Weather permitting the 2013 racing season in central Indiana will begin on New Year’s Day.
Anderson Speedway will be hosting the annual New Year’s Day Bash with racing action set to begin at 1 p.m. I always recommend that people dress like they’re attending a Chicago Bears game at Soldier Field in December.
Drivers in the Street Stock, Thunder Cars and Front Wheel Drive oval and Figure-8 divisions will be competing in heat and feature races.
Dress warm and kick off the start of the 2013 racing season instead of sitting home and watching a college bowl game. In general the racing on New Year’s Day is pretty exciting.
Dear santa
Since this is the day after Christmas I made a wish list for those connected with racing.
• To the United States Speed Association plenty of competitors as it attempts to revive non-wing pavement racing for sprint cars. The track also needs some tracks such as Winchester and Lucas Oil Raceway to agree to host the sprint car series.
• To the Indianapolis Motor Speedway two wishes for 2013. First of all is a race as exciting as that of 2012 with plenty of passing for the lead. The second is a driver with ties to American short track racing emerges as the race winner, think of the boost the series would get if a Brian Clausen or Ryan Hunter-Reay won the 500.
• For central Indiana race fans, more events on the oval at Lucas Oil Raceway. The track is one of the best in the nation and is only hosting a handful of events. For some reason the ARCA Menards Series is not scheduled to appear during the Brickyard 400 weekend.
• Continued growth for the JEGS/CRA All Star Tours with higher car counts and increased interest from fans in the Midwest.
• To Danica Patrick a course in anger management and to learn patience as she competes in the Sprint Cup series. Patrick’s credentials to climb to the top of stock car racing are doubtful at best. Danica the “big boys” aren’t going to put up with any silliness on and off the track.
• For Carl Edwards, a victory in 2013. After almost winning the Sprint Cup title in 2011, Edwards suffered through a terrible year.
• A full-time sponsor for Indiana racer David Stremme, as he continues to try and return to Sprint Cup racing on a full-time competitive basis.
• Good weather for local track promoters on race nights. Without clear, warm nights it’s hard to keep a track operating at a profit.
• For NASCAR fans tighter racing, fewer questionable caution periods and a wish that the new qualifying procedures bring an end to the start and park teams.
• A safe season to all drivers, officials and race teams in 2013.
Ken de la Bastide may be reached at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com or 765-454-8580.
Sports
De la Bastide: Racing season tips off with New Year’s Day Bash
Columnist offers his Christmas wish list for the racing community
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Eastern dominates Taylor in softball
GREENTOWN — The third time turned out not to be the charm for the Taylor softball squad as Eastern improved to 3-0 on the season over its backyard rival Wednesday night, ousting the Titans from the Class 2A Eastern Sectional 15-0 in five innings.
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Barnes sets Taylor's career hits record
Taylor baseball standout Logan Barnes made his final game at George Phares Field one to remember.
Barnes pitched four solid innings to lead Taylor past Monroe Central 9-3 Tuesday. In addition, he went 2 for 3 at the plate, pushing his career hits total to a school-record 142. -
Kats drop heartbreaker
When the postseason arrives, emotions surge like a roller-coaster. One minute, it’s a long uphill, then a wild series of events offer a barrage of frights and thrills. And then, for one team, the ride ends and there aren’t any more tickets for another go around.
After two days of chills and thrills, Kokomo’s softball team ran out of tickets Tuesday night in the Class 4A Harrison Sectional. The Kats dropped a 4-3 decision to Harrison in eight innings, giving up a run in the top of the extra frame, and having a runner tagged out at home in the bottom of the frame.
“It was a great game,” Harrison coach Dick Mitchell said. “It’s always nerve-wracking to coach in one of them, but both teams played their hearts out. Nobody deserved to lose that game, but unfortunately somebody does.” -
Comets turn heads at track regional
Heading into Tuesday’s IHSAA girls track and field regional at Fort Wayne Northrop High School’s Spuller Stadium, event workers alike weren’t sure of Eastern High School’s location.
After the dust settled, they may feel compelled to get a map out and find out where Greentown is located.
Led by seniors Sarah Wagner, Brittany Neeley and Bethany Neeley, the Comets qualified for the state finals in six separate events to finish fourth as a team with 55.5 points, behind host and champion Northrop (78), Bellmont (68) and Carroll (Allen) 66. -
GASKINS: Hibbert’s block was thing of beauty
For the better part of the NBA season, ESPN devoted all kinds of time on SportsCenter episodes to replays of two dunks. Anyone who watches any ESPN at all surely knows the two to which I’m referring: 6-foot-11 DeAndre Jordan of the Los Angeles Clippers posterizing 6-3 Brandon Knight of the Detroit Pistons, and 6-8 LeBron James of the Miami Heat hammering home a dunk over 6-2 Jason Terry of the Boston Celtics.
Day after day, ESPN commentators lavished endless praise, which quickly grew tiresome. The dunks were strong, but Jordan and James were much taller and heavier than Knight and Terry and the dunkers also caught perfect alley-oop passes with the defenders in poor positions to defend. Still, ESPN commentators loved these plays.
I kept wondering if a great defensive play would receive the same kind of love. -
Coons, Walker, Glassburn reach Victory Lane
When the dust settled Sunday evening at the Kokomo Speedway, a pair of drivers who have visited Victory Lane in the past at the local oval found themselves there once again while a talented up-and-comer hit the hallowed ground for the first time.
Jerry Coons Jr. had his way in the sprint car feature and Craig Walker seemed to get faster as the laps wound down to win the Street Stock main event, however Kokomo High School sophomore Kory Glassburn had to scratch and fight before scoring the first feature win of his career in the Thunder Car A-main. -
Field is set for Indianapolis 500
After being bumped from the starting field while sitting on the qualifying line on pole day, Josef Newgarden turned the fastest time on bump day, assuring himself a spot in the Indianapolis 500.
The field of 33 cars will have one final opportunity to practice on Friday before next Sunday’s 97th running of the 500.
One year ago the Sarah Fisher Racing Team withdrew Newgarden’s entry on the first day of qualifying and had to qualify on bump day. This year the team decided not to make another qualifying run and got bumped. -
Athlete of the week
Cole led the small-school Comets to the Kokomo Sectional title, their first title since 1998.
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Kats regain tennis throne
At 10:51 a.m. Saturday morning, the bulk of Kokomo’s girls tennis team sprinted from the viewing hill to the east entrance of the tennis courts to mob No. 1 singles player Morgan Mohr as she came off the court following her 1-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Eastern’s Courtney Clark.
The No. 3 singles match was still raging, but the team match was already won. The Wildkats had reconquered the throne from two-time defending champion Eastern and were once again champions of the Kokomo Sectional. -
Eastern boys track claims first sectional title since 1998
The boys track and field coach at Eastern High School from 1987 until last season, Paul Nicholson’s parting message to his team was simple: “Don’t deny the gift.”
That motto left such a lasting impression on the Comets’ returning athletes that they had it screen printed on their 2013 season T-shirts.
With Nicholson in attendance to celebrate with them, new coach Austin Roark and the Comets outlasted host Kokomo to win their first sectional title since 1998 Thursday night, topping the Wildkats by 3.5 points, 124.5-121.
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