1956 – Beauchamp Wins Both Ends of Feature

 

Johnny Beauchamp

Sioux Falls, S.D. (June 3, 1956) – They cut the melon two ways Sunday afternoon at the Sioux Empire Fairgrounds race, but they still couldn’t keep hard-driving Johnny Beauchamp from getting the full slice he wanted.

Pushing his whining, light blue 1956 Chevrolet to the limit, the Harlan, Iowa, daredevil won both halves of the split late model stock car feature.

In doing so, he also moved ahead of Don White, the defending champion, into the point lead for the International Motor Contest Association stock cars.

Some 5,000 speed-hungry race fans watched the novel split feature, the first ever held there.

Beauchamp won the first 100-lapper, in 53 minutes and 35.17 seconds.

The field was then inverted for the second 100-lapper and the classy Iowa driver stood on it all the way to move from his last starting position to first place at the finish. His time in the second race was 53 minutes and 48.71 seconds.

Neither time was close to the 51 minutes and 15 second record held by White, but Beauchamp was all by himself for most of the afternoon.

He took the lead away from the Dodge-driving White on the seventh lap of the first 100 and held it to the checkered flag. Starting behind the rest of the field in the second 100, Beauchamp had worked his way through traffic and seized the lead after only 12 laps. Nobody caught him after that.

On an overall basis, of course, Beauchamp was the day’s winner.

Shorty Ebert of Kansas City, in a 1956 Dodge, and Darrel Dake of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in a 1956 Chevrolet, tied for second in the overall finish.

White, making his first appearance here in anything but a Oldsmobile, was second to Beauchamp in the first 100 but wound up ninth in the second 100 after encountering mechanical issues.

The remainder of the top-10 on an overall basis was Bud Burdick, Omaha, 1956 Chevrolet; Jim McMichael, Carthage, Mo., 1956 Chevrolet; Bill Harrison, Topeka, Kan., 1956 Ford convertible; Don Haeg, Minneapolis, 1956 Chevrolet; Ted Zieman, Mason City, Iowa, 1955 Chevrolet; Bob Burdick, Omaha, 1956 Ford and Tubby Harrison, Topeka, Kan., 1955 Chevrolet.

The Burdick brothers, after being hampered by mechanical mishaps in the first 100, caught the fancy of the crowd in the second 100 with their skillful driving. Bill Harrison, an old-time favorite here, made an appearance in a classy-looking Ford Sunliner and did a good job. He finished fifth in the first race but was forced out with a punctured radiator in the second contest.

Roxy Dancy, who worked all day Saturday to install a new engine in his 1956 Dodge, had more woes. He broke an axle on his car in the first feature, worked furiously to get it repaired for the second 100, only to have it break again early on in the race.

Results –

Feature #1 –

1. Johnny Beauchamp, Harlan, Iowa
2. Don White, Keokuk, Iowa
3. Shorty Ebert, Kansas City
4. Darrel Dake, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
5. Bill Harrison, Topeka, Kan.
6. Don Haeg, Minneapolis
7. Tubby Harrison, Topeka, Kan.
8. Jim McMichael, Carthage, Mo.
9. Ted Zieman, Mason City, Iowa
10.Sonny Morgan, Beaumont, Tex.

Feature #2 –

1. Johnny Beauchamp
2. Bud Burdick, Omaha
3. Darrel Dake
4. Shorty Ebert
5. Jim McMichael
6. Ted Zieman
7. Bob Burdick, Omaha
8. Don Haeg
9. Don White
10.Sonny Morgan

1975 - Bob Shryock Wants 'Mr. Luck' as a Passenger

Bob Shryock

Fairmont, Minn. (June 2, 1975) - "Luck plays a lot of different games in racing," commented Estherville, Iowa, racer Bob Shryock as he headed for a night of auto racing Saturday at the Fairmont Speedways.

