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Wednesday, June 5th 2013

New on the Audio Page from the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame induction ceremony:

Mike McLaughlin talks about his early days of racing at Waterloo and remembers his start.
Greg Doust spoke about watching his mom Jayne Doust get inducted into the Hall of Fame.
William “Blackie” Watt talks with Shane Andrews after his DIRT Hall of Fame induction.
Joe Marotta tells some stories about Mike McLaughlin before interviewing him at the HOF.
Frank Cozze speaks to the crowd after his induction into the HOF and tells some great stories.
Joe Skotnicki gets ready for today at Rolling Wheels as the Super DIRTcar Series kicks off.
Brett Deyo talks about a busy streak of mid week shows starting tonight and ending in Jersey.

I had a great time last night at the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame induction ceremony. It was so great to see everyone there and to honor this years inductees. And I think moving this event to a Tuesday night really helped.

I did record a lot as I watched the festivities and almost all of that is up today. I did save a clip with John McArdell and a real funny one with Mike Perrotte as he shares some great stories about Fran Cozze. You’ll love the part about their phone conversations.

I had a great time although I did have to leave early as my kids were at home with dad who is lucky to stay up past 8:30. I really need to find a good babysitter here as it could be tough this summer.

Also today I’ll be at Rolling Wheels Raceway in Elbridge for the start of the Super DIRTcar Series. Allie will be with me for her first ever race at the track and thanks to Jeff Hachmann and DIRTcar for allowing her to get wherever I go. I am really looking forward to it.

Now let’s chat more about the Hall of Fame clips I have for you today on the Audio Page. I start with my first interview of the night. Mike McLaughlin talks about his early days of racing at Waterloo and remembers his start. He told me who his idol was as a young wanna be racer, what his big goal was early on and reacts to seeing old friends at the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame in Weedsport.

Greg Doust spoke about watching his mom Jayne Doust get inducted into the Hall of Fame. He shared his emotions on this day, remembered going to the track as a kid and what he feels could happen to make dirt racing as big as it should be.

William “Blackie” Watt talks with Shane Andrews after his DIRT Hall of Fame induction. He talked about nights where he pulled double duty, how he picked up a ride for a race where the car owner felt the car could not win and how reliable his racecar was.

Joe Marotta tells some stories about Mike McLaughlin before interviewing him at the HOF. He shared the story of why they put the crazy 8 on the side, how he got to the track without a hauler and his time in NASCAR.

Frank Cozze speaks to the crowd after his induction into the HOF and tells some great stories. He talked about his first night in a Sprint Car at Williams Grove, how fortunate he was to have some of the best cars around to drive and some of his proudest moments. Later this week, we’ll hear some stories about Frank from Mike Perrotte.

Joe Skotnicki gets ready for today at Rolling Wheels as the Super DIRTcar Series kicks off. He talked about moving the Hall of Fame Induction ceremonies to a Tuesday night, why he thought the mid week might work better and how perfect it is to follow it up with a race the very next day.

Brett Deyo talks about a busy streak of mid week shows that starts tonight and ends in New Jersey. He spoke about tonight at Rolling Wheels, next week at Penn Can and the first ever Super DIRTcar Series at New Egypt the week after that.

Tuesday, June 4th 2013

New on the Audio Page for today:

Ryan Godown talks about his New Egypt win and his hopes for Rolling Wheels on Wednesday.
Chris Hile updates me on his Modified season so far as he races at Brewerton and Fulton.
Dane Keller Jr. tells me how his rookie season is going in an IMCA Modified at Brewerton.
Mike Mullen is hoping for his first Mod Lite win of the year and talked about how his car is.
Marcia Wetmore recaps her career in racing as she prepares to be inducted into the DIRT HOF.

It is going to be a fun night tonight as I’ll be heading out to the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame & Classic Car Museum for the class of 2013 induction ceremonies. And one of the inductees is on the site today to help get you ready for the event.

