Once again, even though everyone got sunburn at the ISMA race at Albany-Saratoga just one week earlier, Oswego Speedway’s opener was met with SNOW. Apparently someone didn’t wish Mother Nature an early Happy Mother’s Day.

The good news is that we now will be racing at Oswego on May 15th, a date which wasn’t originally scheduled to be a race day at Oswego. The original schedule listed May 15th as an “off day”, so this is a great fill in.

It’s risky business for the speedway though, as people have been looking at their schedule for several months now, and many have already made other plans for that open date on the schedule.

So to those people I will say this: cancel your other plans! It’s race day! We need to spread the word, so there is a great crowd for opening day - even if it’s not on the schedule. Here’s some info from the press release from the speedway’s website.

“Oswego, N.Y. - After a relatively mild winter by central New York standards, Mother Nature interrupted the scheduled start of the 60th consecutive summer of racing at the Oswego Speedway by dishing up a windy and cold Mothers Day Weekend complete with wet snow in the forecast in parts of central New York. Supermodified and Small Block Supermodified fans will only have to wait one week for the season to kick into gear as the Oswego Speedway management has decide to fill the vacant May 15th date on the schedule with the postponed Burrit Motors and Syracuse Post-Standard “60th Season” opening day. Fans that purchased $10 tickets at Price Chopper for use on May 8th, will be able to use them on May 15th.

In 2009 Otto Sitterly captured both the Track Championship and the International Classic in the Novelis Supermodified division. Over in the PathFinder Bank SBS Series, Dave Gruel was the Track Champion and Mike Bond won the SBS Classic. Sitterly is back to defend both of his crowns while Gruel makes the long awaited jump to the Novelis Supermodified division where he will compete for the Cleaning for a Reason “Rookie of the Year” award. Mike Bond returns and likely will end the 2010 season as the all time leader in points and feature victories in the nineteen year history of the PathFinder Bank SBS Series.

The “60th Season” opener is sponsored by Burritt Motors and the Syracuse Post-Standard. The Oswego Speedway welcomes Burritt Motors and the Syracuse Post-Standard as opening day sponsors for the “60th Season” of racing in 2010.”

Yes, most of my writing is about pavement racing, and Oswego Speedway. But I still love dirt racing, which was my favorite for many years, long before I got hooked on Oswego. With Oswego’s opener still being a couple weeks away, we don’t have to wait to see some amazing races!

Two weeks ago was the Fulton Speedway opener, which produced an epic battle between Dale Planck and Billy Decker, which was eventually won by Planck after some paint-swapping. There were four divisions of racecars in competition on hand, proving that many dirt drivers ARE ready to go in mid-April.

Last weekend was the opener at Cayuga County Fairgrounds Speedway, where another great race greeted the fans. Races started at 5:00,and I was on the road home before 8:00. Sure it was a little chilly, just like it was back on April 10th for Fulton’s opener. But you grab an extra jacket, a corny winter hat, and you’re ready to go racing!

At Cayuga County / Weedsport, the modified feature went green to checkers, as Billy Dunn and Danny Johnson put on a great show of their own. Dunn led the first 20 laps or so, before the battle in traffic with “The Doctor” went the other way. But a great way to start the season for everyone involved - especially the fans.

Coming up next - Brewerton Speedway’s opener is on Friday, April 23rd. Will it be a little chilly? Maybe a little, but we can deal. (Don’t forget the aforementioned corny winter hat.) Several of us already have a tailgate party mapped out. The Big Block Modifieds, IMCA Modifieds, Late Models, Mod Lites, and 4-Cylinder Super Stocks will put on a great show, and we’re pretty excited about it.

And as a special bonus, our favorite rock star JP Shaggy will be performing at the “Back on Track Again” tavern after the races, located about 50 feet from the race track. Shaggy has played at Super Dirt Week, Fulton Speedway, Oswego Speedway, and all over, so many of you are already familiar with Shaggy and his blend of great music and laughs. Chances are, before the night is over, he’ll have your favorite driver - or you - on the stage. If you’ve never seen Shaggy - you should grab your sense of humor and head there.