"It takes more than just steering a car down the speedway. You have to be at the right place at the right time and your equipment has to hold up. If you haven't got Mr. Luck with you, you just don't have anything going for you."

Mr. Luck rode part way with Shryock on Saturday night. He had a tough time winning his first heat. Dave Knox of Wabaso, Minn., passed Shryock at one time and appeared to be heading for a sure victory. But on the last lap, he developed mechanical problems and had to drop out of the race. Shryock went on to win the heat.

Mr. Luck appeared to be riding with Shryock at that point, but in the second race Shryock developed mechanical problems of his own and had to drop out. Dropping out hurt Shryock and it also hurt his pit crew. Neither gave up easily.

“I have a great pit crew," commented Shryock on his way to the races. "If I win tonight, there will be some celebrations. But if something goes wrong with the car, they will head right back to Estherville and start tearing the car apart yet tonight."

Members of Shryock's pit crew include Barrel Tonderum, who has been with him since Shryock began racing when he was 21; Richard Paplow and Bobby Harris, both who have been with him for three years and Laverne Mine, who is in his first year as Shryock's mechanic. True to Shryock's prediction, all returned immediately to Estherville to find out what the trouble was with the car.

They began work about 10:30 p.m. and shortly after midnight, the trouble was found. . . a cracked cylinder wall.

Shryock started racing when he was 21 but had to give it up for about three years. His first year he was in a serious accident and his car was totally destroyed. It took him three years before he could get enough money together to race again. He has had three cars, a 1957 Ford, a 1968 Camaro and currently he is driving a 1975 Monte Carlo. He purchased his present car in Waterloo for $5,500 and spent an additional $3,000 for the engine. If Mr. Luck rides with him, he figures he will win that money back in about two years.

Shryock admitted to a certain degree of nervousness. On the way to Fairmont, he pointed to a couple packs of cigarettes on his dashboard. "I'll smoke both of those before the night is over," said Shryock. "But once the flag is dropped, I won't be nervous anymore."

Shryock is married and has three children. His wife commented on what it is like to be married to a racer.

"A lot of people ask me why I let my husband do something that he could get killed doing," said Mrs. Shryock. "I'm not God, and I can't tell if he is going to die racing or not. Death doesn't enter my mind." Then she added softly, "At least if he dies car racing, I'll know that he died happy."

Shryock says he feels safer on the race track than he does driving the family car down the highway. He points to the fact that racers have special safety equipment and everyone is going the same direction, leaving little chance for a head-on crash. He said the impact of a head-on crash between two cars going 55 miles per hour would be greater than rear-end crashes of two cars going 100 miles per hour.

His racing circuit this summer includes Cresco on Friday nights, Fairmont, Minn., on Saturday nights and Alta on Sunday nights. He may substitute Harlan for Alta before the season is over because Harlan is paying more to winners than Alta.

In the past, he has also raced at tracks at South Sioux City, Neb., Omaha, Neb., Rapid City, S.D., and in Florida, Illinois and Wisconsin.

A few years ago, the family decided to take a vacation in Florida; Shryock took his racer with him and won enough money to pay gas and expenses on the trip.

Saturday at Fairmont, he won $35. An average night, he will make between $250 and $500.

His biggest personal win was winning the Black Hills Grand National at Rapid City, S.D., where he won $1,800. That was in 1973 and that same year he won the point title at Alta and came in third in point totals at Fairmont, Minn. That was his best year.

1957 – Thomson Wins Langhorne 100-Miler

Johnny Thomson

Langhorne, Penn. (June 2, 1957) One hundred miles in less than one hour was witnessed by 25,000 auto racing fans at Langhorne Speedway yesterday.

Johnny Thomson, of nearby Boyertown, Penn., established a new world and American record for the century distance, when he covered 100 laps at the Lower Bucks County oval in 59 minutes, 53.74 seconds.

The average speed was 100.194 miles per hour, shattering Jimmy Bryan’s mark of 97.56 miles per hour, set at the ‘Horne in 1954.