Of course it is part of a big two day deal here in Central New York as Rolling Wheels runs Wednesday night with race number one of the Super DIRTcar Series. I’ll be bringing my oldest with me for that one as she has never seen Rolling Wheels before. It will be a great day.

And as you can see from the first interview on the page, there could be some surprise entries including New Jersey’s Ryan Godown. The weather is going to be great so there are no “well it might rain” issues at all, so make your plans now to join us there for what I think has the potential to be an absolutely huge show.

Now let’s chat more about what we do have for you on the Audio Page for today including that driver I was just referencing. Ryan Godown talks about his New Egypt win and his hopes for Rolling Wheels on Wednesday. He explained how he went from 3^rd to 1^st in four laps, why we may see him more this year on the Super DIRTcar Series and how important it is to get your night off to a good start in time trials.

Chris Hile updates me on his Modified season so far as he races at Brewerton and Fulton. He talked about trying something different this past weekend, explains the handling condition he is hoping to fix and where he needs the car to be better.

Dane Keller Jr. tells me how his rookie season is going in an IMCA Modified at Brewerton. He talked about his goals for the race nights, how he is doing as a driver and explains the things he feels he needs to be better at.

Mike Mullen is hoping for his first Mod Lite win of the year and talked about how his car is. He told me how he is trying to get the car back to where it was last season, the changes they are making to get it there and what he needs to change when he brings the car to Fulton.

Marcia Wetmore recaps her career in racing as she prepares to be inducted into the DIRT Hall of Fame later today. She told me about her first job in racing at the DIRT headquarters, her move to the Outlaw Circuit and shares lots of memories along the way.

Monday, June 3rd 2013

New on the Audio Page for today:

Mike Colsten talks about winning again at Five Mile Point and his battle with Mesothelioma.
Gary Tomkins tells me about his win at Canandaigua, his first since the 2009 racing season.
Dale Caswell had an IMCA Modified at Brewerton on Friday and talked about the racecar.
Jim Bogett speaks about his 2013 season in a Mod Lite and describes the work his business does.
Kyle Young has been to three racenights so far with his Four Cylinder and talked about results.

Well it wasn’t the Sunday as I had hoped for as the Utica Rome Speedway rained out early after a big system moved through the area early in the morning. It’s to bad too as the rest of the day didn’t look that bad although the forecast certainly did not predict that at the time.

So I got to work in the studio and before I did any interviews I tried to put up some new photos. The first bin had trouble although it did make it up. The second one did not and now we are busy chatting with out server company trying to figure out why it is not working now. We’ll get it, we always do but damn!!!

Today I will be working on that as well as many other things and of course we’ll be at the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Tuesday and Rolling Wheels on Wednesday. We’ll keep focusing on getting you some new audio while working hard behind the scenes.

Now let’s talk about what is new for today on the Audio Page. I begin with a story I have been sitting on for quite sometime as per the requests of the party involved. But now we’ll tell his story. Mike Colsten talks about winning again at Five Mile Point and his battle with Mesothelioma. He told me about each of his two victories, described hoe he feels now and thanks all the people who have been supporting him this difficult time. We’re so happy for you Mike!

Gary Tomkins tells me about his win at Canandaigua, his first since the 2009 racing season. He explained why the feature surface was different than usual, how slower traffic hurt & helped him at various times and looks forward to heading to Rolling Wheels on Wednesday for the Super DIRTcar Series opener.

Dale Caswell had an IMCA Modified at Brewerton on Friday and talked about the racecar. He told me who was behind the deal, what they did to get it race ready and what his plans are for the car. It was a tough night for Dale but he’ll get her going well soon.

Jim Bogett speaks about his 2013 season in a Mod Lite and describes the work his business does. He talks about how Pro Race Cars can help Mod Lite teams with new cars, parts and advice. Check out their ad on our page and get faster!