I am SOOO happy racing season is back up and running!

“This is a whole new environment - I’m ready to go out and have some fun, and win some races!”, said Jason Simmons, the new driver of the Terry Solazzo owned #25 FFB small block super. This rumor had been floating around for awhile, but it was never an officially done deal until just today. (Or at least today was the day Jason was given the green light to admit it…)

In 2009, Solazzo’s two car team found Mike Bond 3rd in points, and Rob Pullen 9th. With Pullen not returning to the seat, Solazzo had to decide whether he was going to just field the one car, for Bond, or link up with another driver.

Of course at the end of last season, the talk was of only returning with the one ride. But I know how racing season is. Many of the season’s frustrations and woes that build up during the racing season seem to cool off with the cool weather, and are often mostly forgotten with the first big freeze. It’s just the way it works - I see it every year.

Simmons will supply his own engine for the Solazzo #25, a Mike O’Connor built power plant that was new near the end of the 2009 season. Jason’s own car though, will be at the speedway weekly, and be ready as a backup, or “in case you want to hop in it”, Jason offered.

The #25 will have some new body panels and bumpers, and will be gone through thoroughly before the season takes the green. “It’s a level playing field now”, Jason enthused, looking forward to trying a newer car than his own, with all of the current updates. “I want to push the envelope…”

Simmons also still owns an SST modified, which he ran once last year. That car will also be prepped and ready for a few events at Oswego, and maybe Shangri-La2 or Spencer Speedway. The SST will also sport a new O’Connor motor, and driving duties will be shared by Simmons, and Mike Bond. It’s not a full-time deal for either one, as the focus will be on the small block supermodified division, but there will definitely be a few shows for the #91 SST mod.
________________________________________________________________________

Brian Sobus, who retired from small block supermodified racing after the 2009 season, admitted recently that he’s coming out of retirement…again. He’s not sure yet if he’ll run the full season, but he’ll be there when the green flag drops.

“To be honest with you, I don’t really want to do the whole season. We’ve got to see how the first couple of races go”, Brian informed. But we all know what an illness racing is. Once they race a few times, they will be locked in. It happens every year. Especially with Brian and his family owned team.

They did consider moving to the SST modified division, as did Jason Simmons. “I love the speedway, and don’t want to give it up yet”, Brian shared.

So add the #79 back into the equation for the weekly (I predict) drivers. Although the division looked like it may be faltering at one point, I think car counts will be equal with, or maybe even a little ahead, of the 2009 field.

You can also possibly add in Chris Lupa’s #46 car, as several inquiries have been made recently about the fully updated Hedger car, which has recently been offered at a closeout price of $6,500. I predict that this car will be sold soon, and see laps at the speedway in 2010. That’s a ridiculous deal for that price.

“This is all new to me…”, said first time racecar owner Chris Tedd. Just a few days ago, Chris Tedd, out of Constantia, N.Y. picked up his new racecar from the Scriba, N.Y. garage of Kevin and Kathy Knopp. Tedd purchased the #04, the 2008 track championship ride, and will be ready to contend for rookie of the year in 2010, along with already announced rookies Fred Kilian and Bob Henry Jr.

He hasn’t set his goals too high yet, but from talking to him, I could tell he’s not going to be satisfied as an also-ran. “I don’t plan to go out there and be a ball of fire right away, but I don’t want to run around in last”, he said. “I have a competitive edge. My goal is to not piss anybody off. I don’t want to wreck the car. If I can’t do it, I’ll let somebody else drive it.”

Chris looked at a few small block supers that were for sale, but Knopp’s was easily the best deal. “Kevin’s done racing - he gave me everything he had”. He also looked at Shawn Walker’s #68, and Wayne White’s #4, but he was pretty satisfied with the deal that he got, which also included the enclosed trailer and all the spare parts.

