Last night i had the opportunity to go to a local dirt track, well, about 1 1/2 hours away in West Lebanon, NY. The track: Lebanon Valley Speedway. I went there a couple of years ago because my friends' brother was entered into a pure-stock race. Purestock is pretty much taking an everyday average car that is driven on the street, and putting a roll-cage inside to make it race-ready.This year, i kind of wanted to go back to the first ever track i visited. I was able to go back for "Eve of Destruction" which didn't disappoint. There were so many events taking place: the purestock 20 lap race was first followed by the 4-cylinder 20 lap race, reverse race, forward-reverse race, hood-and-trunk race, trailer race, roll over contest, school bus race, a gauntlet race, and to end the night, was the demolition derby.
Also, the first time i went to LVS, the last race was the modifieds. I didn't get to stay for the whole race, unfortunately, because it was breezy and cold. The whole reason why i mention the modifieds was because of this one driver, Andy Bachetti #34. He came to my middle school for a program known as "Minds in Motion" and had his car on school grounds. The car was amazing! One kid actually got to sit in the seat, but i was too scared to touch anything, because i'm a clutz and am known to break anything i touch. To go along with his car, there was a whole session in one of the classrooms about racing and Andy and his modified. But, i didn't attend because i would have been the only girl, and i would have felt really awkward. Yes, i do regret my decision!
At first, we were able to get a seat at the start/finish line, and i'm thinking "wow, this is cool"... until someone comes and pretty much threw us out of that section. So, we went to the seating entering turn 1 and sat there. Bad thing about turn 1: all the dirt and dust comes right at you if you're sitting in the front row. Bad place to be! My clothes, skin, and hair were covered in dirt before the night was even beginning! But, i wouldn't trade it for anything. I love bein' at a track; whether it be a NASCAR track at Dover, or whether it be a "local" dirt track such as LVS.
Like i said previously, the first event was the purestock 
The second event was the 4-cylinder race. The #31 car won the race with Steven Loomis at the wheel. Before the race even started, i saw the #31, and i was like "that car is going to win". I just liked the lime green number on the side! Did the car start on pole? Nope. He started mid-pack, and was able to work his way towards the front and avoided all the "carnage" and "collisions" to cross the stripe first.
Hood and trunk race winner: Don Curley
Reverse race winner: Shawn Perez
Roll Over Contest winner: Frank Sorrento
Trailer race winner: Robin Pough
School Bus Race winner: Todd Goldstein
Forward/Reverse: ???? Because all 4 pairs of cars broke apart before the 4 laps were completed!
Demolition Derby winner: Craig Westerfield
Also, a car was dropped by a crane with a stunt guy inside. .jpg)
The car had no roll-cage or any other safety equipment that isn't included in a street car right off the assembly line. Once the car was released, it landed in a pre-made "bed" of cars to take some of the impact away from hitting the ground head-on. The car landed straight up in the air. The stunt guy inside was okay.
There was so much more that happened, but it would take me forever to begin to tell everything. Did i have a good time? You bet. It was just so crazy there... they had to go to standing room only because so many people showed up! If you ever get a chance to go to a local dirt track or a track near you, GO! It's a really cool experience you won't ever forget!
Until next time, i'm Steph Piech for The Finish Line
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