Thomson won the pole position with the fastest qualifying time of 33.33 seconds, or 107.946 miles per hour.

Thomson, driving the D.A. Lubricant Special, Indianapolis type sprint car, owned by Racing Associates, held the lead from the start until the 61st lap when he made a surprise pit stop.

Thomson had better than a lap lead when he went into the pit for a tire change and fuel. The pit crew got him back on the course in 44 seconds, but Bob Veith, Orlando, Calif., and Eddie Sachs, Allentown, Penn., had moved into the first two positions.

It only took seven laps (68) for Thomson to regain his lead. He then roared to victory, the first man to drive 100 miles in less than an hour.

Joltin’ Jud Larson, of Kansas City, Mo., who had moved up from 10th to third place, hit the outside rail on the fourth turn of the 85th mile and did an end-over-end flip. The race was slowed down, under the caution flag, for a few seconds to permit an ambulance to cross the track.

Larson was taken to Lower Bucks County Hospital where doctors reported he had suffered a broken right arm. He was detained at the hospital for further x-rays today.

Sachs, piloting the Schmidt Special, was the only other driver to complete the 100 laps. He finished 31 seconds behind the winner.

A brisk wind and the threat of an imminent shower, caused the starter to display the red flag, stopping the race, immediately after Thomson crossed the finish line. Sachs, in his last lap, got credit for the full 100.

Art Bisch, Phoenix, Ariz., was third. Ed Elisian, Oakland, Calif., was fourth and George Amick, last year’s winner from Venice, Calif., completed the top five.

Jimmy Bryan, of Phoenix. Ariz., the early favorite for the 100-mile classic, was on hand for the race but without a mount. Bryan finished third at Indianapolis on Memorial Day. He announced to the crowd that because his chief mechanic was ill, his dirt track car was not prepared for the race.

Bryan also announced that Pat O’Conner because when mechanics broke down his engine after the 500-mile race, they discovered a cracked crank case. There wasn’t enough time between last Thursday and yesterday to get a new one installed.

Bryan said he was very disappointed he didn’t get the chance to try for his third 100-mile championship at Langhorne. He made the trip from Indianapolis to Langhorne, hoping to get a job driving another racer. All assignments were already booked.

Thomson lapped his first car on the sixth lap and lapped the entire field on the 41st.


Results –


1. Johnny Thomson
2. Eddie Sachs
3. Art Bisch
4. Ed Elisian
5. George Amick
6. Andy Linden
7. Bob Veith
8. Billy Garrett
9. Don Branson
10.Van Johnson
11.Ralph Liguori
12.Ken Gottschalk
13.Don Freeland
14.Jimmy Reece
15.Don Edmunds
16.Jud Larson
17.Elmer George
18.Bud Randall

1975 – Saldana Takes Action Track Win

Joe Saldana, driving Maury Amerling's sprint car, won the USAC 40-lapper at Terre Haute. 

Terre Haute, Ind. (June 1, 1975) – Joe Saldana, who had scored exactly half of his United States Auto Club sprint car victories at the Terre Haute Action Track, made it a two-thirds proposition when he captured the 40-lap on Sunday afternoon.

The main event was highlighted by several lead changes.

Saldana, whose previous wins had come in the 1972 Hulman Classic at the Wabash Valley Fairgrounds and the Night Before the 500 just last month at the one-mile Indiana State Fairgrounds, was the sixth person to lead the event.

Run under a combination of first sunny, then threatening skies, the second sprint car race of the season got off to a late start due to wet track conditions.

The same conditions that created a slight delay in the program were responsible in the end for a track surface that produced excellent racing.

Gary Ponzini and Pancho Carter paced the 20-car field at the start with Ponzini jumping to a surprising lead, which lasted only two laps.

Rich Leavell streamed past Ponzini at the start of the third lap and enjoyed the top spot for three laps before encountering the misfortune of hitting the kill switch on his sprinter.

