Forum: SCRAFAN.COM Forum (go)
Moderators: ljennings

heat four

I remember that race. I was selling peanuts in the grandstands. The PCN was a big race with tons of prestige. I was also at Ascot when Roger Newell lost his life a few years later when he hit the inside turn one wall almost at full speed.

d-rod

Were the races at Ascot broadcast on local TV back then? Obliviously this was from a TV show of some sort. Very cool!

Jeff Kristensen

Jeff,

Unfortunately the races weren't televised so this had to be some professional taping job. Many years earlier, perhaps in the early 1960s, Sunday afternoon races were televised from Ascot with Dick Lane ("Whoa Nellie" was one of his trademark comments) doing the commentary. At the start of the races, Lane always referred to the "classic left hand turn" as the cars went into turn one the first time.

I also was at Ascot the night that Roger Newell was killed. Ascot had a 1/4 mile track inside the 1/2 mile (actually a short half as it was 80 yards shy of being a full half). Newell lost control and slid sideways into the start of the 1/4 mile crash wall in turn one of the 1/4 mile. He hit the wall broadside and I believe he died from a broken neck.

Tucson Osty

On the video, during the red flag, the announcer says, "we'll be back in a moment" as if going to a commercial break and the graphic says "stay with us". Thats what made me ask. Not to contradict you but I think it was a television production of some sort.

Jeff Kristensen

This was probably from a "Sandrastuff" video. She used to tape alot of the Ascot races.....and she was hooked up directly to the announcer. Chris Holt and I did several "reviews" of her tapes...I've thought of posting some of mine on this board, only, unfortunately I don't know how to do that. Sandra probably has lots of Ascot videos just waiting to be transferred to CD's....but who has the time?

That's good stuff! Thanks for taking the time to post it.

Chad Hawkins

I'd love to help if I could. The world loves Ascot videos. The older the better.

I do not accept any offers for 'revenue sharing' through yew-tube. The videos are hard enough to get, and getting paid to post others stuff is a great way upset those that could provide more.

I checked with Sandra and this video is not one of hers........but what a heat race to watch with two "Hall of Famers" in it....from 26 years ago and they are both still competing today!!!!!

A copy of the program for this race is here:

http://http://www.bakerracingpix.com/sprint_car_programs.htm

@ 2/3 down the page

During that season, the races from Ascot were shown on KDOC Channel 56 on Saturday afternoons. It was a show called Racing From Ascot, and was hosted by a guy named Tom Malone I believe, and Ted Otto. I still have a couple of these races on tape... wish I had more!

Scott D could probably confirm this as well but I remember they did some Sprint Car racing as well as Speedway from Southbay Speedway at Ascot too

B feature part 1

part 2

"MEMORIES of the CALIFORNIA JALOPY ASSOCIATION"

This was right (57) before I moved to Phoenix for the first time, and these races were sure on at my house in Torrance.

Chapter 10 ­ It Was a Very Good Year: 1956 was the peak of jalopy racing in So Cal with 140 CJA drivers active. KTTV Channel 11 had an estimated 300,000 TV viewers for CJA races with Bill Welsh serving as TV announcer. Hal Schidler also announced some races. Gardena Stadium was the site The book describes the antics of Roger Bacon who did on air TV commercials for Les Bacon & Sons Ford of Hermosa Beach during televised CJA jalopy races. Orval Allen drove a red and white striped candy cane jalopy and it is shown in action and still photos. Jalopy Alias/Real Name comparisons are given for 15 drivers. The female driver cheesecake division grew to 16 drivers and had Ms Rocky Stoner as champion. Hila Paulson was not allowed to join because she was too good as a jalopy racer. Channel 11 and Channel 5 battled for the rights to televise jalopy races on Sunday afternoons and paid $750 a week for TV rights. Fred Russell became a six-time CJA champion.

Chapter 11 - "Whoa Nellie"" In 1957 the KTLA Channel 5 TV announcer became Dick Lane of televised wrestling fame. His "Whoa Nellie" catch phrase was picked up by ABC-TV football announcer decades later and is still heard occasionally. John Polich was the long-time jalopy racing TV show director. On 7/4/57 CJA raced for the first time on a half-mile, the new Bill McKay L.A. Raceway in Gardena (later known as Ascot Park) on ten acres at 182nd St. & Vermont Ave.. Harry Schooler was the promoter. RODS became the jalopy sanctioning body at De Anza Park in Riverside. Huntington Beach Stadium ran its last race in 1957. Builder/promoter Tom Talbert converted the site to a bean field and later a trailer park. Ed Van Eyk was CJA's 1957 champion.

Half the lies they tell about me aren't true. 

I remember watching the races from Ascot on Saturday I think they used to come on around noon because we would watch them before going to the track that night.Thanks J for refreshing my memory that it was on KDOC 56, I knew it was on some Public Broadcast channel but couldn't remember which one.J you are also correct that Tom Malone and Ted Otto were the host's.

Here's the link for that..http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/bookreviews/2009/09cajalopyassoc/ When I came back in 63, my dad and I made a few trips to Western Speedway. One time we saw these outlaw open comp karts, and one of the guy's was running a chainsaw engine . Bet you know what kind it was. Who would have thought where it would go with that type of engine?

Half the lies they tell about me aren't true. 

A main- part 1

part 2

part 3