Remembering; Johnny Johnson of Morning Sun, Iowa

Johnny Johnson of Morning Sun, Iowa, with his trademark cigar, gets ready to race in 1981. - Kyle Ealy Collection

Johnny Johnson takes some hot laps around the track that he brought to prominence, 34 Raceways in West Burlington, Iowa in 2004. - Kyle Ealy Collection

Remembering When: Don Carr dominates at the Florida State Fair

Indianapolis' Don Carr, behind the wheel of the Pete Mocca C2, would dominate the IMCA Winternational Sprints in 1958. - Photo courtesy of Bob Lawrence/Kansas Racing History

By Lee Ackerman Omaha, Neb. - In 1921 the International Motor Contest Association (IMCA) started racing Big Cars at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa during the Florida State Fair. That tradition of starting the season during the Florida State Fair would continue through the 1975 season. The February races at the fair would come to be known as the “Winternationals.” 

The races came to be promoted by Al Sweeney and his National Speedways Inc., one of two organizations that promoted IMCA races. Entering the 1957 season, veteran Bobby Grim of Indianapolis, Indiana had won the last two IMCA Big Car championships behind the wheel of Hector Honore’s soon to be legendary Black Deuce. 

At the 1957 Florida State Fair races another Indianapolis native, Don Carr had won two of the four races, finished second in two others and had finished third in Big Car points. Carr had now moved his residency to St. Petersburg, Florida and would be behind the wheel of the Peter Mocca #C2 or Circle Deuce. The two drivers would once again dominate the Florida State Fair races in 1958. 

The 1958 IMCA racing season kicked off at the Florida State Fairgrounds on February 5. Kirkwood, Missouri’s Eddie Loetscher behind the wheel of the Art Alexander Offy set fast time of 26.48 seconds with Carr right behind at 26.75 seconds. The three heats were won by Ken Rubright in the Heath Chevy, Chuck Marshall in the Helm Offy and Carr in the Mocca Offy. Rubright turned the 7 laps in 3 minutes 19.73 seconds which would be the fastest heat race of the four-race meet. Bobby Grim won the match race over Carr and Loetscher and Bob Tattersall took the consolation. 

In the 15-lap feature, Don Carr put on a driving exhibition lapping all but four of the sixteen starters in the feature event. Bobby Grim and Eddie Loetscher put on a battle for second spot with Grim taking the honors and Loetscher settling for third. Buzz Barton and Jerry Blundy rounded out the top 5. 

Three days later on February 8, they held round two and the results would turn out the same, in fact the top 3 in the feature would be identical to the first show. Buzz Barton, 1957-point runner-up, Jack Packard and Jerry Kemp would take home heat wins. Bobby Grim would once again take the match race and Carr would make the 20-lap feature by winning the consolation race. Once again, Carr had the Peter Mocca Circle Deuce humming as he dominated the 20-lap feature. Grim and Loetscher would once again finish second and third with Jim Hurtubise fourth and Jerry Blundy fifth. 

Round three of the Florida State Fair races were scheduled for February 11, but Mother Nature thought differently, and the rains came. Al Sweeney and his group rescheduled the races for Valentine’s Day, February 14. 

Valentine’s Day turned out to be an unusually chilly day and that certainly dampened the size of the crowd, but it did not dampen the spirits of one, Bobby Grim. Grim was determined to avenge his two losses to Carr and he and the Honore Offy proved that they were up to the task. Bob Tattersall in the Leo Melcher Chevy, Buzz Barton in the Buzz Barton Offy and Jim Packard in the Ed Lowther Offy won the heats. Jerry Blundy in the Lyle Hyneman Offy won the match race and Eddie Loetscher had to settle for a win in the consolation race. 

In the 20-lap feature, Don Carr grabbed the early lead but Bobby Grim was on a mission and took over the point before the end of the first lap. Grim would sail on to the win in 9 minutes 51.54 seconds while Carr would fade back in the field. Johnny Pouelsen in the C. H. Perdue Offy would get by Carr on lap 15 and the Jim Hurtubise would push the Bill Leach Chevy by Carr on lap 19. Pouelsen would finish second, Hurtubise third; Carr would wind up fourth with Jerry Blundy finishing fifth for the third straight time. 

A little over 4,500 fans would turn out for the IMCA finale at the Florida State Fair on Saturday, February 15. They would witness a battle between a home-towner and a transplanted Floridian. Heats would go to Jim Packard, Buzz Barton and Bob Tattersall. Grim won the match race and Tampa’s Rex Records won the consolation race in the Sherk Offy. Thoughts of a Carr-Grim battle for the win went away in the first lap of the feature when Grim spun out in turn one of the first lap. 

This left Tampa native Buzz Barton to battle with Carr the transplanted Floridian. Carr would lead throughout the 25-lap feature with the exception of lap 23 when Barton banged wheels with Carr and grabbed the lead. Carr however closed the gap and regained the point on the next lap when Barton got in the loose dirt. Carr would go on to grab the win followed by Barton, Hurtubise, Blundy and Tattersall. 

Don Carr and the Pete Mocca Offy had dominated the Florida State Fair races. Carr would leave Tampa with a solid points lead over second place Grim, Carr with 440 points and Grim with 340 points. 

However, thoughts of Carr unseating Grim for the IMCA championship would quickly fade once action resumed in May. After a win by Vern Chamberlain at Huron, South Dakota on May 25, Bobby Grim and Hector Honore would have the Black Deuce humming and they would win the next six races in a row and go on to win their third straight IMCA Championship. 

Don Carr would use his great showing at the Florida State Fair as a springboard to finishing a distant second in points to Grim.

1956 – 1970: The USAC Champs at Du Quoin

A.J. Foyt of Houston, Tex., would win the Ted Horn Memorial a record 5 times (1960, '61, '63, 64, and '67). - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

By Kyle Ealy
Du Quoin, Ill. – Labor Day Weekend and grass-roots racing have gone hand in hand for many a year.

The casual race fan usually doesn’t have to look hard to find a race to their liking. Some of the biggest races of the year tend to fall on this three-day vacation.

