March '08 Entertainment—Pete Allman Column

In 1902, Osmond Beach, Fla., was the site of the world record automobile speed trials. It was 1935 that a Malcolm Campbell took his Bluebird Rocket car and reached speeds of 276.82 mph. on a straight of way along the beach.

Through his dissatisfaction of not reaching 300 mph, the record he wanted to obtain, he went to Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. In order to keep speed-related events after Campbell left, championship dirt track race driver Sig Haugdahl was called in by city officials to organize and promote an automobile race along a 3.2-mile course, which included Hwy A1A, southbound from Daytona Beach. This certainly is where racing got started when Daytona Beach posted a $5 million purse with $1.2 million going to the winner. Unfortunately, there were some technical problems, along with stalled cars on the raceway. And there were scoring problems, plus a loss of $22 million, which led to this being the first and last race the city of Daytona held for a long period of time. It was revived, however, through the perseverance of a young man, Bill France, who continued the race circuit and got sponsors. During that time, the American Automobile Association became known as the USA/Cart League (Indy Car Racing). Shortly after, American Stock Car Racing was established.

Finally, in 1947, when France retired from racing, the National Assoc. for Stock Car Racing, or NASCAR, had appointed Bill France president. Throughout the years, stock car racing on dirt tracks and NASCAR racing was thought of as a “good ’ol country boy racing circuit.” But it is now a whole new world of high-tech racing and high-tech drivers from various backgrounds around the world. Today, Las Vegas, Nev., is part of that with the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which is considered one of the top tracks in the country.

Recently, Carl Edwards won the UAW Dodge 400 at LVMS. This year’s race of 267 laps (400 miles) drew 150,000 racing fans. The slick track and the fourth turn got some drivers into trouble. And during the last 10 laps of the race, Jeff Gordon clipped Matt Gordon’s No. 17, then hit the wall so hard that it threw his entire radiator a few feet from his car.

With just two laps to finish the race, Carl Edwards in No. 99, took the green flag and Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88, came in second. Greg Biffle took third. Kevin Harvick came in fourth, and Jeff Burton was fifth.

This gives Edwards his second Sprint Cup series win in a row. This is also his ninth career win at the UAW Dodge 400. Unfortunately, Edwards lost some points when his oil pan guard was left off. This weighs a bit, and it gave Edwards an edge when his crew chief failed to have it put back on. So, as you can see, racing is at a whole new level, compared to the good old days of dirt track racing and asphalt racing.

Another race that drew a lot of attention was the Sam’s Town 300. Here’s a race where Mark Martin No. 5, was running third when he bumped into the back of Carl Edwards’ and Brad Keselowski’s cars, causing them to spin out and get the checkered flag. “I ran into the back of Carl, and I lost control,” said Martin. “I didn’t intend for it to happen; I couldn’t stop it once it started.”

The thing that made this bad for Edwards was that he lost control when he was hit in the rear, which caused his car to slide into Keselowski’s. In fact, this race had a record for 13 yellow flags.

Martin won the Sprint Cup in 1998 and a Nationwide race in 1999.

It’s a new day at the raceway, and with new high-tech turns and twists and speeds up to 200 mph., it’s not just for the good ’ol boys anymore, especially with the widest variety of drivers ever representing nearly all ages, genders and nationalities though the sports growing diversity.

NASCAR event

Photos by Tom Donoghue

African Delights at Ngoma

Through me recent travels, I’ve quite a few people who say they enjoyed traveling to heighten there senses of the many cultures and the beautiful wildlife. Almost every person raved about Africa’s natural resources, as well as the breathtaking scenery, as well as the food. Today, in Los Angeles you can enjoy some of the ambiance through the culinary delights of Ngoma, and African restaurant, which is the only Pan-African restaurant in Los Angeles.

They feature dishes from West, East and South Africa that will arouse your tastebuds in a new and unique way. These dishes are different from those of Ethiopia, the cuisine many diners are most familiar with from Africa, some dishes are really spicy and others are surprisingly mild.

For instance, the Samaki, a fried tilapia fish in a curry sauce, is delightful, tasty though seasoned very lightly. The Egusi Soup and Fufu made from yam flour made with crusted melon will open your senses. My favorite dish is the Nyama Choma, goat served with corn flour with cabbage, an East African dish and one of the most popular served at Ngoma. A dessert delicacy, Dodo, is tropical banana fruit, sliced, seasoned and delicately sautéed in a pan. Mango Cheesecake is also excellent. I dined on this visit with actor Audrey Harris, who just completed touring with “The Bachelorette Party.” During our conversation with the manager, Dan, she raved over the Sambusa, which is chicken and beef garnished with an array of vegetables. By the way, if you are inclined for some tasty juices try Ngoma’s freshly prepared passion fruit juice and the bunde are prepared with ginger and red flowers. Absolutely marvelous. All foods are prepared from scratch, which means there may be a little bit of a wait., but anything good is worth waiting for, especially the cuisine of Ngoma, the “Pulse of Africa.”

African music is always played softly in the background, along with cable programming from Africa. The décor has the rich look of a Kenyan safari lodge, making the dining journey interesting.

Ngoma is located west of La Brea at 5358 Wilshire Blvd. (323) 934-1595. Costs are moderate. Ngoma African Restaurant gets a CSN rating of *9-plus.*

My book of poetry entitled "Messages" was inspired by my dear friends C.J. Cansler along with Victoria Boone and Beryl Warren.

The group of poems along with some beautiful photographs are to inspire the reader.