The maneuver caused the sprinter to stall, sending an oncoming George Snider up and over the stalled machine.

Although Snider was able to continue and even lead the feature, the incident was to catch up with the Bakersfield, Calif., driver before the checkered flew.

With a combination of a broken radius rod, shocks and torsion bar, snider’s left-front suspension soon began to succumb to the beating from the half-mile track.

On lap 16, Thad Dosher maneuvered his sprinter in front with a high-riding act that thrilled the fine turnout of fans.

Continuing on despite his handling issues, Snider squeezed past Dosher back into the top spot for two more circuits before Dosher once again moved in front.

At the midway point, the pair crossed the start/finish line inches apart with eventual Saldana and Jimmy Caruthers within striking distance.

Saldana and Caruthers were staging a spirited battle of their own, much to the delight of the fans.

Caruthers, soon moved into contention for first place and took the lead on lap 28 and held the top spot until the 36th circuit when Saldana surged into the lead.

The pair battle wheel to wheel to the white flag with Tom Bigelow making a late charge a close third place behind.

Bigelow managed to overhaul Caruthers for the second spot but was still three car lengths behind Saldana at the finish.


Results –


1. Joe Saldana
2. Tom Bigelow
3. Jimmy Caruthers
4. George Snider
5. Sam Sessions
6. Larry Dickson
7. Gary Bettenhausen
8. Sonny Ates
9. Gary Ponzini
10.Thad Dosher
11.Billy Cassella
12.Rich Leavell
13.Sheldon Kinser
14.Pancho Carter
15.Rich Vogler
16.Lee Osborne
17.Chuck Gurney
18.Steve Chassey
19.Ronnie Burke
20.Tommy Astone

1970 – Utz Grabs Feature at Jaycee’s Event

Bill Utz accepts his trophy after winning the annual Jaycee's race on his hometown track.

Sedalia, Mo. (May 31, 1970) - Auto racing is like all other sports — that is ifs good to win on the road, but it’s great to win at home.

That’s probably the way Bill Utz of Sedalia felt Monday morning following his Sunday win in the Jaycees Memorial Day Weekend races at the Missouri State Fairgrounds, in front of a packed grandstand crowd.

After battling Joe Saldana of Lincoln, Neb., who won the pole position in the morning super modified time trials, and Jay Woodside of Kansas City for the first 10 laps, Utz grabbed the lead on the 13th lap and held on for the rain-shortened victory.

The super modified feature had gone a total of 19 laps of a scheduled 30-lap feature, before the rain began.

In addition to winning the main feature, the flying blacksmith captured the fourth heat race, ran second in the trophy dash and placed second in the time trials

Rain forced cancellation of the consolation super modified feature and the feature event for the late models.

This is the second year in a row for the Jaycees that rain has forced the racing program to an early halt.

A total of 84 cars timed in during the morning; times were not nearly as fast as last year, but the track half-mile mark was topped by Joe Saldana, who turned in the fastest time of the super modified qualifiers He turned the oval in a clocking of 22.67 seconds, this eclipsed the old mark set last year during the Jaycees event.

Utz turned in the second fastest clocking with a time of 22.93 seconds.

In the field of 60 plus super modifieds, two notable pilots were absent from the feature event Jerry Blundy of Galesburg, Ill., and Roy Hibbard of Marshall, who was the defending champion of that division.

Neither, driver was able to place in the top 20 during the time trials, the only way the drivers could qualify for the feature events.

In the super modified trophy dash event. Jay Woodside won the race finishing ahead of Utz and Bobby Ward of Conway, Ark.

Super modified heat race winners included Mike Hill of Kansas City, Jerry Blundy, Ron Perkins of Granite City, Ill., Bob Williams of Kansas City and Bill Utz.

Utz's feature win netted him $600. That was $100 more than Roy Hibbard pocketed last year for winning the event.


