1962 – Rutherford Captures Salem IMCA Honors

Johnny Rutherford, with his wife Betty, accepts his trophy after winning the 30-lap IMCA big car feature at Salem. IMCA's Woodrow Brinkman holds the checkers. - Gene Van Winkle Collection

Salem, Ind. (July 15, 1962) – Johnny Rutherford of Fort Worth, Tex., drove his Beatson Chevy to first place here in the 30-lap IMCA big car feature in a new record time of 10 minutes and seven seconds, erasing the old mark of 10 minutes and 33 seconds set in 1954 by Buzz Barton of Tampa, Fla.

Rutherford, who started fourth by virtue of his qualifying and winning the third heat, took over the lead when Johnny White lost his engine in the Chet Wilson 270 Offy.

The Warren, Mich., speedster led laps 9 through 20 after initial leader Tom McClellan of Dayton, Ohio, spun out in the first turn after starting in the pole position. McClellan posted the fastest lap in qualifying, turning a time of 19.17 seconds on the high-banked half-mile.

Arnie Knepper of Belleville, Ill., was chasing Rutherford by a few car lengths as the checkered waved. Filling out the top five were Bill Kimmel, Dick Gaines and Ray Duckworth.

Winner of 10-lap heat were Rutherford, White, and Duckworth. Gaines captured the 10-lap semi-feature. Knepper accounted for the 5-lap trophy dash.

Tom York of South Bend, Ind., driving a powerful Pontiac, brought the 4,000 spectators to their feet when his steering let go in his heat race and smacked the wall in front of the grandstand. York was uninjured but the car wasn’t so lucky.

Rutherford, who has been doing a terrific job this season, extended his points lead in the IMCA national championship race and will be a tough customer to beat.


Results –


1. Johnny Rutherford
2. Arnie Knepper
3. Bill Kimmel
4. Dick Gaines
5. Ray Duckworth
6. Pete Folse
7. Buzz Rose
8. Red Renner
9. Calvin Gilstrap
10. Curly Boyd
11. Benny Rapp
12. Bill Black

1974 - Hartman posts fifth straight victory at State Fair Park

Butch Hartman won the USAC Stock Car 200-mile event at Milwaukee

 

Milwaukee, Wis. (July 14, 1974) – Butch Hartman of Zanesville, Ohio, who won four stock car races at Wisconsin’s State Fair Park last season, posted his fifth victory in a row on the paved one-mile oval in a United States Auto Club 200-mile event Sunday.

But Hartman, who took advantage of car troubles by his closest competitors to win by half a lap at an average speed of 86.884 miles per hour, said he never thought the $10,019 he won of the $54,950 purse was a sure thing.

“At no point was I confident,” he said. ‘Even in those last 10 laps when I was out in front, I was nervous. Nothing is certain.”

Hartman took the lead in his 1974 Dodge Charger from pole sitter Bobby Unser after 35 laps, and Unser eventually left the race with a broken valve on his ‘74 Charger.

Then, after Hartman went into the pits, Dick Trickle of Wisconsin Rapids went out front from the 87th through the 117th laps. Trickle remained close behind in his ‘72 Charger until spinning out during the 143rd lap on an oil slick which appeared when the ‘72 Charger of Paul Feldner of Richfield blew its engine. Trickle’s car hit the wall, but he walked away uninjured.

Hartman’s final challenge came from Ramo Stott of Keokuk, Iowa, who was hampered by brake trouble in his ’72 Plymouth towards the end of the race.

“I knew he was right behind me,” Hartman said. “But I knew he was driving without any brakes.”

“Ramo was backing off a lot of times in the turns and the way the flagman was positioning himself, I knew he just didn’t have those brakes. It was one heck of a race that Ramo drove.”

Norm Nelson of Racine finished third. He was hampered when he made a stop on the 50th lap, picked up a piece of metal while leaving the pit area and had to return only three laps later with a flat tire. Nelson felt the untimely flat cost him at least second place, possibly better. He had just taken the lead on the 50th lap before making a pit stop for tires and gas.

Jack Bowsher of Springfield, Ohio, was fourth and Bay Darnell of Deerfield, Ill., took fifth.

The win boosted Hartman’s point lead over the 51-year-old Nelson to 90, 1470 to 1380. A consolation prize for the Racine veteran was the third-place check for $4,049.

A crowd of 21,466 watched in 90-degree temperature. The track temperature was 124 degrees.

Only 19 of the 40 starters were still running at the finish.




