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

Exactly the same for me , except we went most Fridays , every Saturday and almost every Sunday. And we traveled as a family in my uncles school bus converted to a camper.

1970, Knoxville, IA. My boss at the time, Daryl Arend, took me to K'ville with him. He took me down to turn 1for hot laps and said " watch the blue #19 car driven by Dick Sutcliff"  Sutcliff come into #1 and set the car sideways and I could see the grandstand side of the tail tank & the #19! Thats all it took. Been working on them since 1971. 

Thank You DA!

This the same stuff istarted on at Casino Speedway Watertown, Roger Swenson, Withrow --- like u late 50'sgot started

We drove down to Husets for the first race when they opened. Many race tracks since! I to stood down turn 1 about 1973.

U can't get that close any more and watch!

HOOKED U BETCH YA SWALLOWED THE HOOK CAN'T GET AWAY!

REAL RACE CARS DON'T HAVE DOORS ------- OR WINGS!!!

Bob

Actually, this may have been my first as well, those were the days! 

We went to the races most every saturday nite when I was a kid.  I wasnt hooked on any 1 type of car rather just hooked on going to the track.  After I started driving a buddy and I would go to races (mostly pavement, winchester, salem, dayton & kil-kare) and we went to Eldora for the World 100, all of this in the mid to late 70's. We then went to Eldora for a WoO show, it had to be 78 or 79 and the thing I remember and what hooked me forever on sprints was when I walked to the top of the grandstand and saw Doug Wolfgang qualifying in I believe Doug Howell's #4, up against the fence and the motor wailing. I can still get goosebumps. A few years later I owned/drove my own car for nearly 20 years.

Ascot, 1988, hot laps, cars go down front strait then sideways into turn 1. Bubby Jones and Deano Thompson really faster. Nothing like Ollie Silva my hero in early 50's at Norwood Arena, Seekonk and other New England asphalt. 1960's SCCA fan, Lime Rock, Thompson, Roger Penske wheeling Cooper Monaco, Roger Ward in midget at Lime Roock embarassing SCCA, Jimmy Clark winning Gran Prix at Watkins Glen with Graham Hill, Von Tripps, Jack Brabham, Sterling Moss.

All that pales compared to 22 sprint cars going into turn 1. Recent convert to wings. Have to go to NorCal for wing shows, only nonwing down here in SoCal. Best race ever, Trophy Cup at Tulare

Current favorite shoe; TK, Tim Kaeding.

Favorite track; Ventura Raceway, sprint cars, seaside boardwalk with georgous girls, surfers. Whats not to like?

Too long ago to remember!  My dad was involved in midget racing before the war.  After the war he had a body shop.  He built the aluminum bodies, hoods, nose piece, etc.  He started with a flat sheet of aluminum and hand formed all the body parts.  When he was finished they looked like a Curtis midget.  I was at the races with him back in the middle-late '40's, riding in the push truck with him. The rest is history.  Got involved doing video in 1985.  Went to somewhere between 50 and 90 races a year for 20 years.  Sat thru quite a few nights when everything was disappointing for one track problem or another but saw all the great shows too because I was at ALL of them.  Missed 15-20 shows in 20 years - - and most of those were for weddings or funerals!

I got my first whiff of nitro this fall, i dunno, that stuff is potent kinda like a mixture of dishsoap and paint thinner? Alky is by far more tolerable , well, in open free air conditions that is, ive been watery eyed before and can feel it drying out the back of your throat, I still liked the sound of Top Alcohol as compaired to the Nitro cars, dont get me wrong nitro was super cool, watching McCewin (sp) test/mix fuel was almost like a mad scientist . Alky seems so much more familar or realistic, maybe because we are around it frequently.  I remember stories told of the yester year, a table chat with a old time racer about guys mixing nitro in sprinters, the troubles discussed and pure meltdown of motors must have been quite the site, guys were breaking crankshafts, splitting rods, exploding blocks, almost religously, wow, some pretty nasty stuff.. 

My first glance of a sprintcar was at RRVS, my dad and godfather took my brother and I to a WoO event , i think I was about 8 , gosh, was it 83-84ish? (read on and you can tell me)  I remember walking up the stairs to head to the seats, my eyes were filled with images of Copenhagen, Skoal , young gentelmen slobbering Huge beers, the smell of popcorn and beer filled the concessions, as I walked up the top of the stairs I caught my first image of a Sprinter, it was ideling by, I read "Old Milwaukee" on the side of the wing, , it was shaking, it almost looked like the wing  was going to fall off? ,the tires, the RR is huge, and the fronts? , heck, thier bouncing all over the place turning this way and that, it looked awkword and goofy, it was almost turning the complete wrong direction its driving in, it looks like its going to self destrict just doing 20mph!(the track was wet) everything on the car was shaking, it looked like there was  one bolt holding the entire car together?, this driver must be nuts?! soon,  we raced to our seats after the pause in disbelief..., car after car idled by, each looked like they were struggeling to just run and stay strait, then, the most awesome sound entered my ears. I seen the flagman sawing the green flag.. the cars settled down and just stood up and MOVED!, Holy crap!  they MOVE!..   Beer,Copenhagen,loud cars,my dad, godfather ,brother and I..... is this it lord?....did i skip childhood?,  am I in heaven?...  after qualifying ,heats and a Feature i was truely hooked. I dont think I left the seat the entire show. Wolfgang became a funney name to say as a 8yr old, later became my lifelong  favorite, Kinser was top dog to my understanding, Sammy Swindel was the first car I layed my eyes on..

