Road Race: Bloomington Speedway

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Our intrepid writers Mark Aumann and Lee Montgomery were back at it again, heading south of Indianapolis to the home of Indiana University.

But they weren't there to watch a Hoosier basketball game or a bicycle race. They were there to continue their four-day journey of racing, racing and more racing.

Friday night included a drive down Indiana Highway 37 to Bloomington Speedway, a quarter-mile dirt track carved out of the southern Indiana clay in 1923. On tap were sprint cars, modifieds and super stocks. The drivers were probably no one you'd heard of, but the racing was at its purest.

Lee Montgomery: Now that was some racing last night.

Lee Montgomery

Mark Aumann: Boy, that sure brought back some incredible memories for me. Nothing like a quarter-mile clay oval.

Lee Montgomery: And me, too. Reminded me of a track that's paved now, Wake County Speedway. It was a great night, except for the loudmouth behind us.

Mark Aumann: As soon as we showed up, with the Super Stocks out there pounding around that track, I had a bout of deja vu. It was almost like being right back in the old wooden press box at Antioch Fairgrounds Speedway.

Lee Montgomery: Felt like a high school football game.

Lee Montgomery: Little did we know a 15-year-old would win the sprint car feature!

Mark Aumann: You know, stock cars on dirt are awesome, but a sprint car in full song, like the way Kevin Briscoe was hauling the mail, is just incredible.

Mark Aumann: That may be one of the most incredible drives I've seen in a long time.

Lee Montgomery: Briscoe's charge from the back was pretty impressive.

Lee Montgomery: But the teen-ager Bryan Clauson was able to hold him off. I wonder if Clauson will be in NASCAR one day.

Mark Aumann: Just to fill in everyone, Briscoe started the race fifth, but spun out early on and was put to the rear of the field for the restart.

Lee Montgomery: Oh, yeah, details.

Mark Aumann: He stuck that sprinter on the outside and was passing backmarkers like they were standing still.

Lee Montgomery: Some of them were.

Mark Aumann: He might have gotten to Clauson except that he got held up with two laps to go.

Mark Aumann: Still, an incredible drive to second. I had to applaud the effort.

Lee Montgomery: The fans sure loved it.

Mark Aumann: And what a great crowd. There must have been 3,000 people there.

Lee Montgomery: Can you believe Jeff Gordon race there before?

Mark Aumann: Can you believe the guy behind us didn't mention that?

Lee Montgomery: Oh, please, I'm trying to forget about that guy.

Lee Montgomery: But at least it gives us something to complain about.

Mark Aumann: You know, ear plugs have multiple uses. But it didn't drown out most of that.

Lee Montgomery: I'm actually glad I didn't have mine. Interesting to hear the cars get off and on the gas into the corners.

Lee Montgomery: Although that one car seemed like it was accelerating INTO the corner. No wonder he finished last.

Mark Aumann: Funny thing about a bullring at night, the cars look like they're flying around the track, when in actuality, they're probably not breaking the freeway speed limit.

Lee Montgomery: They sure were throwing a lot of dirt around.

Mark Aumann: Still, a nine-second track record for a winged sprinter is FAST.

Lee Montgomery: I would've liked to have seen that.

Mark Aumann: Yeah, I learned quickly that you never sit in turn 4 at a dirt track, unless you like grit in your teeth.

Lee Montgomery: Some folks were there. Bet they needed some long showers.

Lee Montgomery: Did you know Kenny Irwin Jr. holds the Midget track record at Bloomington?

Mark Aumann: I was surprised by the car counts. There were a lot of Super Stocks and Modifieds on hand, which is different than a lot of places.

Mark Aumann: We saw a ton of heat races.

Lee Montgomery: Which was fun. And it was great to see all the small-town sponsors.

Lee Montgomery: My favorite was Rudy & Dick's Barber Shop in Seymour, Ind. I bet they give great haircuts there.

Mark Aumann: And the stocker with "4 Sale" on the side.

Lee Montgomery: I wonder how much he wanted.

Lee Montgomery: Cheaper than a Nextel Cup car, for sure.

Lee Montgomery: Probably cheaper than a Nextel Cup ticket!

Mark Aumann: Well, we go from dirt back to pavement tonight, don't we?

Lee Montgomery: Off to the Indianapolis Speedrome. Hope it's as much fun as last year.

Mark Aumann: Home of the fabulous Hornets - and Late Model Stock Cars running figure eights.