Back Home Again in Belleville ’07 Part 1

Back Home Again in Belleville ’07 Part 1

By Chris W. Lovett

Rolling into Belleville was so routine this year it felt like we had never left. The route through Oklahoma City was again the choice and works very nicely even though most would probably not see the reason why. Time with friends in Edmond and the lack of a need to rent a car are the two main ones I point to. When we arrived in Belleville at 5:00 in the afternoon on Tuesday Janie had already procured the campsite at 12:00. Ms. Vogel’s efforts to get the campsite in order were appreciated but her 200 MPH Duct Tape job on the pool didn’t hold air so we were without a pool for the second year in a row. 

Tuesday night was a night off to enjoy the fair and re-connect with friends. Tandy had stepped down from her lead role in the 4H but that did not prevent us from acquiring the necessary Friday and Saturday dinner tickets. Lamb / Pork for $6 and Prime Rip for $10 is just too good of a deal to pass up. It has been said by others but if you go home hungry during the North Central Kansas Free Fair it’s your own damned fault.

Wednesday turned out to be my first trip to McCool Junction which is roughly an hour straight north on Highway 81. All the good things I had heard about the place were true. The racing was great with Ricky Stenhouse taking the win over Jerry Coons Jr. in a green-white-checkered duel that had everyone on their feet. Also notable was witnessing Kevin Swindell make enemies on the racetrack at every opportunity. Swindell’s drive from dead last on a provisional to fourth in the feature before a mechanical failure was inspiring but tainted by antics reminiscent of his father during his heat race and after stopping in the infield after the car broke.

Thursday’s NCRA 360 race at the Highbanks is really not worth mentioning beyond the fact that it paled in comparison to the 2006 event on the same night. The general admission price was still a bargain at $12 but the show lost the luster that the NCRA vs. ASCS slant had last year. Also still a bargain was the cost of a shower at the pool but it only went up by 25 cents to $1.00. 

While reminiscing a bit I realized that1996 began a run for me that was only interrupted by my wedding in 2002 of eleven Midget Nationals attendances. Add to that my first two trips in 1993 and 1994 and you have thirteen trips to Belleville. The only event that I have been to as many times as the Midget Nationals is the Trophy Cup which is an event that I have been to every one of. Considering that the Trophy Cup started in my back yard and is still contested only three hours away the effort necessary to keep returning to the “Crossroads of America” is a good example of how much I look forward to being back home again in Belleville.

The 1997 Midget Nationals stands out in my mind for several reasons. It was the first Midwest racing trip I made without a single travel companion to share it with. Flying into Kansas City and driving to Belleville alone was eerie to say the least. Arriving in town and not knowing who was going to be there to hang out with left me a little apprehensive at first. Quickly, though, the friends that we had made the year before started to roll into town and a memorable trip ensued.

Working at an Internet company with the vast majority of my co-workers having no appetite for visiting the fly-over states led to a revelation ten years ago. I walked up “N” Street south from the park and happened upon the Boyer Gallery for the first time. As I watched in amazement what was before me I started to smile uncontrollably. It occurred to me that the people I worked with who likely mocked my taking vacation time to go to Kansas would never see Paul Boyer’s work. I realized that as much as they might have thought of their choices in life they would likely never experience what I experienced that morning. I decided that I was OK with that along with a number of other decisions I have made in my life. It was great to see the Boyer Gallery had re-opened this year.

Arguably the nicest restaurant to ever grace the downtown Belleville area was the Main Street Station on M street just north of the town square. It was a very classy joint with a nice bar, also probably the nicest in Belleville with the exception of the one at the country club, and had been nicely renovated from what was a 1950’s era filling station. It’s a good thing that I took the opportunity to have lunch there ten years ago because it closed later that year and never re-opened as a restaurant. In fact the place was mothballed until this year when a NASCAR collectables distributor opened shop there.

Particularly memorable for me from 1997 was the fundraiser the fledgling High Banks Hall of Fame and Museum held that year. The winner of the raffle received the opportunity to race ’96 Champ Robby Flock in a go-kart on the front stretch on Saturday night. I probably could have bought the go-kart for what I spent trying to win that raffle and was rewarded when my name was the first pulled out of the hat on Saturday. Don’t tell my wife but that entire day was probably the happiest day of my life so far. Flock hit the brakes on the last lap of the three lap contest to let me win but I was so close to him that I actually ran over the right side of his kart. I took the Brian Howard waved checkered flags with my fist in the air!

Fast forward to 2007 and you have a full campground ready to get the Belleville experience underway. 2005 Midget Nationals champ Coons Jr. continued to shine by setting the quick time of 17.659 on the only night that requires a time trial run. Faster times were recorded by those who were later in qualifying order. Coons, by setting quick time, began a performance that was a testament to the talent one can acquire with a career as long his in the sport of dirt track open wheel racing.

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