[ponyakr]

i just had a flashback of something that for some reason i forgot to mention. one sat. we pulled into the pits of our local dragstip a little late & were looking for a place to park. all the spots where we usually parked were taken, so we kept driving slowly ahead, looking for a spot. it looked like there might be 1 beside a big oak tree just to the left of the staging lanes. but just before we got to it, we noticed 2 men standing in front of us, arguing. well the fists started flying & soon 1 guy had the other down & was thrashin him severely about the head. they finaly got up and the winner started walkin back to the tower. the other man ran over to a nearby pickup & came back waving a gun & shouting obsenities at the guy who had just given him a whuppin. i don't know what kind of a gun it was, but it looked to me like a cowboy style 44 magnum. & he was right in front of us. i didn't know whether to duck or start backin up as fast as i could without running over somebody. thankfully, some guys came over & wrestled the gun away from him & tried to calm him down. when the other guy had started walking away we had recognized him as the track manager. we later got the whole scoop. the guy with the gun was a hot head with a drinking problem. he'd started an argument with the manger which resulted in the incident we witnessed. for it, the man was banished from the track for life as i remember it. he later died in a racing rollover at another track. he'da been o.k. but his harness was loose & he was thrown partially out the window. so the moral of the story is, if you drink, wait til after the race to start, especially if your driving a race car. it can make things a lot more pleasant & enjoyable for others.