Knees, News, And Pay Per Views

If you are ever in need of an orthopedic doctor and live within 50 miles of Omaha, I would suggest any doctor in the Orthowest group. Without question, Dr. Randy Neumann is outstanding, good enough to operate on Jane’s left knee even if he wasn’t good enough to operate on the bald-headed wonder boy who felt he had to travel to Chicago for knee surgery. I am talking of our governor.

Unfortunately, Neumann will be retiring after this year. Maybe I should get my left knee taken care of while he is still operating. And even if Neumann is not around, I would have my surgery done at the Nebraska Orthopedic Hospital, just north of the Oakview Mall in Omaha.  They are compassionate, professional, and even cheaper than some other well-known Omaha hospitals.

Jane is currently in the “I wish I had not done this” phase of recovery. She has plenty of pain yet plus lots of bruising and swelling. However, the physical therapist at the hospital was pleased with all she did while there, and she will be making her second visit to Excel Physical Therapy in Fremont today. The doctor told her that if she worked hard in P.T. that when she healed 90% of the pain she had been experiencing for years will be gone. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

The only racing I watched last week was the B and A features of the NSL 360 Friday night show from Wichita. At least I think it was the B and A features. To me it just looked like a bunch of cars on the track going fast but not passing many cars, so perhaps it was just hot laps.

I-80 Speedway promoters felt it would be more like winter than spring this weekend and have cancelled the Spring Meltdown show. The track website says cancelled as opposed to postponed. Matt and I will have to wait for our first live event of the racing season-wait until, well, darned if I know. I will admit I was not looking forward to a cold after sundown breeze. Been there, done that, not all that enthused about doing it again. Instead, we will be at Haymarket Park in Lincoln watching the NU baseball team continue its hot streak, taking in the Saturday and Sunday afternoon games. The Huskers are 14-1 in their last 15 games.

I will log into Speed Shift TV on Friday and Saturday night though. Friday night you can watch an IMCA Frostbuster from Marshalltown Speedway in Iowa, and Saturday is another NSL 360 sprint car event, this one from Randolph County Speedway in Missouri. Hey, even sprint cars are more fun to watch than Syracuse or Villanova basketball teams. OK, NOT 305 sprint cars, but the NSL show will be 360’s.

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

 

99 Miles From L.A.

Yeah, I know. It is more like 1,500 miles from Fontana to Fremont. The song is a good one though.

Watching the last 120 laps of the NASCAR Sprint Cup race from Fontana, California-Matt and I went to the NU baseball game in Lincoln first-I would say that I was not bored. I wasn’t overwhelmed either. The speeds were scary fast, the track was incredibly bumpy, and there were lots of pit row penalties and a few scary wrecks. Nothing really unusual there. I don’t begrudge the time I spent watching, but I am not going to buy tickets to next year’s race either. I give it a B.

I don’t mind Jimmie Johnson winning, though I would rather have watched Kevin Harvick take the checkers first. I am glad that neither Penske Ford won. Yes, Tony, Roush Fenway Racing got a top five finish. As amazing as it may seem, Danica Patrick’s boyfriend Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished fifth. Of course with Trevor Bayne finishing 20^th and Greg Biffle finishing 37^th, RFR’s average finish was about its norm-21^st place. Enjoy the top five in Auburn, it may be a long time before RFR has another.

I have not been following racing as close as I should be. I admit this, regret it, but other priorities have had me off the internet more than on. There is one big one coming up this week, more on that later. Anyway, I was totally surprised when I checked the Lucas Oil Point Standings to see that Jonathan Davenport was leading after 11 events. OK, I wasn’t, I haven’t been away that long. Davenport is simply continuing what he did last year, and that is being the best of the best dirt late model drivers.

What I like most about Davenport though is that he will be in Nebraska racing at I-80 Speedway on Tuesday, May 24^th with all the other Lucas Oil drivers. And of course he will be back in the Cornhusker State on July 22^nd and 23^rd for the Silver Dollar Nationals. And yes, tickets are available for both events.