Probably the biggest Labor Day racing tradition will be entering its 63rd year and it’s still going strong. It’s one of the longest running events in racing, not only in the Midwest but the United States.

On September 4, 1948, a 100-lap race was launched at the historic dirt mile of the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds. It was an AAA-sanctioned event with Lee Wallard, driving a "speedway-type" car, winning the race in 1 hour, 7 minutes and 53 seconds (88.381 mph). Myron Fohr finished second and third place went to Ted Horn.

The 38-year-old Horn was a very successful driver having won the AAA national championship two times and he was very popular with race fans. It was said that Horn always carried “lucky” coins in his shoes as a good luck charm on the days he raced.

Ted Horn's good luck coins, which he had carried in hundreds of races failed him a little more than a month later, on October 10th, when he crashed his race car at Du Quoin and was killed instantly. It was said that when hospital attendants removed Horn's left shoe, his "lucky" dime dropped to the floor. Two pennies he carried in his right shoe wore lost when that shoe was torn from his foot in the crash. Despite his death, Ted Horn clinched his third national title.

In 1951, Du Quoin State Fairground officials decided to name the race, the Ted Horn Memorial in honor of the fallen hero. Still AAA-sanctioned, Tony Bettenhausen would win the event. Ironically, Bettenhausen would lose his life in 1961 and in his honor, have a race named after him.

The event remained AAA-sanctioned until 1955, when they ceased racing competition due to the tragic racing accidents of some of their top stars, including Bill Vuckovich. For the 1956 season, the national championship was taken over by a new sanctioning body formed by the then-owner of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Tony Hulman. It was called the United States Auto Club (USAC).

And that’s where this story begins….

With USAC taking over, the Ted Horn Memorial, already a reputable race, became one of the biggest events in the nation with some of the biggest stars, nation-wide, coming to Du Quoin, Ill., every Labor Day Weekend to see who could tame the one-mile dirt oval.

Jimmy Bryan would win the first USAC-sanctioned Ted Horn Memorial. - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

On Monday, September 5, 1956, hard-driving Jimmy Bryan of Phoenix, Ariz., who was seeking his second national championship in three years, won the 100-mile Ted Horn Memorial. Bryan took the lead on the 33rd lap when Johnny Thomson of Boyertown, Pa., lost control of his car momentarily on a curve, allowing Bryan to pass by and then stay in front for the remainder of the race. Thomson would settle for second, about half a lap behind the winner who collected a healthy $3,665.

The next year, it was hard-driving, hard-drinking pilot who wowed the record crowd of over 15,000 and his fellow drivers on the “Mile”. Jud Larson of Kansas City, Mo., piloting the John Zink Special, won the 100-mile race after setting a new qualifying record in time trials.

Larson’s time for the 100-lap dirt track event was one hour, 5 minutes and 58.29 seconds – only a minute off the record set by Jimmy Bryan the year before. This all happening despite the fact the field was under the caution flag twice due to accidents. The biggest mishap eliminated both two-time former winners in this event, Bryan and Tony Bettenhausen.

Johnny Thomson would finish the race in the same spot as the year before, second place. Rodger Ward of Los Angeles, who led the first 52 miles, finished third, despite a broken shock absorber. It should be noted that a 21-year-old driver from Houston, Texas would qualify badly and not make the field that day. The young man’s name was A.J. Foyt - but he would be heard from again.

The next year, Johnny Thomson decided that the bridesmaid role was not for him and in a thrilling finish, won the Ted Horn Memorial on September 1st. Thomson took the early lead on a dusty Du Quoin track only to lose it to Tony Bettenhausen on the 57th circuit. Betterhausen stayed ahead until lap 97 when Thomson edged ahead of him and won by just a few feet at the finish line.

Johnny Thomson shed the bridesmaid role and won the 1958 Ted Horn Memorial. - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

Thomson, in the D-A Lubricant Special, averaged more than 97 mile per hour in the event, which was witnessed by 15,000 fans. Following Thomson and Bettenhausen to the checkers was Don Branson of Urbana, Ill., piloting the Hoover Motor Express. So close was the racing action on this day, a spread of seven seconds separated the first six finishers.

When the Labor Day spectacular rolled around in 1959, Rodger Ward was already the talk of the racing world, having won the Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day. When Ward left Du Quoin, he added the Ted Horn Memorial to his bags of titles.

Ward, steering the Watson D-3 Offy, took the lead at the green and never look back, leading all 100 laps. He finished 7 seconds ahead of second place finisher Don Branson and Tony Bettenhausen. The 38-year-old veteran of Speedway, Ind., received $5,450 of a $20,000 plus purse. A record-breaking crowd of over 22,000 packed the grandstands to take in the action.

Rodger Ward would win both the Memorial Day and Labor Day events on the USAC circuit in 1959. - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

In 1960, Jim Packard, making his first appearance at Du Quoin, won the hearts of 17,000 champ car racing fans on Monday afternoon, September 5th even though he would finish fifth. Packard, out of Speedway, Ind., raced high on every turn with such reckless abandon that he wore out his right rear tire in 75 laps and had to make a pit stop which cost him the lead and the race.

Even after his pit stop, Packard kept racing as if he had a chance to win. He came out of the north turn so hard one time that he banged into the rail and sent railbirds scattering away from the fence. Packard kept his car under control and zoomed on down the home stretch.

Remember that kid named Foyt? Never worse than third position from start to finish in the race, A.J. moved into the lead by a process of elimination as first Don Branson and then “Mr. Thrill-A-Mile” Packard faded from contention. Once in the lead, he finished almost a lap ahead of runner-up Tony Bettenhausen. Driving the Bowes Seal Fast Special, Foyt collected first place money totaling $4,165. Don Branson shattered the qualifying record of 35.57 seconds with a 34.46 clocking that figured out to 104.47 mph.

Foyt had never won a champ car race until his win at Du Quoin. He went on to win the national driving title that year with the Du Quoin track eventually his stepping stone to stardom.

