CIRF Long Time Part 2

[over4T]

Wow, you guys have covered a lot of ground since I took a few days off to tend to real life stuff so let me catch up a little.

LMM, your Ascot memories bring back a lot of mine, many of which I'd forgotten. Took a couple of years off from competition when I returned to CA in '69 after several years in the Midwest working for one of the largest construction companies in the world and was trying to decide what to do next as far as racing. Circle track efforts in the Midwest had been nearly exclusive to the pre-war (that's WWII) coupes/coaches that were dying out. Deciding to check out the Sprints I figured the best way was the pits at Ascot. Went several Saturday nights and looked for anyone who needed help (wasn't hard to find) and stooged for them; changing gears, tires, scraping mud, etc., etc. Most of the teams I helped were smaller lower buck teams. The costs and amount of equipment to be competitive with CRA were staggering and it wasn't long before I knew it wasn't for me. Went back to the stands.

About the third date with the gal I married we went to Ascot. She'd never been to a race, let alone Sprints. Told her this is what I do on weekends so if you don't like it say so now. She thought it was fun so she was a keeper. Some 25 years later she changed her mind so she's long gone and I'm still at a track every weekend.

The turn one crowd with their plexi shields were funny and maybe a little on the S&M side. A group of 8 or 10 from the San Diego area regularly brought newbies with them, unprotected of course, sat in the 3rd or 4th row and watched their friends get bombarded with mud clods. Some loved it and came back with their own shields, others didn't see the humor and probably never went to another race in their lives.

Trivia: The back of the grandstands near the popcorn and soda concessions stand had signage for the 100 MPH club which was exclusively CRA cars.
A wealthy doctor had come with a friend of his one or two times, thought it looked exciting, bought a new, top quality complete car; maybe from the Bromme team of Dean Thompson but I'm not sure on that, got through packing and a couple of mediocre hot laps and then attempted to qualify. Took the green for the first lap, turned it to back it into one as he'd seen them do and ended up 10 or so feet up in the catch fence hanging upside down with a very torn up car. Took a short time to get him down, he wasn't hurt, went back to his pits and left, never to return. Maybe the world's shortest Sprint car career.
Rip Williams was brother-in-law to, I believe, Bubby Jones, half of the Dean & Bubby Show that dominated Ascot in the early '80s, much like the Larry (D!ckson) & Gary (Bettenhausen) Show that did it in the '60s USAC Midwest. Had the pleasure of being in the right place for both of those occurrences.
Dean Thompson and Jimmy Oskie, both CRA champions, were both glaziers by profession; not the most common of occupations. Dean had one crippled hand that was sort of a claw.
Ted Otto, CRA announcer was very good. D!ck Lane was another story. He was primarily a wrestling announcer and it really showed as he announced the grainy, black and white TV races of the jalopies from Ascot in the very early '60s. I was young, new to CA and couldn't believe this stuff was on the tube; flipping old coupes with wheels, axles, hoods flying all over the place and I knew I was going to love California. Lane really hyped it up and may be the forefather of the, now overdone, slide job term that we hear ad nauseum. Only Lane called it a cross over.
Primarily, the stock car stuff was my focus at Ascot, from the old coupes on the 1/4 to the Late Model Sportsman on the 1/2 mile, which was really much more like 4/10ths, the Winston West Grand Nationals that really wasn't the 3,400 pound cars' cup of tea like Riverside's road course or Ontario's super speedway, the beginning of the IMCA type modifieds with Pinto, Vega, Gremlin etc. bodies. Even enjoyed the Figure 8 cars on rare occasions.
Motorcycles had their place at Ascot too, with the AMA flat track bunch of D!ck Mann, Bart Markel etc., the TT races with the big jump in the infield right near the finish line and the pond beside it for many years.
Like Mark says, the food was good and, although weathered, the place really had atmosphere. Many of us loved it and it's one of the things I missed when I moved north.

Here's a trivia question for you: Out of all the wheeled creations to race at Ascot what had the largest attendance figures? Answer will be up next post on this thread.

[CIRF]

It was an ugly accident and I can still remember the sound it made when he smacked the wall and then smacked it 2 more times.

It's impossible to get the image and sound of a crash like that out of your memory regardless of how long ago it has been! I was at The Belleville Highbanks in Belleville, Kansas for the Belleville Midget Nationals in 2016 when Bryan Clauson was fatally injured. Those sights and sounds are sickening and sadly are indelibly ingrained in our consciousness. Our group went back to The Highbanks the next year for the final Midget Nationals ever to be held at Belleville and the place will never look the same to any of us again.

[Late_Model_Mark]

Now on to Saugus Speedway. Before I get into that track I say to you CIRF, has there been a track or tracks that burns into you soul. I would easily say yes as we all have some. A track that you loved, fondly recall, enjoyed so much, meant the world to you and hurt like hell when it went away for whatever reason. Let me preface this just a bit.

I have 3 tracks that top the list that impacted me the most, makes my heart yearn for those days, have the best of memories of my long racing passion of just a few months shy of 58 years, yikes.

A lot of people in my circle track circles, a few do, mostly don't know because they can't really relate to it, do not know my first and foremost love of racing has and always will be Drag Racing. I grew up in the golden age of the quarter mile sport in the ultra awesome area of Southern California, drag racing in So-Cal in the 60's and 70's ruled the auto racing landscape until we lost all the tracks due to urban sprawl and other issues.

These are my all-time, hands-down 3 favorite tracks in order, 3 different disciplines for sure.

