By Mandee Pauch

Nobody likes it when Mother Nature gets in the way of our racing fix. Just a few weeks ago, the Super DIRTcar Series’ first race of the season was canceled due to rain. This past Wednesday, the series was set for take two—this time at New Jersey’s Bridgeport Speedway—in the attempt to run its season opener. Due to torrential rain and severe thunderstorms, the event was forced to be canceled.

So far Mother Nature has won both events, causing the series to push its first points race back even further.

The series was scheduled to kick off on April 28 at Fulton Speedway in New York. It will now be an entire month behind, getting underway on Monday, May 28, at Weedsport (NY) Speedway for the Heroes Remembered 100.

Join PRO to watch the 2018 Heroes Remembered 100 live and on demand.

While several fans and promoters are itching to get the season underway, the drivers are the ones taking a toll on these rainouts.

When the season is in full swing and drivers are racing 2-4 races a week, a rainout usually gives them a chance to take a breather and catch up. However, rainouts early in the season have quite an impact on how most drivers approach the rest of their schedule. 

Hear from a few of the top drivers in the Super DIRTcar Series and find out what they had to say about rainouts…

How much do rainouts affect you early in the season versus midseason?

Mike Mahaney — “Early in the season, they are nice because usually the tracks aren’t fit to drive on. I would prefer them to rain out if they aren’t ready. Midseason, if you’ve been racing a lot it’s not bad, but if you’ve been getting a lot of rainouts they can really start to hurt you financially if all of your equipment is sitting there ready to go.”

Peter Britten — “Early in the season, you want to get racing as much as you can, just to get yourself in a rhythm. You have some new ideas you want to prove or possibly disprove. Right now, it’s early in the year which isn’t generally a good thing. My situation is a little bit different though. I have some serious back issues so having a lighter schedule at the start of the year has done me a few favors which has allowed my back more time to cooperate. Once we get into July, it’ll be nuts. It’s a little bit of mixed emotions though. I want to be racing, but at the same time, it’s not a horrible thing either. Mid-summer, that depends because the schedule is tough and grueling. If you get that rainout in the summer, it gives you a chance to catch up so I think it can be a good thing.”

Keith Flach — “It all depends on how your season starts out. If you’re obviously starting off the year on a good note, rainouts will make you be less apt to be disappointed. You’ll be on a good roll. Unfortunately, our season hasn’t started out on the right foot and we’re getting more rainouts. You’re less likely to look forward to them at the beginning of the year than the middle of the year when you’re struggling.”

How much do you think these two rainouts can play a role in the points chase?

Mahaney — “I think pretty huge. Fulton is one of my favorite tracks so for me that was a big blow to lose that event. Say last year and the points chase between Matt Sheppard and Billy Decker, losing Fulton is a big deal to Billy Decker, not Matt Sheppard since Decker is the guy that usually wins that event.”

Britten — “I guess you have to look at the tracks that got rained out. Bridgeport is a very big unknown for the series regulars, it gives a chance to gain or lose points, that can definitely play a role. The Fulton race, obviously certain guys run better at Fulton. For the longtime guys that have been running Fulton and have an advantage, that’s a really big deal. It’s not the end of the world right now but it would still be nice to get out there and have a race on the series too. The points gap increases every series race after Labor Day. There’s more of a drop-off as the positions go down. If you have a bad night in those races after Labor Day, it hurts you a lot more than earlier in the year, so these races can play a big part in the long run.”

Flach — “It has the potential to make it a tighter race obviously with less events. Guys get the opportunity to hit some good strides which will make it closer. It’ll give the guys normally on top to tighten the race, but at the same time, it can hurt you. The more races you have, the more off nights or bad nights you can have. The shorter nights, you have to make them all count. For certain guys who are typically on top, it can be a good thing or a bad thing.”

Would you prefer a race to be canceled early or would you prefer them to try and see if they can get it in?

Mahaney — “Majority of the time, I like to see them pull the plug early. Then we have time to make other plans or find another event to go to and still do something with the day. If they don’t and they rain out, you spent the whole day working and you’re not getting paid. Even worse if you run hot laps, get the car muddy, and don’t get the whole show in. Then you have all of that maintenance, time, and effort in as if you raced but it really would have been easier to just stay home.”

Britten — “I am a fan of what Bridgeport did where they canceled the day before. It doesn’t do anyone any good, especially if you have a long drive home. You can waste a whole day, fuel, and everybody’s time. With the series and the midweek races, it’s hard to get the crew to help and those guys only have limited days off. If your crew can go to work that day rather than having to waste a day they took off, then it helps them go to another race down the road. There’s nothing more aggravating than driving down the road and getting rained out. I understand from a promoter’s point of view but I’m a fan of canceling early if it’s beyond reasonable doubt, so I’d say it’s the right thing to do.”

Flach — “Depends on a few factors—the forecast, if they’re calling for anything over 50 percent chance of rain, you want them to cancel early. It costs money to travel. If you’re going out there for a single event, it doesn’t help your program. If it’s 50 percent or less and they’re willing to try and get it in, I’m all for it. You’re playing roulette at that point. I think Mike Perrotte (series director) has done a good job this year working with the promoters. I think the races that have been called have saved on the travel costs which is a good thing.”

With the weather in everyone’s mind, all drivers and fans are hoping for good conditions at the upcoming Super DIRTcar Series event at Weedsport Speedway on Memorial Day (LIVE on FloRacing). The winner of the Heroes Remembered 100 will also earn a guaranteed starting position at NAPA Super DIRT Week, which takes place October 3-7.