Knoxville,
Iowa (April 28, 1973) – Ramo Stott of Keokuk, Iowa, finally got his car
together at 3:30 pm on Saturday and then worried well into the night whether
everything was secure.
It was, and
Stott won the 100-lap United States Auto Club late model stock car feature at
the Marion County Fairgrounds before a crowd of 11,000. Stott earned $1,600 for
the victory.
Ramo had
been working on his 1973 Plymouth for nearly 20 hours a day since Monday and
his effort to get it ready for the four-race program.
“The car
worked just fine,” Stott remarked as he signed autographs for fans. “I worked
until 3:30 this morning, then went to bed until 8 o’clock and then I returned
to work on the car.”
“I tried to
sleep on the trip to Knoxville, but I’m kept thinking, ‘Did I do this? Did I
get that bolt tight? Will everything stay together’”
Second place
went to Jack Bowsher of Springfield, Ohio, Ernie Derr of Keokuk finished third
and Butch Hartman, the defending USAC stock car champion from South Zanesville,
Ohio, took fourth.
Al Unser of
Albuquerque, N.M., the 1970 and ’71 Indianapolis 500 winner, fell out early and
finished 19th. He said the problem was a broken axle.
Stott took
the lead on lap 10 and was in command the rest of the way, pulling away from
most of the field.
Hartman
would manage to pass Stott later during the race, but it was quickly ruled that
Hartman was still a lap down. Ramo dueled with Hartman for a few laps but
decided to back off.
“I didn’t
think he could make up that big of a deficit but I didn’t like seeing him go by
either. However, I thought if I tried to push the car needlessly, something
might happen and I lose the race.”
Stott would
finish nearly a half-mile ahead of Bowsher with the first four cars completing
all 100 laps.
Don White of
Keokuk, Iowa, would get the jump when the green flag waved but it was Ernie
Derr passing White between turns one and two on the first lap. White would go
around Ernie on lap 3 and lead until Stott took command on lap 10.
Overheating
seemed to be a problem for a few drivers. Derrr said his car was running hot
towards the end and he had to let up and allow Bowsher to slip by for second
while Derr settled for third.
“I had two
choices,” Derr said, “I could try and get my position back and possibly burn
all of the hoses off or cruise along and get a high finish.”
White was
also plagued with heating problems as was Irv Janey of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the
defending International Motor Contest Association national champion.
Roger Dolan
of Lisbon, Iowa, driving a car owned by Tom Spagnola of Des Moines, finished a
respectable eighth.
Results –
1. Ramo Stott, Keokuk, Iowa
2. Jack Bowsher, Springfield, Ohio
3. Ernie Derr, Keokuk, Iowa
4. Butch Hartman, South Zanesville, Ohio
5. Bay Darnell, Deerfield, Ill.
6. Jim Tobin, Bloomington, Ill.
7. Paul Feldner, Richfield, Wis.
8. Roger Dolan, Lisbon, Iowa
9. Steve Drake, Bloomington, Ill.
10. Don
White, Keokuk, Iowa
11. Verlin
Eaker, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
12.
John
Schultz, Appleton, Wis.
13. Mike
Flora, Muncie, Ind.
14. Bob
Whitlow, Chicago, Ill.
15. Larry
Moore, Greenville, Ohio
16. Irv
Janey, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
17. Ken
Reiter, Louisville, Ky.
18. Terry
Ryan, Davenport, Iowa
19. Al
Unser, Albuquerque, N.M
20. John
Reimer, Caledonia, Wis.
21. Ray
Blonder, Knowles, Wis.
22.
Jigger
Sirois, Hammond, Ind.
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