On September 4, 1961, a record crowd of 25,000 fans saw the defending champion jump into the lead as track announcer Ed “Twenty Grand” Steinbeck called the start. Foyt slipped by Jim Hurtubise of Lennox, Calif., in the first quarter-mile and he was only headed once after that. Parnelli Jones of Torrance, Calif., was Foyt’s top threat. After Foyt's car developed magneto issues on the 75th lap, Jones slowly closed the gap and grabbed the lead on the 86th lead. Jones' command was short-lived however.

Motor trouble forced Jones to the pit on the 90th lap while he was a quarter-mile ahead of Foyt. A.J. regained the lead and Jones, who seemed on his way to an easy victory before the misfortune, never was able to get back into the race. Foyt averaged 94.24 miles per hour en route to the $4,837 winner's share of the record purse. Second-place Shorty Templeman of Seattle, Wash., banked $3,483 and Eddie Sachs of Allentown, Pa., who came in with a solid third place, collected a $1,935 payoff.

The 1962 event was rained out, so Foyt had to wait another year to defend his title. On September 2, 1963, Foyt became the first three-time winner of the 100-mile Labor Day classic winning the race in the time of 1 hour and 3 minutes. Foyt set a breath-taking pace to cut more than 19 seconds off the one, hour, 3 minutes and 19 second mark set by Johnny Thomson in 1958.

The Texan had to go all out to catch Rodger Ward, who took the pole position with a 34.17 second qualifying time, which lowered the record of 34.46 set by Don Branson of Champaign in 1960.

After Jim Hurtubise unsuccessfully tried to grab the lead from Ward on the first turn, Ward streaked ahead of the open field to build up a huge lead, which he held for 43 laps. Foyt, starting from the fifth position, was close enough to touch Ward's car after 35 laps and dogged him on every turn until he got the lead in the north turn on the 43rd lap. Foyt then lengthened his lead steadily to as much as three quarters of a mile and won with out any threat from Ward to regain the lead. Foyt's only worry came in the closing laps when his fuel supply was running-low.

Foyt won $5,587 of the record purse of $22,350 before a crowd, which was some 2,000 short of capacity. Ward collected $3,799 for second, Chuck Hulse $2,458 for third, Bob Marshman $1,620 for fourth and Branson $1,341 for fifth.

The 29-year-old Foyt returned on September 7, 1964 and successfully defended his Horn Memorial title, scoring his record fourth victory. The Texan reached an all-time peak in auto racing by becoming the first driver in history to win $200,000 in purses in a season.

Foyt won the 100-mile big car event with a wire to wire blazing first place time of one hour, 1 minute and 21 seconds to lower his own race record of last year. He wheeled his Sheraton - Thompson Special around the mile Du Quoin dirt oval at a clip of 97.8 miles per hour.

Only Bobby Marshman of Pottstown, Pa., driving the Hopkins Special, gave Foyt any competition as the two drivers lapped the entire field. Marshman was never in a position to pass the front-running Foyt and finished five-eighths of a mile behind at the 100-mile mark.

Don Branson of Champaign, Ill., set a new qualifying record of 33.95 seconds to win the pole position. Branson's pole advantage lasted only a few seconds. He slowed momentarily coming out of the first turn and both Foyt and Marshman sped by him. The race continued to it’s conclusion with Foyt, Marshman and Branson running one-two-three on each lap.

It was time for someone needed to knock Foyt off his perch and on September 6, 1965, Don Branson, the 45-year-old grandfather, finally ended Foyt's four-time domination of the event.

Branson grabbed the lead from Foyt on the fourth lap and doggedly held his position for 30 more laps as Foyt stayed right behind him but could not pass. A.J. went to the pits for a change of his right rear tire on the 34th lap. He fell one full lap behind Branson and lost all hope of catching him as Foyt had to make another pit stop on the 60th lap to change the right rear tire again.

Don Branson of Champaign, Ill., broke A.J. Foyt's four-win stranglehold on the Ted Horn Memorial with an impressive victory in the 1965 race. - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

Branson negotiated the entire 100 laps without a pit stop. The 16,000 fans saw the slowest time in 12 years as Branson's time of 1 hour, seven minutes and 34 seconds or 88.792 miles per hour was the first time the race had gone under 90 miles per hour since 1953.

The field of 18 was almost 100 percent Offenhausers, which had dominated the Indianapolis 500 for years until Jim Clark of Scotland won the 1965 race in a rear-engine Lotus Ford. There was one Chevy and most notably, one rear-engine Chevy in the starting lineup.

The rear engine car was a complete flop, not that wasn't expected on a mile dirt track. Driver George Morris of Indianapolis had the slowest qualifying time of 43.00 seconds and got to start only because his was the 18th car ready to race after three other faster qualifiers were withdrawn. Morris did not last even one full lap as he pulled into the infield without crossing the finish line once.

Every big racing event can usually boast of one upset and the 1966 race would probably be categorized as that...

Bud Tingelstad of Indianapolis, Ind., won the 100-mile big car race at Du Quoin on Monday, September 5th as 19,000 fans watched local favorite Arnie Knepper of Belleville, Ill., bow out of the race late with engine trouble. Nobody had come close to challenging Knepper until engine failure sent him to the pits on the 88th lap. He would settle for 11th place.

Bud Tingelstad would score the upset victory at the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds on September 5, 1966. - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

Tingelstad, no better than the 12th fastest qualifier in the 18-car race, captured his first major big car event and the $5, 000 first place money by means of steady rather than spectacular driving. He had his Federal Engine Special no better than seventh after 40 laps. He moved to fourth at 60 miles, third at 80 miles and second at 83 laps.

The elimination of Knepper put him up front and he breezed home easily when his chief contender and defending champ, Don Branson, blew a tire on the 91st lap.

Four-time Horn winner, A, J. Foyt, was a surprise added starter in the same Sheraton- Thompson Special with which he won at Du Quoin twice but he could finish no better than seventh. Bobby Unser of Albuquerque, the fastest qualifier in 34.10 seconds, held the lead for 23 laps until Knepper, charging up past Branson and Foyt in successive laps, slipped past Unser on the inside of the north turn to take the lead.

