marylou Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 I saw on the news the other night that Darrington is being considered for a new NASCAR racetrack. Thoughts? Quote
Stefan Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 IMO--Won't work. Too much rain in Darrington. They would never recover the cost of the facility due to all the rain delays. Then again, if it is just a dragstrip, then that might be fun for us climbers for something to do in between climbs...... Quote
Al_Pine Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 I think it'd be a great name for a climb Quote
klenke Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 I don't like it because: A) It'll make noise when we might happen to be climbing a nearby peak (the races will probably be on weekends) B) Traffic in Darrington will become ensnarled, thus slowing us down on our exoduses to wilderness or returns to civilization C) Others will scarf up all the good grub at the gas station before I get there to scarf it up myself D) I don't like NASCAR E) I'm not a redneck Quote
catbirdseat Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 I'll bet the town is for it. Darrington has fallen on really hard times. It would help the local economy. Still, as Stefan mentioned, it sure rains a lot there. They could only race in the summer months. Quote
bwr Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 Story from the Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2001734255_nascar18.html NASCAR's truck series used to race in Monroe. Not sure why they don't anymore. If they couldn't make it in Monroe, not sure why Darrington would be any better. Quote
erik Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 another link http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2001721137_bizdige10n.html it has to do with the safety of the facility. i think it would be a good decision on thr part of darrington to make it happen. irregardless if you like nascar or not....the area needs help. Quote
klenke Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 A poster with avatar 'bwr'? That's an interesting coincidence considering I just used that abbrevation in my N. Cascades Forum thread (BWR meaning Bushwhack Report). My parents live about a mile away from the Spanaway Speedway and the window of my bedroom faces that direction (north). I tell you, on hot nights when it is necessary to have the window open, the noise from that speedway is pretty intense. All night long the revving up of engines can be heard as the cars accelerate out of the end bends of the tiny track. Quote
erik Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 klenke, as a child old bob as a crew chief for a winston west team i was forced to endure that shit for quite sometime... but rural darrington is a far cry from spanaway. i am sure someday the sprawl will reach it...but this location seems like a good idea. the town seems to be behind it, so what is wrong? i am sure a major portion of the development will entail local hiway and city improvements. Quote
bwr Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 klenke said: A poster with avatar 'bwr'? That's an interesting coincidence considering I just used that abbrevation in my N. Cascades Forum thread (BWR meaning Bushwhack Report). Or my initials. I grew up not too far from Bristol, VA/TN - which is a major Winston Cup (err.. Nextel Cup) track. It was a madhouse there two weekends a year, but other than that the impact of NASCAR on the place wasn't too bad. And NASCAR fans spend lots of money - they're fanatical about the sport. Quote
ryland_moore Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 I grew up not too far from Bristol, VA/TN - Tennessee High or Virginia High? Quote
klenke Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 I'm not really opposed to the idea of the Darrington Speedway. I was just highlighting some cause & effect scenerios (items D & E discluded). I guess if we already have the eye pollution there in terms of all those unsightly clearcuts, we might as well have the noise pollution too if we should happen to be in the vicinity when a race is going on. Darrington is close to the quiet solitude of the mountains but it really doesn't feel like it when you're in town. Thus, I have no problem with a speedway there in that sense. Quite simply, it'd be good for Darrington but bad for passers through during racing events or if the growth of the town goes too fast. One of the nice things about that town is there are no stoplights. These will ensue with growth. One of the bad things about the town is there is no sizable grocery store. Growth will probably instigate the building of one. Quote
vegetablebelay Posted September 23, 2003 Posted September 23, 2003 It might be cool to watch a race from the top of Whitehorse. Just a thought.... Quote
Alpine_Tom Posted September 24, 2003 Posted September 24, 2003 What'll likely happen is they'll spend five years and a bunch of money getting it put through and built, just about the time the NASCAR fad starts to fade, and Darrington will be left with a big, expensive track with nothing much to to use it for. Seems like if they built a track there, they'd have to widen the highway from Arlington to Darrington, and that'd take longer, and more $$, than building the track. And I bet neither the state nor the county has the money to do that. Just my .02 Quote
Stefan Posted September 24, 2003 Posted September 24, 2003 Another reason Darrington won't work = too far away from a large population center. The Monroe area might work though.... Hell, the parking lot of the that new Tulalip casino is big enough to hold a NASCAR race. Quote
JoshK Posted September 25, 2003 Posted September 25, 2003 Wow, the backdrop of whitehorse mountain, however, would be a strange sight for a NASCAR track. ALl the other tracks are in the shittiest parts of the shittiest places in the country! Quote
klenke Posted September 25, 2003 Posted September 25, 2003 Speaking of mountain backdrops for racing: About 10 years ago my housemate had a Nintendo street/road racing game that featured Mt. Shuksan "on the horizon" from that standard famous view of it from the northwest. The only thing was that the mountain was backward (reflected) on the screen. Seems like I see accidentally reflected photos of mountains a lot out there. Any serious PNW climber would instantly recognize a backward Shuksan. Quote
catbirdseat Posted September 25, 2003 Posted September 25, 2003 Klenke, you have mountain recognition programs hardwired into your brain. You could identify a mountain upside down and backwards and looking through trees. Quote
klenke Posted September 25, 2003 Posted September 25, 2003 I will agree with you, CBS. Mountain identification is 7 parts pattern recognition and 3 parts location recognition. The former takes time to master, repeated viewings being necessary. The latter requires one to take an active interest in the way things are geographically located next to each other. Having a mapbook next to my computer helps. It also helps to have an analytical mind, which I do (much to my detriment at times). Colin, I've noticed, is also very good at name dropping peaks on first sighting. But anyway, back to the speedway... Quote
lancegranite Posted September 25, 2003 Posted September 25, 2003 DARRINGTON SPEEDWAY 5.9+ witch doctor wall. FA fred becky A CASCADE CLASSIC! Quote
mattp Posted September 25, 2003 Posted September 25, 2003 The view of Mount Shuksan from the ski area tarns is probably one of the most famous mountain images around and perhaps more widely used for commercial purposes than Mount Rainier. When it is not identified as Mount Shuksan, but for example when I have seen it on gas station calendars, sugar packets, and even in the backgroud of a sunday comic, this view of Mount Shuksan is more often than not pictured backwards. I even have a postcard that is printed backwards. I am guessing there is some graphic arts or marketing principal that favors having the major lines in an image slanting upwars from left to right. Quote
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