Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

When I was little, my dad did buisness with a wrecking yard a couple miles down the road from our farm. the yard was owned by a guy named Bill Durham. he had a super he ran at west capitol 40 miles away. I thought that thing was the most beautiful car I had ever seen. bugged the hell out of dad to take me to a little track called peach bowl a couple miles away, and live oak about 15 miles away. in 68 2 things happened, I got my drivers lic, and triple M speedway opened. the next year I had a piece of crap stock car and was hooked. By the way, I now promote the old tripleM that is now Marysville Raceway Park.....paul

Thanks for the FYI. Haven't seen him in years. Good to hear he is still involved in racing. I remember he used to race rc cars in the off season to help keep the reflexes sharp. Was always a big basketball fan too. We used to play a little one on one in the driveway before heading to the track every Saturday. A lot of good memories there as a kid.

I like this topic.

My first memory of a sprintcar was at San Jose Fairgrounds in the mid 80's (86 or 87).

I first started going to Watsonville Speedway in 82. They only had Late Models and Street Stocks then (and throughout the 80's). The Stockcars were exciting for a young boy, and tought me everything about the racing game.

One day we went to San Jose Speedway; parked in the turn 1-2 lot; and there they were. We got there just about the time hotlaps started. As we got closer to the turn 1 pay gate...my jaw dropped with amazement. The cars were so small and had huge wings on top, with huge rear tires. To say the least, they put the Latemodels and streetstocks I have seen previously to shame. The track and grandstand looked so much bigger. By the time I got in the gate, walked through the concreete grandstand and walked up the stairs...I saw it. The greatest track I will, and have ever been to.

The only other thing I remember from that night is, the outside of row 1 won every heat, and Brent Kaeding won the main. Think it was a NARC show. I went to the pits after and got a BK shirt for $8 and had him sign it. (first if hundreds of srintcar shirts?)

I was hooked after that and wanted to go to San Jose every race. Went to Baylands too that season, but looved San Jose way more.

Northern California Sprintcars

Is that the same Big John that raced expert gas 10th scale trucks in the winter indoor series at Antioch, about 8 years ago?

Mod 9 fan, are you the guy who used to own the Delta Rc store and tracks? And Stevie's #9 Modified?  

Northern California Sprintcars

Yep, yep and yep, that would be me. 

I am surprised by how many California fans we having here I said PA would've dominated this thread, wrong again.  My earliest memories as a human We're running up and down the hill outside turn one at Delaware Raceway.  Hotdogs were $.10 and man they were delicious, these memories make me smile like they happened yesterday not more than 50 years ago, this is truly the definition of " The Good Ol'Days", thanks to all....

Thanks.....Really accurate story about the Family!   And Deano! Rip......Dean.....

Did Ted invent the quick change rear end?

What got me hooked was as a kid age of 4 or 5 dad taking me to Williams grove speedway once or twice a year. it was what his swing shift work schedule would allow. My first favorite driver was Smokey Snellbaker in the Pap Loyd  56. i thought the Sprinter looked like a pissed off bee. I thought they were the cooest thing. So everytime Dad would have a friday off which was twice a month id bug him to go to the races. It was pretty much like that till i was able to drive to the track on my own. Once that happened I've been at the track every friday and Saturday night that I've been able to go. Now Him and I have missed just a Handfull At the Grove or Lincoln since 2005. We probably make close to 90 races a year and don't even have to leave PA.

As stated in the opening remarks, quick-change rear end assemblies were designed around the early Fords, up through the year 1948.....The history..http://www.halibrand.com/rear_choice.htm

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

Wow, love reading how others got hooked, and nice to see there are a lot of old timers, like me, in here. I was kind of born into it, too. My dad crewed/helped Kenny Harper at tracks such as Sportsman Speedway in Marshall, MO, Thunderbowl and State Fair in Sedalia, MO, Greyhound in Moberly, MO, and other tracks around Missouri and the Midwest in the '50s and early '60s. Because of family and career, he gave up crewing and became a spectator/fan, but would occasionally still go to the pits and help if a driver he knew was short handed for the night. He and my mother started taking my sister and me to be Knoxville Nationals in 1969 (I have made at least the Saturday night show of every Nationals since, 45 in a row.) That was our summer vacation every year. We went places like the Topeka fairgrounds track, Olympic and Riverside in Kansas City, Lakeside in Kansas City, KS, Capitol in Holts Summit, MO, Devil's Bowl, East Bay in Gibsonton, FL, and so on. He and my mother attended every Knoxville Nationals through 1991. In '92 he was battling cancer and didn't feel up to making the trip. He passed in March of '93. My mother has went back to Knoxville a few times with me, including saturday night of the 50th Nationals. Thank you dad and mom for introducing me to the greatest sport on earth. 

