MOTEGI, Japan - Since exploding into the consciousness of an international audience at the 2005 Indianapolis 500, Danica Patrick has answered incessant questions of when she would win an IndyCar Series race.

Next question, please.

Patrick, competing in her 50th IndyCar Series race, became the first female to win a major auto racing event on a closed-course circuit. The designation is because Jutta Kleinschmidt of Germany won the Paris to Dakar Rally in 2001.

● The setting: The Indy Japan 300 on the Twin Ring Motegi oval.
● The scenario: Moving from ninth place on Lap 189, seeing leaders pit for a splash of fuel a few laps later and overtaking Helio Castroneves on Lap 198.
● The post-race scene: The sun broke through for the first time all weekend as Patrick made her way through a sea of well-wishers to the victory stage. Today, the diminutive Patrick stood 7 feet tall.

"Finally," Patrick said through tears before a victory lap to compose her thoughts. "This is a long time coming. It was a fuel strategy race, but my team called it perfectly for me. I know I was on the same strategy as Helio, and when I passed him for the lead I couldn't believe it. This is fabulous."

A few minutes later, fans streamed down the frontstretch grandstand to get a closer glimpse (and hopefully a snapshot) of the winner - proof they were witness to history and had the ability to return to the venue after the sixth annual race was postponed 22 hours because of rain.

"I've always said that I wouldn't do this, but on my last lap I was kind of just excited," said Patrick, 26. "And when I actually had to talk on my radio, finally the emotion came out. I really couldn't manage any other words than 'thank you.' And then I was as relieved as I expected I would be years ago, how I knew I would feel when I won my first race."

Patrick has come close before, including after starting on the front row at Twin Ring Motegi in her fourth IndyCar Series race in '05. She finished fourth and really captured the public's attention a month later by becoming the first female to lead the Indianapolis 500. Patrick finished fourth again, and over the next two-plus seasons (with Rahal Letterman Racing and now Andretti Green Racing) second place (at Belle Isle last September) had been the high-water mark.

"I've been asked so many times when I'm going to win my first race, and finally, no more of those questions."

No, they will turn to 'When can you win another?' starting with the RoadRunner Turbo Indy 300 at Kansas Speedway in a week.

"It feels like it's taken a long time," she continued. "I had a lot of opportunities last year that were missed due to bad luck. I can only say I'm just glad it's over."

Castroneves finished 5.8594 seconds behind and Scott Dixon was third. Dixon's Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, Dan Wheldon, finished fourth and Tony Kanaan was fifth. Vision Racing's Ed Carpenter, staring at a career-best finish, also had to pit and wound up sixth. Rahal Letterman Racing's Ryan Hunter-Reay was a season-best seventh and A.J. Foyt Racing's Darren Manning advanced four positions to eighth.

Patrick, who competed in European junior formulas seeking her open-wheel racing break, returned to the States to compete in the Toyota Atlantic series in 2003 for Team Rahal. Co-owner Bobby Rahal gave her the opportunity in 2005. The move was met with some questions about a relatively inexperienced driver - and a female - competing in the premier North American open-wheel racing series.

"I think that the disadvantage to overcome was just that I hadn't won," Patrick said. "A lot of women hadn't really proved on a consistent basis that they could be a good driver and always run up front. I think there had been times when they had done well but not consistently.

"I can't tell you that I blame them for not believing that we could do it. But when you have 100 guys come through, finding one good one, the odds are a lot better than 100 girls since it takes a lot longer for 100 to come through. The odds are against us. But I grew up with never really using guys as a reference, using drivers as a reference, and if I wasn't fast enough, I wasn't fast enough. That was the most important thing."

The car was plenty fast enough at Twin Ring Motegi. Her team calculated the fuel mileage to the liter. And Patrick drove into history.

Breaking News...

Mikey Waltrip made the Daytona 500 this year...

http://www.nascar.com/2008/news/headlines/cup/02/10/jjohnson.mwaltrip.d500.front.row/index.html

88 wins Bud Shootout...

http://www.nascar.com/video/cup/2008/02/10/cup.daytona.atthetrack.budrecap.nascar/index.html?MostPopular

28 in ARCA Victory Lane...

http://www.racingone.com/article.aspx?artnum=40253

Good luck with that...

Watch out for the mooses.

she would

How would you steer?

ied want a hot woman in my clothes with me

Just need to put on more clothes...

Four or five layers is usually enough.

to cold for me man...

Iron Dog 2008 begins in three hours.

http://www.irondog.org/

NASCAR BOARD*****1 YEAR FREE MEMBERSHIP IF YA WIN*****

MUST PLAY EVERY WEEK TO QUALIFY....

SIGN UP NOW!!!!!!!!!!

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.asp?board_id=3206

I don't quite know how to break it to you motorsports fans, but it's going to be impossible to have a contest due to time restraints.

Roush pushing hard in '08 after falling behind in '07
Owner still wary of Toyota despite first-year struggles

http://www.nascar.com/2008/news/headlines/cup/01/24/mkenseth.cedwards.gbiffle.jmcmurray.jroush.catch.up/index.html?imw=Y

Cup's Allmendinger earns outside pole for Rolex 24
By Official Release
January 24, 2008
08:26 PM EST

type size: + -DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Michael Shank Racing used Ford power to sweep the front row Thursday during qualifying for the 46th running of Rolex 24 at Daytona, which starts at 1:30 p.m. ET Saturday.

