The Indy Circle Track Expo
We always enjoy going to the Indy Circle Track Expo. Its a good chance to catch up with some of our friends and customers that we haven't seen for a while. This year my dad pulled together a larger than usual collection of inventory for us to take to the show to move. Our decision to go up the morning of the show is never a popular one, especially when it comes to the 4:30 a.m. wake up call. Despite the ice, snow and rain, we did make it in time to setup our small booth. We were positioned right next to Jimmy Wood of US 24 Speedway fame. He told us that he is really looking forward to the mini sprints returning to his track this season. We also got to talk with several of the Illinois and Wisconsin lightning sprint racers that seem to make the trip to the show every year. Shane Morgan was the first by the booth. Again, it was nice to finally put a face with a name. I also always enjoy talking with Nick Sheridan and the Branhams. I have become quite a fan of Nick Sheridan's Facebook posts. His winter tales of trips on his snowmobile across the lake to his favorite watering hole and back are entertaining. I also ran into Nick Hale and his dad who are excited about continuing their progression into full size sprint cars. Ryan Broughton and his dad Tony also stopped by and chatted about their first year in a full-size sprinter. I finally got the chance to meet Dave Bender, one of my dad's customers and all around nice guys who has been working on assembling a mini sprint over the past year. Greg Watson and his son Alex were also by to say hello. Greg ran dwarf cars for several years but has now turned the steering wheel over to his oldest son Alex. They seem to be really enjoying the sport and are looking forward to the non wing races this season. It was encouraging the meet several more new faces to the mini sprint / lightning sprint scene. It appears that the class is definately growing. In between catching up with customers and friends, we did manage to sell a few things also.
Motorcycle Powered Cars Gain in Popularity - Although I would often like to think that the lightning sprint / mini sprint racers are the only ones who know the secret of the cheap, reliable horsepower represented in today's sport bike motors - the variety of vehicles being built by Speed Partz customers reminds us otherwise. One area that is experiencing strong growth is the mini buggy market. Basically these are sand rails that are powered by sport bike motors. Many of the cars are homebuilt. Below are pictures of a few of our customers rides that are either complete or in progress.
Above are photographs of Tut Cote's mini buggy. He races this vehicle in Southern California and has a cool website called www.minilites.com. Looks like fun.
Here is another mini buggy. This one is a work in progress by Kentucky's Danny Knott. Danny purchased a set of headers (from Viper Pipes - there's my shameless plug)for the buggy he is building that will be powered by a Honda CBR 1000. For more information on the mini buggy scene, be sure to visit www.minibuggy.net.
Motorcycle powered racing cars don't just go on dirt. They go on asphalt too. Here is another customer's vehicle - an Sports Car Club of America, D Sports Racer that is powered by a Suzuki GSXR 1000. Wayne Briggs of Fairfield, Ohio and his son campaign the car.
Indoor Kart Racing League Banquet - Props go out again to Josh Wagar and the guys at Full Throttle Karting. Their passion for racing and desire to create a first class customer experience are very evident. As I've detailed in previous posts, we participated in an indoor karting league over the past few months. Its been a real blast with both my daughter and I participating in seperate divisions. This past Monday evening they had a banquet that I wish every racing banquet could be just like. An informal banquet with great sandwiches from Jimmy Johns, a short award ceremony and then the best part of all a night of racing. Competitors from their various leagues came together for a good time on track. They put a record number of 15 karts on track. Although a little hairy at times, it was definately a lot of fun. We also got to try our hand at Full Throttle's new slot car track. It definately proved that not having your butt in the seat makes it hard to get around the track. It seemed like few of the cars even made a full lap. I also had the opportunity a few weeks ago to take a group of friends from work out to the track. I got a real kick out of hearing how much fun they had as they each climbed out of their karts. I still would really like to put together an event for all of the mini sprint / lightning sprint guys. I'll keep you posted.
Jason Soudrette's Dusaki - Its always interesting to see what little projects are lurking in racer's garages. Here is an interesting one - Jason Soudrette's Dusaki. It is part Kawasaki, part Ducati. Jason's dad was recently at the shop and started telling us about some of the bikes he and Jason have been building. The Dusaki sounds very interesting including the Ducati suspension components that he has been modifying for this Kawasaki. Jason is a member of the Asphalt Junkies a group of local riders who tear it up on twisting country roads. Jason and has dad have also been at working chopping the bike pictured below up to turn it into a bobber.
Dash Designz - Be sure to check out my latest product, Dash Designz switch labels. I've been using them on my own car for a while. Dash panels are expensive - when most of the time you really don't need the panel or the switches, just something to dress it up. These are just stickers that come pre-cut and ready to place on your dash.
They are available for $12.95 a set through Speed Partz CLICK HERE
More Indoor Racing..I recently made a pair of custom Shox Skinz shock covers for Tim Buckwalter who will be competing this weekend at the indoor at Atlantic City, NJ. I visited his Facebook page and found this video of the event from a few years ago. Looks pretty interesting. Tim says that they built a car for this year's event from an old 270cc micro sprint chassis. Good luck to Tim this weekend.
Enough for now...be back soon.
Posts