Kyle Young has been to three racenights so far with his Four Cylinder and talked about his results so far. He talked about his improving finishes, how he is doing on the track and how surprised he is that he is doing so well so soon.

Sunday, June 2nd 2013

New on the Audio Page for today:

Willy Decker talked about his season so far at Utica Rome and compares himself to the winners.
Tim Sears Jr. described an issue they have been working on and how he compensates for it.
Kevan Cook remembered the tough weekend he was coming off and the 1997 season deaths.
Joe Garafolo explained why he had a pick up ride in the Mod Lite division at Brewerton Speedway.
Lowell Zehr has been struggling a bit of late and talked about some gearing issues they are having.

I hope you all had a great Saturday. I did. I spent the day with the kids as my wife worked and got some work done on the website along the way. Then after that, I went out for some live music. My wife didn’t get out of work until 9 PM so I made the most of it and had a blast.

Today I am set to go to Utica Rome and I will be keeping my eyes to the sky as some weather could come into our area today. I love storms but not when I’m driving so hopefully we’ll all miss them today and get to see some great racing.

This week I’ll be at the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame on Tuesday and at Rolling Wheels on Wednesday for the start of the Super DIRTcar Series. Then next week I’ll be at Canandaigua for a mid week show as Tony Stewart joins the field for some winged fun.

Now let’s chat more about what is new for today on the Audio Page for you to listen to. I start out with someone who will race later today. Willy Decker talked about his season so far at Utica Rome and compares himself to the winners. He told me how close he is, where they are better than he is and how important it is to keep your speed through the corners.

Tim Sears Jr. described an issue they have been working on and how he compensates for it. He explained why they had to pick up a different car before the start of the season, what the car does when you get out of the gas and what advice his dad has for him.

Kevan Cook remembered the tough weekend he was coming off and the 1997 season deaths. He explained why he tries to never drive over his head, described some damage they have been fixing on his car and how bent it was.

Joe Garafolo explained why he had a pick up ride in the Mod Lite division at Brewerton Speedway. He compared it to the car he normally drives, wonders if he is at a small disadvantage starting the season late and what his car owners orders are.

Lowell Zehr has been struggling a bit of late and talked about some gearing issues they are having. He told me about some brain fade he has had, wondered what to do to get the car to be faster and wondered if the changes he had made would work later.

Saturday, June 1st 2013

New on the Audio Page from the Brewerton Speedway:

Pre race conversations:

Pat Ward talks about his appendix, when he knew something was wrong and how he is right now.
Chuck Bower remembered some of his recent close finishes and told me what happened at Fulton.
Stephen Denton told me about his top ten finish with the Chump Car World Series at Daytona.
Rob Keller thought about fallen racer Dean Hubbs as he got ready to run in his memorial race.
Jimmy Phelps spoke about his Victoria 200 win and what the victory did for his confidence.

After the heat races:

Kevan Cook talked about his IMCA Modified heat win and the hot laps he took in a Late Model.
Chris Fleming went from 3^rd to 1^st in one lap and talked about his hopes to win another memorial.
Chad Phelps described his side by side race with Pat Ward as he barely won his Modified heat.
Ryan Bartlett pulled away for a comfortable heat win and told me how good his Modified was.
Dan Vauter told me the fun he had in his heat as he beat Matt Hulsizer in another side by side race.

After the features:

Chris Fleming picked up win number five on the season and talked about it with Bill Foley.
Chad Phelps won his second Modified feature of the year and spoke about the win down trackside.
Jimmy Phelps spoke with Mike Mallett after his second place finish in the 35 lap feature.
Matt Hulsizer described how his car changed for the better as the feature laps wound down.
Larry Wight came from last to fifth and talked about the move he made at the line to get the spot.

It was a hot one on Friday as I stayed close to home as we usually do during the school year and went to the Brewerton Speedway. It was the Dean Hubbs Memorial and the IMCA Modifieds were there to put on a show and they did not disappoint.

