2003 & 2004 MSOKC HPV Champions
2004 MSOKC Super Can Runner Up

26 - 27 February - 15 Minutes of Fame

The Ohio Motorsports Expo was an exercise in extremes

What Andy Warhol actually meant when he said "Someday everyone will be famous for 15 minutes" was that society's thirst for the next fresh face or hotter Hottie and general short attention span would render every celebrity only 15 minutes of fame someday. Not that it was an entitlement, as it has been interpreted in popular culture today, but that fame would be so fleeting and insignificant that the world would know a star's name for only 15 minutes.

Tracy and Dana ready to meet and greet motorsports fans

What the heck does that have to do with us? Well, with our karts, drivers and info about our team on display, the Ohio Motorsports Expo had us feelin' kinda famous. We still get a big kick out of kids and even adults asking for Dana & Tracy's autograph. After all, it seems like only a few years ago that Julie, Tracy and Dana were standing in lines to get their racer autographs. We were very pleased to see so many of our regular readers come out to see us and, more importantly, support the Ohio Chapter of the Make A Wish Foundation. Ohio Motorsports Expo Promoter Mike Garrepy did an excellent job of keeping us exhibitors informed and welcomed. Getting the vehicles in and out of the Expo Center was a breeze thanks to Mike and his staff.

The show was a great event for us to "unveil" our '05 graphics not to mention give us a rock hard deadline for having them done and presentable. The basic design is the same as last year but employs a densely metalflaked purple. We call it "Full Metalflake Jacket" and the dazzle of the sparkle and glitter tempted us to rename our crew "Team BlingBling". But, under the lights of the Ohio Expo Center they looked pretty good and we were pleased to hear complimentary reviews.

There were the occasional slow periods but for the most part we had good traffic and got to speak with a lot of folks interested in what we do and possibly looking at karting for their family. We gave out a lot of National Kart News magazines including the February issue that had our article about the benefits of racing as a family in it. During some of those slow times Tim Nichols of Tim's Dirt Track Simulators invited us to come over for some free sessions. This was really cool of Tim but he said he like to treat his fellow exhibitors to some fun when the shows get slow.

Sure, it's all smiles and lightness until someone gets upside down	Dana's toughest opponent was the inside wall early on	Tracy getting the hang of riding the cushion sideways at 130mph

He had eight full sized dirt cars set up with big flat screen monitors and the top-of-the-line gaming wheel controllers all networked together so all eight drivers were in the same race. The only thing that would have made it seem more real world is if Tim and his crew flung dirt in our faces as we ran our laps. Tim's graciousness pointed out something very important that we've never realize before: we really SUCK at driving sideways on dirt! But it was a lot of laughs and it was interesting to talk to Tim about going to races and events all across the country and having racing enthusiasts of varying degrees of skills and experience run his sims.

Our karts sported new sparkle at the OME

On Sunday we even had time to go over and check out the Quarter Midget Regionals going on a few buildings over. This was like another world. 300 miniature Midget racecars entered with fields of 10 & 12 flying around a 1/16 (?) mile indoor oval track turning 6 - 8 second laps. Lots of families just like karting but a whole different approach to it. I wish we could have stayed longer.

All this was in addition to getting to know some dirt oval racers that offered insight into a completely different type of racing. Behind us was Robbie Starkey who races MicroSprints all over Indiana and next to us was Matt Alloway and his family who campaigns a winged Sprint Car in NW Ohio. Overall, we had a great time and felt all the effort was very worthwhile. We'd definitely be up for next year's show if Mike will have us. Wonder if Mr. Warhol would give us another 15 from the pop art gallery of the great beyond.

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