On July 10 and 11th of this year, Wilmot Raceway hosted the "World of Outlaws." Enough said? In this little city in Wisconsin, just a few miles north of the Illinois line, lies a raceway with a three-eighths of a mile oval (kind of an oval, actually) made of dirt (mud, really). The cars racing? Outlaws! Outlaws? Yeah, kind of reminds you of little bugs astir in the mud. The Oxford English Dictionary definition of these "Outlaw" cars is...cars that look like little bugs astir in the mud. So there! I should also point out that Nos Energy drinks sponsored this weekend. Guess what...they gave away unlimited cans of Nos energy drinks the entire weekend. 10 hours of racing fun later, the weekend was over. Here's what happened.
I know nothing about Outlaws...so if you have never attended an Outlaw race, and know nothing about it, this blog entry is for you. The crowd was terrific. I even got the feeling 100% of them voted the same way I did. Friendly, to the max. Then the racers... a lot of them. All driving these "Outlaw" cars.
First...short races...a lot of them. Maybe eight laps. Laps? Yep, these little bugger make it around the 3/8 of a mile track in about 13 seconds. Sometimes they flip over. Sometimes they drive up the wall. Sometimes they collide with other racers. Sometimes, some light carnage occurs. No racer was wimpish enough to agree to be taken away on an ambulance. This is a sport for real men...not like the wusses in the NFL, MLB, NHL, or NBA.
The best performers of these little eight-lap races meet in what they call, The Feature. There would be two features this evening, and they are longer races. 30-35 laps. It'll be after 9pm when these features occur. Who wins? On the first night, the #83 Outlaw, driven by Buddy Kofoid, won everything. He left his competition in the dust...or mud...literally. I believe he is still a teenager. The next day, before the races, I walked over to his trailer to maybe buy a souvenir. Guess who was behind the counter, selling Buddy Kofoid souvenirs. Right! Buddy Kofoid! Nice kid. I told him how impressed I was with him and instantly his mother came over. A very proud and beaming lady. The Kofoids struck me as a super nice family. Sadly, I brought him bad luck. The second night, his performance was, at best, blah. Then, we must discuss the dirt!
The track is indeed dirt. When the dirt dries up, to prevent it from blowing all over the place, the water trucks come out and make it...mud. Soon, the mud will be kicked up by all the cars and you will be sprayed by it, especially in the first 10 rows. You will eat dirt...literally. You will floss dirt from between your teeth. Up above, that mist by the lights? Not mist...not bugs...dirt.
Two evenings, totaling 10 hours at Wilmot Raceway is a fantastic way to spend a weekend. Sure, pretend you like soccer...or, excuse me, football, and stay home and watch the so-called World Cup. Or be honest with yourselves and go to a sporting event that will actually entertain you. Let the wusses among us go spastic over a 0-0, or a 1-0 game. Real people will always enjoy speed, crashes, dirt, and free energy drinks. Can you imagine what a Nos Energy Drink would have cost per can at a World Cup event...probably $15. At Wilmot Raceway...free!