Posting a lap that bested the previous Daytona Prototype track record by more than 2.5 seconds, Brazilian Oswaldo Negri Jr. drove his No. 60 Ford Riley to a lap time of 1:40.793 (127.151 mph) around the 3.56-mile road course, capturing the pole for America's longest professional sports car race.

Second fastest was the Michael Shank Racing sister car, the No. 6 Ford Riley qualified by Sprint Cup regular A.J. Allmendinger, who is driving for Shank in his third consecutive Rolex 24.


Photo Gallery
A tradition was born in 1962 when Daytona Beach native Fireball Roberts became the first NASCAR driver to compete in the sports-car sprint that has evolved into the Rolex 24.

More pictures, click here
"Mike Shank has put together a great team and I love coming to race for these guys, so it feels good to put them on the front row," Allmendinger said. "Mike is a racer to the core, and this team is full of a lot of good guys. Everyone has fun, but they are focused on getting the job done. The car was strong, and this is a great way to start the weekend, but everyone knows that this is a long race and the work really happens on Saturday once the race starts."

Negri will lead a field of 67 cars -- 25 Daytona Prototypes and 42 GT machines -- to the green flag before passing the No. 60 machine to season-long co-driver Mark Patterson and Champ Car stars Graham Rahal and Justin Wilson.

Allmendinger will co-drive the No. 6 machine with Rolex Series regulars Ian James, John Pew and Burt Frisselle.

Belgian Marc Goossens qualified third with a time of 1:41.041 (126.840 mph), also bettering the previous lap record set by Alex Gurney in 2007. Goossens will co-drive with season-long teammate Jim Matthews, IndyCar Series Rookie of the Year Ryan Hunter-Reay and sports car star Johnny O'Connell.

In GT qualifying, the No. 70 Mazda RX-8 of Sylvain Tremblay was fastest of four manufacturers in the class's top five. Tremblay's time of 1:50.758 (115.711 mph) topped the previous GT class record of 1:51.800, set by Patrick Huisman in last year's event.

The top 30 times have been locked in for Saturday's grid. Twenty-four of the 25 Daytona Prototypes posted a qualifying time, while six GT cars locked in times. The remaining 36 GT machines may try to improve their times Friday for Pos. 7-42.

The Rolex Series returns to the track for practice at 9 a.m. ET Friday, with final qualifying at 11:40 a.m. The final practice for the Rolex 24 at Daytona is scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday, with the twice-around-the-clock commencing at 1:30 p.m. Saturday and ending at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.

I've never been a fan of any particular make, because most of the time it comes down to talent.

And then it gets really good when their personalities show a bit.

i went to the testing last week and the week before and the toyotos were the top of the class

I heard someone on the radio saying the 18 & 20 were the class of the field...

"Hooked Up" and "Gettin' Gone", were the terms I think he used.

After the season the Redskins had, I'm sure Joe's looking forward to racing again.

toyota....

Who was fast? Any sheet metal repairs? Did you get the stick firmly wedged into the spokes of the 48 car for me?

Has anybody noticed, Jimmy looks ExaCtLy like Speed Racer?!?

went yesterday...

You need to go, last time i was in Daytona was 1990 for the 500.

cap.

thanks cap.....you know its FREE to go to those....there 28 miles from me and i havent been yet.....oops

Here's a shocker lol...

Speeds from Monday's first NASCAR Sprint Cup testing session at Daytona Intertnational Speedway:

1. (48A) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 48.706 seconds, 184.782 mph

2. (5B) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 48.761, 184.574

3. (5A) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 49.027, 183.572

4. (27B) Jacques Villeneuve, Toyota, 49.092, 183.329

5. (84B) A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota, 49.101, 183.296

6. (84A) A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota, 49.167, 183.050

7. (24A) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 49.169, 183.042

8. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 49.199, 182.931

9. (18B) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 49.200, 182.927

10. (96A) J.J. Yeley, Toyota, 49.260, 182.704

11. (00A) David Reutimann, Toyota, 49.319, 182.485

12. (96B) J.J. Yeley, Toyota, 49.340, 182.408

13. (42A) Juan Pablo Montoya, Dodge, 49.400, 182.186

14. (28A) Travis Kvapil, Ford, 49.404, 182.171

15. (27A) Jacques Villeneuve, Toyota, 49.418, 182.120

16. (78A) Joe Nemechek, Chevrolet, 49.432, 182.068

17. (16B) Greg Biffle, Ford, 49.453, 181.991

18. (00B) David Reutimann, Toyota, 49.481, 181.888

19. (16A) Greg Biffle, Ford, 49.502, 181.811

20. (2B) Kurt Busch, Dodge, 49.519, 181.748

21. (17A) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 49.541, 181.668

22. (19A) Elliott Sadler, Dodge, 49.553, 181.624

23. (99A) Carl Edwards, Ford, 49.555, 181.616

24. (42B) Juan Pablo Montoya, Dodge, 49.558, 181.605

25. (41A) Reed Sorenson, Dodge, 49.575, 181.543

26. (45A) Kyle Petty, Dodge, 49.593, 181.477

27. (07A) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 49.596, 181.466

28. (98A) Jason Keller, Dodge, 49.607, 181.426

29. (99B) Carl Edwards, Ford, 49.632, 181.335

30. (41B) Reed Sorenson,l Dodge, 49.636, 181.320

31. (17B) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 49.660, 181.232

32. (1A) Aric Almirola, Chevrolet, 49.734, 180.963

33. (7A) Robby Gordon, Ford, 49.748, 180.912

34. (33) Kirk Shelmerdine, Chevrolet, 49.821, 180.647

35. (7B) Robby Gordon, Ford, 49.880, 180.433

36. (2A) Kurt Busch, Dodge, 49.884, 180.419

37. (8A) Mark Martin, Chevrolet, 49.906, 180.339

38. (1B) Aric Almirola, Chevrolet, 49.993 180.025

39. (07B) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 49.997, 180.011

40. (70A) Jeremy Mayfield, Chevrolet, 50.064, 179.770

41. (8B) Mark Martin, Chevrolet, 50.171, 179.386

42. (70B) Jeremy Mayfield, Chevrolet, 50.405, 178.554

HAPPY NEW YEAR MOTORSPORTS FANS!!!