Once again in order.
1. Lions Drag Strip.....greatest weekly drag strip ever.
2. Ascot Park
3. Saugus Speedway

Now on to Saugus Speedway, Just before I started going it was called Bonelli Stadium, then Saugus Stadium, then it was called Saugus Speedway. When I first started going in early days the track was considered really out it the sticks if there is such a thing in California, now it is in urban sprawl. The track was a super flat oval, no banking it all. One year they book Bobby Allison to race and he said, y'all got the flattest flat track ever." Some say it was a 1/3mi, I say it was a1/4mi.

The 60's featured some magnificent action with the 54, 55,56, 57, and 58 Chevy and Fords that ran topless. The 70's had cars they called Modifieds, but they were outlaw style Late Models with big-blocks, small-blocks, on huge tires. Some of the cars even had nitrous-oxide, There were Camaros, Vegas, Monza's, and other rides . They were radical and sick fast.

The atmosphere at Saugus was country in the early days but flippin' super fierce and serious. The weekly shows were hard to miss. The seats were close, the food delish, the beer cold, and cheap. You could bring in your own food but the hot dogs and burgers were great. The popcorn was awesome. The admission prices were very fair. The whole deal at Saugus had a unique vibe. The racing was awesome as you had to have a very dialed in car at Saugus, sometimes you had to move people to advance. The crowd was into it unlike most joint today.

The 80's and thru it's ending year of 1995 providing great stuff. The weekly card then had Late Models. Sportsman Late Models (most ran topless) and Street Stocks. Programs were well run.

Drivers who excelled there and advanced thru the ranks were the likes of Ron Hornaday, Rick Carelli, "Roarin' Oren Prosser, Jim Robinson, Danny Crafton, daddy of truck racer Matt and many others.

They had Super Modified shows, Joey Chitwood Thrill shows and even Turkey night. It was the 1st pavement track that I know of to use VHT Traction Compound on the outside to improve the racing in the early 80's.

People were creatures of habit as far as where they sat and when they got there. I lived 11 miles from the track at the time. Some event days I would leave the casa about 10:00am. and drive to the track, put up my blanket, normally on the back straight, then get back home well before 11:00am. as the track gates were opened and that practice was not frowned upon.

Sometimes there would be a groups of us about 30+strong. It was a close knit fan base. Little did I know the a Winston West show in the summer of 1995 would be the last as the bullship reason was that the wooden grandstands were tired, yet a big group rallied to build it at no cost but the property owners were way more interested in the very successful swap meet that racing.

I took my wife there in 78 for the first time and she was there with my for the zillion shows we hit there when not chasing races at the tracks posted above.

That is my favorite pavement track, hope I did not bore you to tears.


Late Model Mark
Talladega Short Track Announcer

[CIRF]

Once again, great stuff, Mark! Not a hint of boredom, sir. You have quite a racing background and it's very neat to read about. Your descriptions of Saugus are quite interesting. The experience sounds somewhat similar to what I experienced as a child at Peoria Speedway in Central Illinois. Everyone was in the same seats every Saturday night and the intensity of the racing was equaled or surpassed by the intensity in the stands! As you indicated regarding Saugus, everyone belonged to a group in the stands. Fairbury is somewhat that way these days but not like what you describe.

In regards to drag racing I can relate and also have an extensive attachment to drag racing. I never turned a lap in anger while strapped into the seat of a circle track car. But I made many a pass down the 1/4 mile drag strips of southern Wisconsin, northern and central Illinois. The reasons I never was involved with driving circle track machines other than wheel packing and a couple of times hot lapping is obvious. I wasn't motivated to a degree that I would sacrifice resources, time apply the dedication to the degree that is needed to compete. Although I never drove there was a period of time prior to entering marital bliss that I sure spent the time needed to help keep a late model prepared and maintained but it was only partially my operation. I fully realized that my involvement would be limited to the shop and the pit area on race night. Drag racing for me and my gang was taking our every day driver street cars, get a few gallons of 110 octane Sunoco racing fuel, uncork the headers, take the air clearer off, bolt on a set of slicks, advance the timing just a tad, put the car on my Dad's trailer and pull it with my Dad's pickup truck to our drag strip of choice for that weekend

I truly appreciate your vast perspective of Saugus. I've heard and read about it in many different places over the years. I am ashamed to say I'm not even sure where it was located.

I also appreciate your description of the cars that raced at Saugus prior to the beginning of the era where purpose built race cars are made to be "stock cars". For the most part I missed the era where stock production cars were transformed into late model race cars as opposed to the other way around. I can remember my Dad and his buddies talking about the days when the late model stock car feature lined up and with one quick glance it was clear the make, model and year of any given car on the track. I catch flack from guys who take personal offense to modern super late models being referred to as generic. The term generic certainly does not disparage today's late models, it's an accurate term. That kind of thin skinned idiocy is a subject for another time.

I am mildly familiar with Lions Drag Strip but only due to what I've read. It closed a little before my time. I also recall reading about Orange County, Bakersfield and of course, Pomona. I'm truly surprised that Pomona is still in operation given the upscale neighborhoods in the foothills easily within earshot of the place. California is a little out there on how they shun places like Pomona. I have been to LaVerne, CA on business many times. The place I always visited was located on White Avenue in LaVerne which is within just a few hundred yard of the Pomona Drag Strip. I've been past the Wally Parks NHRA museum many times, as well, since I oft times stayed in Chino Hills while out there on business. I WILL stop at the museum sometime, for sure.

I hope I'm not boring YOU to tears!!