A.J. Foyt didn’t enjoy seeing someone else in victory lane and for the past two years at Du Quoin, that’s what he saw. The fiery Texan who thinks first is the only proper place for him to finish, toyed with the field on Monday afternoon, September 6, 1967 to win the 100-mile event by half a mile over runner-up Mario Andretti.

Andretti was one of several newcomers who had been threatening to take the spotlight away from A.J., until Foyt won his third Indy 500 on Memorial Day Weekend and then took his record fifth Ted Horn Memorial crown on Labor Day.

Fast qualifier Bobby Unser and Jim McElreath sat on the front row, but both had problems early. Unser went into a spin leaving the south turn on the second lap but got back on track to finish sixth. McElreath went out after 34 laps, never to return.

With the two fastest qualifiers off the pace, the first half of the race was a dog fight between race leader Roger McCluskey and Foyt. McCluskey went high in each turn with Foyt parking his Sheraton-Thompson Special inside to bring a thrill at every turn.

McCluskey withstood the pressure until the 44th lap when Foyt finally got past him. Andretti, after working his way from his 11th starting position, harassed McCluskey on the 48th lap and set out to challenge Foyt. The "Little Italian" from Nazareth, Pa., was no match for Foyt, however, as the latter gradually drew away to a half-mile advantage.

The Italian would get his revenge on September 1, 1968. Andretti withstood a final 15-mile challenge by his arch-nemesis to win before an estimated 18,400 fans. The leader of the race since the eighth lap, Andretti saw an 8 to 10 second lead almost completely disappear as Foyt nearly overtook him on the front stretch of the 86th lap.

The "Little Italian" Mario Andretti would win the 1968 Ted Horn Memorial outdueling A.J. Foyt. - Bob Scott Photo/Bob Mays Collection

The two ran neck and neck for the inside position for the next five laps until Andretti slowly widened his lead by three car lengths. Foyt’s final hopes for victory flickered as he hit one of the track's many large chuckholes coming out the first turn on lap 99. Andretti then slowly pulled away, winning $5,700 of the $24,100 purse. Early leader Bill Vuckovich would finish third behind Andretti and Foyt.

On Labor Day Weekend of 1969, Foyt would see victory lane once again…in the USAC stock car 100-miler on Sunday, August 31st. He would come up short in the champ car event on Sunday afternoon in what would be a wild finish with only a few laps left.

Foyt, Mario Andretti and Al Unser had been running in a tight blanket for 20 laps when they hit the north turn with only four miles to go. There was no reason to suspect the cars would not finish in that order.

That is when Jerry “Scratch” Daniels, one of 30 also runs still circling the track in search of that extra $50 for a higher finish than the next guy, ran out of gas. Instead of getting out of the way of the front runners, Daniel’s decided to coast toward the pit area. He cut in front of the charging Foyt, who had to brake his car to avoid Daniels.

Al Unser shot to the inside of the track entering the straightaway in front of the grandstand and Andretti came right with him in the middle with Foyt on the outside. They came across the finish line like trotting horses coming down the stretch.

All three cars hit the south turn side by side and Unser, on the inside, took the lead with Andretti second and Foyt third. Only the excellent driving skills of three great drivers prevented a pileup as the cars were tail pipe to tail pipe.

Foyt's right rear tire was already wearing badly, and he could make no run for the lead over the final three laps. Andretti could not get past Unser and the 1968 Indianapolis 500 winner held on to edge this year's Indy champion, Andretti, by a car length.

Sportswriter Merle Jones of the Southern Illinoisan mentioned in his column; “A. J. Foyt probably felt like leaning out of his car and taking a swing at fellow driver Jerry Daniels after the 100-mile big car race at Du Quoin Monday. Then after a cooling off period, Foyt may have felt more like taking a few slugs of sour-mash Jack Daniels.”

Bobby Unser took the initial lead in the $27, 900 event with Andretti second and Foyt third coming out of the first lap. That is the way they raced for 30 miles until Foyt took the lead. It was anybody's race as Foyt, Andretti, Al and Bobby Unser raced in a blanket for almost 70 laps.

Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser gunned his Johnny Lightning Special to a seven-second win over his brother Bobby at the Ted Horn Memorial on September 7, 1970.

Unser, the Albuquerque, N.M. hot shot, was never seriously challenged in the final 50 laps of the race after A. J. Foyt lost control of his car and sailed over a wall on the third turn. Foyt was brought back to the pits in an ambulance but got out and limped around as the crowd gave him a standing ovation.

Before the accident, Foyt and Unser dueled wheel-to-wheel. Unser, sitting in the pole position, led for 12 laps before Foyt passed him on the 13th lap. Larry Dickson of Marietta, Ohio was running third.

After 25 laps of the 100-lap event, the race was still close as only a quarter of a lap separated the first six cars - Foyt, Unser, Dickson, Johnny Rutherford, Gary Bettenhausen and Bobby Unser.

Foyt began lapping the field on the 28th lap with only 11 of the 18 starters left in the lineup. Unser regained the lead on the 36th lap and steadily began pulling away from Foyt until the Houston, Tex. driver hit the wall at the halfway point.

Unser's winning time of 1 hour, 1 minute and 7.66 seconds was a new race record. The old record of 1 hour, 1 minute, and 21 seconds was set by Foyt in 1964. The winner's share of the $33,000 purse was worth $8,300.

Al Unser was a two-time Ted Horn Memorial winner, having won both the 1969 and 1970 events. - Bob Scott/Bob Mays Collection

In 1971, the United States Auto Club made the decision to cut the dirt tracks from the National Championship series making it all pavement for the first time since 1927. A separate, new division appropriately named the Champ Dirt series was formed.

Even with the new format, one thing did not change: on the first Monday of September, the 100-mile race on the dirt at Du Quoin. Through the 70’s, more drivers added to the legend; George Snider, Tom Bigelow, Bubby Jones, Duane “Pancho” Carter, Gary Bettenhausen and Rich Vogler all have their name etched on the trophy.

In 1981, the Champ Dirt series was renamed to what we know as today, the Silver Crown Series.

