Spiderman, spiderman ...

What a big night for Andy Bibler. The Modified driver from Continental made it two Memorial Cup features wins in a row with a strong performance in Friday's feature at Limaland Motorsports Park. After his win, Bibler scaled the fence along the front stretch (Spiderman, get it?) Behind Bibler, Casey Luedeke took second and Doug St. Myers third.

Dustin Daggett beat out a star-studded field in the first NRA Sprint Invaders feature of the year. Daggett held off Greg Wilson, Darren Long and Mike Dussel. Long made up some serious ground after starting in 15th position.

Barney Craig finally broke through for the big win at Limaland. Craig overcame a scrape late in the feature to take his first Limaland win in two years. Behind him were Tony Anderson and Tony Siferd.

Read more about Friday night's racing action in Sunday's The Lima News.

Selling ice cream to Alaskans

Actually, selling ice creams and assorted frozen treats to Alaskans isn't as hard as it might sound. Just ask Pete Ischi, the sprint car driver and focus of my feature in Saturday's The Lima News.

Ischi has owned a Dairy Queen in Kenai, Alaska, for 23 years. In fact, it was the only DQ in the state for 15 years. Families took leisurely Sunday drives from Anchorage to his store for a DQ fix and to get pictures with the sign. Doesn't sound too bad, until you realize Anchorage is at least a 3 hour drive to Kenai.

Now, there a few other DQ's in Alaska. In fact, when the one in Anchorage opened, the wait to get inside was at least one hour. The DQ in Anchorage is the top-grossing store in the United States.

"When they opened, the line went all the way to the street," fellow Alaskan Tyler McDonald said. "You couldn't get in there."

Ischi has been in Lima for a few weeks and leaves for home Tuesday. He has combined the pleasure trip -- he is racing his sprint car at local tracks, including Limaland Motorsports Park and Waynesfield Motor Sports Park -- with business. He drove to Alabama to pick up equipment for the store.

The trip to Alabama, combined with the purchase of a trailer to bring home his sprint car and all DQ-related merchandise, is actually cheaper than shipping it to Alaska. Ischi was quoted around $15,000 to have someone else deliver the equipment.

Ischi's return won't be a moment too soon for the Ischi family left behind in Alaska, notably 19 year-old daughter Whitney.

"My family is making huge sacrifice for me to be here," Ischi said. "They're running (the store) while I'm down here being the play-kid. May is a big month for us. It kind of kicks everything off for us.
"The other day, I called (Whitney) and she said, 'Dad, it's time to come home. The money is going to stop flowing out there.' I said, 'Whitney, you sound like a wife, not my daughter.' She's taking a lot of the stress I deal with up there."

The Ischi family is Dairy Queen through and through. Whitney has been working in her dad's DQ for seven years. In fact, the DQ mark is noticable.

"When we were driving around town, my daughter was just learning her colors. We pulled up to a stop light, and she said, 'Dad, I understand what the green light means. That means go. And I know what the red light means. That means stop,'" Ischi said. "'But what does the butterscotch light mean?'
"That is a Dairy Queen kid."

Cavs-Celtics postmortem

How could you not love Game 7, even as a Cavaliers fan? There were two of the best players in the NBA, going toe-to-toe, daring the other one to blink first. And despite Cleveland's loss, neither LeBron or Paul Pierce looked away.

LeBron and Pierce did everything they could to lead their respective teams to a win. But in the end, it was the play of the supporting casts which really told the tale. It was Eddie House diving on the floor for a loose ball and P.J. Brown nailing a 19-foot jumper with under two minutes remaining. Sure, Pierce's 41 points gives everyone something to talk about and is a nice intro to the Celtics win, but the meat belongs to the role players.

Conversely, it was Wally's World going 0-fer-Game 7, Big Z spotting up for 20-foot j's, and everyone in the wine and gold (save Delonte West) bailing on James when he needed them the most. Unfortunately, James' 45 points will be lost to history because of the loss.

I've said it before and I'll continue to say it until someone listens -- the Cavs need to get James help, and now. Jordan had Pippen. James needs someone. (Maybe Antwan Jameson? He's a free agent.)