Results -

1. Butch Hartman, '74 Charger, $10,019
2. Ramo Stott, ‘72 Plymouth, $5,470
3. Norm Nelson, ‘72 Plymouth, $3,949
4. Jack Bowsher, ‘73Torino, $2,517
5. Bay Darnell, ‘74 Charger, $2,094
6. Jigger Sirois, ‘73 Chevelle, $1,705
7. Sal Tovella, ‘72 Chevelle, $1,495
8. Dave Decker, ‘72 Chevelle, $1,296
9. Mickey Flora, ‘74 Charger, $1,196
10. Bill Wrich, ‘72 Chevelle, $1,097

1969 – Hot Job; But Derr Captures Iowa 300

Des Moines, Iowa (July 13, 1969) – Three drivers made Ernie Derr of Keokuk, Iowa, work exceptionally hard under 94-degree weather conditions at the State Fairgrounds on Sunday afternoon. 

But the old master took charge in the last 85 rounds of the Iowa 300 new model stock car race and won in a record time of 2 hours, 23 minutes and 51 seconds.

Ron Hutcherson of Keokuk, Iowa, Ole Brua of Albert Lea, Minn., and Fred Horn of Marion, Iowa, were the challengers in the 150-mile grind. The lead changed hands 11 times and all four drivers shared the honors.

Horn, driving a 1967 Plymouth, finished second, one lap behind Derr’s 1969 Dodge Charger and pocketed $800. Brua, in a 1969 Ford Torino, fell 11 laps behind the leader in the stages of the race but finished third. Hutcherson, who put up the stiffest challenge, had mechanical troubles and was fortunate to finish seventh. He was third with 40 laps remaining.

The heralded duel between Derr and Tiny Lund, the Harlan, Iowa, native, who calls Cross, S.C., home, did not materialize.

Lund, the 1968 NASCAR Grand National Touring champion flew into Des Moines on Sunday morning. However, his 1969 Cougar did not arrive. Lund encountered rear end difficulties at a race in Atlanta, Ga., on Friday night and by the time the car was repaired, there wasn’t enough time to tow it to Des Moines.

But Tiny hopped into a 1967 Ford Fairlane borrowed from Dick Johnson of St. Paul, Minn., and proceeded to show the 12,100 race fans in attendance how the NASCAR boys run.

Tiny did a heck of a job for his time in the saddle – which wasn’t long. A ball joint broke and he slammed into the wall on lap 11.

He had qualified 17th but moved up to fourth and did tail Derr’s bumper for a couple of laps.

Brua had the lead until lap 22 when Ernie sailed around him. Derr took a mandatory 30-second pit stop on the 70th lap and Hutcherson nabbed his first lead.

Action was fast and furious from lap 80 through lap 121 when there were numerous changes for the top spot.

Derr charged ahead at that point and he, Hutcherson and Horn battled on the same lap through lap 174 when Derr pitted and Hutcherson assumed command and led Derr by more than a lap

Derr managed to whittle away the lead and took advantage of Hutcherson’s pit stop for water on lap 215 to move ahead permanently.

Mike Derr’s racing debut was a success. The son of Ernie, who had never driven a race car on a track before the race, finished in fifth. Together they earned $1,450 for the race with Ernie taking home $1,100.

Results –

1. Ernie Derr, Keokuk, Iowa
2. Fred Horn, Marion, Iowa
3. Ole Brua, Albert Lea, Minn.
4. Irv Janey, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
5. Mike Derr, Keokuk, Iowa
6. Butch Hall, Russell, Minn.
7. Ron Hutcherson, Keokuk, Iowa
8. Chuck Berg, Des Moines
9. Leon Bowman, Wichita, Kan.
10. Dave Wall, Kansas City
11. Joe Wallace, Leavenworth, Kan.
12. Jay McIntosh, Willard, Mo.
13. Mike Null, Wentzville, Mo.
14. Sandy Sandstrom, Kansas City
15. Bill Stark, Des Moines
16. Ralph Bowlen, Marshall, Mo.
17. Lewis Taylor, Shawnee, Kan.
18. Jerre Wichman, Kansas City
19. Thurman Lovejoy, Kansas City
20. Frank Spencer, Kansas City
21. George Barton, Ankeny, Iowa
22. Roger Brown, Waverly, Iowa
23. John Kyle, Des Moines
24. Chuck Janey, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
25. Tiny Lund, Cross, S.C.

1980 – Hearst Recovers; Wins at Downs

Cedar Rapids, Iowa (July 11, 1980) - Tom Hearst is back to his old self.

