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SUNY Canton Automotive Technology program

Tuesday, August 21st 2018

   New on the Audio Page for today:

Justin Haers tells me what he is learning about his new car and the new things that are on the car.
Kane Bristol summed up how his season has been going in Canandaigua and how it has been rough.
Luke Horning recapped his latest weekend as he finished first at Glen Ridge and second at Fonda.
John Nicotra talked about winning Otto Sitterly’s eighth championship last Saturday in Oswego.
Tony Veneziano reports on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series from last weekend in N. Dakota.

I had a nice day on Monday as I did some writing and then got to work in the studio. Three of the chats I did on Monday are up today and we’ve got more people to call today and through the rest of the week.

I’ll be busy today again and hope to get my work done before the storms hit tomorrow night. But at this point the coming weekend sounds like it is going to be great weather so we should have tons of fun down the road.

Now let’s chat more about what’s on the Audio Page for today as we start with a Modified racer who was in learning mode this past weekend. Justin Haers tells me what he is learning about his new car, the new things that are on the car that seem to be the norm these days as well as why the tacky track was not a big concern with that set up.

Kane Bristol summed up how his season has been going in Canandaigua and how it has been rougher than usual as well as why what works for others may not work for him set up wise.

Luke Horning recapped his latest weekend as he finished first at Glen Ridge on Sunday, second at Fonda on Saturday and talks about his job which sounds a little riskier on reality TV. Good one!

John Nicotra talked about his role as car owner for Otto Sitterly as they won their eighth championship last Saturday in Oswego and talks about his start in racing as well as what he values most about their relationship.

Tony Veneziano reports on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series from last weekend in North Dakota where a local driver won both races including a Late Model special. Wow!

Monday, August 20th 2018

   New on the Audio Page for today:

Alan Johnson talks about his Saturday night, his hopes for a championship and his late season plans.
Jeffery Daugherty told me some of what he has been learning as a 1st year big block Modified driver.
Jesse Pruchnik tells me how he is doing in a 305 Sprint Car and remembers his first days as a racer.
Mike Emhof runs down some upcoming shows with both the Patriot Sprint Tour and the CRSA 305s.

I had a nice day on Sunday as I golfed in the early afternoon and then got some work done in the studio after that. I have a lot to do this week and plan on hitting races all three days this weekend after racing with Allie on Friday at a new track to her.

I do have some stuff in the can but need to load up this week so if any of you have any suggestions please send them along to me at doug@dougsdirtdiary.com or message me on Facebook.

Let’s chat more about what we have for you today on the Audio Page as we begin with a pair of big block Modified drivers. Alan Johnson talks about his Saturday night at Land of Legends Raceway, his hopes for a championship at Outlaw Speedway and ran down his late season plans.

Jeffery Daugherty told me some of what he has been learning as a 1st year big block Modified driver, what types of racetracks he prefers to race on and ran down some of his late season plans.

Jesse Pruchnik tells me how he is doing in a 305 Sprint Car and remembers his first days as a racer on asphalt and where he would like to be somewhere down the road.

Mike Emhof runs down some upcoming shows with both the Patriot Sprint Tour and the CRSA 305s as well as some of the rained out shows they hope to get in this coming weekend.

Sunday, August 19th 2018

New on the Audio Page from Victory Lane at Land of Legends Raceway:

Mike Welch explained how he went from third to first late to win his first of the season in Canandaigua.
Kevin Ridley told me about winning his first Sportsman race at Land of Legends and second overall.
Darryl Ruggles explained why he didn’t feel he was the best Sprinter as he won the CRSA A- Main.
Brandyn Griffin finished in 2nd place and talked about how familiar the race outcome seemed to him.
Johnny Koloesk came home in 3rd place in the CRSA A-Main and talked about his new chassis.
Tyler Vinson won his 3rd of the year in the New Legends race and spoke about what he’s learned.
Matt Sheppard methodically made his way to the front for a win and described the lines he was using.

I had a nice night as I got to be the guest co-announcer at Land of Legends Raceway in Canandaigua while Allie sung the national anthems. It is always fun when I go back to the Ontario County Fairgrounds as it was my home for four seasons from 1995-98. And of course I think of my good friend Gary Montgomery every time I go there and when I get on the mic I try extra hard to honor his memory. We wish you Gary and I thought about you often!

It was one of those rare nights as the track was heavy and fast after two days of rain. The crew did a real nice job keeping it under control but for a lot of the night drivers were holding it to the wood and letting their engines see how fast they could go. It doesn’t happen much so it was fun and reminded me of how things used to be back when a fast, tacky racetrack was the norm not the exception.

