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VFT1 and the October 2024 Road Trip (cc: @NASCAR Teams)

Back in February of this year, around the time of the Daytona 500, we had looked upon NASCAR's schedule and got to thinking: We really hadn't been able to reschedule our previous attempt at going to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the fall NASCAR Cup Series race from a few years ago. Then it dawned on us.

20 October 2024 is the blog owner's 37th birthday. It falls on a Sunday. What perfect timing it would be to spend the day watching a day of auto racing from the comfort of the west coast, beginning the Round of 8. We've gotten as far as buying a ticket for the event in question, and beginning the process of getting a room and flight booked.

But we're thinking a little more should be done, yes?

This is where the proposition comes into play.

We would like to (hopefully) get to be in the company of a Cup Series team for the Las Vegas race. Please keep in mind that we could not possibly be there all weekend. But if you would like us (see also: me) to be there all weekend, just say the word and we could make arrangements to do the weekend with you.

The plan we're thinking is quite simple: A look into what the entire weekend is like, from practice and qualifying to packing it all up after the race ends for the team in question. We would not try getting into anything that we could not possibly get into, so if you don't feel comfortable with getting us in to certain spots, then that's quite alright with us.

We can talk about this through e-mails, which is the best way to communicate with us. If you have any ideas on how this could work, or if you think you would be willing to be the team that we can get to know a little bit better, shoot us an e-mail.

vft1.mandy@aol.com

We're open to anything you have in mind. Thanks for reading, and see you in Vegas either way!

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Feels like a compact disc repeating the same song, but the song is pretty cool to begin with...

It's been official for a little while now that the 2024 Superstar Racing Experience season will kick off - once again - at Stafford. The series is in its fourth season, and July 11th will mark the fifth time that they will be racing in Connecticut. (And for those of you who don't pay attention to the socials of the series: Yes, Thunder Road's reschedule is included after the trip to Stafford.)

We've only been to four of the five events; the one we didn't go to was shortened due to rain, and one of the events we went to was a last-minute thing courtesy of our workplace. Do we want to bite the bullet, so to speak, and get tickets when they go on sale? Wait until the day of, and see if an eleventh hour deal drops again? Try to play it off with SRX and SMS and possibly get inside access before the event? So many questions about trying to get in. We don't want to think about it right now, obviously. It's still 2023, after all.

But any ideas on drivers you'd like to see? We bet SRX is still open for opinions from fans.

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We've been posting this video around (yes, it's via way of our cell phone), and for good reason: We were able to get a little garage access for Stafford 2 back on Thursday. But, unfortunately, we weren't able to get much in terms of content. Enjoy the quick under-10 second video of some of the cars that were on track for the race.

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From tonight's SK Lights feature. Thought that we weren't going to finish it. We eventually did get the feature completed.

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We returned to the track tonight for the SK Light Double Down race... Very uneventful evening, in our honest opinions, but very eventful early action in the main event (until everything got under control). Here's the false start from said Double Down event, courtesy of the blog admin through Instagram.

Thinking we might take a little road trip down south in a few weeks, but we're not sure yet. Want to take a guess where to? It all depends on mood.

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From this past Friday night's (see also: 19 May) Call Before You Dig Open Modified 81 program. Enjoy the sounds of the cars passing by my phone as I recorded the start of the 81-lap main event.

Impromptu trips are always fun, I think. I might (or might not) be at SMS this upcoming Friday for the 40-lap SK Light "double down", as the track calls it. But I'm not quite sure on that yet. Stay tuned to the blog's socials.

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Here we go again.

When it was announced that ESPN would have airing rights to the Superstar Racing Experience in 2023, and would be moving from the weekend to Thursday nights, I admit to having a bit of a mixed reaction. It's good that it's being moved to a sports network, but I wasn't too sure about the Thursday night concept. I mean, ESPN knows what they're doing. SRX knows what they're doing, too... Right?

So this week, the 2023 SRX track schedule was announced. And, if you want to be surprised, go right ahead: Stafford is once again a part of it, kicking off Thursday Night Thunder. The track did it in 2021 with much success. They hosted in 2022 to more of the same. And now, we're back on. Not going to lie: It feels pretty nice to have them come back to Connecticut. And with July 13th being the Thursday of the New Hampshire Cup weekend, well... We'll throw in a chef's kiss.

So far, it's just SRX on that night. More information to come about any potential additions to the night later. Tickets will be available for purchase at the start of the calendar year. Stay tuned. We'll probably be going for this one, like we did the last two times.

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We at The View From Turn One will reserve judgment on this. Judgment that, given our need to be as non-biased as possible, needs to be postponed until the offseason.

There were extensive boos from the crowd at Phoenix tonight, though... Kind of makes us think if the judgment should be done this weekend.

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So, this happened tonight at the close of the second day of the Spring Sizzler. Matt Hirschman was probably the obvious pick to win the open Modified race today, earning the right to race with the SRX drivers in July's return appearance to Stafford.

