsburg, and when we get the dates for the other races we will post them.

I was disappointed to hear of Chris Terry's resignation as a board member of the MRA. I really don't understand his actions, and much of what I have read doesn't make much sense. I will say that one race date conflicting with another is no reason to throw away the whole organization. This happens in other forms of racing with little ill effect. In the day of $4 a gallon diesel, not too many racers can afford to travel. So how do the TMRO's actions benefit anyone (they don't), and they only open the door for animosity in a sport that doesn't need it. Sadly, there will always be those naysayers that take cheap shots at those willing to step up and lead or speak their minds. Since you can't please everyone, I say to my friends at the MRA, keep it up, there are a lot of us that think you are doing a great job.

That's all for now.

The More Things Change the More They Stay the Same

I'M BACK! That's right, folks. After putting the Jeep back together and doing a lot of reading on various websites, I have just one question for all of you: Where is this sport going?! I have read sooo many different and exciting ideas about how to improve the sport, but who will lead us to this promised land? The NMRO? Not! The MRA? I wonder? From what I have read, the MRA seems to be heading in its own direction and away from what I thought and felt was its true calling, the representation of the racer. If I have a problem with or suggestion about Class 3 then who do I talk to? Something else I found very interesting is the absence of some very high profile names from the rep list. Why is this? What would happen if the MRA suggests rule changes or an increase in payout? Would there be some type of strike or is this just a paper tiger? In my opinion, the last thing the sport needs right now is another sanctioning body. It needs LEADERSHIP and UNITY!!!!! Being from the Northeast, I have been fortunate to have Mike Zibella promoting races for the past few years. Every year it is the same thing: good tracks, decent money, no racers. In 2005, the NMRO had a points race at the Chatham fairgrounds and there were only 3 (yes 3) more Class 3 entries than normal. Ask Mike how he did at that race financially. Fast Mud Promotions had their lowest Class 3 turnout ever at the second race in 2007. Again good track, more money than NMRO, and no racers. One word can sum all this up and that is Stagnation! No hobby, sport or business will survive in an era of $3.50 plus for diesel fuel and 5 times that for racing gas without growth. While this column may sound like a pessimistic rant, it comes from my passion for this sport and my concern that the sport of mud racing will never outgrow its boutique status in the world of motorsports. To those who can effect change, I have one final word and that is that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. The NHRA made that choice in 1982 and look where their Pro Stock class is today. I would like to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all my friends and to all of our servicemen and women keeping this country great. That's all for now.

Message From Brian Erne - National Mud Racers Association

Yes, the National Mud Racers Association is still alive and progressing. I am still compiling a list of nominees and receiving a few emails from nominees who are accepting nomination.

My goal is still to have a ballot prepared to begin circulating by the Indy Jamboree. The problem is that I still have a list of about 70 nominees and only 9 of these people have replied to let me know that they are interested. This, in itself, is not a problem. If we have a ballot with 12 or 15 nominees on it that would be great.

The thing is, I think there are still quite a few people on the nominee list who would like to be on the ballot. I really need those people to send me an email to let me know. I plan to include a small bio on each nominee, so some personal information such as location, experience in the sport of mud racing, and ideas and goals would be helpful.

I will only include on the ballot those nominees who contact me and express interest. Please encourage those who are on the list and have not accepted nomination to do so.

Here is the complete list of nominees, followed by the list of nominees at this point, who will be on the ballot.

As usual, email me with ideas or questions.

Thanks!
Brian Erne
theernes@comcast.net

Keith Mitchell	Gene Cutchin	Jeff Funk
Scott Snarski	Scott Graham	Brad Wisdom
Mitch Mitchell	Todd James	Terry Slocum
Dusty DeGraffenreid	Scott Lemmon	Mike Lebakken
Chris Terry	Gary Evans	Brad Craven
Ben Cranford	Scott Robertson	Rick Nagele
Brendan Kinsella	Jon Thee	Yvonne Cranford
George Vanderwaal	Dwight Terry	Hugh Crockerell
Mike Lane	Tom Frost	Gary Baker
Brandon Lee	Jeff Smith	Kip Finley
Keith Raedel	Terry Shants	Don Bertrum
Jackie Burden	Dennis Hinson	Joe Curtis
John Stull	Richard Stull	Brian Postelwaith
Chuck Courty	Eric Klos	Chris Boulet
Brian Erne	Tim Wheelus	Tubby McDonald
Scot Sanford	Casey Cagle	Jason Williams
Charles Strickland	Gary Heusted	Bobby Poston
Dave Moeller	Rod Clinton	Mike Zibella
Trevor Pugh	Morticia Walters	Brian Morrison
Bobby Curit	David Kurtz	Tubby McDonald
Mike Lebbaken	Jamie Boyd	Orilin Clark
Dennis Hinson	Mike Maurath	Matt Phieffer
Jeremy Warner	Scott Parent	Andy Garrett
Wayne Bonnaker	Chad Bergman	Calvin Raedel
Jason Bergman	Cory Witt