Don't know yet, but thanks for trying.

hope i helped

The more I look at that stuff, the more I miss it.

Guess that's why they call it "Alaskan Fever".

EXTREME ALASKA ADVENTURES
The Iron Dog Journal
Wasilla to Nome, Alaska

Feb. 21 - 25, 1999

Team #54

Randy Bedard, Dan Bembenek, Jim Allman



The Iron Dog Gold Rush Classic is the world’s longest snowmobile race. It starts in Wasilla, Alaska and follows the Iditarod Trail to Nome 1049 miles where the recreational (non competitive class) finishes. The racer’s continue onto the finish line on the Chena River in Fairbanks, Alaska 1971 miles from the start. Riders are required to travel in pairs and carry survival equipment for safety.

This story is only one of many that develop from this extreme adventure through the Alaska wilderness.

Sunday February 21, 1999 at 8:30 am the racers and recreational riders were lining up on Lake Wasilla. Our mission: to ride snowmachines (snowmobiles) in the 1999 Iron Dog Gold Rush Classic recreational class, 1049 miles through the wilds of Alaska. After taking a few more photos and saying goodbye to our loved ones, Randy Bedard, Dan Bembenek, and Jim Allman were ready for the snowmachine adventure of a lifetime.

The riders were given the green flag and rode "Indy Style" formation for 20 miles to Big Lake for the official restart of the event. There, the racers were flagged out at 11:00 am at one minute intervals. We were team 54 and left the starting line about 11:50 am. The trail was smooth and fast across the lake and into the woods. Soon we were on the Iron Dog trail which is known for its relentless bumps and moguls. We passed many of the slower rec riders but soon we were over heating from the rough trail and Jim was having goggle fogging problems. Jim got stuck on one ice hill as he was unable to get a good run at it because I slowed down as I spun on the glare ice. We dropped down onto the Big Susitna River at a point I had never been before. The run up the Yetna River was uneventful but the poor lighting made it difficult to see. We arrived at Skwentna, the first checkpoint and gas stop. My wife Laura, Dan’s girlfriend, Kristi and friends Ron and Lisa were there to great us and shoot photos. We chatted with Joyce Logan of the Skwentna Roadhouse and congratulated her on their recent sale of the Roadhouse and their upcoming departure to the open seas with their sailboat. After a brief lunch we said our goodbyes and hit the trail.

The trail was wind drifted, but fun, across the big swamp. Once in the woods we started to overheat our bodies. We removed some clothes and goggles until we felt comfortable again. The machines were running good but Jim and I were constantly bottoming out the rear suspension on big sharp bumps which was every four feet on this trail. We stood up to ease the "bang" of the rear suspension. If the trail continued like this it was going to be a long ride for sure. After reaching Shell Lake the trail meanders twenty miles west through the swamps and trees to Finger Lake. The trail was littered with wind drifts up to three feet high. The only way to hit them was to "table top"off them so both the front and rear suspension could equally take the shock. It was rough and we were feeling fatigued. We stopped to outwardly complain many times. I was beginning to think that my front rail shock had failed as it had during practice before the event but just kept pressing on trying not to think about it or my sore knees.

Upon reaching Finger Lake about 4 pm after riding 134 miles, we were greeted by the owner, Carl Dixon. We entered the beautiful rustic log lodge (Winter Lake Lodge) and munched on cookies and drank water. After off loading our gear from our sleds we walked the compound taking photos and trying to decide which log cabin to stay in for the night. At sundown three more riders rode into the yard. It was team #66. Three Yamaha riders from Michigan. I had to ask them if they came in on the groomed trail or the rough trail. They laughed but knew as well as I there was only one trail into this country and it has never seen a groomer. Usually this part of the trail is smooth and fast but recent winds and set up the drifts like they belonged in northwest Minnesota. The crew at Winterlake Lodge treated us like Kings. We had a great dinner and shared stories of the trail as well as other outdoor adventures. They were a great group of guys and the evening passed until the body was crying for rest.

At 5:30 am Monday Feb.22 the cook was stirring in the kitchen. By six we were up looking for coffee and stretching our legs and hands which had stiffened during the wonderful rest. The Michigan guys were up too but seemed very quite compared to the night before. Later we would hear that they had scratched from the event later that morning. The radio phone was buzzing with reports of rough trail and racers running out of gas. We didn’t want to hear this but we were feeling strong and ready for anything. As we dressed for the ride, we watched many teams pass through the dark and up the trail. Even though we were not racing you could not help but feel like we were falling behind the other riders. After a good Miners breakfast and goodbyes we were on the trail to Puntilla Lake Lodge, 40 miles up the Iditarod Trail.

