<img src="http://www.nitromater.com/gallery/files/5/D_Worsham07.jpg" alt="D_Worsham07" align="right"borders="0"/>
ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. (June 18, 2007) -- Del Worsham rarely feels like a rock star, although the popular driver of the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen Impala Funny Car does live a parallel lifestyle, to a degree. There's the travel, the performances in front of a paying audience, the autographs, and the "meet and greet" sessions with his fans, while there's also the "tour bus," otherwise known as Worsham's motorhome. But, the down-to-earth drag racer has always remained grounded and humble, and as the father of twin 5-year olds, he can't be accused of living the rock star lifestyle. Over the course of the next couple of months, however, Worsham and his "band" of crew members are going to get a real taste of what it's like to go on a serious North American tour.
After a "warm-up act" of back-to-back races in Topeka and Chicago, followed by a week away from the track, this weekend's event, the ProCare Rx Supernationals in Englishtown, N.J., represents the start of an unprecedented string of racing, which will take Team CSK from the east coast to the west, and back again, with a circuitous series of stops along the way. As Jackson Browne once sang, "We've got to drive all night and do a show in Chicago, or Detroit, I don't know. We do so many shows in a row. And these towns all look the same. We've got rural scenes and magazines. We've got truckers on CB. We've got Richard Pryor on the video. We've got time to think of the ones we love, as the miles roll away. But the only time that seems too short, is the time that we get to play."
"It's going to be interesting, and we're going to have to think long and hard about how we all handle this in terms of the race cars and the people," Worsham said. "The days at the track are hard work, but now we're adding in some serious over-the-road travel in-between, pretty much back and forth across the country, without any time off. Our guys are going to have to take care of themselves, while they also take care of the car.
"I've heard that song, and it always has reminded me of being out on the road, because the only time that is too short is the time we get to actually race the car. We'll be putting in long hours at the tracks, long days and nights on the road, and then we get to actually race the car for less than a minute at each event. Rock stars have it better than us, because they get to play for a couple of hours every night."
Much has been made of the upcoming string of six races in a row, which begins this weekend in Englishtown, but even that daunting schedule doesn't tell the whole story. After the sixth stop on the tour, in Sonoma, Calif., there is a one-week break before the POWERade series gets back after it with two more races in a row, at Brainerd, Minn. and Reading, Pa., taking the racers back to within 100 miles of Englishtown, where it all begins this weekend.
Another key aspect of this summer extravaganza is the fact it represents the sum total of all the races left before the Countdown field is pared to eight elite cars, at which point the rest of the class will be running as spoilers and for pride. These eight races, over the course of the next nine weeks, are all that remain before the "playoffs" start in Indianapolis, on the Labor Day weekend.
"This is it, between Englishtown and Reading, and that's just about exactly two months," Worsham said. "It's all coming down to these eight races, and when you start racing back-to-back like this, the time just seems to fly. Before we know it, the field is going to be set for the Countdown, and we're going to put every ounce of our energy into being a part of it.
"We're in the eighth spot now, but you can still throw a blanket over everyone from seventh to 17th. Remember, that's John Force down there in 17th, but he's only six rounds behind us. That's nothing. That's less than a round a race between now and Indy. This is really going to be a very hard-fought deal. It's going to be huge, and I hope the fans get into it, because it's a going to be very exciting."
Eight cities, eight race tracks. From Englishtown in the east, to Sonoma in the west. From Bristol in the Appalachians, to Denver in the Rockies and Seattle in the Cascades. From Norwalk near the shores of Lake Erie in Ohio, to Brainerd near the shores of Gull Lake in Minnesota. To Reading, right back where it all started. Roughly 9,300 miles of travel over the course of nine weeks. And the rock star tour kicks off at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park this weekend, where Worsham has seen the highest of the highs, and the lowest of the lows.
"We've won Englishtown twice, and have almost always run well on this track," he said. "We've also been on fire, gone to the hospital, had skin grafts, and all that. But I like E-town a lot, and I love winning there. I'm ready to rock, so let's go on tour!"
