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  1. #1
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    Default Best Jack Hewitt story

    What a guy

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  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by ClampedUp View Post
    I was at Mighty Macon the night this deal happened. It took 3 guys to keep Jack from coldcoc king the flagman Billy Shipman. The car that hit Jack on the backstretch veered into the infield and must not have had any brakes or steering because it hit a 4-wheeler and completely destroyed it.

    Jack said it was this video that made him famous!! LOL!!

    The look on the young lady's face in the background is priceless!

  4. #4
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    This night in September of 1998 is what immortalized Jack Hewitt. What Jack did that night is quite possibly the greatest feat ever accomplished in American racing. I know of no one ever winning 4 races in one night at the same racetrack in 4 completely different types of race cars. This was against some formidable competition, too. Yeley, Darland, Hines, Tony Elliott, Jimmy Sills and several others.

    Kyle Larson winning the 3 USAC National events at Eldora in one night is nearly as impressive since Larson had never laid eyes on Eldora before that night but Jack won all 4 and I believe that feat will stand forever, if not longer!! LOL!!

    Good Lord I hate that announcer for the Kyle Larson portion of the video. I had forgot how annoying this guy was, thank God he doesn't do the USAC races anymore. I hate screaming announcers!!!!

    Mr. Jack Hewitt is a national treasure to us dirt racing fans and I'm exceedingly proud and honored to be able to call Jack a friend!


    Last edited by CIRF; 12-24-2016 at 10:51 AM.

  5. #5
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    Him and Trump would have got a long .. Tell it like it is, That was Jack...LOL
    He was so in the Zone that day so Smooth it was unreal.. Had a friend there that day and said people were going nuts on the 4 race when he won it...Jack was one cool dirt racer....

  6. #6
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    This was at Terre Haute, Indiana at a televised USAC National Sprint Car show back in the late 1990's. I was at this race when this interview took place and the race Jack referred to as being cancelled for no reason was a USAC Silver crown race. We drove 3 1/2 hours only to find the sun out bright and no one around The Action Track accept some highly pissed off fans. Some had come all the way from chitcago, IL. If there had been anyone around the fairgrounds that had anything to do with the race that night there would have been trouble.

    When I saw the recording of this interview the next day I smiled to myself thinking Jack just spoke for me, a whole bunch of fans and some other competitors, as well. He did it on national TV where everyone could see.



  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Cardirt0 View Post
    Him and Trump would have got a long .. Tell it like it is, That was Jack...LOL
    He was so in the Zone that day so Smooth it was unreal.. Had a friend there that day and said people were going nuts on the 4 race when he won it...Jack was one cool dirt racer....
    Jack was possibly the best all around dirt racer ever. That's hard to prove but Ol' Jack won in everything he ever drove on every type of dirt track. Watched him win in a winged sprinter at Mighty Macon and also in a Silver Crown car on the dirt miles of Indy, Springfield and Du Quoin and also in a dirt late model at Eldora. Now that's some diversity, right there!!

    Kyle Larson is right up there but Larson never ventured into the dirt late models, however, I firmly believe he'd have won in those if he'd have give them a whirl!! That said, Ol' Jack never won driving a NASCAR truck on the dirt at Eldora. LOL!! So Larson has one on Jack, as well.

  8. #8
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    IMHO Jack Hewitt would be first on the list for all around best modern era dirt driver followed by Tony Stewart, Billy Pauch, Kyle Larson.....

  9. #9
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    Remember that night at the 4Crown. They announced that winners of each class would not be interviewed until after the last race. Then they would bring all 4 of them up at once. Jack sure simplified that for them. Anyone remember what Jack said when someone grabbed a broom out of the back of Earl's old brown truck and threw it up on the stage?

  10. #10
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    Ken schrader was good back in the day

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by calverton View Post
    Ken schrader was good back in the day
    I like Ken but not even close to Jack,....Ken was a dirt race, Jack was a Great dirt Racer....

  12. #12
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    Hewitt was an awesome racer and a great asset to the sport.i think winning those four in one night was just as impressive as Foyt unloading his dirt champ car in Milwaukee (after wrecking his Indy car) and winning the pole for a 200 miler.
    Last edited by Krooser; 12-24-2016 at 12:43 PM.
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  13. #13
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    ....sitting thru a very long rain delay at Eldora for the world 100...at this point they are letting just about anyone with a moving vehicle to come pack the track...thru these rain delays there is usually something going on to pass the time....I've seen fights....mudslides...even crew members dancing in the hauler under strobe lights...just trying to pass the time....well the track was starting to come in a bit because the pack vehicles were starting to pick up speed...well there was this white conversion van that was on the track...he went past a guy in a blazer...and then the guy in the blazier passed him back...this went on for several laps...they were kind of in their own mini race...finally on the back stretch...the conversion van went to pass the blazier on the outside but lost it a little and tagged the wall several times...front then back then front...tagged it several times....crowd went bonkers..The next lap the van had several guys hanging out of the windows waving their arms hollering screaming just having a good ol time...The rumor was that that was JW Hunts van and Jack Hewitt was driving it
    Last edited by pierceFAN; 12-24-2016 at 12:57 PM.

