North Wilkesboro 2011

[retroracer]

This past weekend I got a chance to do something I had never figured on doing.Due to a low car count at a Modified race at North Wilkesboro they called me and asked if I'd bring my car up and just run a few laps and pull in.I had to borrow some wide tour wheels and change my rear gear and get a guy who usually runs the tour to tow and crew chief for me.It was a three day event with practice and qualifying on Friday and the race on Saturday.I couldn't take off work Friday so I only got a 15 minute practice Saturday evening.My car was really good except I had the wrong type off rear end,which burned up my right rear really fast which in turn caused me to spin three times,lol,sort of like I do in Heat.But I never hit anything and finished the entire 100 laps.I actually made a run to the front in the early part of the race,got up to maybe third or fourth before my tires wore out.Actually passed the "Madhouse" star Burt Myers under green.
It was great fun and a great experience,much faster than Bowman Gray but also much more track to work with.Heres a few pics.

[bover907]

Cool Deal Lee! Well, if you were passing Myers under green, then they "knew you were there", lol.

Glad you got to run North Wilkesboro! Lot of History there. How accurate is the Heat version?

[Bubba]

How accurate is the Heat version?

Aside from the texture issues with objects outside the track, it is the closest version in any sim. When we built that track in NR2003 years ago, we used as many images as we found find of the current look (mostly from SaveTheSpeedway.net) and other than some fresh coats of paint on the real track, and our adding in lights, since that was a planned thing to have one day... its the closest to the real track that you'd ever see done.

Maybe one of these days we can get the texture issues fixed and the pitting issues where the AI drives up the track on exiting.

And congrats Lee, on finishing the race. I know you had told me you had gotten to run there with your street stock years ago before it closed, so I bet you had a blast getting to run your modified up there.

Why didn't more modifieds show up though? I would think Tim Brown and many of the other BGS regulars and maybe even some Southern Tour guys would have at least wanted to race there.... being it is North Wilkesboro and all. I was sad to see only 11 cars showed up.

[bover907]

Bubba, you misunderstood the question. I know you guys made it look almost flawless I meant driving wise, I wonder how close it is. I know all our races there have been fun.

[mustangman759]

car looks killer lee!

[groverhardt]

Nice

[bmxtwins]

I'm guessing you won't need to take it back to the shop and redo the whole car? Or are the Meyers just as bad on other tracks.

[d3efan]

Proud of ya man. Good run. I'd have jumped through my butt and gone up there too if I'd only got the call...lol. I'll crew for you too in Heat if you want also, or at BG.

[retroracer]

Bover as far as driving comparison,I think the real track was easier than HEAT.Seemed like we were walking up the back stretch.The job the guys did making the track for HEAT is really really close.The only thing you really cant tell on the game is how steeply uphill the backstretch is and how downhill the front stretch is.You drive the track pretty much the same line as the game.I really thought it was going to be a little more overwhelming than it was,but the spaciousness of the track,versus the tightness of Bowman Gray made the speed not feel so great.I did the formula for using the tach,final gear,and tire size to figure the top speed. It was about 125 at NW which is 5/8 mile compared to BGS where the top speed for me is about 90 for a 1/4 mile.So it really didnt feel all that fast
Bubba,as for the car count I'll have to say I am very disappointed.I felt bad for the guy who promoted the race,he really put forth some effort and some money.The guys that run the Whelen Southern tour weren't there for 2 reasons,no points to be earned and they have a race this weekend at South Boston.Didnt want to risk tearing up there cars in a non sanctioned event.As for the other guys like my self who just run BGS,I really just dont know.I had just finished setting my car up for BGS when the promoter called,it took me every bit of 2 hours to change springs and rear end gears to go to NW.So it wasnt like there was a lot of changes that had to be made or hard work invloved.I guess the other guys just didnt want to risk tearing up their cars before the BG opener.Oh well,I cant wait til one of them complains to me about BG,and says he wishes there was somewhere else he could race,lol.

[Bubba]

I'm guessing you won't need to take it back to the shop and redo the whole car? Or are the Meyers just as bad on other tracks.