The machines were riding good and the bumps not quite as big today as we moved through the trees on the narrow trail. We came upon team #60, a middle age couple from Massachusetts. They had a rope tied around the from bumper of one of their Arctic Cats and were trying to pull it out of a trench left by earlier riders. We helped them by pulling the machine out, clicked a photo and we continued. The trail was trenched and I watched my speedometer which was averaging between 8 and 10 mph. We were riding long track machines and with the snow now set up we had no difficulty getting through the trail. This is a beautiful part of the Iditarod Trail. It twists through the trees of gentle rolling hills surrounded by mountain peaks on each side. Upon descending the infamous "stairs" all was going well until the last step which had sluffed off towards a sixteen inch thick tree. My sled tipped toward the tree and my arm reflexed outward to save my hood from becoming splintered all over the trail. It worked but now I was afraid my partners may not be so lucky. Upon stopping at the bottom of the hill I frantically waved to Jim to do anything other than what I just got lucky avoiding. He had seen by near miss and made a new trail down the last step around the tree. Dan followed him and all was cool. We were now on the Hayes River and needed to get up the hill on the other side of the valley. We used Jim’s shovel to fill in the trail to lessen our chances of damaging a machine as we had to hit an ice wall to get up to the next step of the hill. We could see other teams stuck on the hill ahead of us. At the top of the hill a man and his daughter were camped and prepared to help those in need, get up the hill. We launched up the ice wall with no difficulty. Then we motored up the hill yelling "thanks" to the other riders and the Shovel Man for leaving such a good trail. The trail was still rough but we were cutting the trail making our own tracks wherever we could to help smooth our line of travel. Again we battled fogged goggles from to much under helmet heat and not enough wind speed. We arrived in Puntilla about 11:30 am about 175 miles from the starting line. Steve Willhelmi from the Alaska Snow Rider publication was there to greet us with fuel and oil and news of the racers and their struggle the night before. Front running racers had no difficulty through that section but once they trenched the trail, the sugar snow conditions were more than a few racers could handle especially after fatigue of the day had set in. The sky was clear and the temps just above 0. It was a beautiful day and we looked forward to entering Rainy and Ptarmigan Pass, the highest elevation of our journey. Again the news was that the trail was rough ahead as a result of previous relentless winds. Team #55 and #57 had caught up to us. Also, #58 " Team Viagra", was just springing into action for the day. Yep the trail was rough all the way through the passes. At Hell’s Gate, we watched in awe as a C-130 Military Cargo plane flew through the valley. We had a quick bite of food and drink and proceeded through the Gate and onto the southfork of the Kuskokwim River. We entered a GPS coordinate as the Iron Dog Trail Breakers had asked us to since it had never been marked earlier. Again the C-130 flew overhead. This time chills ran down our spine as we saw that they had a door open on the side of the plane. Trouble ahead was our only thought. After rounding a couple of bends in the river we saw people standing along the east side of the river. They were waving for our attention and they got it pronto. We rode to the west side of the river, onto to what looked like a gravel bar and turned off our engines so we could speak and listen to the River People. They said they were a Boy Scout Troop that was marking trail up the Iditarod Trail and that they had sunk a machine in the river. Everyone was OK but the machine was not running yet so they had tripped their ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) and were asking the military for help. There was nothing we could do for them and they pointed out where other riders had safely skipped across an open lead to the good ice up river. We crossed with a great rush of adrenalin but with no mistakes or wet feet. We followed the river through the beautiful valley being careful of stationary objects and bad ice. We met a group of Native riders from McGrath who were coming from the Rohn cabin in hope to help the Scouts get their machine running again. They had marked the trail from their home to the Southfork. We thanked them for the trail markings and continued up the river. We passed a Polaris race team on the river, guessing that they must be having problems.

At Rohn we are greeted by the check point helpers and Jake Schlapfer of the BLM. They told us stories of the racers and the meaning to the "dead" Indy carcass with a broken steering post. We also find out that the racers we passed had fallen into the river at the Boy Scout camp and were "saved" by the Boy Scouts. They got their machine running again but it wasn’t running very smooth as I’m sure water was still in the fuel system and would take some time to clean out. The trail ahead was smooth because of a lack of snow but was rough from stumps, rocks, tundra and dirt. Dan was out front dancing down the trail with his ‘99 Polaris Trail RMK. Jim and I steered heavy through the woods with our ‘99 700 and ‘98 600 RMK’s with 1 1/4 inch lug tracks respectively. I waited for Jim at one point for a couple minutes. He caught up to say that he had hit a stump under the snow and it pushed him into the pucker brush. After pulling his sled out there was only minor damage to his front bumper. The view of Denali (Mount McKinley) and Foraker from this side of the Alaska Range is unique and gives you a feeling of being out of place. Much sign of Buffalo but none are seen. The trail diverted around a rock slide that blew through the woods like an avalanche since the last time I was here in 1994. We approach a bridge made by the Trail Breakers. Four spruce logs that are wide enough to support our track only, lay across the creek. We crossed with only Dan putting on an interesting show. The trail sparse with snow grinds our mental ability to cope with the sign that says "40 miles to Nikolai". We finally straggle into Nikolai about 8:00 pm for fuel and oil and a chance to add our cold weather face masks and parkas. We will be running through open swamps and the Kuskokwim River for the next 50 miles. The temperature is -10 degrees. The Native teenager wears his "official" Iron Dog armband proud as he and his buddies help us fuel and answer our questions about the trail ahead and how the race is progressing. After fifteen minutes we climb aboard our iron dogs and motor west out of town. After five miles of swamp running we see a young Native guy walking down the trail carrying his helmet. He stops us and warns that his machine is broken down with a bad recoil at a fork in the trail ahead, "don’t hit it". We are heading west and are following two large stars (planets) that are unusually close together in the sky. Later we find out that they are Venus and Jupiter. We are cold and are knees ache from the twelve hour ride and the sub zero temperatures. We are in awe of the racers that are ahead of us knowing that they are miles ahead and traveling much faster. These riders are a tough bunch for sure.

