1969 - Liebe Cops Waterloo Season Title

Chub Liebe accepts his trophy after winning the 50-lap season championship at Tunis Speedway. - Ralph Roper Photo

by Bob Dixon

Waterloo, Iowa (September 7, 1969) – The 1969 racing season was brought to a close on Sunday at J.L. Tunis Speedway, with a veteran of many years on the dirt ovals, claiming the 50-lap season championship.

Jules "Chub" Liebe of Oelwein, Iowa, a former IMCA star, drove his usual steady race to win the 21st consecutive season finale.

The championship saw Karl Sanger of Waterloo, Iowa, jump from his outside front row position into the lead on the first lap, and began to pull away.

One of the pre-race favorites – and leader in the point standings, Curt Hansen of Dike, Iowa, had his hopes of a high finish washed away quickly, as internal engine injurie sidelined him for good after only five circuits.

Ty Burger of Cedar Falls, Iowa, who started on the outside of the second row, moved into second behind Sanger, and remained a strong contender until he left the race with what appeared to be a faulty water pump.

Sanger had built a comfortable lead when, on lap 19, Tom Hamilton of Independence, Iowa, spun on the fourth turn, and Sanger hit him, bending the tie rods on his 1964 Ford, and knocking his wheels out of alignment.

This shortened Sanger’s lead, as on the restart, the current runner-up, Liebe, got the jump on Sanger, and moved ahead to stay for the final 30 laps.

Lynn Idler of Ionia, Iowa, also proceeded to get past Sanger and after a hard-fought battle for seven or eight laps, moved his 1966 Oldsmobile past to secure second place.

Larry DeFrance of Marshalltown Iowa, leaving a steady stream of blue smoke from his 1966 Pontiac, also got by Sanger in the waning laps to claim third place.

Results –

1.    Chub Liebe, Oelwein

2.    Lynn Idler, Ionia

3.    Larry DeFrance, Marshalltown

4.    Karl Sanger, Waterloo

5.    Roger Klingfus, Waterloo

1959 – Folse dominates Nebraska State Fair races

Pete Folse and Hector Honore were a unbeatable team.

 

Lincoln, Neb. (September 6, 1959) – While other drivers were having their troubles, Pete Folse continued his domination of IMCA sprint car racing before a capacity crowd of 17,000 at the Nebraska State Fairgrounds on Sunday.

“Pistol” Pete was in the cockpit of Hector Honore’s powerful black Offenhauser and he swept the program; setting fast time, winning his heat and match race, and the 20-lap feature.

Other top names, notably 1949 Indianapolis 500 winner Bill Holland and Arnie Knepper, a leading contender this year, had difficulties.

Knepper’s car, flattened front and rear by a double flip at the Iowa State Fairgrounds last Sunday, was nursed through a couple of races and then broke the rear axle on the first lap of the feature.

Knepper got his car high up on the track and on turn three, jumped out and started to wave cars by. Bert Hellmueller of Louisville, Ky., and Harold Leep of Wichita, Kan., both spun attempting to avoid Knepper.

The spin caused a complete restart, which Folse won without further incident. The mustachioed Folse, of Tampa, Fla., took the lead immediately after getting the green flag from starter Gene Van Winkle, and held about a quarter-lap margin over Herschel Wagner of Hickman Hills, Mo., all the way.

Wagner, a feature winner last year, had no problem holding on to second place over Johnnie Poulsen of Gardena, Calif., Jerry Blundy of Galesburg, Ill., and Leep.

Holland’s troubles were an oil leak, which forced him out on the second lap of the first heat, the black stuff covering his trousers and spattering his goggles. His mechanics got the car going again for the third heat. He hung back for five laps, testing the car, and then pulled into the pits again. This time the trouble was a lack of gas. In the rush to fix the oil leak, the gas tank had gone unchecked.

Holland went back into the consolation race, and this time led all the way, winning the 10-lap grind. But he was not satisfied with the car’s performance and scratched from the feature.

Folse’s 5-lap victory in the match race provided the only new record of the day. His time of 2 minutes and 42 seconds bettered Bobby Grim’s 1957 mark of 2 minutes and 44 seconds.

Results –

Fast time – Pete Folse (29.75)

First heat – Pete Folse, Tampa, Fla.

Second heat – Colby Scroggins, Pasadena, Calif.

Third heat – Johnnie Poulsen, Gardena, Calif.

