Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
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It seems like yesterday that we lost Rich Vogler...

Member of this message board since 1997

I remember exactly where I was when I heard the news - what a sad day. I just mailed off my order for the members only die-cast Monday - how ironic is that?

I got to my parent's house and they were in shock... said there was just a terrible accident on ESPN's Thunder program with Vogler. I guess I just missed it by a few minutes.

I had the pleasure of seeing Rich run a couple of times... he was awesome both times to put it mildly. Pink 74 at the Tulsa Expo Center, banging it off the wall nonstop running the cushion to the extreme. Kunz 1 car at the Bowl...ran away with it. That night was when Ron Hughes, Jr. lost his life in a nasty wreck into the front stretch concrete wall. Unmistakeable what happened... you knew immediately.

I spoke with Rich in Tulsa... he was one "different" dude. Amazing behind the wheel!!!!

It's a shame when any racer goes... but he was possibly looking toward Nascar and away from what I would say are more dangerous open wheelers.

Ron & Rich... wish they were both still around to tell stories and be applauded for their accomplishments.

I was lucky enough to see him run down here in Australia in the early 80's in a wing sprintcar for Bob Trostle, he was and still is a racing legend.

I remember we taped that race, not sure we were at but probably the races somewhere on NorCal, when we heard the news. To this date we havn't seen the the race. "Rapid" Rich was truely one of the best.

God Speed Rich....

The older I get, the faster I used to be.

I was watching "Thursday Night Thunder" on ESPN that night. Sad time. I saw Vogler run at Ascot with the CRA and he was a master.

Tucson Osty

That site of Rapid Rich hitting the wall is forever burned into my memory. I cried when they confirmed the fear that haunted me after seeing his helmet bouncing across the track. I can see it if it was just yesterday.

Your fans love you and miss you.

Part time racefan, part time race photographer.

Here is a shot I took of Rich on the Indiana Fairgrounds Mile in 1981

Lee Johnson

I can still remember laying down on my parents carpet in their bedroom cheering for the guy that ran second to him that night. I was never a Vogler fan, but he was one hell of a competitor. I will never forget that camera shot from the front straightaway that night.

It's crazy how 1 mans legacy is over,and another is started.

I remember that Rich was lapping a young Jeff Gordon in turn 4 and struck his right rear sending him into the air.

Rich was to race the next day in a stock car.

What would have become of that,we will never know.

He was an amazing driver,and a great person,that we do remember.

..thanks for the memories Rich...God Speed

fumanchu....

Was it Gordon whose car Vogler's clipped?

Is this heaven?  
No, it's Iowa....Knoxville, Iowa.

Gordon was running second that night. They showed Vogler, and he was by himself,going into three and four then panned back to Gordon, when they went back to Vogler the car was already stopped on the front straightaway.

No, it was not Gordon he ran over that night; but if you remember, Gordon beat him earlier at Winchester, and you have to know that Rich was thinking... that kid's not going to catch me tonight!... I saw Rich on dirt a few time's, but I saw him mostly at the Copper Classic, where he would sometimes run in all 4 divisions.

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

The other driver involved was Wayne Hammond.

Yes it was, though it's not mentioned much. Rich was in a zone that night, and he was really putting it to them, and as you can see here http://www.scrafan.com/usac/schedule/1989schedule.html Wayne Hammond was no back-marker!

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

Wayne Hammond was unfortunately the other driver involved, as was mentioned. 66 car. He was a winner, too. Little 500 and pavement winner.

Plenty of drivers raced again and some continue to race after being involved in a wreck that proved fatal to another driver. Talk about thick-skinned... I don't know that I could do it. I suppose that's one of the things that separates winning drivers from the rest of us. It's not cold-hearted... it's a risk you accept.

Rich was running the Hoffman v-6 car, and it was scary fast when it worked right. Sometimes it was if he was like Elvis in a racing movie- He'd drive by them so easy and leave them behind so quick. Many times late in the feature the car would lose it's edge, but Vogler was catching up to what the car liked.

That car took advantage of the 200 pound weight break USAC gave in order to bring more v-6 cars in. When Vogler got to going too fast, they took the weight break away, and THAT MADE THE CAR EVEN FASTER! Seemed like just about every time they took a speed secret away from the Hoffman team, the car went better. In the end the v6 car weighed as much as a v-8 car, but you couldn't pay those guys to take the extra weight back off!LOL

On dirt, they stayed with the tried and true v-8 car.

He was to run at Pocono, starting outside pole (2nd). When he died, it seemed for a while the door to big time 'tv' racing was closed. But he schooled Jeff pretty good, one thing led to another, and today "them middjit drivers are doin' purty good". Rich opened the door for good.

Sidenote--

The ESPN show that night was being watched by a modified driver in OkC. He saw the wreck, and from there he developed a workable solution--Todays triangulated cage net. Simpson stole the idea, but Jim White of OkC 'invented' the cage net you see today. FASTRAX racing.

I have one of the first ones. I didn't think it catch on, but it did.

I think Glen Niebles Chevy V6's had a better record with Bob Frey from Wickenburg AZ in the seat (the gravedigger), than the Hoffman car ever had. They even ran that same basic engine in a Silver Crown car with success... I saw them both run on the one mile at Phoenix, and I did see the sprinter, the yellow #20, win there in 87...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-8PBx7isoM&feature=player_embedded

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