The Myers brothers aren't bad drivers, as I'm sure Lee would tell you. Burt is the better of the two, mostly vecausde Jason just isn't aggressive enough to win a lot. If you aren't aggressive, you won't win a whole lot. Sometimes you have to move them out of the way at a short track like BGS. Now Junior Miller on the other hand... for all his wins, he wrecks people a lot to get those wins... especially at Bowman Gray. He's the Dale Earnhardt of modifieds, as he'd rather go through you, than around you. That is why the Myers rivalry with him is so bad. It isn't that the Myers are "bad guys", its that Junior Miller and his fans dislike them so much, because they always talk smack about Junior for how he drives around others... which is true.

If you can't tell, I'm a Myers fan... but I was a fan of their dad Gary first... after my all-time favorite, Paul Radford, stopped running there.

Back in the day, guys like Paul Radford, Ralph Brinkley and Satch Worley, who were great drivers, would have also had their own rivalry with Junior Miller... just for the way he drives. But he couldn't even keep up with those guys back in the day either.

And if you were a fan of the "showstopper", I'm sorry, but he has always been a joke. His brother Frank is much, much better, as Lee would tell you.

[Bubba]

Bubba,as for the car count I'll have to say I am very disappointed.I felt bad for the guy who promoted the race,he really put forth some effort and some money.The guys that run the Whelen Southern tour weren't there for 2 reasons,no points to be earned and they have a race this weekend at South Boston.Didnt want to risk tearing up there cars in a non sanctioned event.As for the other guys like my self who just run BGS,I really just dont know.I had just finished setting my car up for BGS when the promoter called,it took me every bit of 2 hours to change springs and rear end gears to go to NW.So it wasnt like there was a lot of changes that had to be made or hard work invloved.I guess the other guys just didnt want to risk tearing up their cars before the BG opener.Oh well,I cant wait til one of them complains to me about BG,and says he wishes there was somewhere else he could race,lol.

Yeah....it isn't as if it is a 4 or 5 hour trip from Winston. Maybe what?...30 to 45 minutes?

When you go to BGS this year, rub it in their face how much fun you had and how easy it was to get up there and race. Tell them they were wussies.

What surprised me was the speeds those PASS cars were running. I would have never expected a latemodel to be just as fast as a modified there. That was cool.

[bmxtwins]

I'm guessing you won't need to take it back to the shop and redo the whole car? Or are the Meyers just as bad on other tracks.

The Myers brothers aren't bad drivers, as I'm sure Lee would tell you. Burt is the better of the two, mostly vecausde Jason just isn't aggressive enough to win a lot. If you aren't aggressive, you won't win a whole lot. Sometimes you have to move them out of the way at a short track like BGS. Now Junior Miller on the other hand... for all his wins, he wrecks people a lot to get those wins... especially at Bowman Gray. He's the Dale Earnhardt of modifieds, as he'd rather go through you, than around you. That is why the Myers rivalry with him is so bad. It isn't that the Myers are "bad guys", its that Junior Miller and his fans dislike them so much, because they always talk smack about Junior for how he drives around others... which is true.

If you can't tell, I'm a Myers fan... but I was a fan of their dad Gary first... after my all-time favorite, Paul Radford, stopped running there.

Back in the day, guys like Paul Radford, Ralph Brinkley and Satch Worley, who were great drivers, would have also had their own rivalry with Junior Miller... just for the way he drives. But he couldn't even keep up with those guys back in the day either.

And if you were a fan of the "showstopper", I'm sorry, but he has always been a joke. His brother Frank is much, much better, as Lee would tell you.

Ray,
I wasn't implying that the Meyers are bad drivers, but they tend to break alot of things judging from the Madhouse show.

[mustangman759]

from what I could tell when the show was on air (think they cancelled it) it was as Raybee said, Junior breaking their cars for them
But according to wikipedia there was a season 2 planned

In March 2010 The History Channel cancelled the show before the final episode of season one was aired. Subsequently the producers of the show have indicated that there will be a season two and have been in negotiations with The Speed Channel and with The Discovery Channel as well as other yet unnamed networks about picking up Madhouse for the 2011 program line up.