Finally we spot the lights of McGrath, at each bend in the river the lights seem to change direction and distance from our location. Those last few miles into town were long. Finally we are on the final straight into town. We find the fuel stop and chat with the young women and man. We are 350 miles into our adventure and a daily total of 216 miles. We are so happy to be in McGrath and to get off the iron dogs. It is 10:00 pm when we pull into the check point, the Takusko House. Wow, there IS a race going on, half the field is still here on required layovers. Up to this point we felt like we were never going to catch any of the other riders. We enter the building with a sigh of relief. Riders and gear are sprawled. I speak to the owner and tell him I have reservations. He laughs and finds us three unoccupied beds and tells us the grill is on. We clean up and head downstairs for a plate of chinese and many glasses of water. We see the trail taking wear on the other teams. Lots of people walking slow, bits of frozen flesh on their faces and lots of stories and rumors. The bed felt so good but my hand is swollen from an old riding injury, can I keep up tomorrow?... I drift into the drone of a two stroke engine and a moving trail.

Up again at 6:00 am, its Tuesday the 23rd. We hear its cold outside. -24 to -30 depending on which thermometer you like - I choose -24. I tell Dan not to tell Jim how cold it is but soon he hears it from someone else. One team member from team #55 decides he has had more than enough fun this trip. He packs his bags and waits for a flight out of town. We actually feel pretty good and are looking forward to seeing others on the trail with us. The top racers are already coming into Unalakleet some 460 miles up the trail. Wow!

The first 17 miles are bumpy as this trail is used by locals that run between the towns of Takotna and McGrath. At Takotna we pick up the old mining road and run full tilt boogie all the way to Ophir. No sign of the Loafer from Ophir but school kids are there to help us fuel and oil our sleds. We are running with other teams and everyone is having fun. We pull out of the fuel stop and have a quick snack of cookies and water. The trail roughens up but we are making good time. We come across team #55 along the trail. One machine is up on its side and we know its trouble. The aftermarket rear rail torque arm has failed and does not look to be easy to repair. Dan makes the taboo comment that they too should be riding the Polaris lightweight Extra Light Rail as his is holding up perfectly. After much conference we bid them good luck and they sort out their option to run back to McGrath for another machine or continue up the trail to a village that has a welder. Later we hear they chose the first option and had to ride an additional 120 miles that day. We grind our way through the bumps and tricky creek bed crossings. .8 miles from our next fuel stop at Poorman, Dan pulls to the side of the trail and steps off his sagging machine. I knew what had happened but I couldn’t believe it so I asked him, "whatsthematter"? The rear torque arm has separated into two pieces and the rear of the machine lie on the rails. We pulled the machine into the next checkpoint and tore into the problem. Dan and I figured we could use a six inch metal hose clamp wrapped around the torque arm shaft and connect to a T handle from a spark plug wrench pushed through the boxed portion of the failed arm. For good measure we would use three heavy duty panduit straps for additional support. Meanwhile Jim was filling our water bottles, changing into dry socks, adding clothing layers and slurping down some homemade soup made by the Spenard Builder Checkpoint Crew. They had two army wall tents set up and gas heaters blazing inside. It was cozy and felt good to get out of the weather for a bowl of soup. Many teams had caught up to us at this point and darkness was upon us, it was 4:30 pm. Dan lead out front, in case he had any problems. The trail improved as we motored north up through the old Ruby Mining District.



At Ruby we dropped into the gas stop which is on the banks of the mighty Yukon River. There, our old friend Elmer Soule filled our tanks and talked about finally getting some sleep tonight. The Yukon River was rough for the first ten miles or so but would later smooth out. Rocks and sand littered the snow as we made our way west down river to Galena. We came to a ice road and followed tracks as they criss crossed on and across the road. Upon entering a narrow part of the river the fun stopped. The snow covered ice gave way to root beer colored ice and tracks of other riders turning their machines around. I was leading, going 45 mph and was committed as there were six riders barreling down behind me with no way to stop on the glare ice. As I punched the throttle, I broke through the ice sending up a cloud of steam that only added to the confusion to the riders behind me. I searched for a way out but only saw steep river banks to my port and starboard sides. Open water, strange colored ice, overflow and the sinking feeling of the rear of my snowmachine shot waves of panic stricken fear through my body. I am going to die in the Yukon River in the dead of winter! Finally there is higher ground ahead and I sailed for it. I turned around to see how the others were faring. We all made it and just kept on going. We all knew we were scared and happy to not have fallen through the ice but we didn’t need to stop and talk about it. The lights of Galena are ahead. Two snowmachines are coming down the trail towards us. We move to the right side of the trail as team #52 pulls up along side. What a sight to see. Who was going the wrong way? Had we been turned around on the trail causing us to take a wrong turn down the nightmare of river channel we just survived? Lonz (of team #52) had thought that they were passing Galena and was coming back to make sure they had not missed the turnoff. We assured him that you could not miss town and to proceed in our direction. Three miles later we were all in Galena receiving fuel and oil and the directions to the Whakatana Lodge.