Results –


Time Trials – Joe Saldana (22.67)
Trophy dash – Jay Woodside
Heat #1 – Mike Hill
Heat #2 – Jerry Blundy
Heat #3 – Ron Perkins
Heat #4 – Bill Utz
Heat #5 – Bob Williams
Feature –
1. Bill Utz
2. Jay Woodside
3. Steve Schultz
4. Joe Saldana
5. Russ Hibbard
6. Bob Williams
7. Jerry Atkins
8. Wib Spaulding
9. Ron Perkins
10.Tom Corbin
11.Ralph Parkinson Sr.
12.Al Murie
13.Dick Sutcliffe
14.Bobby Ward
15.Eddie Leavitt

1953 – Slater Takes 50-Lap Race, 3 Marks Fall

Bob Slater

Des Moines, Iowa (May 31, 1953) – Death intruded at the Iowa State Fairgrounds’ track on Sunday as Bob Slater of Kansas City won the 25-mile Frank Luptow Memorial Sweepstakes auto racing feature.

Three records were broken in the seven-card program.

Al Speth, a 41-year-old implement company employee from Davenport, driving a newly purchased Offenhauser, was killed when his car crashed into the railing on the east turn at the finish of the third heat.

Prior to the crash, which resulted in the third racing fatality on the half-mile oval since 1951, Speth had spun nearly into the rail on the opening qualifying dash.

In the second race, the 7,200 spectators watched Eddie Loetscher of St. Louis narrowly avert a crash into the east wall on the first lap of that race.

Slater, who scored three smashing triumphs here last fall, broke two International Motor Contest Association records in whipping the IMCA point leader, Bobby Grim of Indianapolis, in the 50-lap championship race.

The lean pilot wheeled his Blue Crown Offy, a car owned and raced by Bill Holland here only last season, in 12 minutes and 57.9 seconds through the first 15 miles (30 laps) to better Grim’s record of 13 minutes and 18.42 seconds set on the same track in June of 1952.

Taking the lead at the outset, Slater gunned through the 40th lap, past the 20-mile point, in 17 minutes and 42.35 seconds, to erase Grim’s previous mark of 17 minutes and 44.36 seconds.

However, in the jockeying past stragglers in the closing laps, Slater, second-place Jimmy Campbell of Bates City, Mo., and third-place Grim all lost time with the winner going the 25-mile distance in 23 minutes and 28.10 seconds.

Grim, a consistent winner until Sunday’s event, set the third mark of the afternoon when he thundered around the half-mile dirt oval in 24.10 seconds to create a new track record in time trials.

The Indianapolis veteran throttled his black Offenhauser, nearly a duplicate of the one driven to laurels by Luptow himself, under the 24.38 second mark set by Luptow in 1951.

From then on, Grim was forced to the rear by the heavy-footed Slater, who captured the opening qualifying dash, nosing out Billy Jim of Kansas City. Don Branson of Champaign, Ill., was the winner of the second heat and Ken Higginson of Des Moines, driving his newly-designed GMC, won the third heat, marred by Speth’s fatal crash.

The 10-lap consolation went to Mickey McCormick, the United Racing Association star from Oberlin, Kan.

The big race was strictly a three-way battle between Slater, Campbell and Grim, who race in that order, end to end, all the way.

Grim attempted twice to cut down his two rivals by shooting the curves on the inside. However, both times he was fouled up by loss of traction.

The three leaders, however, set such a break-neck pace that it took the official scorer nearly an hour afterwards to determine lesser positions, among the top-10 money spots, with most of those trialing by at least one lap if not more.

Slater’s triumph was his first this season. He acquired Holland’s car this spring after the former Indianapolis 500 winner announced he was returning to sprint car racing back east.

