Modified Dirt Track Racing

I-80 Speedway track at Greenwood, NE. April 2013.

Andersonville (Fort Sumpter)

ANDERSONVILLE

Fort Sumpter, better known as Andersonville Prison, is located in southwestern Georgia and is a national historic site. (See also: http://www.nps.gov/ande/index.htm). The prison was in use from 1864 until the end of the Civil War in 1865. Of the 45,000 Union prisoners held at the prison, approximately 13,000 (29%) perished from disease, malnutrition, and starvation. Those who perished were buried at a nearby cemetary. The names of the prisoners were recorded by Confederate officials and, secretly, by Union prisoners. Following the war, some Union troops returned to the prison accompanied by Sara Barton (founder of the Red Cross) to formalize identification of the bodies. Wooden stakes were replaced by marble head stones in the late 19th century. The cemetary is a moving reminder of the Civil War and man's inhumanity to man.

HEINRICK WIRZ, CSA

Captain Heinrick Wirz was the camp commander at Fort Sumpter (Andersonville). Following the war, Wirz was arrested, tried and executed by the United States for "war crimes." He was one of two Confederate soldiers to be executed after the war. Wirz was a Swiss-born citizen of the United States and then the Confederate States of America. His trial and execution are seen by many as controversial. Here is a monument to Wirz that stands less than a mile from the national historical site in the village of Andersonville. The monument was erected by the Georgia Division of the Daughters of the Confederacy. The inscription at the base reads: "To rescue his name from the stigma attached to it by embittered prejudice." Immediately behind the monument (not pictured) stands Wirz's house ... it's run down and for sale.

All pictures by C G Eiel. Taken with a Canon EOS Rebel T2i.

Shotgun House - New Orleans

A shotgun house photographed in New Orleans, Louisiana in September 2012. The house, northwest of the French Quarter, was painted a bland yellow-green so I decided to "repaint" the structure using GIMP. Hope you like my efforts.

Outlaw Dragsters

These four cars represent a small sample of the beautiful machines that race under the "outlaw dragster" definition. Racing classes are: Pro Modified (PM), Top Sportsman (TS); Pro Extreme (PX); Pro Nitrous (PN); and Extreme Pro Stock (XPS). These cars are powered by big block Chrysler, Ford and Chevrolet engines (aluminum or iron) and can be either supercharged or turbocharged. Engine cubic inch measurements range from 500 c.i to almost 1000 c.i.. With a few exceptions, most classes (except Pro Nitrous) are fuel injected. Only Extreme Pro Stock must use only gasoline (Q16 or C23 brands). Because engines are extremely expensive, many racing teams lease their engines for the race matches. After the races, the engines are removed from the cars, transported back to the owner, and rebuilt.
The major drag racing associations are: National Hot Rod Association (NHRA); International Hot Rod Association (IHRA); American Drag Racing League (ADRL); and the X-Treme Drag Racing League (XDRL). Of the four, the NHRA is considered the premier association and is the only organization that consistently races top fuel and nitromethane funny car classes.

Photos above taken by Chris Eiel on the 5th and 6th of March 2013 at Rockingham, North Carolina at the Rockingham Drag Strip (known as "The Rock") The author drove 2600 miles round trip from Nebraska to North Carolina and back. All photographs taken with a Canon EOS Rebel T2i.

ADRL Official

An American Drag Racing League (ADRL) official inspects the staging area prior to a qualification round. Photo taken in Rockingham, North Carolina on Saturday, 9 March 2013. (9:53 am EST) Rockingham was the location of one of the earliest and most famous NASCAR oval tracks in the Eastern United States. Now the racing complex hosts a myriad of events year round.

Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T2i. 1/320s; F7.1; ISO 100; f=65.00mm; no flash.
Image manipulated with GIMP 2.8. Image cataloged and further edited with Zoner Photo Studio 15.

ADRL at Rockingham

Pro Modified Class. Just wanted to get one shot up onto the blog before I get home. Dragpalooza IX held at Rockingham Dragway in Rockingham, North Carolina. Great race and friendly people.

Custer's Last Stand

The Little Bighorn Battlefield Monument lies approximately 70 miles north of Sheridan, Wyoming on the Crow Indian Reservation (south of Hardin, Montana). On June 25, 1876, Custer and 220 men under his direct command were defeated and killed by a combined force of Plains Indians: Lakota, Cheyenne, and Blackfoot. The battle lasted approximately 45 minutes. The park is a place for somber reflection on the realities of United States' history and the Westward Movement ... the final defeat of the indigenous peoples and the "victory" of European-American values and customs. The park contains monuments to Natives and the 7th Calvary; assorted grave markers (see below); an interpretive center; and a National Military Cemetery. Directly to the north of the park are a gas station, a Cheyenne Indian Health Service healthcare center, and a casino...how ironic.

Photo: Canon EOS Rebel T2i; 1/250s; F10; ISO:100; f=53.00mm; no flash.
Edited with GIMP 2.8.
Compiled and further edited with Zoner Photo Studio 15. 

 

Scattered across the Little Bighorn Battlefield are hundreds of white marble grave markers showing the approximate locations of fallen 7th Calvary troopers. The bodies were buried in situ immediately after the battle, then reburied under a monument that sits on "last stand" hill. Only the enlisted men, scouts, and civilians are buried in Montana. Officers were buried across the United States and Custer's body was buried at West Point.  Red marble markers (not shown) also mark the approximate location of Indian bodies. The exact count of Native dead is unknown; it is estimated to be 60 to 200 in number. There also is an Indian monument located directly north of the monument to the 7th Calvary.
 
Photo: Canon EOS Rebel T2i; 1/160s; F8.0; ISO:100; f=49.00mm; no flash.
Edited with GIMP 2.8.
Compiled and further edited with Zoner Photo Studio 15.