How to keep LeBron a Cav

This maybe a little premature, seeing how the Cavs still have a shot at knocking off the Celtics tomorrow in Game 7, but it's a hot topic. Just what will it take (if anything) to keep LeBron James in a Cavs uniform when his contract is up in 2010.

Everyone is taking everything James is doing, and not doing, as a sign of his intentions. I say, LeBron has no idea what he's going to do in two years. I would hope he's too focused on Boston and advancing in this year's playoffs.

That said, as Cavs fans and people who generally just want to see LeBron stay in his hometown, the worst thing to happen is for James to lead the Cavs to a NBA title. At that point, James feels no longer indebted to the franchise and its fans, having led them to a title. He can now go and cash in with the Brooklyn Nets (just you wait).

However, if James can't get the Cavs over the hump, then there is still a feeling of owing something to the Cavs and Ohio. There is still unfinished business. (The front office should not take this as an opportunity to let James flounder with sub-prime players. Surround him with the best players you can, and hope for the best. If you noticably gip him with a supporting cast, he'll feel betrayed and jump ship).

(Photo from The Associated Press)

Not again

I knew it was going to happen. Just knew it. A beautiful sunny day. My pocket stuffed with a $10 bill, more than enough to get even fatter on race-track food. A solid feature story, ready to throw in Saturday's paper.

And another e-mail. Racing has been canceled at Limaland due to insufficient time for drying.

The story is, the track is OK. A little sloppy, one can be sure, but race-able. The problem is the parking area for fans. It's just too wet.

I can respect that, to a point. The powers at Limaland want the best possible experience for fans so they'll come back. That's where they're going to make their money -- not with the regular, gearhead fans, but with the fringe fan who ends up getting hooked and coming back for seven or eight nights of racing. It's like a little extra frosting on the cake.

And it seems these early-season cancellations happen every year. I could be wrong, (I've only been associated with Limaland for two years) but the lack of surprise on people's faces when they find out Limaland is canceled on a May night really tells the tale.

So, this begs answers to two questions: Why not move the official start of the season back to mid-May? Maybe warm up with a couple of special features, but don't start the meaty, week-to-week racing until the unpredictable spring weather is passed. And, Why not spend some money and pave the fan parking area? True, I have no idea how much this will cost, a great deal probably, but I have to imagine it's pretty close to the amount of money Limaland's losing with the canceled races.

Check out Wednesday's The Lima News, where I hopefully can get an offical word or two on those questions.

Fields of my dreams

The story from ESPN.com I posted yesterday got me thinking about how few venerable venues I've been to. I've gone to countless games at Ohio Stadium and St. John Arena, and a few at the Schottenstein Center. I've seen a handful of games at Jacobs Field and one at Progressive Field. I've also been to Fawcett Stadium and Paul Brown Stadium, two of the historic prep football fields.

The most memorable was a trip to Soldier Field, the season before they made it look like a UFO had landed in Chicago. What an experience, growing up a Bears fan and finally getting to step foot in the storied home of my Bears. I'm not too proud to say a few tears trickled down my cheek.

I've been to a couple of post-Jordan Bulls game at the United Center. Being post-Jordan, the highlight obviously was taking in the Jordan statue outside, and getting pics of the championship banners.

Obviously, I have plenty of venues to make it to. Consider this my sports bucket list, in no particular order:

1. Fenway Park: I hate the Red Sox and everything they stand for. However, Fenway is just one of those parks that holds some allure and mystery. The seats couldn't be on top of the "Green Monstah" ... I would want a great view of the surface and the plays the left fielder has to make.

2. St. Andrews: I love history. And what venue in all of sports is more historical than the Birthplace of Golf? Either to play of watch, doesn't matter. I just want to make my way to The Old Course, particularly if its cold, rainy and windy.

3. Yankee Stadium: My time is running out on this one, so I'm afraid I'll never be able to check this off. I grew up as a Yankees fan and somehow along the way, I moved to the Indians. However, what list is complete without a trip to The House That Ruth Built?

4. Wrigley Field: 2 p.m. on a July Thursday, what better place to be in the world that the bleachers at Wrigley, nursing an Old Style? Not sure there is a better place.