While the names of the cars have changed, one thing has remained consistent. On Labor Day each year, the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds is where the champs are.

1970 - Ernie Derr; "Winning Gets Tougher"

Keokuk, Iowa – Ernie Derr figures it isn’t too difficult winning a championship. The tough part is defending it.

Derr should know…

He just completed his 20th campaign as a race car driver. Last year, he won his fifth consecutive driving title in the International Motor Contest Association and his 10th overall crown in what has become a legendary career.

“It gets tougher as the years go by,” Derr admitted. “Good young drivers show up every year, learning the tricks of the trade and then go on to bigger things. I’ve seen a lot of them come and go.”

Derr, who hails from Keokuk, Iowa, a community noted for producing numerous good drivers, has no plans to retire.

“I enjoy racing, and as long as I have good health and reflexes, I’ll continue to race. I expect to be driving at least three or four more years and if I’m still in good shape, stick with it.”

Derr made shambles of the IMCA circuit last season, competing in 30 events and taking the checkers 25 times. He compiled 3,920 points to 2,480 for second place finisher Fred Horn of Marion, Iowa.

He doesn’t know how many races he’s won in a career that started back in 1950.”Somewhere over 250, probably,” he said. “The records of some wins were lost when the headquarters building at one of the sanctioning bodies burned down.”

He expects the 1970 season to be his toughest ever. For one thing, a new rule change has left IMCA promoters hopeful that the circuit will be it’s most competitive ever. Unlike the past year when stock cars up to four years old were eligible to compete, the new rules states that cars cannot be older than three years.

The new rule change doesn’t bother Derr, however. “I’ll be back in a 1970 Dodge Charger. The 426 cubic hemi is a proven engine and the handling characteristics makes it almost unbeatable on short tracks.”

Derr also credits some of his success to his knowledge of the IMCA-sanctioned tracks. “I’ve run them all, dozens of times, and except for the normal changes that come from the weather and normal track use, I know every bump, every dip. It takes a while for drivers to learn these things.”

As for possible retirement, Derr confessed that his future depends on the racing careers of his two sons. Mike, 21, a senior at Northeast Missouri State Teacher’s College, will graduate in the spring with a degree in business education. Steve, 20, is a student at the same school and is also an education major.

Both want to follow in their dad’s footsteps on the track. Mike competed in his first IMCA events this past year.

“Mike looked awfully good in the two races he ran,” Ernie beamed. “I’d like him to race during the school year, but its difficult trying to study, take exams and then run off to a race track. I don’t want him to miss any credits; it’s more important for him to finish his education. He’ll have a lot of time to race later on.”

Mike’s two races were at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines and he came in fourth in both events.

Steve has yet to compete in a sanctioned event, but Ernie is hopeful the youngster will get into action in 1970. He’ll make is debut on dirt tracks around the Keokuk area.

The boys have been around racing all their lives. Aside from following their father all over, their uncle, Don White, is one of the nation’s top drivers, having won the United States Auto Club stock car championship in 1968.

The First and the Last IMCA Stock Car Races

Bob McKim of Salina, Kan., won the very first IMCA-sanctioned stock car race on May 30, 1949, in Topeka, Kansas. - Photo courtesy of Bob Lawrence/Kansas Racing History

by Lee Ackerman

Omaha, Neb. - In 1915 a gentleman by the name of J. Alex Sloan created a new racing series called the International Motor Contest Association. Known for many years for Big Car Races, the series would start a stock car division in 1949. Actually the first IMCA Stock Car was said to have been held on November 9, 1947 in Lubbock, Texas but no documentation of the race is available.

On May 30, 1949 at the Mid-America Fairgrounds in Topeka, Kansas, the International Motor Contest Association held its first documented Stock Car Race. While there is not a lot of information available on this race, we do know that the 200-lap race was ran on a slippery race track and took 2 hours and 20 minutes to complete. Bob McKim of Salina, Kansas, known more as an open wheel driver piloted a 1949 Oldsmobile '88 owned by Abilene, Kansas Oldsmobile dealer, Ronald Rice to victory lane. The average speed for the race, a blistering 45 miles per hour.

Ray Rutman would finish second, a whopping 12 laps down. McKim and Rutman were the only competitors to complete the event without making a pit stop. Third place went to Eldon Burkholder of Duenweg, Missouri in his 1940 Mercury, also 12 laps down. Future IMCA promoter, Frank Winkley of Minneapolis, Minn., would finish fourth, 20 laps down in a car owned by his wife Verna and Ronnie James of Miami Beach, Fla., would round out the top five finishers, completing 170 of the scheduled 200 laps.

The IMCA Stock Car Series would go on to run somewhere between 12 and 15 races that first season. Eddie Anderson of Grinnell, Iowa was unofficially crowned the first IMCA national stock car champion.

The last IMCA Stock Car Race (called Late Models by 1977) of the old IMCA era would take place on September 10, 1977 at the World’s Largest County Fair, the Clay County Fair in Spencer, Iowa. Twenty-four cars entered the event with Jerry Holtkamp of Williams, Iowa setting quick time of 25.25 seconds on the big half-mile.

Heat race action saw Bill Wrich of Kennard, Nebraska win the first heat race over eventual 1977 series champion Kent Tucker of Aurora, Nebraska with Dick Elliott third. The second heat was won by Randy Sterner of Blair, Nebraska with Carroll, Iowa’s Frank Jorgensen second and Windsor, Missouri’s Shorty Acker in third. Mike Richardson won the third heat followed by Loren Theis and Gary Lindgren. The consolation event went to Kansas City, Missouri’s Bud Dibben with future late model star Bob Hill second and Steve Coe third.

Bill Wrich of Kennard, Neb., would win the last IMCA stock car race in Spencer, Iowa on September 10, 1977. - Kyle Ealy Collection

Crafty old veteran Bill Wrich took the lead from Bud Dibben on lap 16 of the 50-lap feature and went on to win the last ever IMCA Stock Car race. The then 41-year-old Wrich said that he had a problem early in the race in that he couldn’t get his tires heated up because of the numerous yellow flags at the start of the race. Wrich further explained that his tires were 7 years old and were of a harder compound than those normally ran in 1977.