It was chilly today at the NU baseball game. I figure it was good training for the Spring Meltdown at I-80 Speedway on April 1^st-2^nd. Hey, if it takes long johns, a sweater, a winter coat, gloves, a stocking cap, and a blanket so I can watch Nebraska 360 Sprints, I’m in. Oh yeah, MLRA/CBC Late Models and A-Mods will also be racing.

Now, that other priority I mentioned earlier. My wife Jane is having knee replacement surgery on Tuesday in Omaha at the Nebraska Orthopedic Hospital. Unlike our Governor, we were able to find a good orthopedist in Nebraska, Dr. Randall Neumann. We have heard from several people that he is the best, and after our preliminary visit with him, I am thinking those people are right.

Earlier in March we attended a class at the hospital to help prepare us for what was going to happen. The next few weeks won’t be easy, but the surgery should eliminate about 90% of the pain she is having in her left knee. I will be taking off all week to be there for her. I am not sure if she thinks I will be much help, but I will be there. I would like to thank the people I work with at FFBH for allowing me to take this week off, and to adjust my schedule to take Jane to physical therapy until she can start driving again. It is really nice working with people who understand how to treat other people. Actually I am having a good time working there-about the only thing I mind is the blinding sun heading to work on West Dodge Road during rush hour.

Anyway, I likely won’t be posting much this week, but please keep Jane in your thoughts and prayers in the coming days. Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

Does 330 = 666(The Number Of The Beast)?

Almost 330 cars at the Beatrice Speedway Spring Invitational means what? Well, drivers are definitely ready to race come mid-March. And Toby Kruse is doing a fine job promoting the event-and it is becoming an event more than just another race. And the crowds were good-thanks to Nebraska’s fickle weather being warmer than normal and fans wanting to see some live racing too. Or maybe a lot of people were hungry for race track chicken gizzards.

Of course for cranky old fans like me, 330 cars mean way too many B-Mods, aka IMCA Northern Sport Mods. 330 cars mean 33 heats-at least 33 heats. And 15 or more B features. And finally, 5 A features. Or, sitting through 49 other races to see the three races I would really want to watch, the A features for Hobby Stocks, Stock Cars, and A-Mods.

Having said that, two different people emailed me to state that the A-Mod feature was one of the best Modified features they had ever watched. TMC even went so far as calling one of the three best A-features he has ever seen, not just limiting it to Modifieds. And he has been around. If you didn’t see it, here is a link Tom sent:

https://www.facebook.com/speedshifttv/videos/980104988725023/

This Beatrice tidbit came from Jim Hitzemann:

“Scored at Beatrice this weekend and I think I’m on the brink of getting too old to keep track of 300+ cars on a weekend….(303 Friday and 326 Saturday)  It was crazy!!!  Saturday’s Mod A was one of the best races that I’ve seen in a long while with Jordan Grabowski (starting 2nd) leading and Dylan Smith (starting 13th) running him down and passing him on lap 20 with Jay Noteboom (starting 15th) in tow along with Terry Phillips, in a Grabo car, coming from the back row.  Grabo and Noteboom were neck and neck swapping for 2nd for 5 laps and then the dreaded late race caution with 2 to go.  Dylan leading, Noteboom took the high side and Grabo low on the Delaware Double File restart.  Grabo tried to get under Dylan in 1 and 2 and hit the tire coming out of 2, Noteboom got a great run out of 4 coming to the white flag and went on to win by a car length with Phillips a close 3rd.”

OK, so maybe sometimes sitting through a ton of races means finding a gem too. So as I said in my last post, “yea Beatrice Speedway.”

And one final comment on Beatrice, this one from TMC:

“Plus a packed grandstand both nights, maybe Brian France should have been there taking notes.  Karl Fredricksen from Speedway Illustrated was.”

I suspect France was in Phoenix last weekend. After coming home from the NU baseball game I watched the last half of the NASCAR Sprint Cup race. I would give what I watched a B, maybe even a B+ and the final quarter lap I would give an A+. It was great watching Sprint Cup cars banging away on each other trying to reach the finish line first. And since Kevin Harvick edged out Carl Edwards, that made the finish even better.

