Researching Marchbanks Speedway

One of my loves is auto racing, and more specifically what is called open-wheel racing.

I've spent most of my life in the San Joaquin Valley in Central California, and have visited a variety of dirt and paved tracks in the area, half of which no longer exist. 

Sadly, one I never saw was Marchbanks Speedway near Hanford, Calif. Even more sad is that little is known of what was once among California's pre-eminent tracks, hosting Champ Cars (think Indy) and the equivalent of NASCAR's Sprint Cup series.

The main track was a 1.3-1.4-mile oval, with two smaller ovals of varying sizes inside. The banking was as steep as 30 degrees in spots, which is nearly impossible to walk up. Racing was frequent in the 1950s and 1960s, but apparently died out in the early 1970s.

There are a few mentions on websites, including a short blip mentioning the NASCAR tie, and an informative community thread on Track Forum. There's a simple but interesting track diagram at The Racing Line and an entry documenting the death of James Stainton.

Wikipedia even has a bare-bones entry.

Mario Andretti in a Ford at "Hanford Motor Speedway" in 1967The only photo I've seen is one of Mario Andretti racing at "Hanford Motor Speedway" in 1967. Several sites list different locations for the track, but from what I can tell from satellite photos, evidence of the track is long gone.

But I'd love to see other photos, particularly shots of the track itself, as well as track down more detail. If you have any knowledge of the track, please feel free to share here or contact me through the Email Me link. I'll get back to you asap.

I'll start my own research and share it as I collect it.

Not warming to new Rancid

Bought the deluxe edition of the new Rancid CD "Let the Dominoes Fall" on Tuesday, the day it came out. I'm a big fan from way back.

The deluxe set has lots of cool stuff: the new CD, a second CD containing acoustic versions of 12 of the new songs, a DVD documentary of the making of the album, three posters and four guitar picks. OK, I'm a recovering drummer, but the guitar picks (each with a headshot of the four band members) is a nice touch. Reminds me of something Cheap Trick might have done.

But after a half-dozen spins of the CD, it's not taking. Either my ears have softened or there's a lack of edge. No one will ever accuse Rancid of being polished, but there's a softened sound that's evident throughout, even on the songs that have some crunch. I haven't had time to dive into the acoustic stuff or the DVD, so will update this as soon as I have an opinion on those.

Bottom line: After six years since the last Rancid disc, I was hoping for more.

UPDATE (June 12, 2009): OK, I've listened multiple times to the CD, the alternate CD with acoustic versions and the DVD and I remain underwhelmed. Even an appearance by Booker T. Washington (Booker T and the MGs) didn't move me. And I'm a geek for Southern Soul. Same with the appearance by Matt Hensley from Flogging Molly.

The 37-minute DVD from filmmaker Rachel Tejada is informative, adding insight into the band's history, passions, influences and details on their gear, with an overriding theme on making the new album. But it's stripped to a distorted black-and-white that is so annoying it interferes with the message. Bad = perceived art over clarity and message.

Bottom line No. 2: I'll revisit these discs again but not to the same degree of their previous CDs, all of which are among my favorites. A poor Rancid album is better than most other music these days.

Going back in time

The first edition of Crawdaddy came straight off the typewriterMusic aficionados of all ages bemoan the loss of great music publications that played big roles in their lives.

For me, the closure of Trouser Press was killer. It’s one of the few times in my life where I stopped in my tracks and went into a daze when I heard bad news. I’ve experienced that to a lesser extent with the downfall of Musician, Creem and Yeah Yeah Yeah.

But the Internet has brought some of those publications back to life. TrouserPress.com isn’t quite the same as the fun print mag, but has all its reviews online. And today I discovered that Crawdaddy is online – and offering complete versions of the original printed mags from 1968-69.

Crawdaddy was way before my time, but it helped shape and give credence to rock journalism. It’ll be fun to pore through each of those issues and see what I discover.

Any great lost mags you’ve discovered getting second lives online?