Accepted Nomination:

Bobby Poston (NC)
Jeff Smith (AR)
Mike Zibella (NY)
Jon Thee (MO)
Scott Graham (MO)
Trevor Pugh (WV)
Dusty DeGraffenreid (MO)
Jeffery Funk (IA)
Chris Terry (TN)
Scott Lemmon (MO)

The Streak Continues

Where to start, where to start. First, I am sorry for not getting a new column out sooner, but I had lost the motivation to write. That has returned. I would like to extend an invitation to those interested to pen a guest column for the front page of the website. This I feel will help to minimize the dead air as well as to introduce some new ideas and new writers to the site. All guest columns can be emailed to the website administrator for final approval.

Now as for results, I want to send a belated congrats to Brian and Rick for winning and resetting the 160' record in Lima. As most of you know, that lasted about 3 weeks and was reset by Mark Hess at the National in Springfield, Illinois. This is what I like about this sport, at Bloomsburg Jason Williams not only won the race, not only reset the record, but also took fast reaction time. Talk about a points haul! 3 races, 3 different winners. Mean Streak kept its own streak alive by hurting the tranny in Lima and then grenading it in spectacular fashion in Schaghticoke, NY. Broken parts may very well be a part of racing, but after a year it is getting kinda old. Fortunately there aren't any old parts left, so look for this streak to end. I would like to thank Mike Z and crew for putting on a good race at a very nice facility. In a post race conversation Mike informed me that there is the possibility for more races there, as well as a higher than expected car count with very little advertising.

On the Racer Association front, there is still a steady stream of dialog with some really good ideas being thrown around. Two of them that I really like are the formation of geographical divisions, where racers compete locally to see who qualifiies to race nationally, and institution of a qualified field with first to the stripe winners. These ideas most definitely have a draw with asphalt drag fans, as the formats would then be the same and much easier to understand for the novice fan. One final note is to wish Brian and Kim Erne's daughter Lizzy a speedy recovery from surgery. Get well and we'll see you soon.

That's all for now.

2007 Preview

As spring is finally starting to get here, the '07 season can't be far behind. For those who ran the TMRO race, it has already begun. Due to weather considerations along our intended travel path, Mean Streak stayed home, and while I missed seeing and racing with my friends, the money will be better spent on prepping for the '07 outdoor season. As for the jeep, the main focus in '07 will be reliability and fine tuning the existing combo. I have started the design phase for a new chassis, and will be working toward having it out in '08. I have gotten some really good ideas from many fellow racers and will be lurking in the pits with a camera when I see more. The only rule change that I have heard of for Pro Stock will disallow the removal of body parts from the race vehicle before racing, so as to maintain their stock appearance.

As for the web site, I wll be adding a new interview piece entitled OUT OF BOUNDS WITH.... This will be a short 10 to 12 question interview with past and present Pro Class racers. The format and questions should be ready for Lima. The other change that you will notice affects the blog page and the content of comments left there. As of now, there will be a ZERO TOLERANCE policy for personal attacks of any kind directed at anyone. I do not want my fellow racers to stop visiting and posting to the site, and off topic and blatant and personal attacks are not what this forum is for. While I do not believe in censorship, any inapproprate posts will now simply be deleted. On a final note, there is no such thing as anonimity on the internet, and those responsible for the inappropriate posts should have thought about that. We know who you are and where you are.

That's all for now.

Looking Ahead Part II

As the snow falls here in Maine on New Year's Eve, my mind starts to wonder about what 2007 will bring.

Part of my research has drawn me to many mud racing-related web sites and their various chat rooms. The big buzz now is the chassis issue. Should back half kits be legal? Should center seats be legal? What should be done about wheelbase and how do you enforce it all?

