After what happened Saturday, I'd have much rather used those vacation hours for racing than to see what folks in northeast Iowa were forced to deal with as band after band of heavy rains pelted the area.
10:15 p.m. Friday - As I was traveling from Bloomfield Friday night after the race season wrapped up there, I received a call from Independence promoter Cam Granger who was less than enthused about Saturday. The thought of being forced to cancel the races wasn't a concern as much as why he would probably have to cancel. Another heavy shower was going through Independence, in an area that was already expecting near record flooding. As he stood on the deck of his West Union home watching the weather to the south, a lightning display was in full force. "I think they're getting hit again," he said of already saturated areas to the south of West Union.
Cam was already entertaining the idea of calling Saturday's program - not due to too wet of a track (yet) - but out of respect to the families that were going to be enduring an excruciatingly painful and wet weekend. I could almost sense guilt in his voice at the thought of even trying to race knowing what the people of Independence and surrounding communities were going to be forced to go through in the coming day or two. Classy move on Cam's behalf. He had also already received calls from drivers in eastern Iowa who had reported 8.5 inches of rain in Dubuqe and 8 inches in Delhi. "I'll call you in the morning," he said, "but I can't see us racing."
9:30 a.m. Saturday - Another call from Cam in the morning confirmed the cancellation of Saturday's show. Another 2.5 inches of rain fell in Independence overnight, not only guaranteeing there would be no racing on this night, but adding insult to injury for those who live in the area. On top of that, roads leading into and out of Independence had already been closed (along with many streets in town) and the Wapsipinicon River had yet to peak.
Lake Indee - This is what greeted promoter Cam Granger when he arrived at Independence Motor Speedway on Saturday morning. While the track was saturated, the infield was even wetter. (photo courtesy of Cam Granger)
10:00 a.m. - Playing the waiting game, I decided to log on to a few message boards and see what others were saying about area tracks. Knowing rain was in the area, if 34 was able to race, it may draw a good crowd and car count. I saw that Jackson County Speedway canceled early, as did Aledo, leaving West Liberty Raceway as the only other area track running in my estimate. While perusing the words of wisdom online, I noticed a thread about the Great Jones County Fair in Monticello. Reading through the posts, not only were Saturday's racing events canceled, but it said that "according to so and so" the whole weekend of racing was canceled there. Since I was scheduled to be in Monticello to call the mid-day races and demolition derby on Sunday, I figured I better get some confirmation of this "news" and called Jim Roper, the longtime member of Jerry and Donna Blue's Greater Iowa Racing - the crew that puts on the Monticello fair motorsports events every year.
Jim confirmed that Saturday's event was rained out and, in fact, he wasn't even in Monticello anymore - he was back home in Independence. Apparently, the water had risen so fast in Monticello that everyone in low lying areas of the fairgrounds was being evacuated. It was so bad that water was literally running through the livestock buildings on the fairgrounds so that part of the fair was nixed, as well. He added that the Sunday portion of the show had not yet been canceled, saying that a decision would be made at 6 a.m. Sunday. Another reason to take a grain (or bottle) of salt with anything you read on a message board.
In the meantime, I received a couple calls from area drivers in Independence who wanted to go racing. I told them I knew 34 was planning on racing, but wasn't sure of anywhere else where their cars competed. It looked like Burlington's car count would be pretty decent if there were a few who were willing to make last minute two and three-hour drives south...
1:00 p.m. - I made a quick drive over to 34 early in the afternoon to see what the chances were of racing. While the track looked good, the overcast skies and very humid conditions weren't allowing for much drying in the pits, although the track crew was out working the pits to give them a little air. Shortly into my visit, the sprinkles started again. Off I went to get the latest on-line....
2:00 p.m. - Shortly before 2 p.m., I received a text alert from our local news station in Waterloo, KWWL - the Delhi Dam has been compromised and everyone south of it was asked to evacuate. Early numbers indicated that the Dam breach affected 12,000 people. Not only was the city of Hopkinton directly south of there, but the city of Monticello was just a few miles down the road, as well.
I then checked the station's web site to see photos and reports of the flooding. Independence alone received 14 inches of rain in a 36 hour period. The previous river level racord was just over 23 feet in Independence, that coming in 1999. The river wasn't expected to crest on Saturday until late in the evening... at 24 feet or higher. I then went back to the message boards for the latest - nothing new... for now.