Wrich was driving a 1974 Chevelle with a 454 cubic inch engine. Bill said that his car weighed about 600 pounds more than the Camaro’s that were running the same engine. He went on to say the track was a typical afternoon race track that was slippery and dusty.

Following Wrich at the line were Bud Dibben, 1977 series champion Kent Tucker, George Barton of Ankeny, Iowa, Jerry Holtkamp, Bob Hill and Randy Markley.

Between the first race in 1949 and the last race in 1977, the IMCA Stock Car Series would run over 600 events at tracks across the United States and Canada. For many years the series would start the season at the Louisiana State Fairgrounds in Shreveport in March and end the season back in Shreveport in October.

Many great stock car drivers raced in the series including "Mr. IMCA Stock Car" Ernie Derr of Keokuk, Iowa who won 328 IMCA stock car races and 12 series titles. Other series champions included Keokuk residents Don White (a three-time series champion and later the winningest driver in USAC Stock Car history), Dick Hutcherson a two-time series champion and later NASCAR star, and Ramo Stott, (many a time a runner-up in the series but later a two-time ARCA champion).

Other series greats included Johnny Beauchamp of Harlan, Iowa who teamed with veteran mechanic Dale Swanson and totally dominated the series in the 1956 & 1957. Beauchamp would later go on to lose the most controversial Daytona 500 in it's history in 1959. Beauchamp was awarded the win but it was later given to Lee Petty.

In the heyday of IMCA, crowds exceeded 20,000 at such series staples as the state fairs in Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska.

As the crowds dwindled at the state and county fairs and late model racing came in to its own, the series faded into the history books after providing race fans 29 years of great stock car racing.

The National Late Model Modified Stock Car Championships

By Kyle Ealy
Cedar Rapids, Iowa – In early 1963, a group of promoters and track owners formed a new racing group, the Mid-Continent Racing Association. The group elected Davenport racing promoter Homer Melton as their new president and it immediately paid dividends. Davenport, Tipton and West Union came aboard right away.

In 1964, things really started taking shape as Melton convinced both Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids and Tunis Speedway in Waterloo to leave the Cedar Valley Racing Association (which included Independence and Vinton) and jump on board with his group. With the addition of those two premier tracks, the MCRA was a strong presence in not only Iowa but bordering states Illinois and Minnesota.

After a successful first season at the helm in Cedar Rapids, Melton announced in November of 1964, a race like no other for next season. It was a race that would have MCRA-sanctioned drivers from a three-state area convene in the “Parlor City” for a year-end special event including a whopping $4,000 purse with $700 of that going to the winner of the 100-lap feature.

The first annual National Late Model Modified Stock Car Championships was set for Saturday afternoon, September 18, 1965.

The list of entries for the inaugural race sounded like a who’s who of auto racing. Headlining the race was recently crowned MCRA champion Darrell Dake of Cedar Rapids. Dake had clinched the point’s title at both Davenport and the Downs’ that year.

Even with his impressive list of accomplishments, Dake knew the competition would be tough. One driver in particular who had given Dake fits all season long was on his mind as the race drew near. “I’d really like to win this one,” the 39-year-old pilot said. “But I’ll probably have to beat the redhead from Waterloo. That “redhead” that Dake was referring to was none other than the Waterloo track champion, Luvern “Red” Droste.

In addition to Dake and Droste, another top threat was Buzz MCann of St. Paul, Minn., driving a 1964 “Hi-Riser” Ford owned by Rex Barker. McCann had just come off an impressive showing, taking a third-place finish behind Ernie Derr and Ramo Stott in the IMCA-sanctioned North Star 400 at the Minnesota State Fair.

Other top modified stock car drivers entered included Jerry Reinhart of East Moline, Ill., Dean Montgomery of Milan, Ill., Benny Hofer and Bob “Shorty” Bennett, both of Rock Island, Mike Murgic and Bill Mueller, both of Minneapolis, Cal Swanson of Reinbeck, Iowa, Charlie Moffitt of Stanwood, Iowa, Jim Gerber of Mount Joy, Iowa and MCRA rookie of the year, Bill McDonough of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The big race also included two drivers entered who had controversial engines under the hood of their car. Verlin Eaker of Blooming Prairie, Minn. was driving a hemi-powered 1959 Plymouth, while Bob Hilmer of Dysart, Iowa was behind the wheel of a 1957 Chevrolet powered by a new “396” engine.

Unfortunately for race fans, the Droste-Dake dual would never materialize. Droste had suffered broken ribs in a racing accident in Waterloo several weeks before and then just days before the big race, broke two fingers in another accident in Davenport. John Connolly of Delhi, Iowa, who had blown his motor in Davenport that same evening, was asked by Droste to fill in.

On September 18, 1965, the inaugural race took place on a cold and blustery day. Even with the uncomfortable conditions, 4,500 race fans packed the grandstands to see the very best drivers in the region.

After time trials, heat races and the consolation, it came to no surprise to see Darrell Dake sitting on the pole in his 1962 Ford convertible. True to form, Dake took the lead on the first lap in the accident-marred championship feature, and though hard-pressed at times, was never headed.

Benny Hofer bought the crowd to their feet when he put his 1955 Chevrolet right on Dake's bumper on the 98th lap and stayed there as they crossed the finish line in what was described by MCRA public relations director Tony Dean “as one of the most thrilling races ever held at Hawkeye Downs”. Finishing behind Dake and Hofer were a couple of Peoria, Ill., drivers, Don Bohlander and Herb Shannon, with Ray Guss of Milan, Ill., bringing up the top five.

A serious accident on the 72nd lap sent Buzz McCann to the local hospital where he was listed in fairly good condition with possible internal injuries. McCann slammed into Lyle McNull of Aledo, Ill., after McNull spun out in a cloud of dust on the second turn. McCann was then hit by Harry Odeen of Marion, Iowa.