Results –


1. Bob Slater, Kansas City
2. Jimmy Campbell, Bates City, Mo.
3. Bobby Grim, Indianapolis
4. Mack McHenry, Wichita, Kan.
5. Billy Jim, Kansas City
6. Clyde Sullivan, Kansas City
7. Gordon Shuck, Edgar, Neb.
8. Ken Higginson, Des Moines
9. Willie Hunsicker, Sioux City, Iowa
10.Ardell Young, Hastings, Neb.

1963 – Parnelli Jones Wins Record 500

Parnelli Jones basks in the glory of winning the Indianapolis 500.

Indianapolis, Ind. (May 30, 1963) – Favorite Parnelli Jones dodged nine crackups and shook off Scotland's Jimmy Clark in the final laps Thursday to win the richest and fastest 500-mile speedway auto race in history.

A record crowd of nearly 300,000 gave the 29-year-old Torrance, Calif., speedster a thunderous ovation as he roared across the finish line in record speed and became the seventh pole winner to win the Memorial Day classic.

Clark, a rookie here but runner-up in last year's Grand Prix world road racing standings, made a game try of it in his highly-touted British Lotus powered by an American eight-cylinder Ford engine. At one time he cut Jones’ lead to 3.5 seconds, but the Californian won by 33 seconds at a record clip of 143.13 miles per hour. The old record, set by Rodger Ward last year, was 140.293 miles per hour.

The first four finishers all beat Ward's old record. A. J. Foyt, driving the same car in which he won the grind two years ago. was third, Ward was fourth, and teammate Don Branson was fifth. Jim McElreath was sixth, the same as last year. Unofficially the top 10 were rounded out by Dan Gurney in the other Lotus-Ford. Chuck Hulse, Al Miller, and Dick Rathmann.

Only 16 of the 33 starters were running at the finish. Despite the rash of accidents which turned on the yellow caution light more than 50 minutes, no driver was injured.

It was a tremendous victory for Jones, the speedway's fastest qualifier both this year and last. It was also sweet revenge for last year when faulty brakes halted Jones' dash toward victory lane, and he finished seventh.

The race, run in sunny and mild weather, had four leaders, with Parnelli in front most of the time. He took the lead from Jim Hurtubise on the second lap, held it through the 63rd, surrendered to Roger McCluskey on his first pit stop, and took it from Clark on lap 96. That was when Clark, the race's only foreign entry, made his lone pit stop.

Clark took the lead from McCluskey, who led but four laps, on the 68th circuit.

Jones made three evenly spaced pit stops — his last two after 126 and 162 laps. He used up 72.4 seconds in the pit and retained the lead after his last two stops for tires and fuel.

Jones won $25,050 in lap prize money alone and his total earnings, to be announced at Friday night's victory banquet, could reach $200,000 from a jackpot of about $500,000 — both records.

Jones was driving a conventional, 4-year-old four-cylinder roadster built by A. J. Watson, who handled four winners in recent years. Jones could have had a new car. but decided to stick with the "old buggy" because it handled so perfectly.

It was also a great victory for J. C. Agajanian. Jones’ car owner, whose only other previously winner was driven by Troy Ruttman in 1952.


Results –


1. Parnelli Jones
2. Jim Clark
3. A.J. Foyt
4. Rodger Ward
5. Don Branson
6. Jim McElreath
7. Dan Gurney
8. Chuck Hulse
9. Al Miller
10.Dick Rathmann
11.Dempsey Wilson
12.Troy Ruttman
13.Bob Christie
14.Ebb Rose
15.Roger McCluskey
16.Bobby Marshman
17.Eddie Sachs
18.Paul Goldsmith
19.Lloyd Ruby
20.Eddie Johnson
21.Chuck Stevenson
22.Jim Hurtubise
23.Duane Carter
24.Jim Rathmann
25.Bobby Grim
26.Bob Veith
27.Allen Crowe
28.Bud Tinglestad
29.Johnny Rutherford
30.Elmer George
31.Art Malone
32.Johnny Boyd
33.Bobby Unser