Match race – Pete Folse

Feature –

1.     Pete Folse

2.     Herschel Wagner, Hickman Hills, Mo.

3.     Johnnie Poulsen

4.     Jerry Blundy, Galesburg, Ill.

5.     Harold Leep, Wichita, Kan.

6.     Ken Gottschalk, St. Louis

7.     Jerry Shumaker, Wichita, Kan.

8.     Dale Reed, Wichita, Kan.

9.     Jimmy Jones, Norwalk, Iowa

10.  John Knox, Des Moines

1960 – Packard Thrills; Foyt Wins at Du Quoin

A.J. Foyt accepts his trophy after winning at Du Quoin. Promoter J.C. Agajanian (left) looks on with approval. - Bob Scott Photo

 

 

Du Quoin, Ill. (September 5, 1960) – Jim Packard, an exciting driver making his first appearance at the Du Quoin State Fair, won the hearts of 17,000 racing fans even though he finished fifth behind winner A.J. Foyt of Houston, Tex.

Packard, out of Speedway, Ind., and driving the Stearly Motor Freight Special from Collegeville, Penn., 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 the 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 the railbirds scattering away from the fence. Packard would keep his car under control and roar down the homestretch.

Foyt, driving the Bowes Seal Fast Special from Burlingame, Calif., collected first-place money of $4,165 with a time of 1 hour, 4 minutes and 16 seconds for an average speed of 93.67 miles per hour. The race was slowed for about 10 laps when Gene Force of Richmond, Ind., spun out of control on the north turn. The delay kept Foyt from breaking the race record of 1 hour, 3 minutes and 19 seconds set by Johnny Thomson in 1958.

Don Branson of Champaign, Ill., shattered the time trial record 35.37 seconds with a 34.46 second clocking that figured out at 104.47 miles per hour.

The first 25 miles were void of excitement as Branson, Lloyd Ruby, Foyt, Jim Hurtubise and Tony Bettenhausen held the first five spots. Rodger Ward, the 1959 Indianapolis 500 winner, got as close as sixth before leaving the race long before the halfway point.

Branson, ahead by as much as half a lap for the first third of the race, kept on the front for the first 50 miles, but Packard was roaring up from the rear as his daring maneuvers kept picking off one driver after another until he was running second.

Packard passed Branson in the south turn on lap 57 by going almost full throttle into the turn, taking the high side past Branson and then stepping on the gas to zoom ahead on the straightaway. Branson, who later said his motor was sputtering, was never a factor again and finished eighth.

It was Packard, Foyt, Hurtubise, Branson and Bettenhausen after 70 circuits with Packard pulling away so fast that he lapped fifth-place Bettenhausen on the 72nd lap. At this stage Hurtubise started slowing down and finished 13th.

Packard was racing well out front through 76 laps but was on very thin ice. His big right rear tire was worn to a frazzle and it finally gave way as he came out of the south turn. He made it to the pits, however, for a quick tire change but he was never a factor in a bid for the lead.

Foyt, who was never worse than third from start to finish, moved into the lead by process of elimination as first Branson then Packard faded from contention. Once in the lead, Foyt got a break when the caution flag flew, and the field had to hold their positions for 10 laps.

The winner finished virtually a lap ahead of runner-up Bettenhausen, who drove a steady but unspectacular race for second-place money despite the handicap of a burned right arm damaged when his car caught fire in Milwaukee last week.

Finishing behind Foyt and Bettenhausen were Al “Cotton” Farmer of Indianapolis, Eddie Sachs of Center Valley, Penn., Packard and Ruby.

The total purse for the race was $20,310.

Results –

1.     AJ. Foyt, Houston, Tex.

2.     Tony Bettenhausen, Tinley Park, Ill.

3.     Cotton Farmer, Indianapolis

4.     Eddie Sachs, Center Valley, Penn.

5.     Jim Packard, Speedway, Ind.

6.     Lloyd Ruby, Wichita Falls, Tex.

7.     Bobby Grim, Indianapolis

8.     Don Branson, Champaign, Ill.

9.     Johnny Thomson, Boyertown, Penn.

10.   Shorty Templeman, Seattle

1972 – California Invader Captures Eagle Championship Prize

California's Jimmy Boyd - Bob Pool Photo

 

Eagle, Neb. (September 4, 1972) – Jimmy Boyd, a 26-year-old Californian who had to be coaxed to stay in Lincoln another week, collected more than $1,500 Sunday night for winning Eagle Raceway’s 50-lap grand championship sprint car feature.

“I was ready to go back to San Jose,” said Boyd who was made his first Nebraska appearance the week before. He was en route back to California after competing in Pennsylvania since last May.

“I’m glad I decided to stay,” he added. “That’s the most money I’ve won in one race the whole season. We raced four or five nights a week in Pennsylvania and the best feature finish I had all summer was a fourth-place finish, which only paid $250.”

It was the money, Eagle’s $8,000 two-day purse that convinced Boyd to stay an extra week. “That,” said Boyd, “and a lot of people coaxing me.”

