Racing Break - - - Curious about Camping??

We are following the USMTS modified racing series throughout the midwest with the Skyberg Motorsports team.  We travel in our 16 year old pickup, pulling our 16 year old Komfort camp trailer.     2,447 miles in July, according to Google.   Many more miles since we started in March.  So far no issues!!

 Now camping at Lake Pomme De Terre just a few miles east of Wheatland Missouri where we last raced, and 12 miles north of our next event at Urbana, MO.

The race originally scheduled for THIS weekend in Ogilvie, MN was cancelled, due to finances or something of the sort.  Yes, without the cancellation, we would have driven from here to Minnesota and raced, only to return a week later.  Not overly sad about missing that drive.

Lake Pomme De Terre.  Fancy, huh!!      OK.  It means "potato".  Really?

Seems like they could have saved a little on signage if they just called it Potato Lake.  And most of us can pronounce "potato".    Just sayin'

But it IS a lovely lake and campground, costing us all of $ 11.00 per night (with our Fed park card).  It's a Corp of Engineers project.  Water and electric at each site, nice bathrooms, and of course the obligatory dump station.  Where many folks suit up with gloves and sometimes other protective stuff to dump their holding tanks (!)  OK.  Let's think about this.  All you're gonna touch is the outside of a 3" flexible plastic tube.  And a valve lever.  Do you glove up when you wipe after you take a . . . . well, enough on that.     Just wash your hands.     Both times.

Anyway, we're camping at Potato Lake.

Prior to this we raced at the Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland.  As we've said before, it is a very nice state-of-the-art facility.  

Is there camping there?  Absolutely!  42 RV sites with water/electric, very nice showers adjacent (like: newer block building with about 8 stalls each side - very clean and tidy).  Then near the lake is the "dry" camping on acres of forested ground accessed by a network of gravel roads.  This area seems to be popular when they have large national events at the track.

Lucas Oil Speedway also has the world's first man-made drag boat racing lake, in addition to a large off-road dirt race track.  All located in a town of about 370 residents.

The race at Humboldt Speedway in Kansas (just prior to Wheatland) was also our second visit. We knew to park under the only trees near the general parking area; they provide shade much of the day.  Warm afternoon temps are no big deal with good shade and a little breeze.  And an easy walk over to the pits.  Even easier when the recently acquired team ATV is available!

Before Humboldt we raced at the 81 Speedway in Park City, KS, just north of Wichita.  We had already been here earlier in the year, and knew what to expect: large grassy dry camping next to a long row of trees, which are also conveniently located to the west for afternoon shade.

Lovely place to camp for the night, and much cooler this time than our previous visit.  Good racing weather, but in the middle of the night we awoke abruptly to a wild, unexpected thunderstorm with drenching rain.  Will we be able to get out of this spot in the morning? I peeked out just to see if the neighbors had responded in any way to this crazy storm.  Neighbors - where the heck are they?  All except the motorhome had pulled their rigs out of the grass and onto drier gravel parking above, evidently at the first drop of rain.  I go out immediately into the lightning and pouring rain, unplug the trailer cord from the generator, and move the trailer with dragging cord about 50 yards forward to "safer" ground. Gathered up wheel chocks and the power cord, walking through large puddles on soft ground, with feet and other parts bare, and lightning flashing all around.  Brilliant move.  Thank god for darkness, anyway. (!)

So how did the racing rigs fare in the storm?  Almost all had left the pits right after the races, most moved on, some parked in the gravel parking lot.  A few, including Joe Duvall's and our's, were still inside.  Not a good thing.

After waiting most of the morning for the wind to dry things a little, our hauler (and a few others) got out, with a little assist.  I think there's a reason it's called "the pits".  A real mess.  Yuch.     Note to self:  Move to higher, better ground before you tuck yourselves in.

Sometimes you just have to camp where you find yourself.  S. Sioux City, IA for example, in the middle of the night on your way to the next track.

Wake up a few hours later, sun up, in a Barnes & Noble parking lot.

And back on the road we go. 

 

Sorry we don't have more racing news to report.  Lorna and I did attend a local race last night in Urbana, which was fun.  We'll be racin' again next Thursday, at that very track.

Stay safe, have some fun, and thanks for checking in!

D & L