Can he pull a Doug Coby and beat the SRX drivers? We'll find out in a few months.

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I just signed up for the updates today. But Formula 1 is going to be returning to Las Vegas in November of 2023. From a press release posted on the organization's site yesterday:

The world-famous neon lights of Las Vegas will provide the backdrop to Formula 1’s newest race when the American city hosts a night event from 2023. The Las Vegas Grand Prix will take place on a Saturday next November and be one of three races in the United States, joining Miami and Austin.

They did not give a specific date yet, but it will be late in the 2023 season. And they confirmed COTA (on the schedule for years as the only US-based race) and Miami (on 2022's schedule) will remain.

The track will include the famous Las Vegas strip, which will actually be closed off for a full weekend. F1 drivers will race past some of the most famous casinos in the world. Any race that actually goes by the FOUNTAINS OF BELLAGIO? I'm in.

Tell me when tickets are on sale, and I'm buying.

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Spring Cleaning

I went ahead and did some miniature renovations to the blog.

Mainly what I did was took out the origins page, because I think I've lost all way of getting access to it. The rosters have been updated to reflect what's going on for this upcoming season. And my "events attending" page will be updated when I find an event and purchase tickets for it - which reminded me to reveal that VFT1 will be making the voyage up for the SRX race in July.

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SRX Returns in 2022...

The hottest event in town from 2021 is returning to Stafford in 2022.

It was just last week that the track's social media accounts mentioned an announcement at the start of this month. Many people were clamoring about what it could have been. Of course, a day or two before the announcement was made, they had posted a taco emoji with a "superstar" gif... So the surprise was basically spoiled by then.

Last Tuesday, the revelation was made known: July 2nd would be when the Superstar Racing Experience will make a return trip to New England, as this time it will be the third stop on the tour (rather than the debut track). This gives anyone who's going to the event ample time to get to know the series, which is a little more convenient than last time.

As like last year, the SK Modifieds will also be on-hand. Unlike last year, however? The race they're in is going to be a points race. None of this all-star business they were involved in last time.

Also, we don't know who the hometown driver is going to be. Remember when it was revealed that Doug Coby was the local driver in 2021? It won't be so easy to tell just whom that will be this time around. All will be answered as to which driver will be driving with the SRX in July at the Spring Sizzler. According to Stafford:

In 2022, Modified history and SRX history will meet as the winner of the 50th running of the NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler will have the opportunity to run in the Stafford SRX event.

Remember that this is the first time in recent history that the Spring Sizzler will not involve the Whelen Modified Tour. The race that will be determining who the local representative is will be an open Modified race, one of many that Stafford will have on the 2022 schedule (which is a different story within itself).

Tickets were pre-sold for select groups last Friday, and went on sale to the general public the day after. If there's still tickets left, you might want to grab them while they're available. While this isn't a once in a lifetime experience (no pun intended), the 2022 event will probably be just as good as the 2021 one was.

We'll be waiting for you, SRX and CBS.

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Untold: Crime & Penalties Review

On August 31, 2021, Netflix dropped the latest documentary in the Untold series. It has everything to do with Jimmy Galante, a trash mogul who bought his son AJ a hockey team before the 2004-05 UHL season.

If you were expecting anything to be said about the SK Modifieds that he had owned at the time, and Mystique Motorsports... Well, I'm going to be quite honest with you: Nothing was really said about that in the entire thing. Unless, of course, you count the UHL head talking to Jimmy at the top of the documentary. Case in point:

That was really the only thing Stafford Speedway related in the near 1:30 worth of episode. I was expecting the FBI's raid of Galante's properties part to include the footage of Ted Christopher's SK on a flatbed to be shown somewhere in there, but alas, there was nothing.

The documentary mainly focused on Jimmy buying a hockey team and naming AJ as the General Manager as a 17-year-old.

I mean, don't get me wrong. It's a good documentary. You have interviews of both Jimmy and AJ, and Jimmy mentions at one point that he's not allowed to talk about any case-related information.

Even if there's little racing information in there, go check it out. Hockey fans will enjoy this look into the minor leagues. Anyone who wants to learn more about the Galante family, and maybe even learn a little extra that you might not have known about the situation that developed should also take a peek.

Untold: Crime & Penalties is now on Netflix.

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Well, it’s official. The promotion known as Superstar Racing Experience got commercialized today. I’m not surprised about just what company decided to get their hands all over this one.

If you remember the spring Las Vegas Truck race, Marcus Lemonis went all-in on sponsorships. From an Associated Press article by Jenna Fryer the day before the race, it’s interesting to look back at that social media post he made to get the ball rolling:

Lemonis earlier this week posted an offer on Twitter: He would pay $15,000 to any team that wrapped its truck in Camping World’s paint scheme. A top-10 finish upped the payout to $25,000, a top-five is worth $35,000 and a victory would pay $50,000.