The twelve IMCA Modified feature came down to the final corner as Chris Fleming swept the outside of Kevan Cook for the victory after the two crossed the line side by side at the white. It was the second memorial race win in a row for Fleming as he also won the Ryan Ellis Memorial last Sunday at Skyline Raceway.

Chad Phelps led all but three laps in the Modified feature on his way to his second feature win of the season. He also won a few weeks back at Fulton and he really seems to have his new car hooked up and running fast.

Car counts were a little low here too as only eighteen Modifieds took the green flag. There were 24 Mod Lites and 19 Four Cylinders to bring the overall count to 73. The crowd was good though and the racing was done quickly and efficiently.

I did get a lot of interviews done and will have some more from this show up tomorrow as I have plans for tonight. I’ll be back at Utica Rome on Sunday and since we seem to have our photo upload situation handled, we’ll be putting up new pictures as we get them. Thanks everyone for understanding and let’s hope we go full speed ahead from here on in.

Again, the reason I have not been able to travel especially on Fridays is that my wife has been substitute teaching so I have to be there to get my kids off the bus a 3:50 PM. Often she does not get home until 4:15 so that rules out a lot of places. Plus she has been working another part time job as she will be doing today until 8 PM, so going to a race is not possible today. As happens with a lot of the teams, life gets in the way of racing and it is doing so for me right now.

Keep checking back as I may get some photos in today and like I said, I’ll be checking my emails and will put them up as I can. I hope you all stay dry today and keep your eyes to the sky just in case as the next two days could be busy ones weather wise.

Friday, May 31st 2013

New on the Audio Page for today

Lance Yonge described how he has done in the first three races with the Empire Super Sprints.
Craig Hanson started the year out with a win and talked about how he has been doing since.
Peter Britten prepared for his first ever sail panel race and spoke about V8 Supercars in the U.S.
Elmo Reckner has had a bunch of second place finishes this year and talked about being close.
Mark Kislowski has his Saturday track rain out on Saturday and explained how that helped.
Billy Van Iwegen spoke about getting his first Modified win at Accord and how it happened.
Paul Habeck talked about how his injury from last year is healing and the long term diagnosis.
Justin Boehler recently made the move to a Modified and talked about how big a change it is.
Kenny Hammond finished fourth in his IMCA Modified heat and told Jay Fish how the track was.
James Cornell had four IMCA races under his belt and told Jay Fish how he won three of those.
Mike Smith chats with Jay Fish as he prepared for the Ryan Ellis Memorial 37 at Skyline.
J.J. Courcy won his heat race at the Ryan Ellis Memorial and told Jay Fish about the victory.
Bumps Scutt evaluated what he needed to do to win the 37 car Ryan Ellis Memorial at Skyline.
Mike Wilmot got ready for the Ryan Ellis Memorial and talked about leading the Empire Series.

Well as you can see we have a ton of new stuff for you today. In addition to the 15 interviews we have between myself and Jeremiah Fish, we also have five new photo bins as well. Enjoy it while you can as we don’t know how the weekend will look and when the next time is that we’ll have this much for you on a single day.

The issue we had Wednesday I found out was not from our end and was not related to the photos I put up that morning. So after checking our numbers, I went ahead and put up a bunch. Please, hit them hard and let me know if you have any issues with an email to doug@dougsdirtdiary.com.

And tonight I will be heading back to the Brewerton Speedway for the Dean Hubbs Memorial. We lost Dean back in 1997 at a crash at the track and there will be several teams there to honor his memory. We’ll be thinking about you Dean and we wish all the best to his family and friends on what will surely be a tough evening for them.

Now let’s chat more about the new stuff on the Audio Page for you to listen to today. Lance Yonge described how he has done in the first three races with the Empire Super Sprints. He talked about how a mistake set him back in a heat race at Selinsgrove, how tough it can be to race down there and how much he likes Utica Rome despite some recent struggles.