But the only time that seems too short, is the time that we get to play...
WORSHAM SET TO CONTINUE NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. (June 18, 2007) -- Del Worsham rarely feels like a rock star, although the popular driver of the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen Impala Funny Car does live a parallel lifestyle, to a degree. There's the travel, the performances in front of a paying audience, the autographs, and the "meet and greet" sessions with his fans, while there's also the "tour bus," otherwise known as Worsham's motorhome. But, the down-to-earth drag racer has always remained grounded and humble, and as the father of twin 5-year olds, he can't be accused of living the rock star lifestyle. Over the course of the next couple of months, however, Worsham and his "band" of crew members are going to get a real taste of what it's like to go on a serious North American tour.
After a "warm-up act" of back-to-back races in Topeka and Chicago, followed by a week away from the track, this weekend's event, the ProCare Rx Supernationals in Englishtown, N.J., represents the start of an unprecedented string of racing, which will take Team CSK from the east coast to the west, and back again, with a circuitous series of stops along the way. As Jackson Browne once sang, "We've got to drive all night and do a show in Chicago, or Detroit, I don't know. We do so many shows in a row. And these towns all look the same. We've got rural scenes and magazines. We've got truckers on CB. We've got Richard Pryor on the video. We've got time to think of the ones we love, as the miles roll away. But the only time that seems too short, is the time that we get to play."
"It's going to be interesting, and we're going to have to think long and hard about how we all handle this in terms of the race cars and the people," Worsham said. "The days at the track are hard work, but now we're adding in some serious over-the-road travel in-between, pretty much back and forth across the country, without any time off. Our guys are going to have to take care of themselves, while they also take care of the car.
"I've heard that song, and it always has reminded me of being out on the road, because the only time that is too short is the time we get to actually race the car. We'll be putting in long hours at the tracks, long days and nights on the road, and then we get to actually race the car for less than a minute at each event. Rock stars have it better than us, because they get to play for a couple of hours every night."
Much has been made of the upcoming string of six races in a row, which begins this weekend in Englishtown, but even that daunting schedule doesn't tell the whole story. After the sixth stop on the tour, in Sonoma, Calif., there is a one-week break before the POWERade series gets back after it with two more races in a row, at Brainerd, Minn. and Reading, Pa., taking the racers back to within 100 miles of Englishtown, where it all begins this weekend.
Another key aspect of this summer extravaganza is the fact it represents the sum total of all the races left before the Countdown field is pared to eight elite cars, at which point the rest of the class will be running as spoilers and for pride. These eight races, over the course of the next nine weeks, are all that remain before the "playoffs" start in Indianapolis, on the Labor Day weekend.
"This is it, between Englishtown and Reading, and that's just about exactly two months," Worsham said. "It's all coming down to these eight races, and when you start racing back-to-back like this, the time just seems to fly. Before we know it, the field is going to be set for the Countdown, and we're going to put every ounce of our energy into being a part of it.
"We're in the eighth spot now, but you can still throw a blanket over everyone from seventh to 17th. Remember, that's John Force down there in 17th, but he's only six rounds behind us. That's nothing. That's less than a round a race between now and Indy. This is really going to be a very hard-fought deal. It's going to be huge, and I hope the fans get into it, because it's a going to be very exciting."
Eight cities, eight race tracks. From Englishtown in the east, to Sonoma in the west. From Bristol in the Appalachians, to Denver in the Rockies and Seattle in the Cascades. From Norwalk near the shores of Lake Erie in Ohio, to Brainerd near the shores of Gull Lake in Minnesota. To Reading, right back where it all started. Roughly 9,300 miles of travel over the course of nine weeks. And the rock star tour kicks off at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park this weekend, where Worsham has seen the highest of the highs, and the lowest of the lows.
"We've won Englishtown twice, and have almost always run well on this track," he said. "We've also been on fire, gone to the hospital, had skin grafts, and all that. But I like E-town a lot, and I love winning there. I'm ready to rock, so let's go on tour!"
But the only time that seems too short, is the time that we get to play...
