Flagged at Hales Corners Speedway for many years then went to work as the chief starter for the Indy 500.
He flagged from the track (Hales never did have a flagstand) and, if you ignored his flags, he'd run up to you while racing and slam his black flag on your roof... only one warning!
He also always said he wasn't a flag man. He was the "starter". Flagmen worked construction jobs.
Member of the Luxemburg Speedway Hall of Fame
Class of 2019
I wonder how long before tracks start using a big screen tv monitor . With that you can advertise and show interviews between races and while racing show lap numbers and flash the rundown during yellows . Qualification times....more and more.
Danny Caile from EAMS. Flagged when I first started racing in 1988. i got mad about how the start of a race went and when I asked him why he let it go he said he couldn't talk to the tower because his radio only communicated with the girl that ran the popcorn machine.
Swede Gilyard (not sure of spelling) at Fairbury back in the 60's. Used to stand in between the two rows of cars on the track, standing start and drop the flag. He did suffer some broken legs if I remember right.
Flagged at Hales Corners Speedway for many years then went to work as the chief starter for the Indy 500.
He flagged from the track (Hales never did have a flagstand) and, if you ignored his flags, he'd run up to you while racing and slam his black flag on your roof... only one warning!
He also always said he wasn't a flag man. He was the "starter". Flagmen worked construction jobs.
Absolutely!!
You know the guy was special when there's a mosaic of him at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
I was a youg kid then, but I remember him flagging from the track at Hales. It was quite the sight and show. Man, I miss that place.
Only remnant left from Hales is the giant OAK tree that was in the parking lot between the track and Hiller Ford.
Now the only side by side racing on those grounds is in the Menards parking lot. At least they had the decency to erect a gate to pay homage to the speedway.
On a sidenote, saw a flagman almost ran over by Kevin Weaver at Kankakee. Flagman was so upest with Kevin Weaver for refusing to line up right after a 1st lap caution during heat race. Flagman literally climbed down flag stand on to the front stretch giving Weaver the black flag. Weaver flew down the straightaway and swerved at him. Flagman jumped back and fell on his b#tt. Needless to say Weaver was tossed from the fairgrounds. Weaver hauler was leaving fiargrounds before the heats were over.....
Thanks for that flashback IZZOJR16, I was there that night, it was quite funny. I think the flagman was a Whittington if memory hasn't left me, and he also under a red one night, climbed off his perch, went to turn 4 and preceded to get into it with Scott James, sounded like he tried getting him thrown off the track ,but didn't get it done. I was never a fan of Whittington's.
Can't remember his name but the flagman who used to run the AMA flat track motorcycles at Ascot (boy is that place missed) was something to watch. Did backflips down the front straightaway as he waved the bikes off. Then stood on the track while a bunch of crazy guys on Harleys came at him at over 100 mph all sideways. That was in the late '60s.
The same as my favorite referee; the one that does his job well and doesn't act like he is the show. Except for the little kid in the first row with his own flag set,...he's always the one to watch.
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Member of the Luxemburg Speedway Hall of Fame
Originally Posted by RiffRaf67
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