Craig Hanson started the year out with a win and talked about how he has been doing since. He talked about how tough it can be to struggle after winning, how much fun he has with his guys in the pits and how long it has been since he had been to Utica Rome.

Peter Britten prepared for his first ever sail panel race & first race at Utica Rome and spoke about V8 Supercars in the U.S. He talked about his third place Saturday at Canandaigua, wondered if more laps might have helped and looks forward to a busy streak coming up.

Elmo Reckner has had a bunch of second place finishes this year and talked about being close. He described the totally different motor he had with him on Sunday, how it has been in the two races he had it at so far and his hopes that they fixed some issues they had.

Mark Kislowski has his Saturday track rain out on Saturday and explained how that helped make the decision easier to come to Utica Rome. He told me how rusty he felt in hot laps, why he was waiting before putting a heat set up in the car and how he did the week after his first career Modified win.

Billy Van Iwegen spoke about getting his first Modified win at Accord and how it happened. He talked about how they ended up making a surprise run at track that night, how he is doing in his ride at Orange County and where he feels he is as a driver right now as he got ready at Utica Rome.

Paul Habeck talked about how his injury from last year is healing and the long term diagnosis. He told me how he did at the ESS opener at Can Am, how the 305 ride has been going at Canandaigua and how those extra laps on Saturday helps.

Justin Boehler recently made the move to a Modified and talked about how big a change it is. He explained how some extra horsepower has changed his driving, how much it helps when he races big blocks at Albany Saratoga and wonders how his first race ever will go at Utica Rome.

Kenny Hammond finished fourth in his IMCA Modified heat and told Jay Fish how the track was. He talked about how surprised he was to see the water truck, how long it takes for the track come back after that and how his 2013 season has gone so far.

James Cornell had four IMCA races under his belt and told Jay Fish how he won three of those. He told him how he got a ride for the division, what his plans are for racing these types of cars and how tough the field is for this one at Skyline.

Mike Smith chats with Jay Fish as he prepared for the Ryan Ellis Memorial 37 at Skyline. He talked about how nice it was for the track to honor the former driver, how tough it mush be for his family and how tight knit the IMCA Modified family is.

J.J. Courcy won his heat race at the Ryan Ellis Memorial and told Jay Fish about the victory. He talked about how he had to change his line to get to the front, how nice it was to pick up some cash in the win and why starting spot didn’t matter too much in his eyes.

Bumps Scutt evaluated what he needed to do to win the 37 car Ryan Ellis Memorial at Skyline. He talked about what he heard about the man they were remembering, how nice it was to see 37 cars in the pit area and how much help he had to put the car together after a wreck the night before.

Mike Wilmot got ready for the Ryan Ellis Memorial and talked about leading the Empire Series. He talked about the level of competition he saw in the pit area, why he took the night off on Saturday and how important it is to have a great baseline set up.

Thursday, May 30th 2013

New on the Audio Page for today

Matt Sheppard talks about next week’s race at Rolling Wheels and his five win season to date.
Justin Haers won his first race at Canandaigua since 2011 and explained how he got it done.
Larry Wight told me about his Modified feature win at Fulton and how slower traffic helped.
Paul Jensen is a former winner of the Victoria 200 and talked about how a rain out helped.
Paul Kinney came back to his former home and talked about the extra pressure he was feeling.
Erik Nelson made a rare Utica Rome appearance and talked about the ride he found for Fonda.
Matt Billings talked about leading the Modified feature at Canandaigua until just four laps to go.
Gordy Button was back at Utica Rome in a Crate Sportsman and told me how it came about.
Eddie White just finished a tough heat race at Skyline and told Jay Fish about his feature hopes.
Kyle Demetro raced at Skyline for the first time on Saturday and described the track to Jay Fish.
Kevan Cook finished second in his IMCA Modified heat race and talked about it with Jay Fish.
Eddie Sites won his heat race at the Empire Series race and talked about his home track in Pa.
Jared Spaulding spoke with Jay Fish about his second place in an IMCA heat at Skyline Raceway.
Harry Ely had a third place run in his IMCA heat and talked with Jay Fish about qualifying.
Jason Benjamin just ran his heat and told Jay Fish about his hopes to make it in the consi.

