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| ( in a Texas
Style voice ...with echo )
Howdy there
once again folks, & welcome to TCCRA Race # 2707, here
at Thunder Mountain Speedway, in Rusk Texas !
Huh? Did he say
"race # 2707" ? I know this has been
the "Year of the weird Flyers" & all,
but this one takes the cake...as they say.
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| Directions |
Remember Alto? Well, Take Hwy 175 South west out of
the Dallas area all the way down to Jacksonville. Then,
follow the signs to Hwy 69 south out of Jacksonville
towards Rusk, & Alto. Ya gotta pay attention, in
Jacksonville, 'cause you have to do some ziggin', &
zaggin' to get from 175 to 69 ( look at the map ). The
track is about 8 miles south of Jacksonville on Hwy 69.
It's up behind a hill on the left as you head south, so
you have to keep an eye out for it. Also, as it's on the
left, you'll have to continue on past the entrance to
Thunder Mountain Speedway, for about a half mile or so
'till you get to a crossover. Turn around & head back
north to the track. You guys with big rigs be careful
turning around. Be prepared for a 2.5 to 3 hour drive. |
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| Description |
This
track is on the same property as a racecar track. Thunder
Mountain is the name. And it promises to be
an...interesting event. They will be having a race there
Saturday night, oh yeah, and fireworks too. And the flyer
says, as always, to keep the noise down after ten...after
all, we don't wanna drown out the sound of the Stock cars,
& fireworks.
It's in the same part of the country as Alto,
and the terrain is kinda the same. And also like Alto, the
track here ( what I saw of it on the track inspection a
month ago ), is tight. As tight as Jacksboro, easy. With
lots of ups & downs, and an off camber here &
there for good measure. The vegetation is very dense, and
the track is...kinda virgin ( the word Jungle comes to
mind, naw just kiddin', it's just not quite broken in yet
). And at least as sandy, though I didn't see
quite as many rocks as at Jacksboro. But there were some
tree logs there in the singletrack to negotiate ( which
means 'go around' for me ). One of the guys on the
track inspection crew was overheard saying ( in jest
) that it'd make a good 'A Loop' for an enduro. Bring
extra coolant...and breathing oxygen.
The soil is mostly sandy, with some white powder
sand, & lots of that red sand, with little rocks (
pebbles ) in it. Almost exactly like Alto. I think there
is also what looks like a part of what used to be a MX
track built into the XC course. Or maybe it's a burial
ground of some sort. The track wasn't finished when we
went there for the inspection, so this may all be bogus. |
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| Camping |
OK, first of all, a public service announcement here.
Marty asked at the last race not to ribbon off too much
space for your paddocks. At this event it's even more
important, 'cause of the ...uh...limited space available
for camping. So let's share. Don't forget we'll be there
with the car race drivers & their fans as well.
As you pull in the gate we will have the
area to the left and straight ahead. With the racecar
track on the right. The camp area is nice and level,
without the clutter of trees, or shrubs...or grass. It's a
dirt parking lot...red sand with small pebbles. There are
no distinct roads in a parking lot so please keep an eye
on the kids. There is some grass
by the road ( gate ) but I think they were talking about
that area being the start. Or the mini track...or
both. And the promoter said he would take down a
fence to allow us into a small area in the back where
there are trees ( nice ones ) and some grass...if Jason
didn't roost it up last time he was there. I'm not sure,
but I don't believe that there's any electricity on our
side of the parking lot. Nor am I sure who's caterin' but
I'm sure there will be a food stand at the race track. |
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| Spectator
Rating |
Well,
there's no doubt that you can view some action around the
"big oval", but I'm not sure how you are gonna
get back into the trails to watch your buddies, as it's
kinda thick back there, and the short trip I took around
didn't reveal too much access to the track. My advice?
Don't break down. |
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| Hotels |
Last
time I was over there, I stayed in Jacksonville...at a
place I can't recommend...they charged by the hour. But
there's plenty of others there in Jacksonville.
However Rick stayed in Rusk at the Southern Motor Inn,
& said it was okay. Their number is 903.683.2688
There's also a Weston Inn there in Rusk, their number
is 903.683.8383 |
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