I will also hand out one other A+ and that is to FOX TV announcer Jeff Gordon. His comments are usually right on the money. I think Larry McReynolds is also doing a very good job in his new role as a tech commentator. The pit reporters are doing a good job for Fox as well. Mike Joy? Maybe a C+. Darrell Waltrip-well, he was a much better driver.

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yea Tigers, Yea Kyle Busch, Yea Beatrice Speedway, Yea Speed Shift TV

Congratulations to the Fremont High boys’ basketball team-the Tigers were runners-up to Omaha South at the 106^th Nebraska Boys State Basketball Tournament. This was the first time since 1999 that Fremont made the tournament, the first time since 1985 that they reached the semi-finals, and the first time since 1961 they played in the finals. Fremont was just the second non-Omaha or Lincoln team to make the Class A finals since 2002.

I have no idea where the Omaha World-Herald Prep writer will rank Fremont on Monday, but if it is anywhere other than 2^nd, he is an idiot. Fremont finished the season with a school record 25 wins. They lost to Lincoln East in December, but beat them in January. They lost to Norfolk in February, but beat them in the opening round of the state tournament. And, they lost to Omaha South. Given that only one Nebraska team has defeated Omaha South in the last two years, losing to South by under 10 points is no reason to hang heads in shame.

Also, congratulations to Rylie Cascio-Jensen on being named the Nebraska Gatorade Girls Player of the Year for 2016. This is the second time in three years that a Fremont girl was named player of the year. As I said in an earlier post, Al Bahe Gymnasium was a fun place to be this season.

I don’t know if a 65 year old man should think of working as fun, but after finishing the first week of my three month temporary gig at FFBH, I am truly enjoying myself. Maybe part of it is working for 29 years for one of the biggest wastes of oxygen on the planet and suffering from his entourage of liars and assholes, making any place else seem wonderful. I don’t mind the commute-at least the first 20 miles which are mostly traffic free, and in the last five miles the rush hour traffic is just starting to get bad. The people I am working with are genuinely nice. The work is interesting, and FFBH helps tens of thousands to a little better life. And maybe it is just good to be breathing at my age.

I did not write after the Las Vegas Sprint Cup race.  Joey Logano finished second in the race, and he happens to be second on my list of least favorite Sprint Cup drivers. In fact, the only Cup driver I like less than Logano is his teammate Brad Keselowski who won the race. Yes, I am opinionated. Hopefully Phoenix will give me reason to write about a Sprint Cup race this week.

Though Penske Racing cars finished first and second last week, the move of the race had to be Kyle Busch driving from 6^th to 1^st place in a fraction of a lap on a late lap restart. That was truly one of the better Sprint Cup moves I have seen in quite some time.

It does seem strange for me to be a halfway Kyle Busch fan these days. His marriage, his terrible wreck at Daytona and his recovery, and having a baby last year seem to have changed his attitude, he is showing his maturity and acting like a champion.

I just logged on Speed Shift TV after watching the Fremont-Omaha South game on NET. Speed Shift is streaming the Beatrice Nationals. Racing live in Nebraska. Cool. Over 300 cars are on hand. Of course, the race going on as I logged in was a Sport Mod B Main. Karma, I suppose. Anyway, check out the Speed Shift TV website for upcoming races-they cover a lot of events and do well with their coverage.

Tomorrow will be a Nebraska baseball game for Matt and me, and in just a few weeks we will be heading to I-80 Speedway for its season opener. It seems like just yesterday Matt and I went to Bennington to watch a basketball game on a bitter cold January night. Amazing.

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

 

 

Lots Of Stuff-Even Some Racing

If one of my readers sponsored The Rest of the Dirt-it would take about $5.00 to do so, I would not say or do anything to irritate him. Now if that person was paying me $5,000,000 a year-well, I can’t comprehend that kind of money so I don’t know what I would do.

However, Brian France can certainly comprehend millions of dollars. And $5,000,000 is how much NASCAR receives from Camping World to be the title sponsor of its truck series.