The success of the 1965 race gave Melton no choice but to bring it back the next year. Melton did just that and decided to up the stakes with a $5,000 purse and a cool $1,000 going to the winner. Melton also made the race more of an “open competition” not just limited to MCRA pilots.

With the added purse and some of the restrictions lifted, the 1966 event brought some new faces. Minnesota was represented by the “Golden Gopher” Mert Williams of Rochester as well as the Minnesota state champion, Norm Setran. While fans and drivers were familiar with driving style of Williams, Setran brought an impressive resume to the race.

Although Setran was the top point man at two asphalt tracks, Elko Speedway and Twin City Speedway in Minneapolis, he brought little experience as far as dirt tracks were concerned. Another driver quite experienced on pavement but not on dirt was Ken Pankrantz of Mosinee, Wis. Pankrantz drove a 1960 Ford Thunderbrd.

With some new faces in the crowd, a total 72 drivers showed up on Sunday afternoon, September 11th to do battle including the defending champ Darrell Dake and most of the cast from last year’s event. It was another cold fall day but 7,200 race fans came out to see who had what it takes.

One gentleman who didn’t think he would be racing that day was Lee “Stub” Kunzman of Guttenberg, Iowa. Kunzman had totaled his car, a 1966 Chevy convertible, the night before. With no ride for the big race, Kunzman found one at the last minute in a 1964 Ford, owned and chauffeured normally by Buzz McCann of St. Paul.

After suffering some injuries a month ago, McCann was under doctor’s orders not to compete and things couldn’t have worked out better.

The outcome of the 100-lap feature produced a check for $1,000 to Kunzman and McCann, the largest chunk of change ever won in a single race by the popular 22-year-old.

“It feels great,” Kunzman said as he received the championship trophy from promoter Homer Melton. “Buzz’s car handled beautifully. It was real steady during the whole race.”

For the second year in a row, Benny Hofer finished second followed by Mert Williams and John Connolly of Delhi, Iowa

Kunzman and Hofer drove a drove a dandy of a race, even though the 100-lap spectacular started out as if it was a game of “catch us if you can” with front row starters Verlin Eaker and Darrel Dake, both of Cedar Rapids, setting the pace for the first 58 laps.

Eaker earned the pole position by setting a Downs record on the quarter-mile oval with a 16.67 seconds clocking during time trials in his hemi-powered 1965 Dodge. The previous mark of 16.89 was established by Mert Williams earlier this year. Dake also cracked the standard with 16.74 timing.

When the green flag waved to signify the start of the race, Eaker’s high-horsepowered ride shot out to the lead with Dake not far behind. Dake, hoping to defend his national championship successfully, charged into the lead on the 58th lap when Eaker's car began to heat up. Red Droste of Waterloo, one of the pre-race favorites and the top point guy in Waterloo, had already dropped out on lap 25.

Dake’s hopes to defend lasted only two laps when he was forced out with a slashed tire. Eaker regained the lead, but by this time, his car was smoking badly and it was obvious that he couldn’t keep the torrid pace much longer. On lap 65, the inevitable happened.

Johnny Beauchamp of Harlan, Iowa, who had started seventh but was now running second, dropped to the inside of the sagging Eaker and pulled into the lead followed by Kunzman and Hofer. Kunzman had started 10th in the feature and Hofer had even farther to move to the front, having started 20th.

For the next 30 laps, Beauchamp controlled the thrilling action in his ’55 Chevy. The ex-Daytona driver’s experience seemed to hold the difference in the long-distance contest. Beauchamp indeed looked untouchable and headed to victory.

On lap 95, however, coming out of turn four, Beauchamp’s cap on his right front tire broke, sending the multi-time IMCA national champion to the sidelines. Kunzman snapped into the lead and then held tight for the remaining four laps as Hofer was literally on his bumper as the checkers waved.

From no ride on Saturday night to victory lane on Sunday afternoon. Kunzman couldn’t have summed it up any better when asked what his thoughts were on his win, “I borrowed the ride of my life”.

The purse for the 1967 race was still the same, $5,000, with the winner receiving $1,000. But this season, an additional $500 in lap money was added to the race as well as a free trip for two to Miami, Fla., all added by area sponsors. The race was also moved from its previous cold September dates to a warmer day and month, July 24th.

In addition to the defending champion Kunzman there, more new faces were entered for the race this year including Lem Blankenship of Keokuk, Iowa, Jack Rebholz of Peoria, Ill., Ron Weedon of Pleasant Valley, Iowa, Tom Hughes Monticello, Iowa, Del Williams of Aledo, Ill., and Boyce Sparkman of Rockford, Ill.

With the success of the first two races, Melton and his public relations director, Tony Dean were expecting big things as the day approached. Over 70 drivers were pre-entered and with the date being moved to a warmer time of the year, another packed house was expected.

The day of the race, however, morning rains throughout Iowa and Illinois and the ever present threat of showers in Cedar Rapids no doubt affected crowd attendance as well as driver representation which was well below the official pre-entry list of 51 cars. Only 29 cars checked in and the crowd was at 3,345, which would have been spectacular for some tracks, but disappointing for Cedar Rapids.

Verlin Eaker, the current point leader at the Downs, started on the pole and led the entire 100-lap distance on the quarter-mile oval to capture the $1,000 first -prize money.

Verlin and his hemi – powered 1965 Dodge also walked off with the entire lap purse of $500 awarded on the basis of $5 per lap to the leader. As the race winner, Eaker also was awarded a free trip for two to Miami.

Eaker was never challenged on the dirt track which resembled asphalt even before the feature began due mainly to the heavy pounding of time trials and five previous events and a blistering 96 - degree temperature.

Eaker admitted after the race that he suffered a few “anxious moments” during the race. Eaker's “worries” began during the first 10 laps “when the engine started sputtering."

“I got worried when the fuel pressure wasn't up where it should have been,” he explained. “I think it stored up on me when I had to slow down to lap other cars.”

Second place finisher Dean Montgomery of Milan, Ill., provided more worries for Eaker even though Dean was almost lapped by Eaker in the event. “I knew he wasn’t too close to me. But every time I looked for him, I couldn’t find him. That worried me.”