5. Neyland Stadium: The home of the Tennessee Volunteers, my soon-to-be brother-in-law has told me the stadium shakes because of the noise. I want to hear Rocky Top, live and in person. Hopefully, my new kin will be able to get me there (Hint, hint, Anthony).

6. Phog Allen Fieldhouse: As a die-hard Kansas Jayhawks fan (no bandwagon here. I've got the 1989 youth-sized t-shirt to prove it), I have to be there for a blowout win over Missouri. I get chills when the Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk chant starts while watching on T.V. I might break down into hysterics if I hear it live.

7. Boston Garden: (Or whatever they're calling the new place). The floor. The banners. What else need I say?


I know I'm missing some no-brainers on there, but that's what I get off the top of my head. I'm pretty confident I can cross every one of these off the list, except for St. Andrews. I hate to fly.

Ready for a road trip?

Here's a great story from ESPN.com, highlighting some of the unique seats and features of baseball parks across the country.

http://sports.espn.go.com/travel/news/story?id=3387179

Sure, the seats atop the Green Monster at Fenway and the bleachers at Wrigley are included.

What got me were the stories and photos of the minor league fields. There's a Tiki Bar in Florida and a third dugout for fans in California. Included in the mix is Fifth-Third Field in Toledo.

I haven't been to the park in Toledo, or the new one in Dayton, but I've heard great things about both. I'm planning a trip to Toledo for a game this summer.

I still hold a special place in my heart for Cooper Stadium in Columbus, although it won't make it on any Top-10 lists. Really, this has more to do with personal memories than anything of the structure or park itself.

A horse is a horse

I'm not going to make light of Eight Belles being euthanized in the moments right after The Kentucky Derby. It's nothing to cheer when a loved creature, whether human or animal, dies.

What I am going to make light of is the public outcry for changes in horse racing. For people, this was an eye-opening event to the dark possibilities of the sport. But it's not the first times it's happened, and it won't be the last. Where was the commotion when the horse in the fifth card at Podunk Downs in Mississippi had to be put down? Oh, yeah -- these people wailing about the cruelty of the sport were no where near a horse track before Saturday. Heck, they weren't even at the Churchill Downs, they were watching NBC.

It's become the cause of the moment. And that's sad, because people without any knowledge of horse racing are going to stick their meddling noses (read: PETA) in there and forever stain the sport. No one had a problem with it before Saturday. Why start now.

It's a tough sport. These horses are treated like kings (and in Eight Belles' case, queens), but they are put through the ringer on the track. It's not surprising injuries, even mortal ones, happen. Combine a large, fast-moving animal with its spindly legs and something is bound to break.

This happens just a few years after Barbaro pulls up lame in a Triple Crown race. Thankfully, Barbaro didn't need to be euthanized on the track, so his progress from injury and eventual demise sounded more like a hero's story. This story has no way of being worked to that angle.

Yes, Eight Belles being put down on the track, before the trainer could even make his way down, was hard to watch and even harder to digest. It shouldn't call for a complete rehaul of the sport, though.

What a dolt

Do radio stations and journalists find the most ignorant, ill-adjusted people they can find and stick a microphone or tape recorder in their face? (Actually, I know the answer. Yes. It makes our jobs so much more fun.)

I didn't hear this interview myself, but from what I hear a guy is passing around a petition to have NASCAR and all auto racing outlawed, because of the gas usage. Seriously. The person who told me this heard the guy on a Cincinnati radio station.

Ummm. O.K. So, let's start with the actual fuel used. The race cars this moron is talking about don't even used the same fuel used by passenger cars. Wouldn't save a drop of gas for us to use. Let's say, for this guy's sake, that it would save fuel which could be used by us. Who in their right mind would think the oil companies would pass those savings on to us? Exxon Mobil made nearly $11 billion in profit during their first quarter. And yet, we're seeing prices edging towards $4 per gallon.

Let's also look at the fact auto races are once per week. Not multiple times, like baseball and basketball. Think about all of the fans who fill up arenas and ballparks across the nation every night of the week. Don't you think they use more gas, collectively, than all of the race cars combined? If you want to save gas this bad by outlawing a sport, start with one of those.

I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. Attempt to figure out where they're coming from and why they do what they do. I can't do this with this buffoon.

All I can say is, the fries are burning. Better get back to work at Burger World, buddy.