Rain Prevails at Columbus Junction

 Trying to ignore the " elephant in the room, " the ominous weather forecast, we headed out at the noon hour Saturday for C J Speedway in Columbus Junction, Iowa in search of one more racing adventure. The drive was done mostly in a light drizzle, although the skies cleared a bit as we ventured north of Mt. Pleasant. With the forecast calling for as much as a 90% chance of afternoon showers, we were not sure what to expect, but the 75 or 80 cars in the pits seemed like enough for a solid racing program.
 After signing in, I made my way across the track to the infield pit area, quickly realizing that the 4/10 mile oval had already received a fair amount of moisture, and could likely not absorb much more. The starting time had been moved up two hours to try and get ahead of the Friday forecast, and everything was going well as hot laps clicked off in timely fashion on the still greasy surface. The original running order had been changed after only a pair of hobby stocks signed in, so after the national anthem, the first IMCA sport compact heat race was called to the track. Unfortunately, that is when things went awry. A light but persistent drizzle began to fall before the green flag waved, with the cars circling the track to try and minimize the effects of the rain. Soon more compacts joined the group of seven, and then the call came out for some of the wider tired machines to help out. It was not long until the race cars were sent pitside, with track packing vehicles along with promoter Larry Richardson in his street car continuing to turn laps.
  While the radar looked somewhat promising, the showers intensified a bit, and after a half hour or so, it became obvious that the track was " lost, " and would need to be torn up and repacked if there was to be any chance of racing, a process that would take at least a couple of hours, provided the rain would stop. So the decision was made to pull the plug on the 2nd annual Turkey Dash.
  I have no idea how long the rain continued at the track, but as so often happens, we had traveled only a few miles south on highway 27 when the showers stopped. Still I don't think anyone could question the decision to cancel given the track and pit conditions.
  And all four of us agreed that the trip was well worth the gamble for a shot at November racing, and hopefully the Turkey Dash will be back on the schedule in 2019 - perhaps minus the hobby stocks!?!
  Thanks to Larry and the CJ Speedway gang for going the extra mile while trying to get the show in.
  I believe the curtain is down on racing in Iowa for 2018, but for those unwilling to call it a year, there is still action to be had in Missouri, including the Turkey Bowl in Springfield on November 17, and of the course the race at the Dome in St. Louis November 29,30, and December 1.
  Meanwhile the 2019 schedules are beginning to trickle in, and of course around here, the buzz is about the Lucas Oil late model show at 34 Raceway in West Burlington on Thursday, May 16. There are always a few " can't miss " shows on my racing calendar, and this is one of them, for sure. Keep an eye on the calendar tab at Positively Racing as we look forward to the 2019 season, and check back here at Racin' Down the Road for updates.
  Thanks for reading.