I never thought I would streach my leg over a tourque tube.. 20 some  odd year later its something I dont know if I could live without in my life, call me selfish, Im pushing my 5yr old nephew in this direction, I hope he grows to enjoy the freindships,determination,dedication it takes to be a competitor in this sport.. and well, heck, maybe uncle can still be around too. 

Great picture! Those are exactly the kind of cars that got me started at Eastside Speedway in Waynesboro, Va. Its still in business. They were all different & homebuilt... those were the days!

I wanna go back, Go back & do it all over but I can't go back I know - Eddie Money.

Miss the old days myself. Dad knew when a big one was coming in. He'd bring me into Lima from our small hometown just to see who was going to be at Limaland.

My first memory of seeing the "Big Cars" was at Ascot in the early 1960's, I was 5 or 6 & my dad took my brother & I to our first race. I remember during the 60's the name that stuck in my mind the most was Bill Vukovich jr. We also went to see the midgets & super modifieds as well as district 37 flat track on Fridays. Man there was some cool ass racing back in the day!

Beats the heck outta me, I was going to the track with dad before I could walk, and just seemed to grow up watching on weekends, I liked most of the racing, but the Sprints really held my favor 

Then one of the guys my Dad used to play Softball with went to the first Kings Royal, and he came back and told us all how good it was, so Me Dad, and The Little Brother tagged along with a bunch of them and OMG, watching Jac run the wall,  this place is AWESOME!!!!

Don't get me wrong, Tri-City(Franklin, Pa) was pretty fast in it's day, but I had never seen the Outlaws before, I was pretty hooked before but that really set it again,

ETA of course it didn't hurt that a few of the Locals were stepping up to the big stage as well....Dave Blaney, Brad Doty, etc.

What a great thread...

My father started taking me when I was about 3 years old. Back then you could sit on the front row and still see the cars on the back stretch. I used to jump up and down cheering for my favorite driver on the cat walk. I was probably becoming hooked at a later age (5-8) and not even realizing it. I loved watching my favorite drivers pass cars, not knowing which position they were but just that they were fast. My favorites were..Jeff Tuttle, Mackie Heighmbaugh, Randy Smith, Terry McCarl, and Doug Wolfgang. Back then I didn't realize how cool and special it was that I got to see one of the greats, Doug Wolfgang race at Knoxille on a regular basis. 

While in college I attended the races very sporadically, but began to realize how much I really missed it. Now I'm more hooked than ever. The smell, the roar, the the possiblity of a star showing up for a "regular show". I could go on and on. 

Keep It Real

Back in the 50's and early 60's our local track raced supermodifieds and had a great competitive field with the fast cars ALWAYS starting at the rear.  Then one night Sammy Sessions showed up with a big chunk of lumber on top of his 151Bingo car and about lapped the field.  My hometrack was Delaware Speedway just outside of London, Ontario and the Michigan guys would stop at our track on Friday nights (a few times a year) on their way to Oswego, NY for Saturday and finally Sandusky, OH on Sunday, a natural road trip around the great Lakes (Erie).  We would have both Johncocks stop as well along with a few others who's names escape me now.  Many of the stars of those days eventually lost their lives in the sport or got mangled permanently including my All-Time favorite Jack Sharpe, Lobo 1......

My Dad took my brother and I to watch his friend race a harfdtop at West Capital. Before I knew it I was still sitting there while the hardtops evolved to super modifieds and eventually sprint cars. So lucky to have grown up watching Wally Baker, Johny Brazil, Larry Burton, Gary Patterson, Leroy VanConnett, Johny Anderson, Wayne Sue, Mike Wasina, Jimmy Sills, Tim Green and so many others. Seems to be quite a few others posting here with there racing roots coming from West Capital. What great memories!

My first memory of watching a sprint car was at the Sacramento Mile on the old California state fairgrounds horse track. The field back then was made up of open competition super modifieds, roadsters and sprint cars. Can't think of any sport that comes close to the excitment and bravado of sprint car racing!

Very difficult question.  After nearly five decades of going to dirt track open wheel racing.  Originally, it was the adrenalin rush of the racing.  Now, as a brain dead dirt track open wheel zombie, just give me a "good" show and I will pay to get in.  The memories of dirt track racing are priceless!  E-Mods. 

When I was very little my Grandmother lived three blocks from the pit gate at the Tulsa Fairgrounds and all the cars who came from down Route 66 from the East would turn on her street for a straight shot into the pits.  On Saturdays I would sit on her front porch and watch them go by....  They were coupes and sedans and everything else but all painted up and ready for the races that night....  I finally talked her into taking me to the races and I loved it....  Later(1956 I think) my Dad took me to Midget race there and I really loved that even more,,,  After that we got the Supermods and finally a few years later I saw the ultimate racers, Sprint Cars.  Live in Iowa now and have missed about only 20 races at Knoxville in the last 25 years...  I like all racing, but nothing beat Sprints on a good dirt track.

This is a great thread.  Keep 'em coming!

Stan Meissner

I to was born in to this maddness my dad started me out as a kid going to the local tracks Capitol Speedway... Mo. state fair the half mile and the mile track... Sportsman Speedway at Marshall what memories and now I travel with my 2 boys and my wife and just getting my 6year old grandson into the mix the tradition continues. They to have the illness called sprint car racing. I thought every kid went to the races on Friday, Saturday  and Sunday nights.