  14. #14
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    I remember a fan doing a 60 foot wall rub with his pickup at farmercity and saying Hope Allstate covers this....

  15. #15
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    jack's dad drove for my granny back in the 60's. he was a character also. he and gramps drank plenty of cold beer together at the track. jack and don were the best of friends!!!!

  16. #16
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    I remember at Eldora it was either the dream or million around 2000-2001 he had a all black #21 Rayburn and was gone in his heat race and blew a motor with only a few laps left I was pretty bummed out cause I think he would have been tough to beat in the feature

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Boesel View Post
    I remember at Eldora it was either the dream or million around 2000-2001 he had a all black #21 Rayburn and was gone in his heat race and blew a motor with only a few laps left I was pretty bummed out cause I think he would have been tough to beat in the feature
    Yes it was at The Eldora Million. He was checked out in that heat race and around lap 15 or so my brother and I started seeing the smoke coming out of the back of the car. We always talked about how bad fast he was that day.

  18. #18
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    I remember he won the Springfield mile and tried to hurry out before they had a chance to claim his motor pretty sure the state patrol caught him at the exit

  19. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by pierceFAN View Post
    ....sitting thru a very long rain delay at Eldora for the world 100...at this point they are letting just about anyone with a moving vehicle to come pack the track...thru these rain delays there is usually something going on to pass the time....I've seen fights....mudslides...even crew members dancing in the hauler under strobe lights...just trying to pass the time....well the track was starting to come in a bit because the pack vehicles were starting to pick up speed...well there was this white conversion van that was on the track...he went past a guy in a blazer...and then the guy in the blazier passed him back...this went on for several laps...they were kind of in their own mini race...finally on the back stretch...the conversion van went to pass the blazier on the outside but lost it a little and tagged the wall several times...front then back then front...tagged it several times....crowd went bonkers..The next lap the van had several guys hanging out of the windows waving their arms hollering screaming just having a good ol time...The rumor was that that was JW Hunts van and Jack Hewitt was driving it
    pierceFAN, we were at Eldora that night, too. The story we were told is that the van that Jack brushed the wall with in turn 2 was given to him for winning the USAC Silver Crown Championship. Supposedly JW Hunt was in the van and Jack was driving. When the van came by the frontstretch stands the right rear tail light was hanging by just the wire! You're absolutely correct when you say the place went bonkers!!

    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Boesel View Post
    I remember at Eldora it was either the dream or million around 2000-2001 he had a all black #21 Rayburn and was gone in his heat race and blew a motor with only a few laps left I was pretty bummed out cause I think he would have been tough to beat in the feature
    It was the million, Scott. Jack had a half straightaway lead in his heat race and was pulling away when the engine let go. It was so deflating that I felt like getting up and walking out at that point. I too think Ol' Jack might have had a winning car that day. But then again, Donnie Moran was nasty fast in winning the Million. We'll never know.

    We can't really complain though. We watched Jack win big races in 6 different types of race cars (USAC Silver Crown, winged and wingless sprint cars, midgets, dirt late models and modified's).

    We watched Jack run the fastest 100 miles in the history of The Springfield Mile. A record that was set in 1987 and stands to this day. We watched him score all 4 of his Tony Bettenhausen Memorial 100 victories at Springfield. We've watched him win numerous times at Eldora. Too numerous to mention.

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by CIRF View Post
    pierceFAN, we were at Eldora that night, too. The story we were told is that the van that Jack brushed the wall with in turn 2 was given to him for winning the USAC Silver Crown Championship. Supposedly JW Hunt was in the van and Jack was driving. When the van came by the frontstretch stands the right rear tail light was hanging by just the wire! You're absolutely correct when you say the place went bonkers!!

    It was the million, Scott. Jack had a half straightaway lead in his heat race and was pulling away when the engine let go. It was so deflating that I felt like getting up and walking out at that point. I too think Ol' Jack might have had a winning car that day. But then again, Donnie Moran was nasty fast in winning the Million. We'll never know.

    We can't really complain though. We watched Jack win big races in 6 different types of race cars (USAC Silver Crown, winged and wingless sprint cars, midgets, dirt late models and modified's).

    We watched Jack run the fastest 100 miles in the history of The Springfield Mile. A record that was set in 1987 and stands to this day. We watched him score all 4 of his Tony Bettenhausen Memorial 100 victories at Springfield. We've watched him win numerous times at Eldora. Too numerous to mention.
    It was a long time ago...your version sounds more accurate

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