Matt Sheppard is nothing short of amazing at Land of Legends as he looks like he might not get there and then he finds a way to make a pass, then another one and even misses a corner here and there as he finds the fast groove. He passed Justin Haers with three laps to go to win this one and doubled his point lead with one more point race to go.

Kevin Ridley won his first of the year in Canandaigua and had his foot down most of the way around while Mike Welch watched the leaders get together and went from third to first in the blink of an eye. Darry Ruggles made a nice late race move to win the CRSA A-Main while Tyler Vinson picked up win number three in the New Legends division.

I had fun working with Wendy Emerson as she was real easy to work with and kept me on track with the usual Land of Legends routine which really helped. It was great seeing everyone in the tower again as most of who was in there was in there with me back in the late 1990’s. And NO Gary Spaid is not retiring, he’s just staying closer to home.

Thanks to everyone who made my night so fun and look for some pre-race chats to show up in the next few days. I’ll be in the studio later tonight and will be there a lot this week as I need to get the can filled up again. Be sure to come back tomorrow and we’ll have some more for you then.

Have a great Monday and we’ll check you out again on Tuesday.

Saturday, August 18th 2018

   New on the Audio Page for today:

Sean Beardsley talked about racing a topless Late Model and told me how fast his car was last week.
Joe Shields tells me why he got out racing a few decades ago and why now was the time to come back.
Travis Welch described how he won his third Pro Stock race at Utica Rome and how relaxed he can be.
John Strickler recapped his first top ten finish at Brewerton and how they were struggling up till then.

I had a mellow day on Friday as I stayed inside pretty much after a long day on Thursday that was a little wilder than I had originally intended. I did have fun but paid for it a little on Friday.

Today I am going on the road with Allie to Canandaigua where I will be guest announcing tonight. I’m going to get there when the gates open and get as many interviews as I can before the cars hit the track. I’ll get as much done as I can and we’ll see what I can get for you guys for tomorrow.

Now let’s chat more about what we have on the Audio Page for you for today as we watch the bad weather leave this morning hoping we are still okay for tonight. Sean Beardsley talked about racing a topless Late Model and told me how fast his car was last week as well as how much air affects things in the back of the car.

Joe Shields tells me why he got out racing a few decades ago and why now was the time to come back as well as how he is doing as he learns what has changed over the years.

Travis Welch described how he won his third Pro Stock race at Utica Rome and how relaxed he can be when behind the wheel as well as how a bold move early got him out front.

John Strickler recapped his first top ten finish at Brewerton and how they were struggling up till then as well as how they have been learning as a relatively new race team.

Friday, August 17th 2018

   New on the Audio Page for today:

Max McLaughlin talks about his Brewerton Speedway victory and his sixth place at Land of Legends.
Ryan Arbuthnot tells me about his three win season so far and described how he is doing a 2 homes.
Bobby Herrington remembers a recent win going slow and how he has been liking the track at Fulton.
Kevin Poitras describes how he is doing in his second year in dirt and how he is adapting to a 358.
Shawn Kirby came into last Friday as the Can Am point leader and talked about a consistent 2018.

It was a beautiful day in Central New York on Thursday and I got a little work done and spent some time with a friend of ours who is up from Georgia and is staying with us for a few days. We’ve been having a blast and listening to a lot of early 80’s music. Boy I forgot about a lot of those songs.

I was hoping to be at Utica Rome tonight but that show was cancelled yesterday and from the sounds of things more cancellations will be coming as they have us at a 100% chance of rain and thunderstorms. I will be in Canandaigua tomorrow as your guest announcer and Allie will be with me too to sing the national anthem.

Now let’s chat more about what we have for today on the Audio Page as we start off with four Modified drivers and finish off with one of the top Pro Stock racers around. Max McLaughlin talks about his Brewerton Speedway victory, his sixth place at Land of Legends Raceway and described the work he was doing on Thursday to get ready for the weekend.

Ryan Arbuthnot tells me about his three win season so far and described how some extra work on shocks has helped as well as what he will do once weekly competition ends.

Bobby Herrington remembers a recent win going slow, how he has been liking the track at Fulton and runs down his plans once September rolls around.

Kevin Poitras describes how he is doing in his second year in dirt and how he is adapting to a 358 Modified as well as some experimenting he is doing along the way.

Shawn Kirby came into last Friday as the Can Am point leader and talked about a consistent season so far in 2018 as well as how being in a tight points battle is nothing new for him.