Asked if he knew by how much he won, Eaker responded with a smile, “I have a pretty good idea.”

The famed Johnny Beauchamp of Atlantic, Iowa showed his driving skills by climbing from his 16th starting position to finish third, right on the bumper of Montgomery who started on the outside pole.

With about 22 laps to go in the feature, the former Daytona 500 star lost his brakes. “I thought I had a good chance of catching Montgomery until that happened,” Beauchamp said.

Fourth place in the feature was earned by Mert Williams of Rochester, Minn., while fifth went to Darrel Dake, the National winner in 1965. Last year's titlist, Lee Kunzman of Guttenberg, was never a factor and went out with engine trouble on the 25th lap.

Melton’s three-year contract he had signed with the All-Iowa Fairboard had expired and after the 1967 season, the heads of state decided to go another direction and brought in nationally-known promoter Frank Winkley of Minneapolis to take the reins.

A strong supporter of IMCA-sanctioned racing, Winkley ended Hawkeye Downs’ alliance with Mid-Continent Racing Association, ending any chance of a fourth annual event.

Before the race had an opportunity to grow and become an annual event for years to come, it was gone for good.

But for three years, the National Late Model Modified Stock Car Championships at Hawkeye Downs brought great drivers from near and far to compete and fans witnessed not only spectacular racing but some legendary names in victory lane.

Bob Welborn - The King of the Convertibles

Bob Welborn

by Lee Ackerman

Omaha, Neb. - In 1952 The Society of Autosport, Fellowship and Education (SAFE) was founded by Chuck Scharf. It started racing in the Chicago area but over the next couple of years expanded its operation. In 1955 the series toured the country as an all convertible series called the Circuit of Champions “All Stars.” In December of 1955 SAFE merged with NASCAR and in 1956 NASCAR started its own convertible series which ran through the 1959 season. When we look back on the NASCAR convertible series, one name comes to mind, Bob Welborn. Welborn was the King of Convertibles.

Bob Welborn of Denton, N.C., may have been too logical for his own good. He won the first NASCAR championship race ever held at the Daytona International Speedway. It was the first 100 mile preliminary championship. In winning, Welborn averaged 143.198 mph. At Daytona he never won much else.

Welborn started his NASCAR career racing modifieds at Bowman-Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem. Bobs’s first NASCAR Grand National event was on October 19, 1952 at Martinsville, Va., driving the J. O. Goode Plymouth he would finish 20th dropping out with steering problems. In 1953 he ran 11 Grand National events and recorded two top fives. In 1954 driving for several car owners he recorded only 1 top 5 and 3 top 10's. In 1955 driving for Julian Petty, Lee Petty’s brother, he started 32 of the 45 Grand National events and scored 9 top fives. He also picked up his first Grand National pole that year at Greenville, S.C.

It was in 1956 that Welborn found his niche in the newly formed NASCAR convertible series. Bob reasoned that the convertibles were going to take over the sport because the fans could see the driver. Bob got himself a Chevy factory ride when the company came into racing. Welborn would compete in 45 of the 47 events winning for the first time at the Champion Speedway in Fayetteville, N.C., on April 8, 1956 driving a 56’ Chevy. He would finish the season with 3 wins and the series championship. In 1956 Bob competed in only six Grand National events.

In 1957, behind the wheel of a 57’ Chevy, Welborn would once again rule the convertible series grabbing 9 poles while running all 36 events. He would win six times including 5 in a row and grab his second straight convertible series championship. Bob would compete in only 4 Grand National events in 1957 but driving his own car won his first Grand National event the Old Dominion 500 at Martinsville on October 6.

The Bob Welborn chauffeured #49 Chevrolet was a top runner in the NASCAR Convertible Series - Photo courtesy of Lee Ackerman

In 1958, still behind the wheel of a 57’ Chevrolet, he dominated the 19-race schedule in the convertible series grabbing 6 poles and winning 8 events and his third straight series championship. He also had a great year in the Grand National ranks racing in just 18 events he scored 5 wins behind the wheel of Julian Petty’s 57 Chevrolet winning at Fayetteville, Martinsville, Greensboro, Winston-Salem and Myrtle Beach.

By 1959 Welborn realized the convertible series was on its last legs having been rendered obsolete because of the superspeedways where the aerodynamics were simply not as good on convertibles. He did not compete for the title setting out the first two races and competing in only 11 of 15 events. Still in his faithful 57’ Chevy he won two more races and a pole. During his convertible series career Welborn competed in 111 events won 19 races, 18 poles and 3 of the 4 championships.

In the Grand National division that year he entered 29 of 44 events driving both a 57’ Chevy and a 59’ Chevy. He started the season with a bang wheeling Julian Petty’s 57 to a win in the season opener at Fayetteville. Then driving his own 59’ Chevy he won the 100 mile qualifier at Daytona to earn the pole. Unfortunately he retired after 75 laps with engine problems. Bob would record 5 poles that year winning 3 races as he added a late season win at Weaverville, NC.

From 1960 through 1964 Bob would race in 68 Grand National events scoring 14 top fives but no wins or poles. At the end of the 1963 season reasoning that racing at reached its plateau he retired He did run 3 races in 1964 with two top five finishes. Another reason was that he watched as his kind of race tracks disappeared and were replaced by the superspeedways. His forte was the short tracks and not the superspeedways. During his Grand National career he ran in 183 races scoring 9 wins and 7 poles. During his career he would hold over 20 track records in different divisions.

It is difficult to think of Bob Welborn without remembering the ever-present cigar in his month. That cigar was the key to the man. If it was small and frayed from chewing, Welborn had problems. If the cigar was new and full and he puffed on it, Welborn was doing well. But he was most dangerous when he held it in his fingers because even if he was talking he was also thinking and he had found an edge on you or other rivals.

In 1982, Bob was inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association’s Hall of Fame. He was also named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers. Bob passed away on August 10, 1997. One thing is for sure when you think of the NASCAR Convertible Series, the first name that comes to mind is Bob Welborn.

Bob Welborn racks up another win.