Shamrock 3x
Veteran
I'm not sure exactly who (Lancaster staff or ROC staff) to give credit to, but my wife and I had a GREAT experience last night at Lancaster. Let me give some specifics:
Weather was perfect, and maybe that's the one thing out of their control, BUT....I'm giving them credit for that too!
Admission price....$20 seemed just right. Fair price & a good value. Others must have thought the same, as the stands were really packed!
Facility improvements....What a change from the last time I was there! All those new planks in the bleachers, the spiffed up bathrooms (even my wife mentioned how clean they were), major sections of the track re-paved. The only suggestion I could make, and I'm sure it's in the works, is to add a lap counter....NOT a complaint, but it would be a welcome addition.
The concessions.....LOTS of food choices, tasty, and at reasonable prices (are you listening Buffalo Bills Mgmt.?). My wife's pulled pork sammy at $6 had a lot of meat and looked good. She confirmed that it was. And seriously....a double cheeseburger (with good sized burgers too) for $5.50 on a better than average bun?? How can you beat that? It was delicious too! $4 for a 20 oz. draft beer was cool and the ladies pouring were cheerful and friendly. Add in the "beer guy" coming through the stands, when you didn't want to risk missing the action by leaving your seat, and they had all the bases covered.
The tempo of the show....The good weather and lack of major cautions helped, BUT....the folks running the show did a fantastic job. Started on time, kept things moving along nicely, had a relatively short intermission and had us on our way by @10:30. It was refreshing not to find anything to complain about, on this topic. Great job!
The racing.....Well, it's always been a pretty "racey" place, but even that seemed to have been upped a notch last night. All the classes put on good shows and were able to utilize 2 or more grooves, but the MOD race was fantastic! 110 laps was just right (well, Andy J. might have preferred 112). All kinds of pit strategies were used and really good hard, clean racing! So nice to be at a place where you don't have follow the leader racing. And even if you don't happen to be a fan (but I AM!) of Andy J., who WASN'T watching him make that bonzai charge through the pack after his late race pit stop?? My wife, who is casual fan, at BEST....could not stop jumping up and down, pounding on my back, and screaming in my ears for the last 10 laps! I've been practically begging her to come with me for years, and now I think the next time might not be as hard a sell. Emerling and Hossfeld both had alternative (pit earlier) strategies, and both drove great races, but man.....if the race had only been a lap or two longer, methinks the results just might have been different. What a race!
Overall.....I give the overall experience a 9.9 out of 10 (do everything the same next time AND add a lap counter and it'll be 10/10). THANK YOU to all who contributed to our very positive day at the races!
Bill & Jill
Weather was perfect, and maybe that's the one thing out of their control, BUT....I'm giving them credit for that too!
Admission price....$20 seemed just right. Fair price & a good value. Others must have thought the same, as the stands were really packed!
Facility improvements....What a change from the last time I was there! All those new planks in the bleachers, the spiffed up bathrooms (even my wife mentioned how clean they were), major sections of the track re-paved. The only suggestion I could make, and I'm sure it's in the works, is to add a lap counter....NOT a complaint, but it would be a welcome addition.
The concessions.....LOTS of food choices, tasty, and at reasonable prices (are you listening Buffalo Bills Mgmt.?). My wife's pulled pork sammy at $6 had a lot of meat and looked good. She confirmed that it was. And seriously....a double cheeseburger (with good sized burgers too) for $5.50 on a better than average bun?? How can you beat that? It was delicious too! $4 for a 20 oz. draft beer was cool and the ladies pouring were cheerful and friendly. Add in the "beer guy" coming through the stands, when you didn't want to risk missing the action by leaving your seat, and they had all the bases covered.
The tempo of the show....The good weather and lack of major cautions helped, BUT....the folks running the show did a fantastic job. Started on time, kept things moving along nicely, had a relatively short intermission and had us on our way by @10:30. It was refreshing not to find anything to complain about, on this topic. Great job!
The racing.....Well, it's always been a pretty "racey" place, but even that seemed to have been upped a notch last night. All the classes put on good shows and were able to utilize 2 or more grooves, but the MOD race was fantastic! 110 laps was just right (well, Andy J. might have preferred 112). All kinds of pit strategies were used and really good hard, clean racing! So nice to be at a place where you don't have follow the leader racing. And even if you don't happen to be a fan (but I AM!) of Andy J., who WASN'T watching him make that bonzai charge through the pack after his late race pit stop?? My wife, who is casual fan, at BEST....could not stop jumping up and down, pounding on my back, and screaming in my ears for the last 10 laps! I've been practically begging her to come with me for years, and now I think the next time might not be as hard a sell. Emerling and Hossfeld both had alternative (pit earlier) strategies, and both drove great races, but man.....if the race had only been a lap or two longer, methinks the results just might have been different. What a race!
Overall.....I give the overall experience a 9.9 out of 10 (do everything the same next time AND add a lap counter and it'll be 10/10). THANK YOU to all who contributed to our very positive day at the races!
Bill & Jill
and likewise "Well Done"!