After a quick dinner and talk of our soft ice experience we were ready for rest. We traveled 285 miles for the day. It took fourteen hours of riding less two hours for repair to Dan’s machine, which was still holding up fine.

In the morning we find out that team #55 went down the same root beer colored channel of the river that we had. They had studded tracks and enough time to get turned around before venturing to far. But as one machine turned around it got stuck in overflow. It was 2:00 am and it took the three riders one hour to get the machine out of the overflow and into town. Before departing we looked Dan’s machine over. The repair had held but we didn’t think it would last over the 95 mile portage between Kaltag and Unalakleet. The Polaris dealer in town did not have parts but he had an welder. We got into his shop and disassembled the rear rail. About 1:00 pm we were on the trail again. Five miles down river the arm broke again. We dragged the poor machine back to the shop. The mechanic (his shirt tag said Vern) , said they would add more material to the arm and weld it good. Again, we disassembled the rear rail. Now the rear shock is stiff and not moving and the shaft is bent. We search for parts but none can be found. At 4 pm we are traveling on the Yukon River with team #51 who also had repairs in Galena. As we pass Nulato a couple of local Sled Slingers come out to show us their stuff. They blast past us in a cloud of snow dust. Jim gives chase to one rider but backs off after running at 95 mph for a while. Sunny skies and a perfect trail, we have a good fun, clean run down to Kaltag. We get fuel and oil and share a chocolate bar with a young Native boy. The Kaltag Portage will take us to the coastline, Unalakleet and the Bearing Sea. We have a fun ride and everything else is now behind us. This is what snowmachining is all about. We arrive in Unalakleet about 10:30 pm in time for a nice hot dinner and a soft bed. We rode about 175 miles for the day.

Thursday Feb. 25. 240 miles to Nome. The weather is snowing and grey but locals tell us it is not a storm but only a local weather formation. We hope they are right. The power of a coastal storm will stop us in our tracks so we are very attentive to the weather conditions. We finally get a hold of someone at the airport. From Galena we had called the Polaris dealer in Fairbanks and had a rear torque arm flown in for Dan’s machine - just in case. At 9:00 am we were the last of the seven teams that had overnighted together to head up the coastal trail. We were all over dressed as we bounced and worked our way up the trail. We were trying to catch the two Nome teams before they left Shaktoolik. These guys are experienced at this coastal running stuff and we would feel a lot better being with them if the weather turned windy or snowy. At Shaktoolik we meet up with four other teams and we all went into the local native store to buy candy bar and put on more warm clothes. The temp must have been about 0. After trying to find the trail at the North end of town by the air strip, a Villager came out to show us the correct trail. The local hill was shrouded in clouds and snow. Again we passed some of the slower teams and made our move to catch the Nome Boys. The trail was good but you needed to watch for broken ice. With poor visibility, we were traveling about 55 mph. Five miles before Koyuk (our next fuel stop), with Jim in the lead, me following and Dan in the rear, disaster struck. As we proceeded through a rough ice section, I turned to see how Dan was doing only to see him standing next to his machine that was not running. I turned my machine around in disbelief as Jim zoomed away into the snowy mist not yet knowing what had happened. Dan said his engine started making terrible sounds then quit. We tried starting it but it would not fire. We knew we were close to the next checkpoint so I towed Dan and machine to Koyuk. Team #2 Arctic Cat passes us at warp speed heading back to Fairbanks for the checkered flag. Team #8 Polaris soon follows giving chase. What a race! Only 37 seconds split these two teams after the first 1049 miles.

At Koyuk we dig snow out of Dan’s engine compartment that my track had spun into a tight white mess. The compression gauge told us the story. PTO cylinder had zero compression. That cylinder would not run the remainder of this ride. After all the snow was removed from the air box we got the machine to fire. Once running we added deicer to the fuel and topped off the fuel tank. We lost about a hour but we had the machine running on one cylinder. It would do about 40 mph, we were heading to Nome - 160 miles. Back onto the Bearing Sea ice had us confused as it looked like we were heading south towards Shaktoolik, but soon the trail arched to the west and we were on our way to Elam. A curious Red Fox stopped long enough to be photographed. The top racer’s were coming at us at regular intervals. We cheered and waved them on as they gave us a nod or wave back. Traveling on the ocean ice was eerie. Dan was fearful that his machine would not carry him out of an ice breaking situation. We closely followed the tracks in front of us. At Elim, Dan replaced a spark plug. Jim noticed that his two lower manifold bolts had fallen out and black fuel oil mixture was spewing in his lower engine compartment. Locals from Elim were there to help. One guy rode his sno go back up to his shop and returned with a magnet to help us locate one of Jim’s missing bolts. Dan’s machine was slowly losing speed and RPM. To add insult to injury, Dan’s oil light was coming on. He did not take oil at Koyuk and with his throttle in the wide open position was using more oil than usual. We inspected the reservoir in Golovin and figured we could make it to White Mountain our next fuel stop. The sky was becoming more clear and we were having fun as we knew we were getting closer to Nome. On the Fish River outside of White Mountain we see a pair of Moose foraging on the brush. At White Mountain we take on fuel and oil and have a bite to eat. Racers are passing us on a regular basis but the country is open and we see them coming. During our break, we lock the brake on Dan’s machine and wedge his pocket knife under the throttle flipper so the engine will keep running. Only 75 miles to go.