With regards to back half kits, I feel that they should be legal. Whether you build it yourself or have a chassis built for you, a back half kit when properly attached would be a strong foundation for a safe chassis.

Yes, my first reason is safety. The faster we get, the more possible it will become for our vehicles to wreck. The stronger and stiffer the chassis (up to a point), the less chance there is for the driver to be hurt. Obviously, proper safety gear as well as driver restraints all play a part in this. If the chassis is stronger, then it will last longer before it has to be replaced, thus helping to keep the cost of racing down.

Finally, when tied together with a strong cage, a non-flexing chassis allows the suspension to work better and more consistently. Center seats are more subjective. According to Bruce, center seats are OK if the pedals are on the left side. The only advantage to this is that the cage could be built directly over the frame, which could be stronger and lighter, but with a minimum weight, having to run too much ballast could make positioning it a challenge.

As far as wheelbase is concerned, there is a clear rule on the books now, but I have yet to see it enforced.

This comes back to the same bottom line, and that is enforcement. All of the comments that I have read are the same, give us a fair set of rules and enforce them! If a lack of staff at the race is the issue, then maybe racers need to step up and get involved with tech. Pro Stock would tech Pro Mod, Pro Mod would do Blowers, and Blowers would do our class. This should minimize the chance of cheating. This would definitely lighten the load on Bruce and allow the host clubs to deal with the less technical classes. The NMRO has more responsibility to us than just taking our money, and we have the responsibility to hold them accountable.

The one thing I am glad to see is the growth of the sport around the country. It seems that there are more groups starting their own sanctioning bodies and coming up with rules similar to the NMRO. This could be the common denominator that allows the sport to grow. With similar rules, you could race all over the country and this would pick up car counts. More cars equal more money in the purses. The guys at Fast Mud are committed to this goal and deserve our support. The Northeast seems to be the only place that has not had any real growth. Over the years, a few people have tried to start new races with very little success. It seems that the rules are antiquated, and this has led to the lack of competitiveness on the national level as well as the lack of new rides coming out of the Northeast. Deep pits are the only thing that seem to thrive. So I guess I will just have to keep traveling.

Speaking of traveling, Mean Streak will be heading south for the TMRO race in February. I am looking foward to racing with them and seeing some old friends.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year and we'll see you in 2007.

2006 Wrap Up

As Halloween has come and gone, Mean Streak has finally been put away for the winter and plans for 2007 are already underway. Both the jeep and the website will see improvements so stay tuned for them. Anyone who was at Indy knows what the big story was - THE WEATHER! The old saying "when it rains it pours" was never more true. I didn't see the sun until I was in Ohio on the way home. The short track trend continued with Indy shrinking to 180'. The right lane had some really nice pitch to the left and a hole just off the starting line which combined for just 1 top 10 pass in the Pro Stock class. By this point the results from Indy have been posted elsewhere so I will not post them here but Mean Streak did finish 9th with a 3.113 which at least is consistent with the rest of the 180' times we have run this year. As for the year end points I would like to congratulate Sam Franklin and Jason Massie for their co-championship. Both had strong seasons and they accounted for all 4 wins on the Jambo circuit. Brendan Kinsella finished 2nd and Mean Streak came in 3rd. This was the first year for the year end points bonus and we just received our $500 gift certificate from TCI. Many thanks to the folks at TCI and Comp Cams for their sponsorship of our class and sport.

One week after Indy the Mean Streak team was at the Chatham County Fairgrounds for Mike Zibella's Motor Madness. As usual we weren't fast but we were spectacular, or at least the damage to the rear drive shaft was. With the help of Mike Z, Frank O, Gary H, and Shamrock Welding, Mean Streak had a new rear drive shaft just in time for more rain on Sunday. 2006 ended just the way it started, Broke. On the upside for us northern racers was the fact that Mike Z had been contacted by a regional fair board that was interested in a race over Memorial Day weekend for 2007. As more info is available I will let you know.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Amy Nagele for her photos, Chris Courty for all her work on the website and photos, the Mudgician crew and Chuck II for all their help on and off the track, without these people our success would be impossible. Last and certainly not least I need to thank my main man, Chuck III. His ability to leave on time, get down the track and relate information gets better with each passing year. Chuckie is a very large part of Mean Streak's success and I look foward to many more seasons with him behind the wheel. That's all for now.