Thanks ss!! I've seen this site but it's been quite awhile ago and lots has been added since I last looked at it.Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
Thanks ss!! I've seen this site but it's been quite awhile ago and lots has been added since I last looked at it.Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
Me and kidrock spent a lot of Sundays at that track. Must of the stock cars with the # 3((not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word) Taylor and Jay Akers) were my dad and his friends(Renfro's) car. Some of the pictures were supplied by Terry Renfro. The orange and white coupe #64 is Terry's car which he still has today.
That's some cool stuff, ss. Sounds like you and your family have an extensive history at Shaheen's.Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
Little Springfield was just a little bit before my time. I was in school up until a few years before it closed down and Joe passed. At that time I was a bit more into drag racing. However, I remember going there with my Dad and a good friend of his and his friends' son 3, maybe 4 times. We went down to see wingless sprint car specials. A lot of the drivers who ran at Fairbury regularly also raced at Springfield. Larry & Steve Cannon, Bubby Jones, Hersh Jenkins, Jerry Camfield, Dean Shirley and Bobby Carrigan all were at Fairbury every Saturday night when I was a small child and that's who we went to Little Springfield to see in those days.
I remember going to the Torsion Bar off of turn 1 after a rain-out one time. All those guys I mention above were there and I think I pestered every one of those drivers to some degree!! LOL!! They're trying to have a beer or two and and I'm running around the place like a hyperactive squirrel asking for autographs.
Really glad I got to go to Little Springfield at least a couple times!!
Since you went to Fairbury a lot did you ever see the famous coupe 8- ball race up there? The car was from Lincoln and owned by the Anderson's. One of the stories I have always been told was it won 26 features in a row and lost but won the next 27 features. The cars was restored by the original(Bob Anderson) owner several years ago. Bob died a couple years ago and now his son Mark has it. I believe he live in Streator and that's were the car is.
Yessir, I know 8 Ball very well. It is a 39 Ford Coupe, all white with a black 8 ball (like the billiards 8 ball) on the side. When I saw 8 Ball race it was driven by Bugs Anderson from Lincoln. I spoke at length with Bugs' brothers at The Springfield Mile at an old timers gathering prior to the Tony Bettenhausen Memorial 100 about 10 years ago. The car did in fact win a bunch of features. I cannot confirm whether or not 8 Ball won 26 in a row. What I do know is that Bugsy would set fast time at Fairbury and as a result of a full invert he'd start the feature dead last. Many times Bugsy would be leading in less than 10 laps. 8 Ball was one bad ass racecar for it's day. One of the Anderson brothers told me that Lloyd Caldwell won a bunch of races driving 8 Ball, as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
Sadly, Bugs Anderson died of natural causes at the age of 34 and the Anderson family pretty much got out of the racing business. Bugs and his brothers had their sights set on going South and doing some NASCAR racing if Bugsy had lived. I have a feeling Bugs Anderson would have left his mark on NASCAR racing had he lived, but we'll never know for sure.
I live near the cemetery were Bugs is buried. His tombstone has the 8-ball etched on it. Our family and the Anderson's have been friends for a long time.Quote:
Originally Posted by CIRF
Terry Renfro ended up with 8-ball and it sit in Middletown for many years near a barn. The person who owned the land was cleaning up the property and wanted Terry to do something with the car. Terry waited and waited so the owner called a towing company to come and get the car. Luckily the man that went to pick up the car new the history of the car and went asked Bob Anderson(Bugs brother) if he wanted the car back. Bob took the car back and restored it back like it was when they had it. If we ever meet in Lincoln I will take you by my dad's house and show you the model he made of the 8-ball.
That's some GREAT stuff, ss!!Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
The Anderson brother that I spoke to had an engineering degree and spoke like a highly educated fellow. I asked him if the flathead engine in 8 Ball now was the same one as was in it when Bugs was winning all of those races back in the day. He said it wasn't, that it was actually a flathead out of a "40 Ford. Mr. Anderson went on to say that the flathead that powered 8 Ball to all those feature wins could be safely turned to 6500 RPM on a regular basis. I was stunned. I had never, ever heard of a flat head in basically stock form turning that high of RPM. He also said that at a place like Fairbury you could turn loose of the steering wheel getting into the corners at race speeds and ol' 8 Ball would go right around the corners perfectly without touching the steering wheel. In spite of Mr. Anderson's engineering expertise he really couldn't explain what it was about 8 Ball that made it so fast in regards to chassis geometry. Just one of those deals where everything was perfect basically by accident.
As you can tell I was mesmerized by the history and legend of ol' 8 Ball coming from basically the horses mouth!! LOL!!
ss, I'd look forward to seeing a model of ol' 8 ball. I hope we can make that happen some time!
