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| October 1, 2004 | NEWEST - PRIOR WEEK - ARCHIVES |
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| "It's The Norm" - Las Vegas Entertainment Events | |
DOUBLE DOWN IN THE DESERT
The experiment of combining two different forms of motor sports on the same day (in this case evening) at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway last Saturday seemed to work. The "Double Down in the Desert" was a huge success, attracting over 80,000 spectators to the speedway. Regardless of how much actual cash was spent on tickets, the combining of NASCAR Craftsman Trucks and the open-wheel Champ Car World Series brought a lot of dollars into the community and to the track. The speedway promoted the heck out of the event in Southern California and Arizona, and from the license plates I saw (as I walked and drove around the area) there appeared to be plenty of California and Arizona plates on those cars. That means they had to stay somewhere, eat somewhere and drink somewhere and of course purchase some gasoline to get back home. And they got to see exactly what they came for: the best bumper-to-bumper and side-pod to side-pod racing on any track anywhere! Shane Hmiel won his first truck race by nudging veteran Todd Bodine, who was leading the Las Vegas 350 with two laps remaining. The driver a lot of us were rooting for did not disappoint the cheering section either: Steve Parks finished a very respectable third in the field of 36 trucks and thereby moved his team into the top 10 in points. The Orleans Dodge team has taken a while to get its gears working smoothly, but just remember this-that cream always eventually comes to the top. "I think I'd be surprised if we don't win a race before the year is up. Our goal has been to finish in the top 10 in points and win a race, because this team has sure worked hard for that. We almost did it tonight," Parks said during an after-the-race press conference.  The Champ Cars put on one heck of a show during the Bridgestone 400, with the Newman / Hass Racing Team coming home first and second, separated by a mere 0.066 seconds-a blink of the eye with Sebastien Bourdais edging out Bruno Junqueira at the line. There were only 18 open-wheeled vehicles entered in the event, with four of those local resident drivers. Paul Tracy dropped out almost immediately with a broken rear drive shaft. Patrick Carpentier, who started on the pole alongside fellow Las Vegas resident Jimmy Vasser, finished third with Vasser coming home in fifth after a strong run midway through the race. Saturday night was not a good one for Alex Tagliani, who finished 16th after a series of penalties. |
Following the National Anthem by Michaelina Bellamy we watched as spectators still flowed into the stadium, and kept coming as the trucks were racing on the 1 1/2 mile tri-oval. It was nearly midway through the race when the flow of people became a trickle and the grandstands appeared to be pretty full. The 80,000 figure was an estimate by some of our local writers. I honestly believe it was closer to 100,000 as it's hard to really tell how many of those seats in the Earnhardt Terrace are occupied. My only complaint (and one voiced by a lot of the civilians as well as competitors) was the late start for the Champ Cars. It was nearly 10:20 before they began the parade laps and well after midnight when the checkered flag dropped. By that time the crowd had dwindled down to a few diehards. According to a well informed source the "Double Down in the Desert" will return in 2005 with an earlier starting time for the trucks, thereby providing a better finishing time for the Champ Cars. Now all the speedway needs is the return of the Indy Racing League to the track!  THIS AND THAT QUICKLY: SCORE, the premier Off-Road Organization, will be bringing its race series to the speedway's dirt oval in July, 2005. According to officials at the speedway the track will be extended to run out in the desert with at least 80 to 90 percent of the race viewable from the 8,000 permanent seats and temporary seating (if ticket sales indicate a need). More on this as the date nears...
The Guggenheim Hermitage Museum will be celebrating its third anniversary on October 7th by allowing any Nevada resident free admission all day with proof of residence...
This Friday (Oct 1st) will be the second anniversary for the now popular First Friday in the downtown Arts District. Barrick Gaming has come aboard as a sponsor in its efforts to get involved with downtown activities. Colorado Avenue will be closed off to vehicles from 3rd street to Main Street with Mayor Oscar Goodman opening the event at 6 pm. For more information on this monthly art activity check out its website: Well, gang, seems that's about it for this week. I'm outa here!
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