The 37-year-old NASCAR driver from Wilton slipped past Waterloo’s Bill Zwanziger at the start of the 16th lap and raced on from there to capture the 25-lap late model feature race Friday night in front of a smoldering host of diehard racing fans at Hawkeye Downs Speedway.

It was the fourth time this year that Hearst, the Downs NASCAR point leader, has captured the speedway's late model main.

Hearst, who had started the race in the middle of 23 other drivers, had little trouble adding to his point total after passing Zwanziger, running away from the pack for his first Downs feature win since June 20th. Zwanziger did maintain his position, finishing second ahead of Waterloo's Dick Schiltz. Ed Sanger, also of Waterloo, was fourth, followed by Independence’s Rick Wendling, Marion’s Steve Keppler and Waterloo’s Red Dralle. Kalona's Mike Niffenegger came home eighth ahead of the Viola vet Kenny Walton, Cedar Rapid's Darrell Dake and Cedar Fall's Denny Osborn. Mike Frieden of Cedar Rapids was twelfth.

Scotch Grove veteran Jerry Naylor captured the Street Stock heat while his son Dave and Monticello's Jay Iben grabbed first place finishes in the Sportsman runs.

Dralle, Keppler, and Wendling all took Late Model heats with Jerry Naylor winning his third Street Stock main in his last three Downs appearances after a brief retirement.

The younger Naylor (Dave) also edged Wapello’s Ron Pallister in the 12-lap Sportsman feature.

 Results -

 Late Model -

1.        Tom Hearst, Wilton, Iowa

2.        Bill Zwanziger, Waterloo, Iowa

3.        Dick Schiltz, Waterloo, Iowa

4.        Ed Sanger, Waterloo, Iowa

5.        Rick Wendling, Hazelton, Iowa

6.        Steve Keppler, Marion, Iowa

7.        Red Dralle, Waterloo, Iowa

8.        Mike Niffenegger, Kalona, Iowa

9.        Kenny Walton, Viola, Iowa

10.     Darrell Dake, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

11.     Denny Osborn, Cedar Falls, Iowa

12.     Mike Frieden, Swisher, Iowa

Sportsman –

        1.        Dave Naylor, Scotch Grove, Iowa

2.        Ron Pallister, Wapello, Iowa

3.        Mike Phillips, Muscatine, Iowa

4.        Dan Thomas, Morning Sun, Iowa

5.        Jay Iben, Monticello, Iowa

Street Stocks –

1.        Jerry Naylor, Scotch Grove, Iowa

2.        Chopper Safely, Marion, Iowa

3.        Gus Hughes, Monticello, Iowa

4.        Dave Albert, Marengo, Iowa

5.        Gary Gramblin, Anamosa, Iowa

1978 - Lakeside USAC Win to Wolfgang

Doug Wolfgang

Kansas City, Kan. (July 8, 1978) – Doug Wolfgang scored his first career USAC sprint car feature victory in Saturday night’s rain-shortened main event at Lakeside Speedway.

Wolfgang, who vaulted into the lead at the drop of the green, was still in command after 27 of the event’s 40 laps, when rain forced the contest to be halted.

Roger Rager, who was gunning for a clean sweep of the show after having set fast time in qualifying and capturing the first heat, was credited with finishing second, ahead of Billy Cassella, Chuck Gurney, and Bill Engelhart.

Wolfgang, Dana Carter and Gurney won the other heats and defending USAC sprint car national champion Sheldon Kinser claimed the semi-feature win.

Rich Vogler, the current USAC midget point leader, flipped his car during hot laps, but was uninjured and came back later in the evening to finish tenth.

Results –


1. Doug Wolfgang
2. Roger Rager
3. Billy Cassella
4. Chuck Gurney
5. Bill Engelhart
6. Bubby Jones
7. Sheldon Kinser
8. Joe Saldana
9. Ron Shuman
10. Rich Vogler

1974 – Stott Wins USAC at Salem

Ramo Stott sips champagne after winning the USAC-sanctioned Coca-Cola 100 at Salem Speedway. 

 

Salem, Ind. (July 7, 1974) – Ramo Stott of Keokuk, Iowa, grabbed the 100-lap United States Auto Club stock car feature at Salem Speedway on Sunday afternoon.

Stott drove his Plymouth into the lead on the 68th lap of the 100-lap feature when Larry Moore, who had led in his Chevelle from lap 11, dropped out of the race.

Stott averaged better than 79 miles per hour, finishing 13 seconds ahead of Bob Schippers of Kalamazoo, Mich., who was in his first race on a high-banked half-mile paved oval.

