How did I miss this?
Don't ask me how I managed to totally miss (and subsequently not photograph) an 80-year old guy with white hair out to there, a cowboy hat, a loud flourescent T-Shirt and purple pajama pants, but I spent a whole day at Great Lakes Dragaway for Broadway Bob's birthday party and never caught so much as a glimpse of Broadway Bob.
And the legendary Fendermen (as in "Mule Skinner Blues" -- they're from the U.P. by way of Madison, and they play the instrumental surf exactly how you'd expect a bunch of guys from the U.P. by way of Madison to play it) weren't there. We arrived at Great Lakes Dragaway, (despite my difficulty at finding in in Google Earth until I succumbed to misspelling it) at around 11 ish, and I asked the DJ who was spinning golden oldies what time the Fendermen would play. "Oh, they're not playing." No? Apparently they DID play Saturday afternoon (the day before), there were power issues, and when they showed up Sunday they were told they didn't need to play. Boo.
Still, my first trip to a dragstrip in 30 years (my first time ever was as a teenager, on my first date with a REAL BOY, at Smokin US 30 Dragstrip in Merrilville, Indiana -- that's right, I went across state lines with a 19 year old boy and I was still underage....) and we promised Sammy there would be cars with fire, and sorry, buddy, there were no Nitro Burning Funny Cars to be had.
On the upside:
Oh, and the reason why we hardly saw Brian at all was that I guess it was "Corvette Day" at da Grove, which meant they all got to go first, meaning a lot of people waiting in line a long time before their chance. Oh well. So what else did I miss this weekend?
And finally, I close this entry because it turns out my little boy has been missing a lot because he's got on order a set of glasses. Well, that should explain all the squinting he's been doing. He'll look cute in them, I'm sure, but awwwww. Did he have to deal with this as early as kindgergarten?
And the legendary Fendermen (as in "Mule Skinner Blues" -- they're from the U.P. by way of Madison, and they play the instrumental surf exactly how you'd expect a bunch of guys from the U.P. by way of Madison to play it) weren't there. We arrived at Great Lakes Dragaway, (despite my difficulty at finding in in Google Earth until I succumbed to misspelling it) at around 11 ish, and I asked the DJ who was spinning golden oldies what time the Fendermen would play. "Oh, they're not playing." No? Apparently they DID play Saturday afternoon (the day before), there were power issues, and when they showed up Sunday they were told they didn't need to play. Boo.
Still, my first trip to a dragstrip in 30 years (my first time ever was as a teenager, on my first date with a REAL BOY, at Smokin US 30 Dragstrip in Merrilville, Indiana -- that's right, I went across state lines with a 19 year old boy and I was still underage....) and we promised Sammy there would be cars with fire, and sorry, buddy, there were no Nitro Burning Funny Cars to be had.
On the upside:
- By all accounts, the legendary Broadway Bob was looking, well, as good as Broadway Bob is ever gonna look. Not movin' as fast, of course, but on a weekend when we found out that another racing legend had taken his last lap, it was good to at least have a free hotdog on Bob and take in the entertainment that only cost our family $15 to see.
- Amongst that entertainment, the Bob West show, probably one of the better Elvis impersonators. It was just a little sad, watching this guy, with a few security guys with him (that, I suspect, he normally needs), playing to a handful of people next to a DJ booth. Not to worry, he's a pro and he gave a fine performance, complete with costume changes and everything, but it was still kind of sad to see. Dude, I'll catch you at Potowatomi.
- Brian took the 8 banger out on the track and did the quarter mile in ~15 seconds. I guess that's supposed to be good for a car that's not set up for racing. I wouldn't know. I was a little high from all the rubber burning smell.
Oh, and the reason why we hardly saw Brian at all was that I guess it was "Corvette Day" at da Grove, which meant they all got to go first, meaning a lot of people waiting in line a long time before their chance. Oh well. So what else did I miss this weekend?
- Apparently the Boy Dirt Car reunion show at the Borg Ward went well, but was part of a 6 hour assault of noise bands, and I've already written about how I can only do a single-genre festival for so long. Still, I missed a good chance to hear them, instead of just wishing I had come up with probably the best band name ever.
- Oh, Monda Lucha at Turner hall, with fabulous burlesque, Mexican Wrestling, and music from the Uptown Savages. That would have been the place to be this weekend, that's for sure.
- And girlfriend from work, Gretchen, threw a lovely bash at the Riverhorse in the form of sitting behind the DJ booth and funkin' up the joint. When chicks spin at the Riverhorse, it's not a place to miss. But I did.
And finally, I close this entry because it turns out my little boy has been missing a lot because he's got on order a set of glasses. Well, that should explain all the squinting he's been doing. He'll look cute in them, I'm sure, but awwwww. Did he have to deal with this as early as kindgergarten?
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