Sunday, August 04, 2002
GROESCHEN: Speedway gets in on bobblehead act
Featured stars are Hornish, Unser, Lazier
Kentucky Speedway will make racing history, of sorts, with a bobblehead doll promotion next weekend.
The first 15,000 fans to enter the speedway for next Sunday's “Belterra Casino Indy 300” Indy Racing League event will receive one of three bobblehead dolls depicting IRL drivers Al Unser Jr., Buddy Lazier and Sam Hornish. The bobbleheads will be distributed randomly beginning at 8a.m. as the speedway gates open.
“Bobbleheads are very popular with fans and have never been the center of a promotional giveaway at a speedway,” said Mark Cassis, Kentucky Speedway general manager.
The speedway had projected a crowd of about 45,000, but the bobblehead attraction may push it past 50,000, Cassis said.
Racing begins at 11a.m. Sunday when the Indy Racing Infiniti Pro Series makes its Kentucky Speedway debut. The series was created to groom IRL drivers of the future and includes young drivers A.J. Foyt IV and Arie Luyendyk Jr.
Sunday will feature Kentucky's third annual IRL race at 1:30p.m. The field will include Marlboro Team Penske drivers Helio Castroneves (the 2001 and '02 Indianapolis 500 winner) and Gil deFerran, a two-time CART Series Champion. 2001 IRL Champion Hornish and two-time Kentucky winner Lazier also will race. Unser Jr. is undergoing treatment for alcohol abuse but could return for the event.
Kentucky opens its fourth and final weekend of the season with the NASCAR Hills Bros. All Pro Series (featuring Cincinnati native Jeff Fultz) and IRL qualifying on “84 WHAS-AM 150 & Pole Day” on Saturday. The “WHAS 150” begins at 2 p.m. and will be followed by IRL Infiniti Pro Series and IRL qualifying for Sunday's race.
Last year's IRL race drew 47,323. The inaugural IRL event drew 61,214 in August 2000.
SHELL AT EDGEWATER: Dave Shell of Lawrenceburg, Ind., is believed to be the only blind crew chief on national racing circuits. Shell's team, Spencer and Shell Racing, has been at Edgewater Sports Park this weekend competing at the track's biggest annual event, the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing “Summer Thunder” tour.
Shell and his driver, Jim Spencer, compete mostly on the IHRA circuit, the No.2 tier to the NHRA -- much like the Busch series compared to NASCAR's Winston Cup.
Shell, 55, was profiled by both the Enquirer and USA Today in 2000. He and Spencer continue to compete in the IHRA's Alcohol Funny Car division.
Shell was diagnosed blind at age 2. He tunes engines by feel and sound and can read micrometers and gauges with the aid of adaptive equipment.
“I can make out some shapes, but it's getting harder all the time,” Shell said. “But we're going to stay with it. We've got some new equipment now, and the
IHRA Worlds are what we're shooting for later this month.”
Shell and his team continue to seek additional sponsorship.
RHOADES HOT: John “Weasel” Rhoades, a 17-year dirt racing veteran from Sardinia, Ohio, won his fourth Feature event of the season at Brushcreek Motorsports Park in Peebles last weekend.
After struggling for the past few years at area dirt tracks, Rhoades is winning with a new team this season. His stepbrother, Randy Clark, is crew chief.
Brushcreek is in its second year of operation. Next weekend (Aug. 9-10), Rhoades is considered a favorite to win the track's Harley Heritage Classic Motorcycle event.
STORDEUR SECOND: Steve Stordeur of Goshen, Ohio, ranks No. 2 in the IHRA season standings in the Nitro Harley-Davidson class. Stordeur has been a top driver on the circuit for years, including a second-place finish in the 2000 season points.
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GROESCHEN: Speedway gets in on bobblehead act