Quote:
Originally Posted by CIRF
ss12 is correct Lincoln is more of a sprint car town then late models that's for sure. I think if they had more sprint car shows you would see what he means. You can't have one or 2 a year and expect people are going to support it but, if you have them on a regular basis I believe you would see the support.
ss12 needs to hook you up with Terry and ss12 dad and you guys could talk for hours about old racing stories
Bob Anderson told me that they had the frame and all of the suspension points drawn out on their drive way. Bob was quite the guy. Bob has taken a few cars completely apart and took them down his basement and restored them down there. Then took them apart and re assembled in his one car garage. He did eventually build a 2 car garage.
Bob also enjoyed racing his modified T's that he and his sons raced up the hill in Newport, In.
They would have a great conversation about racing. It would be fun to sit back and just listen. Kidrock I think CIRF would have a good laugh about our fist 2 months with the SS. That was a hell of learning experience. One experience that I will not forget.Quote:
Originally Posted by kidrock
You guys know how to push my buttons!! LOL!!
The conversation I had with Mr. Anderson at Springfield that day could have gone on for hours, hell, maybe days!! LOL!!
There are 5 dominant race cars that I remember from back in the day.
In no particular order they were:
8 Ball
The #B4 sprinter owned by Unk Blacker out of Champaign and driven by Larry "Boom-Boom" Cannon
The #44 Janes & Addems yellow 57 Chevy driven by Lynn Wilson
The #8 '66 Fairlane owned and driven by Darrell Dake our of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The #55 1955 Chevy owned by the same gentleman who owned Kartville in Peoria and driven by Johnny Beauchamp at Peoria Speedway.
Ironically enough the first 3 on that list were raced at Fairbury at about the same time period. The #8 was totally dominant at Sterling Speedbowl Park in Sterling, Illinois. The #55 Chevy was dominant at Peoria Speedway.
All that said, I believe 8 Ball was the most dominant of all of them. Bugsy would start dead last and literally be leading by lap 6 or 7 of the feature and proceed to drive away from everyone and dang near lap the field!
Fun trip down memory lane, guys!! Merry Christmas!!
Yes i would have to sit back and just listen because as you remember I wasn't as big of a race fan as you was. I was more of a stick and ball sports fan and wasn't a big race fan but, did go to Pittsfield, Jacksonville, Farmer City, Springfield, Macon ect.Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
Yes Remember Renfro saying he could right a book of all the bad luck we had. he said in all the years he raced he never remembered having as much bad luck as we did in just a few short months lol
Merry Christmas to you C.I.R.F and the rest of your family!!
I remember the B4 at Shaheen's and didn't Bubba Jones also drive it? It was always a nice looking car.
Ole yeah ole bubby johnny meyers wib spaulding bill myers all come to mind also
Dik Taylor, Joe Ross, Joe Ross Jr, Ronnie Milton, Bubby Jones, Dean Shirley, Jay Ackers, Jim Aggins, to name a few
An absolutely gorgeous race car! You're correct, Bubby Jones drove it as well as Larry Cannon. Bubby won a bunch of races with it, too. It was yellow and had chrome everywhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by ss12
Bobby Carrigan is the winningest driver in Fairbury sprint car history but he was just a bit before my time. I was really young (7 or 8 years old) but I remember Larry Cannon driving the B4 at Fairbury and because he won so often he sticks out in my memory, nonetheless.
Shaheen's was one place I wish I'd have attended more than what I did. My Dad was mostly a stock car guy and wasn't nearly as interested in the open wheel racing thus we didn't go to Little Springfield all that much. That's where I get my love for late models to this day but there always has been a soft spot for the open wheel. Unfortunately, I was at Shaheen's maybe a half dozen times. Wish we'd have gone there more.
Speaking of Bubby Jones, I went to the Oval Nationals out at Perris Auto Speedway just outside of LA, California several years ago and ran across Bubby in the pits. Had a very nice conversation with him. Actually made him smile a couple of times with my reminiscing's about watching him race at Fairbury. Larry Cannon and Bubby Jones were barbers before they went racing full time and actually had a two chair barber shop together in Danville, IL. Both of those guys ended up racing in the Indy 500 in the early to mid 1970's.
WOW!! There's some names for ya'!!Quote:
Originally Posted by kidrock
Dean Shirley used to run Fairbury every now and again in his sprinter.
Watched Dik Taylor win the Herald & Review 100. Watched Dik's son Matt win it, too.
Here it is Christmas Eve and we're reminiscing about racin' in the day!! Gotta' love it!!
CIRF, wasn't the track in Springfield an old board race track that was covered with dirt? Think I remember hearing stories about the boards sticking up thru the dirt.
I don't know about that but, the retainging walls were made out of wood. as a matter of fact i remember a bad wreck one night where a board from the wall came through the car one night. I can't remember if it was the firewall or front door.Quote:
Originally Posted by CMatich