4:45 p.m. - I made my way to the track in Burlington after receiving a text saying the races were on, although the opening of the gates was delayed to 5:30 with racing planned for around 7:30. When I got there, a number of cars were already in line and a few spectators had also made their way to the track. The skies looked less than friendly so the delay to 5:30 was delayed even more as it was unsure if Mother Nature had anything else in store for the night. A sprinkle here or there, then nothing. A light shower, then nothing. By this time, cars had lined the pit entrance out onto the road outside the track. Additional haulers were scattered throughout the parking lot, as well as street cars, littered in random formation. It was quite the scene as nobody really knew what to expect.
As the waiting game continued, the pits eventually opened a few minutes before 7 p.m. Some made their way to their stalls while others feared getting stuck and waited out the weather in the parking lot and street. During this time, I did have the chance to speak with a few people hanging out in the parking lot. A number of people asked why I was so far south when they knew we raced on Saturdays. Showing them the above photo on my phone, all they could do was shake their heads. They knew it was a long season already and that it had affected nearly every track in the region.
I also managed to talk to a gentleman who came down from Monticello. He, too, said the weekend grandstand events were canceled, but took it a step farther. "The entire fair is shut down for the rest of the weekend." Upon hearing this, I made a call back to Jim in Independence to ask how things were going in town there. While he didn't want to be in the way by driving around town to survey the flooding, Jim did say it wasn't good as he listed a number of roads in Independence that had been closed. He also said the program for Sunday in Monticello was still tentatively scheduled for Sunday and that 6 a.m. was still the time the official call would be made, if necessary. He added that it was highly unlikely that we'd race as the front stretch of the track in Monticello was reportedly submerged by three feet, yes, three FEET of water.
Constant checks of the radar in Burlington showed a massive red blob (the technical term for heavy rain) positioned directly over the track for around two hours.... yet nothing really came of it. As the hours wore on, the red blob moved out of the area, leaving only a small patch of dark green (heavy showers, but not as intense as red blob showers), followed by light green (pesky nuisance showers that irritate you more than do anything to affect your plans). We were in the clear, right?
7:45 p.m. - As always seems to be the case, just after a majority of the cars made their way to the pits, the rains started coming a little harder in Burlington. I understand that nearly 75 haulers made the trip to the pits, with another 25 or so waiting things out in the parking lot and access road, when the heavier showers arrived. The show was then canceled. Note to self: Radar is just as reliable as racing message boards. If you want to know the truth, get your tail outside and go to where you want to go. Don't rely on the words (or digital weather photos) of others.
While many felt they were fighting a losing battle, my hat's off to the folks at 34 for trying to salvage the show and beat Mother Nature. While it seemed a possibility, she finally had her way in the end, as she often does.
10:00 p.m. - After all of the cars were safely out of the pits and Jason locked up the facility, we called it a night. I was going to make it an early night as things were still up in the air for Monticello the next day. Although it didn't look good, the way things have gone this spring and summer, anything was possible.
6:15 a.m. Sunday - The alarm went off at 6 a.m. as I was intending to get ready for my two hour trip north to Monticello to help check in cars. Although I hadn't heard from Jim yet, I hit the snooze to give myself an extra 15 minutes. You know, just in case the call was coming. I mean, who really wants to get out of bed at 6 on a Sunday, anyway?
At 6:15, the call came. On the other end of the line Jim said, "We're done. The whole day is canceled."
11:10 a.m. - As I sit and write this, I'm pondering what to do with the rest of my "busy" racing week. Truck and tractor pulls are set to start out at 34 as I type this, and Vinton is racing tonight for their annual points race during the fair. After a short trip back to 34, I think I'll make the trip back north to the old stomping grounds in Vinton to see mom and dad - who were seriously affected by the flood two years ago. Whether or not they race (although the forecast looks good at this point), a little quality time with the family is always a good thing. And it's always good to not take for granted how lucky some of us are during a crisis like severe flooding.
To everyone affected by this weekend's flooding, there are many who have you in their thoughts and prayers. Here's too a much drier end to the summer of 2010. Hope to see you at the races!
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