The trail ahead is through rolling hills like Dan and I grew up on around Minnesota. We had fun chasing our way through the miles of great conditions. Halfway through the section, Dan’s machine faltered and would not move with the throttle wide open. Out of nowhere a Sled Angel appeared on a Yamaha SRX 600. He saw we were having troubles and told us to remove the spark plug out of the dead cylinder and it would run fine - the motor had to much compression, he said. I didn’t understand the logic but we were out of options so we took his suggestion. As Dan removed the spark plug the motor started to build RPM. His said his name was Mike. We thanked him and the Sled Angel was off in a roar. We were moving again. We dropped down off the hills at Topkok and again were traveling near the ice pack. Dan’s machine was giving us fits. We pulled the air box and it would run better. After a few miles we would go through the same procedure. We were afraid to run to long without the air box in fear the we would lean out the fuel/air mixture and ruin the last cylinder. It was minus 10 and a stiff wind out of the North. Jim’s engine hot light was coming on from a lack of cooling and my chin was freezing from my breath moistened facemask. Slowly we made it into sight of Nome. Dan’s machine was running 25 mph at WOT. We crossed the finish line together at 8:00 pm Feb.25 1999. As we motored down Front Street people waved and another team gave us the "thumbs up", we were so happy to have traveled 1044 miles under our own power.

We celebrated our achievement in the local historical establishments that evening. We ran into our Sled Angel, Mike. He was glad to see that we made it into Nome OK but I tell you not near as glad as we were, Team #54, Extreme Alaska Adventures.

From The Trail,

Randy Bedard

Master Guide

heres some videos that depict the 60's and 70's races....

http://www.irondog.org/store/videos.htm

heres a blog you may find someone who knows him....

http://www.irondog.org/blog/dogblog/index.htm

map....



Trail Class race course is Wasilla to Nome, only.

The first Pro-Class Women’s Team to participate: 1997 Lisa Luther & Laura Carr, who scratched southbound out of Nome.

try this josh....

http://www.irondog.org/



Board of Directors

Marianne Beckham, President
Alyeska Pipeline
3233 Wiley Post Loop
Anchorage, AK 99517
WK: 787-8015
Term: 05-08
Mike Lasky, Vice President
MGM Truck, Owner
P.O. Box 520850
Big Lake, AK 99652
WK: 563-3998
Term: 05-08

Jeff Johnson, Secretary
Anchorage School District
PO Box 771642
Eagle River, AK 99577
WK: 742-1700
Term: 05-09

Jim Wilke, Treasurer
Vortex Group, Owner
2947 Crows Nest Circle
Anchorage, AK 99515
WK: 336-8595
Term: 05-08

Josie Stiles, Director
Nome CVB
P.O. Box 240
Nome, AK 99762
WK: 443-6625
Term: 05-09
Dennis Falldorf, Race Director
7100 Old Seward Hwy Unit C
Anchorage, AK 99518
907-563-4414
racedirector@irondog.org
Butch Novak, Director
Spenard Builders Supply
6761 Teshlar
Anchorage, AK 99507
WK: 261-9241
Term: 05-09

Tim Jahoula, Director
Finn-al Crafts
P.O. Box 84102
Fairbanks, AK 99701
WK: 490-4751
Term: 05-10

Trent Carbaugh, Director
Global Fuel
801 East 82 B-7
Anchorage, AK 99518
WK: 868-5062
Term: 05-10

Laura Bedard, Executive Director
Tesoro Iron Dog
Anchorage, AK
907-563-4414
info@irondog.org

i bet that would be fun.

Final Iron Dog Roster at 99 participants...

http://www.irondog.org/

Yeah, it ran out of gas. LOL

lolol...got tired of the old motorhome eh !

Bobsled Racing...

http://www.nhra.com/content/news/26008.htm

yep...

This should work...

So what if it handles like a tractor on ice? but isnt that what makes racing racing..

get rid of the plates

Just like IROC, all racer...

I think Mark Martin may have a shot at that Championship now, if Hendricks hires him. LOL

I'm all for a level playing feild, but it's too easy for everyone to follow the leader at the superspeedways. Tossing out the restrictor plates would seperate the crowd, because there's only about ten on any given day who can run that hard for that long.

So what if it handles like a tractor on ice?

its almost like they took the racing out of racing by wanting equality.....shame.

NASCAR 2008: Rookie Contenders

Pete Pistone
Managing Editor Posted Monday, December 17, 2007


Franchitti will pilot the No. 40 Target Dodge.



The 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series freshman class will have a decidedly open wheel racing feel to it.

After the much-heralded splash former Indy 500 winner and Formula One driver Juan Pablo Montoya made in 2007, a variety of former open wheel pilots will take their career to the stock car world next season.

Defending Indy Racing League champion and 2007 Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti leads the list of rookie candidates. Franchitti, who made a handful of stock cars starts including on the Busch Series and ARCA at the tail end of last season, will pilot the No. 40 Chip Ganassi Racing Target Dodge in 2008.

"We had conversations last year, and one of the options going into the 2008 season was NASCAR," Franchitti said. "Then with Juan coming along, it didn't work out. And looking back, I am really happy it didn't work out. To win the Indianapolis 500 this year, and then the open-wheel title in my last race, it was a great way to sign off.

"I had 10 really good years, and it was the perfect time to try a new challenge."

Another former winner of "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" will also be part of the Sprint Cup campaign next year when Sam Hornish, Jr. joins Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman at Penske Racing.