I don't remember an actual race as being my first, I just know it was a Sunday night ritual to go to Sportsmans Speedway (which later became Saline County Speedway) in Marshall. My first actual remembrances are when I was like 4 or 5 years old. All I know is I loved racing. While most kids my age were playing behind the grandstands, I always had my butt planted in the stands watching the races. I still get goosebumps when the first set of hot laps hit the track and during he parade lap of the A-Main. 

I'd like to mention drivers I grew up watching, but I know I'd leave some out, so I'll just say thanks to every driver I ever watched race. 

I also grew up at Riverside in KCMO. in the 70's. My dad ran there mostly but we ran all over the state at one time or another. Seen ALOT of good races there. Moved to Tx., got married, and now my son is the 2013 IMCA Racesaver National Champ. Racing has kept my family close and have a lot of good times.                                                                               Leon Ricketts  Burleson Tx.

      5R pit boss                                      
2013 IMCA Racesaver National Champion                  
National Rookie of the Year                            
Mountain Creek Speedway Track Champion

Aussie perspective.

I'd always been into Australian road racing and my hero was Peter Brock. I was well aware of speedway but had never been. In 1985 the Formula 1 cars came back to Australia in Adelaide and while over there for the Grand Prix I asked my cousin what there was to do on a Thursday night. The local speedway (Speedway Park as it was called then) had put on a two day show to coincide with the Grand Prix. The moment for me was after hot laps when the field assembled for the first heat and with no mufflers as they all gassed it up together at the drop of the green flag, the explosion of noise and speed, my jaw dropped and I just went F$%$^. I came home from that weekend and told my girlfriend (now my wife) that I was going to buy a Sprintcar and she had no idea what I was talking about. I bought one (a 360) and raced until I ran out of money. Now I am still involved as a commentator, photographer and journalist and have also had the chance to visit Knoxville do a couple of Ohio Speedweeks with Aussie Troy Little and this year got to take my youngest son to do PA Speedweek. Sprintcars are like a drug.... once they're in your system you just can't get them out.  Hooked forever.

Another part of my racing story is I was told I could draw a race car before I could write my name & I'm no artist by any means.

Another thing I do is not racing related but I still do it to this day 50 years later. Mom told me that when I was a baby & she would hold me on her lap when we went some where, you could do that back in the day, that I would tighten up in a ball when we came up on a bridge. Don't really curl up but man when I get over a bridge I just shiver.

I cringe every time i see my exwife !!!  Merry christmas!!!!!!

... Dad took me starting in the early 60's to Wm. Grove (fri), Lincoln or Port (sat) & Hagerstown (sun) in the hope I wouldn't end in "hood" trouble .... thanks Dad

dttfowtm ...  
Proud Member of Sprntlover's Babysitting Service
Pa Posse Says Race or Shut Your Pie Hole!
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Attended the IMCA sprint races at Des Moines, Lincoln, Sedalia. Nothing ever more exciting than to see a feature start in the IMCA sprint car days, just a single rollbar (roll hoop). It was something to see. Finesse.

As for Dean Thompson I can remember standing in turn one at ASCOT and watching him stretch it out. Long slides. He was very very hard to beat. I always had the utmost repect for Dean.

In the 70's ABC Wide World of Sports had Sprint Cars on once in a while. Then in the early 80's they ran at my local track. I was hooked on the pavement cars that ran in the 70's in the Northwest part of the US.

It all started at Shaheen's man was that some race track. And every track from Knoxville to Eldora. But Lil Joes was where it all started at in early 60's. Every time i am in Springfield i just have to drive by, and look wishing it was still there.