USAC stock car point leader Butch Hartman, who qualified his Dodge on the pole with a new track record of 91.13 miles per hour, stayed in front of the 20-car field through the first 10 laps.

Norm Nelson edged out a fading Hartman for third place. Mickey Flora led Don White to the finish for fifth. All were one lap behind Schippers and the leader.

Don White took sixth, and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, driver Irv Janey finished seventh.

There were only two cautions, one for a crash involving Ken Rowley and the other for George Coonrod’s spin. Neither driver was injured.

NASCAR star Bobby Allison battled handling issue with his Chevelle all day and would complete only two laps and finish 19th.

Stott was expected to receive almost $3,000 for the victory out off an estimated $10,000 purse.
A huge crowd, estimated at 8,000, packed the tiny speedway and were treated to a sun-drenched afternoon of racing.

Results - 


1. Ramo Stott
2. Bob Schippers
3. Norm Nelson
4. Butch Hartman
5. Mickey Flora
6. Don White
7. Irv Janey
8. Larry Cope
9. Paul Feldner
10. Harold Fair
11. Ken Rowley
12. Steve Drake
13. Larry Moore
14. George Coonrod
15. Joe Booher
16. Bobby Watson
17. Jim Marshall
18. Cleve Smith
19. Bobby Allison
20. Charlie Glotzbach

Ramo Stott drove Jack Housby's Plymouth to victory at Salem.

1964 – Bowsher’s Luck Changes in ‘Cherry Bomb’ 400

Huntington, W. Va. (July 4, 1964) - Jack Bowsher of Springfield, Ohio, ended a siege of tough luck at West Virginia International Speedway by winning the $8,000 holiday Cherry Bomb 400-lap race in his 1964 Ford.

Bowsher, who won $1,725 of the purse for taking his seventh Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) race, finished well ahead of runner-up Bobby Watson of Louisville, Kentucky. Watson, also driving a 1964 Ford, set a new track record of 79.15 miles per hour to nail down the pole position for the July 4 race.

Bowsher roared into the lead on lap 230 after front running Dick Freeman's 1963 Pontiac – the car that Paul Goldsmith drove last year – lost a tire smashed into the wall. Bowsher, running right behind Freeman but for lapse back as a result of an earlier mishap, got around Freeman’s mangled car and had clear sailing the remainder of the way. Freeman, of Dayton, Ohio, wound up fourth, just behind Jack Shanklin of Indianapolis, who was behind the wheel of a 1963 Mercury.

Bowsher, defending ARCA champion, averaged 69.69 miles per hour for the distance – another track record.

Jim Cushman, of Columbus, Ohio, driving Bowsher's second 1964 Ford, held the old mark of 65.60 miles per hour.

Nelson Stacy of Daytona Beach, Florida, who started fifth, barged into first place on the second lap and was rolling along until his 1964 Ford lost oil pressure on the 12th lap. None other of the 32 starters managed to get out front in the race which was slowed by seven caution flags.

 

Results –

 

1.    Jack Bowsher, Springfield, Ohio

2.    Bobby Watson, Louisville, Ky.

3.    Jack Shanklin, Indianapolis

4.    Dick Freeman, Dayton, Ohio

5.    Harold Smith, Dayton, Ohio

6.    Virgil Barbe, Detroit, Mich.

7.    Paul Wensink, Deshler, Ohio

8.    Jim Cushman, Columbus, Ohio

9.    Bud Harless, Gilbert, W. Va.

10.  Jerry Norris, Louisville, Ky.

11.  Elmer Davis, Jeffersonville, Ind.

12.  Jim Robinson, New Albany, Ind.

13.  Clyde Parker, Detroit, Mich.

14.  Pop McGinnis, Huntington, W. Va.

15.  Benny Parsons, Detroit, Mich.

16.  Namon Martin, Cleveland, Ohio

17.  Al White, Buffalo, N.Y.

18.  Charley Glotzbach, New Albany, Ind.

19.  Jerry Leblanc, Farmington, Mich.

20.  Dick Mitchell, Detroit, Mich.

21.  Homer Newland, Detroit, Mich.

22.  John Sommerville, Louisville, Ky.

23.  Don Arnold, Mentor, Ohio

24.  Iggy Katona, Willis, Mich.

25.  Tony Lavati, Cleveland, Ohio

26.  Danny Byrd, Detroit, Mich.

27.  Henry Spencer, Hamlin, W. Va.

28.  Grant Wilmot, Middletown, Ohio

29.  Nelson Stacy, Daytona Beach, Fla.

30.  Jim Weity, Fairborn, Ohio

31. Wimpy May, Chagrin Falls, Ohio