There has been a flurry of transactions since — seemingly all brokered on Twitter — and not even Lemonis is sure how many trucks will be wrapped in Camping World schemes Friday night. The entry list released earlier this week showed at least seven of 40 trucks did not have sponsorship for Las Vegas.

Don’t quote me on it, but I want to say there were 7-10 trucks decked in the colors of Camping World, which Lemonis is CEO of. Camping World is also the title sponsor of the Truck Series. And he’s branched out into other sports. NCAA football (bowl game), MLB, NHRA... And now, Superstar Racing Experience is another auto racing promotion he’s involved in.

Not going to lie, but this seems like a good partnership.

The Camping World SRX Series (crazy to call it that now) rolls into Stafford on June 12. Catch the action live on television, weather permitting.

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Amateur All-Star Reveal

Earlier today (read as "this morning"), the Superstar Racing Experience announced a list of special drivers who, in their terms, were "amateur all-stars" for 99 percent of the tracks that they're scheduled for - Stafford included. For some reason, discussing this with other members of the VFT1 headquarters household... It wasn't what was expected.

Now, when it comes to the creator's personal opinion of what an all-star should be, it should have been someone like a Keith Rocco, who has proven that he can get things done. A top weekly division star racing with the SRX drivers? Yeah, we could get behind that. And wouldn't that have been something? Would have been worth it to see what would have happened. But, no. That's not what SRX did.

What SRX did do was invite Doug Coby to be the special guest driver for the Stafford event. I don't know who had the power to pick who the invite was going to for the first race of the schedule, but I would have honestly gone with my brilliant idea. This is certainly not a knock on Coby or his skills. Nor is it bashing prior achievements he has at Stafford. I just think that if you were going to pick someone, wouldn't you want someone who's not just there for Tour races these days?

Speaking of the Whelen Modified Tour, they're at Oswego that night for an event. So you're telling me that Coby's going to race at Stafford for this special event, and then book it for the WMT race? Depending on what the schedule format looks like for the SRX/SK All-Star combo, he may just be there for the SRX race.

Call me crazy, but this was not the name that I had in mind when I was thinking "special guest racer".

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Saw a tweet from Stafford this morning, that seemed a tad bit cryptic at first. But if you’re aware of what’s been going on in the state of Connecticut lately, you would know exactly what this meant.

Eight days ago, on March 4, it was revealed that the capacity limit for outdoor sporting events would be upped to 50%. What does this mean for ticket sales for Stafford Speedway events, which includes the first Superstar Racing Experience event on June 12? This means more seating will be available for purchase.

So this should mean that all events that Stafford has planned for 2021, as of right now, will have 50% capacity limits enforced. We’re thinking they’ll keep Section A of the grandstands mask-mandated, while every other section will remain mask-optional (like they were last season). But we can’t be so sure about that.

Still, it’s great to see things picking up in a hurry. So if you missed out on SRX tickets when they went on sale earlier this year, you get another shot to get on them.

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Old Face, Same Place

I shot off a tweet or two tonight, when I mentioned Stafford Speedway by handle and casually mentioned that some drivers are returning after some form of hiatus from weekly competition. The part I went into detail about was the length of time since some of their last races. Some were coming back after a few years, sticking with the style of car but promoting themselves.

And then, there’s something that we didn’t expect to see in 2021. How was I feeling when someone who hadn’t raced in nearly twenty years filed an entry in the Street Stock division? Consider me shocked.

Little history lesson, for those of you who are relatively new to the Stafford fandom: The Street Stocks weren’t always called by that term. Before 2018, the term used to describe the division was “DARE Stock”. Now, prior to 2004, the DARE Stocks did not race for points. In fact, there was a rule in place when I first started attending Stafford races that said that drivers in this division could only win twice throughout the entire season. Also, weight would have to be added into the car in order to make it fair for the field.

I’ve always thought that the two win rule was kind of weird, to be honest...

Anyways, where am I going with this?

Twenty years ago was 2001. I was thirteen (going on fourteen in the fall), and I was going to begin high school in the fall. I don’t remember much about the on-track action. What I do remember is finding that my favorite divisions were the SK Modifieds and DARE Stocks. I also think about that time I followed a DARE Stock driver out of the grandstands so I could ask who he was without him telling me his name. “Bright orange car. Can’t miss it!” He walked off for his car so he could race, and I was then possessed to find out just who he was.

Flash forward to 2021. Unlike nearly two decades ago, I won’t have to go by car color to figure out just which Street Stock belongs to Pat Grady.

I’ve always wondered what happens to the drivers when they decide that it’s time to stop racing for a while. Do they still have that itch to get into a car again and race? Do they say “enough is enough”, and never race again? I kind of remember when Grady’s (then former) orange car came out onto the track in 2003 with a different driver behind the wheel, and the 5 was taken off of all sides and roof. Would Grady come back?

The answer is yes... Even though he won’t be in #05 (he’s in the 2021 season listing as #17) I’m excited to see what happens when old faces return to the track in familiar places.