The Dirt Destroyers

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‘Something all of us can do’

“I remember when I was new on the team,” she wrote on the national association’s website. “My lack of skills and knowledge made me nervous. And being a girl on a male-dominated team was almost as intimidating as being new. Because of this, I always encourage new riders during drills and rides. I always make the effort to talk to everyone on the team and cheer everyone on during their races. I know how much this can mean to people and it makes our team closer.”

Dirt Destroyers coach Dan Fitzpatrick, a mechanical engineer at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, appreciates the technology behind the racing: Riders wear tags so that their times can be electronically tracked.

He has been biking since high school. Buying a better bike in 2019 got him out a lot more.

And he got involved with the Dirt Destroyers when his son Rowan, a student at Shue-Medill, became friends with team member Max Oreper and got a new bike for Christmas in 2021. “It gave him something to focus on, a steady activity, a good outdoor experience,” Fitzpatrick said.

He praised the Dirt Destroyers for being about not just biking, but also being about team building, socialization, fun games and patience. “It’s a huge range of skills.”

And maybe his 9-year-old son Asher will also join the team when he’s old enough. “It’s something all of us can do,” Fitzpatrick said.

By Ken Mammarella Contributing Writer

Delaware Park is investing $10 million to update its casino, including rearranging slot machines to give players more room, adding baccarat and high-limit blackjack tables, creating a noodle bar and redecorating from the ceiling to the floor. A random sampling of patrons on a spring morning show that the work is paying off.

“I’ve won more with this new look,” said Wanda, a resident of Maryland’s Harford County while enjoying the slots with her sister, Patsy.

“It’s a cleaner look,” said Patsy. “I want to play better.”

“I love the carpet,” said Marlene, a Newark resident. “It makes me feel great.”

“The biggest enhancement for us is the new game layout,” said Jennifer Oberle-Howard, director of advertising and public relations. “Following the trend to move away from linear slot bank configuration, we now have pods in the shape of diamonds, squares, footballs and rounds, allowing extra space and comfort for our guests. Additionally, newer themes are being added on a regular basis including Aristocrat’s Jackpot Carnival and Light & Wonder’s highly anticipated game, Dragon.

“We are adding four Macau-style baccarat tables featuring Dragon Bonus and five Treasure bonus bets plus two highlimit blackjack tables.”

Good luck at Foo Noodle Bar

The number of slot machines is going from 1,902 at the end of 2022 to about 1,800 when the rearrangement is completed, Oberle-Howard said, adding that the casino has an internal app for finding machines.

“Guests can ask any slot attendant or Player Rewards Club representative to reference the electronic machine list if they are looking for a particular machine that may have moved,” she said.

The Foo Noodle Bar will replace some office space near the high-stakes area. Foo is the Chinese character for “good luck,” said Paul Heretakis, the Las Vegas architect hired to design the new look. It will have “high bar-style seating, and offerings will include bar type food also,” Oberle-Howard said.

“Besides a fresh new look, the High Limit Bar will be accessible from all sides, have more seating capacity, offer bar-top slots and poker machines,” she said.

Work also involves rebranding, from Casino at Delaware Park to Delaware Park Casino & Racing.

The construction began in January and is planned to end in July, hopefully by the Fourth, she said.

‘Let’s refresh the place’

Heretakis, owner of WESTAR Architects, started work on the project in October of 2021. “‘Let’s refresh the place,’” he recalls being told, and also being asked to make it “brighter, more comfortable, welcoming and warm.”

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