The 38 year-old driver has enough funding at this point to “just about” run the full season, but he will be searching for sponsors and teammates in the coming weeks. He will run weekly at the speedway, and wants to take a shot at rookie of the year in ’010.

Tedd’s friend Dennis Richmond has “agreed to do the wrenching on the car” for Tedd. Dennis has done some driving himself, and may get a ride here and there in the car if the situation permits. The team would like to rent the track for seat time prior to the start of the season, and plans to attend the open practice on May 1st. “I wanted to try it the couple times I went”, said Tedd, who was encouraged by Richmond to take the plunge. “I used to kick my brothers’ butts in go-karts!”

He’s undecided at this time what his racing number will be. As a Jeff Burton fan, he’s leaning toward #31, but he’s not sure at this point. He doesn’t have a team name yet (I’m thinking “Right Said Tedd Racing”, inspired by that goofy 80’s band “Right Said Fred”). Is this just a stepping stone to the big time? “I don’t think at 38 I’m looking at a career in racing. This is just for fun”, but he didn’t rule out a fantasy of trying a supermodified 4-5 years down the road if he finds out he’s good at it.

He did scare me when he said it’s a “weekend hobby”, because experienced racers know that if you’re serious about it, the weekend is only one small part of your time investment. If you want to succeed, you’re committing 4-5-6 days a week to your racing hobby.

He is pretty excited about the season, though. “It puts a spring in your step, for sure”, Tedd added. “When I come home, I go out and look at the racecar. THEN I kiss my girlfriend”…

A decorated dirt modified star will make the switch to the pavement ranks in 2010, pulling a well-known car out of semi-retirement.

Feature winning dirt driver Bob Henry, Jr. has come to an agreement with J.J. Andrews to be the full time driver of the Hedger Chassis #93 small block super in ‘010. The car will be maintained and fielded by Henry, Bob Henry Sr., and their crew. Andrews will still be the owner of the car, and will be on the crew at the speedway on race nights.

Henry will still compete in several small block modified races in his car, but on Saturday nights, Oswego Speedway will be the priority.

Okay - enough third person. That Andrews guy is ME, so I’ll stop calling me “Andrews”. I’m pretty excited about this season. Although I just met Bob Sr. and Bob Jr. a few days ago, they come with some pretty high recommendations.

“Bobby Henry is so fast, he can run around the world and punch himself in the head”, said rookie supermodified driver Dave Gruel, who is longtime friends with Henry, from their quarter midget days. “Every cell in Bob Henry’s body has it’s own beard. He once donated ten liters of his own blood. After that, he won the Tour de France on a pogo stick.” Pretty high praise, to say the least.

Speedway announcer Joe Marotta, another longtime friend of the Henrys told me that “Bob Henry’s tears could cure cancer. Too bad he’s never cried. In order to survive a nuclear attack, you must remember to stop, drop, and be Bob Henry. He’s so talented, he can speak Braille”.

I followed Bob’s career on the dirt modified circuit, but never met him until a week ago. A lunch conversation with speedway announcer Roy Sova is what started the ball rolling, when Roy and I got together to discuss ideas to add to the small block super fields. Roy suggested that Bob Henry Jr. would like to drive a car at Oswego, and the groundwork was down.

Since my plan was to not race on a regular basis in 2010, it would have been a shame to see the car sit all season, especially when it looked like car counts were going to be down. Bob is pretty enthusiastic, and I’ll enjoy working with him and seeing my car on the track.

I’ll of course still be crewing for Barry Kingsley, as well, and we’ll all park together and be teammates. Bob and Barry haven’t met yet, but I’m sure they’ll be “BFF’s” in no time.

And also importantly, a key part of the deal for me is that I retain the rights to drive the car in the 2010 Classic, which is the most important race of the season for me. I’m in the top five all time points for the limited classic, and I would still like to improve on my finish of 3rd in the 2009 Classic. (I’ve finished 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in the Classic, but would love to add that win to my resume!)

This should be a fun season!