What a wild weather day it was on Wednesday. We had a couple of storms roll through the area and I hope all of you are ok as some of those looked like real whoppers.

I had a fun day as the media met with Matt Sheppard here in Liverpool to pump up next week’s Super DIRTcar Series opener in Elbridge at Rolling Wheels Raceway. I have an interview up with Matt today and will be doing more as this event gets closer.

And as you can see we have a lot of new audio up today. We’ll have about the same amount tomorrow so be sure to check back. I did put some new photos up but had an issue at dinner time last night. Is it related to that? I’m not sure but we’re looking into it.

Now let’s chat more about all the new stuff we have for you on the Audio Page for today. Matt Sheppard talks about next week’s race at Rolling Wheels and his five win season to date. He spoke about what it takes to win the Super DIRTcar Series three years in a row, what the keys are to getting around the big 5/8 mile track and how familiar he is with the racers he runs with on the series.

Justin Haers won his first race at Canandaigua since 2011 and explained how he got it done. He described the pass for the win with four to go, what had gone wrong in the two weeks leading up to Saturday and how he has done in the past at Utica Rome.

Larry Wight told me about his Modified feature win at Fulton and how slower traffic helped. He walked me through his pass for the lead, how he went from fourth to second in one move and how long it took him to run down the leader.

Paul Jensen is a former winner of the Victoria 200 and talked about how a rain out helped him make the choice to race. He described how his car was in hot laps, what is different from back in the 1990’s and reacted to Marcia Wetmore going into the DIRT Hall of Fame.

Paul Kinney came back to his former home and talked about the extra pressure he was feeling. He talked about the poor draw he had coming through the gate, how he did in his first two ESS races and how tough it is to race in Sprint Car country down in Pennsylvania.

Erik Nelson made a rare Utica Rome appearance and talked about the ride he found for Fonda. He told me about the experienced driver who has been racing the car on Fridays, why he made sure to go to a show this past weekend and where he feels he needs to improve.

Matt Billings talked about leading the Modified feature at Canandaigua until just four laps to go. He described the line he was using, how much more comfortable he is in the big block and his hopes for the Victoria 200 on Monday.

Gordy Button was back at Utica Rome in a Crate Sportsman and told me how it all came about. He told me when he picked the car up, where the motor came from and why he changed his number to 77.

Eddie White just finished a tough heat race at Skyline and told Jay Fish about his feature hopes. He talked about the need for patience in the long race, the jingle he had in his heat and why he thought his starting spot wouldn’t matter too much.

Kyle Demetro raced at Skyline for the first time on Saturday and described the track to Jay Fish. He described where he would like to be better on the track, how his season has been going so far and some of the travels they have made so far.

Kevan Cook finished second in his IMCA Modified heat race and talked about it with Jay Fish. He explained why the track was to his liking, described the racing he was involved in up front and how cleanly they race together.

Eddie Sites won his heat race at the Empire Series race and talked with Jay Fish about his home track in Pa. He talked about how he felt about the tires they run on the hard track, what he expected the track to do later and how long the race will be.

Jared Spaulding spoke with Jay Fish about his second place in an IMCA heat at Skyline Raceway. He talked about his strategy for the 37 lap feature, described what he hoped he would see and how good of a starting spot he had for the race.

Harry Ely had a third place run in his IMCA heat and talked with Jay Fish about qualifying. He predicted what he thought would happen later, what they were working on for later and what those changes should do.

Jason Benjamin just ran his heat and told Jay Fish about his hopes to make it in the consi. He told him what he hoped would happen, how tough his heat race was and how tough it can be just to make the show in star studded event like this one.


	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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