The three-time IRL champ will be behind-the-wheel of a Penske No. 77 Dodge with sponsorship from Mobil 1.

"I feel like this is something that is a new and unique challenge for me," Hornish said. "It may or may not be the right way to look at it, but I feel like I accomplished just about everything in Indy cars. I got to do more than I ever thought I would."

With a transfer of points from Busch's No. 2 entry to Hornish, Jr.' start-up squad, the former open wheel star will not have the pressure of trying to qualify for the first five races of the season - including the all-important Daytona 500 - as he'll be guaranteed a starting spot.

Montoya won't be the only former Formula One driver on the series next year with the addition of Jacques Villeneuve to the series.

Another Indy 500 winner, Villeneuve will pilot Bill Davis Racing's No. 27 Toyota.

"Well, I think because NASCAR is becoming stronger and stronger every year," Villeneuve said about the influx of open wheel drivers. So it's getting everybody's attention even internationally. So I think that's what it comes down to. But a lot of people in Europe don't actually know what oval racing is all about so they will find out."

Also coming down from "The Great White North" will be fellow Canadian Patrick Carpentier, who replaces Scott Riggs in the Gillett-Evernham Motorsports No. 10 Dodge.

But not every rookie will come from an open wheel background next season. Regan Smith will get a chance to pilot the DEI No. 01 Chevrolet next season, hoping to work with veterans Mark Martin, Martin Truex, Jr. and Paul Menard.

NASCAR 2008: Car of Tomorrow

Pete Pistone
Managing Editor Posted Tuesday, December 18, 2007


The COT will race at Daytona for the first time.



NASCAR now officially needs a new name for the Car of Tomorrow.

The COT becomes the full-time Sprint Cup car of today beginning next season when the next evolution of the series machine is employed in all 36 races on the schedule.

After a controversial and mostly successful debut in a limited schedule this season, NASCAR is ready to roll-out the vehicle in full force in 2008.

But the question remains, is everyone else ready?

"We are proud of how the new car has performed at multiple tracks," said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president of competition. "NASCAR, with the support of team owners, agreed that the new car is ready to compete at all NASCAR Nextel Cup Series events in 2008. Beginning next year the Car of Tomorrow is officially 'the car,' a Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford and Toyota."

But not everyone agrees that the time to go full-time is right. Many drivers still think there's a long way to go in order to work out the kinks and other gremlins experienced in the limited COT schedule this season.

"The cars don’t have any downforce on the front. We drivers talk about the car amongst ourselves, and there are a lot of things we do like about the car and a lot of things we do not like," Dale Earnhardt Jr. said. "The car is really, really tight, or really, really loose. There is no middle ground. We engineered for 30 years to get to one point, and this is a totally new car.


"It is going to take a long time to figure out what this car likes."

But like it or not, the time to figure things out in total is here.

After running the car on short tracks, road courses and one superspeedway - Talladega last October - the new car will get its first taste of action on intermediate tracks as well as Daytona International Speedway in 2008.

With the bulk of the schedule on 1.5 and 2-mile tracks, running the new car at those speedways brings a great unknown.

And after last October's Talladega debut, which saw nothing but a single-file parade for most of the race until the final laps of the race, the jury is still out how the COT will perform in four plate races next season.

"It was crazy,' said Ryan Newman after the fall Talladega visit. "I think the racing was not very good. The racing was disappointing. To see single-file racing, and the guy that wins the race is sitting in the back all day, just lounging around…. That’s not racing to me.

"I hope this wasn’t what NASCAR intended with this car."

We will all find out how it turns out when the green flag flies in next February's Daytona 500 to officially begin a new era in NASCAR racing.

http://www.racingone.com/article.aspx?artnum=39579

Johnson struggles at Race of Champions in England


http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/headlines/cup/12/16/jjohnson.race.of.champions.results/index.html

Franchitti committed to learning, succeeding in Cup
Will race first five Nationwide races to get more seat time

http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/headlines/cup/12/17/dfranchitti.getting.ready.for.08/index.html

September bound
Racing will once again resonate around Darlington Raceway on Labor Day weekend with the inaugural Darlington Historic Racing Festival on August 30-31, 2008.
The Darlington Historic Racing Festival will feature legendary cars and drivers from a variety of racing series, including NASCAR and IndyCar, from the 1950s through the 1970s. Racing personalities who have already agreed to participate include Junior Johnson, Buddy Baker, Darrell Waltrip and David Pearson.
"We are absolutely thrilled to bring more than 100 vintage race cars to Darlington Raceway on Labor Day weekend," said Chris Browning, track president.
The first tickets to the inaugural event were sold December 13 in the Darlington Raceway ticket office. Florence, S.C. resident Jack Hesley was the proud purchaser.
"When I heard tickets were on sale for this event I could not wait to purchase them," said Hesley, who first attended an event at Darlington Raceway in 1978. "I am excited to be back at Darlington Raceway on Labor Day weekend."
Tickets for the event are $15 per day or $25 for the entire weekend, children age 12 and under will be admitted free. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Darlington Raceway ticket office at 866-459-RACE or online at www.racetickets.com.

I doubt it, Red.

Yates gives him all the Junk. LOL

Recently heard a story about an engine builder who'd put a motor on the dyno machine and let it run all night... Someone asked, as he shut out the lights & locked the door, "You gonna turn it off?" His reply: "Nope. If it runs all night, it's a good one."


AAHHHH, sweet dreams...