Thursday, August 16th 2018

   New on the Audio Page for today:

Alan Rudalavage talks about win number 4 at Penn Can and how quickly he was able to get up front.
Billy Van Inwegen spoke about racing primarily Sprint Cars now and seeing tracks for a second time.
Dylan Swierkick remembered the last time he raced and explained why he changed the look on his car.
Dave Rogers had won two of his last four at Can Am and gave some tips on adjusting shock pressures.
Earl Rudy shared his take on seeing the local Microd racers and what his impressions were of the show.

I had a good day on Wednesday although it started with a software problem. I called Microsoft and half an hour later it was solved and we should be good to go but when Word messes up it messes up everything with me.

I had to make a change as this Friday does not look good so I had to plan out th9ings a little better and save some stuff for Saturday. I’ll make the necessary adjustments and still have lots of new stiff for you, just not as much as if I felt confident about Friday. Stay tuned.

Now let’s go into more detail on the new stuff on the Audio Page starting with the man they call “Hollywood” more now than ever before. Alan Rudalavage talks about win number 4 at Penn Can last Friday, how quickly he was able to get up front and explains why he doesn’t travel more at this stage of his career.

Billy Van Inwegen spoke about racing primarily Sprint Cars now, what it is like seeing tracks for a second time & third time as well as what his hopes were for Friday night at Can Am.

Dylan Swierkick remembered the last time he raced, described how bad the crash was and explained why he changed the look on his car to something new.

Dave Rogers had won two of his last four at Can Am and told me why he feels he has been doing of late and gave us all some tips on adjusting shock pressures during the race night.

Earl Rudy shared his take on seeing the local Microd racers, what his impressions were of the show and recapped his last top ten finishes at Brewerton & Fulton.

Wednesday, August 15th 2018

New on the Audio Page for today:

Billy Van Pelt recaps his last two races and talks about checking torsion bars and finding a basic set up.
Bobby Varin tells me about his Fonda win on Saturday and explains how he ran down the race leader.
Matt Janczuk got ready to race Saturday and talked about his race plans after the summer is complete.
Corey Barker remembered his win on Friday at Brewerton and told me how good he is in the 25 car.
Emily Van Inwegen talked about racing her 305 against the ESS on Friday night up north at Can Am.
Ryan Shanahan explained why he knew who it was when another car bumped him in the staging lane.
Jeremie Corcoran describes how well Thursday Night Thunder went and looks ahead to November.

The rain just won’t stop here in the northeast and we hope and pray that all of you are safe and dry on this Wednesday. We’re fine up here but thinking about all of you to our south who are dealing with these torrential rains.

We’ve got a lot to listen to today as we have been very busy both at the racetracks and in the studio. I have a friend from out of town coming in today so I wanted to get ahead to we can all spend some time together. It’s going to be a fun couple of days before the weekend gets here.

I’ll be announcing at Land of Legends Raceway this Saturday for the first time under the new team in place. They are pretty slick over there so I’ll learn a lot and get to work with some old friends as well as some new ones. It will be a ball. Of course Allie will be with me to do the national anthem.

Now let’s talk more about what we have for you on the Audio Page starting out with more tipes for you drivers out there in the second half of this first clip. Billy Van Pelt recaps his last two races that included a win as well as a third place and talks about checking torsion bars and finding a basic set up as well as how to tweak based on track conditions.

Bobby Varin tells me about his Fonda win on Saturday and explains how he ran down the race leader in a multi-groove track as well as how he hurt one of his engines. Ouch!

Matt Janczuk got ready to race Saturday and talked about his race plans after the summer is complete as well as his hopes to try to get behind the wheel of a Sprint Car.

Corey Barker remembered his win on Friday at Brewerton and told me how good he is in the 25 car as well as his hopes to somehow move up to a 358 Modified next season.

Emily Van Inwegen talked about racing her 305 against the ESS on Friday night up north at Can Am, described how her season has been going and what the biggest plus is on the year.

Ryan Shanahan explained why he knew who it was when another car bumped him in the staging lane Friday night at Can An, the rivalry that exists between them and how close he is to his first win.

Jeremie Corcoran describes how well Thursday Night Thunder went at ESTA Safety Park Dragstrip, wonders about expanding it for next year and looks ahead to the Northeast Racing Products show in November.


	What was the best movie to watch if you want to see cars get wrecked? It's a mad, mad, mad world. 1963 Gone in 60 seconds. 1974 Smokey & The Bandit Part 3. 1983 The Blues Brothers. 1980 Vanishing Point. 1971 Click here for more results


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