In 2015 Camping World CEO threatened to not attend the season end truck series banquet if it was held at a Donald Trump owned resort. So it was moved. In what I would call a 180 degree turn, NASCAR CEO Brian France just endorsed Trump at a rally in Georgia.

If I was Marcus Lemonis, Camping World CEO, I think I would find France’s actions bizarre and be looking for a way to get out of the sponsorship contract that binds Camping World with NASCAR through 2022. NASCAR officials can say all they want that it was a “personal” decision, but who owns NASCAR? Right, the France family. And who has a net worth of $1,000,000,000 because of NASCAR? Right again, Brian France.

Maybe Twitter’s Drunken Brian France is right.

When I saw photos of who I thought was a Trump private security guard roughing up a photographer yesterday I was extremely irate. When I learned that it was actually part of Trump’s Secret Service detachment I was outraged. WTF?

Oh, and to claim he knows nothing of the KKK is so incredibly outrageous, I can see why Trump says he loves the uneducated. Anyone with half a brain who has been around knows who these idiots are. So, either denounce them, or I am going to have to get my checkbook out-something I vowed to not do this year. And while my checkbook has far fewer zeroes in it than Brian France’s checkbook, heck, it has far fewer zeroes in it than Tony Anville’s checkbook, but if a million people like me vote with our checkbooks, that does amount to some money.

For the first time in 31 years, both Fremont boys and girls basketball teams will be traveling to Lincoln for the state basketball tournament. It has been fun going to the Al Bahe Gymnasium this year. With just tonight’s game left to play there, the combined home record for the two varsity teams is 22-1. Good basketball, crazy student cheering, a very good pep band, an excellent dance team, and fans filling the stands make for a great atmosphere. And for the third season in a row, I think Fremont has the best high school girls’ player in the state-the last two years it was Jess Shephard (just named Big 10 Freshman of the Year, and 1^st team All Big 10), and this year it is Rylie Cascio Jensen.

Yes, her grandpa is the Cascio of Omaha steak house fame. His granddaughter can shoot 3’s, drive to the basket, create her own shots, make free throws, rebound, pass, and play defense too. If there is a better girl passer in the state it is Rachel Theriot, point guard for the NU Cornhuskers. Plus Cascio-Jensen has am Einstein like basketball IQ.

Yes, Matt and I will be heading to the Pinnacle Bank Arena this week and next week too.

I say this even to sprint car fans-get a shingles shot. You do not want to have anything to do with this illness. It is more painful than the worst B-Mod B Feature you have ever experienced. It is worse than any Nebraska Department of Revenue audit. Listening to Ted Cruz is a picnic compared to suffering with shingles.

I won’t be the spokesman for a shingles drug since I never QB’ed a Super Bowl winner, but my testament is just as strong and valid-get the shot. I don’t know how long I have had shingles, but the nerve pain is still off the charts. I wish I had got the shot.

I have a number of different websites sending me job openings, supposedly for an accounting position in Nebraska. I am not sure what selling Avon products has to do with accounting, but that is one of the job openings I get emails on. Registered nurse is another. Driving for Uber is still another. Or jobs in Illinois or Georgia or Arizona. Actually I wish I would get one that would pay me to write blog posts from the comforts of my home.

Modifieds, Northern Sports Mods, Stock Cars, Hobby Stocks, and Sports Compacts will all be running at the Beatrice Spring Nationals on March 11^th and 12^th. Yeah, that is a lot of different classes, a lot of cars, and it will likely be cold. If you are old and don’t want to sit through too much of a good thing, do like me and tune in to Speed Shift TV to watch.

AND, just a few weeks later comes the Spring Meltdown at I-80 Speedway, featuring MLRA/CBC Late Models and Nebraska 360 Sprint Cars both April 1^st and 2^nd. Hopefully that will be the first live event of the season for Matt and me. I am definitely looking forward to an I-80 Speedway pork tenderloin sandwich.

Hopefully my blankety-blank shingles will be gone by then. Thanks for stopping by.