He and his wife of two weeks, the former Betty Opperman, stayed in Beaver Crossing, Neb., awaiting Eagle’s fifth annual national one-third mile dirt track championship.

Although it took two restarts before the feature was one lap old, Boyd made the 50-lap contest look effortless.

Driving a Freddie Kain chassis car, Boyd, who started on the fourth row, ran second behind Lincoln’s Lloyd Beckman for the first 3 laps.

He exchanged the advantage with Beckman the next two laps before gaining it for good on lap 6. Beckman, who started on the front row, finished second ahead of Thad Dosher of Topeka, Kan., and Dick Sutcliffe of Greenwood, Mo.

Sutcliffe probably not only had the fans fooled but the other drivers and car owners fooled in the pit area. He was driving Ed Smith’s #44 car with his own blue #19 body over it.

“The #19 engine blew this afternoon at the (Neb.) State Fair this afternoon,” confided Sutcliffe after pocketing $500 for the fourth-place finish. “My mechanics really worked their tails off.”

“A shock busted about the second or third lap of the feature,” he added, “but even if it didn’t I don’t think I could have caught Boyd the way he was moving.”

The red flag was dropped on the first lap of the main event when a car driven by Don Maxwell of Lincoln flipped three times in heavy traffic. Maxwell, who had been first time feature winner only a week ago, was not hurt.

Results –

Trophy Dash – Lloyd Beckman, Lincoln, Neb.

Heat One – Gerald Bruggeman, Hoskins, Neb.

Heat Two – Lloyd Beckman

Heat Three – Jimmy Boyd, San Jose, Calif.

Consolation – Don Droud, Lincoln, Neb.

B-Feature – Jim Golden, Palmyra, Neb.

Feature –

1.    Jimmy Boyd

2.    Lloyd Beckman

3.    Thad Dosher, Topeka, Kan.

4.    Dick Sutcliffe, Greenwood, Neb.

5.    Gerald Bruggeman

6.    Bert Sonner, Des Moines

7.    Dennis Oltman, Beatrice, Neb.

8.    Ray Lee Goodwin, Kansas City

9.    Lonnie Jensen, Lincoln, Neb.

10.  Jim Riggins, Lincoln, Neb.

11.  Gordon Woolley, Waco, Tex.

12.  Don Droud

13.  Larry Upton, Lincoln, Neb.

14.  Jerry Miller, Phoenix, Ariz.

15.  Vince Kelley, Omaha

1973 – Trickle in Minnesota 500

Dick Trickle

 

St. Paul, Minn. (September 3, 1973) – Tireless Dick Trickle of Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., became the second repeat winner of the Minnesota State Fair’s Minnesota 500 late-model sportsman race on Labor Day.

The only other repeat winner in the eight-year history of the event was Ernie Derr of Keokuk, Iowa, who won the event in 1966, ’68 and ’69.

The 31-year-old Trickle, driving his familiar purple and white 1970 Mustang, won by four laps over Mike Miller of New Prague, Minn., who was also driving a 1970 Mustang.

Trickle earned $4,000 of the $21,000 purse which was up for grabs in the first race sanctioned at the Fair by the National Association for Stock Car Racing (NASCAR). The attendance for the event was 10,629.

Starting in the second row behind Bob Jusola of Burnsville, Minn., and Jim Sauter of Necedah, Minn., Trickle took over the lead for keeps on lap 188. Twenty-four cars finished the race, a surprisingly large number. There was a total of 68 yellow flag laps, some of which were brought on by rain showers.

Trickle went to the pits a total of three times – the last time when the yellow was out on lap 401.

The winningest driver in the nation in 1972 with 67 feature wins, Trickle boosted his 1973 feature win total to 44.

Jusola gave Trickle a chase most of the day in his 1966 Chevelle before encountering mechanical problems and finishing eighth.

Results –

1.    Dick Trickle, Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.

2.    Mike Miller, New Prague, Minn.

3.    Marv Marzofka, Nekoosa, Minn.

4.    Rich Somers, Stevens Point, Wis.

5.    Jim Sauter, Necedah, Wis.

6.    Norm Setran, Bloomington, Minn.

7.    Larry Smith, Shakopee, Minn.

8.    Bob Jusola, Burnsville, Minn.

9.    Don James, Bloomington, Minn.

10.  Johnny Boegeman, Shakopee, Minn.

11.  Allen Ward, Elba, Minn.

12.  Mark Lamoreaux, Shakopee, Minn.

13.  John Scott, Onalaska, Wis.

14.  Jay Herbert, Bloomington, Minn.

15.  Sam Ard, Ansborough, N.C.

16.  John Rank, Milwaukee, Wis.

17.  Dan Prziborowski, Savage, Minn.

18.  Don Grant, LaCrescent, Wis.

19.  John Chrest, Hamel, Minn.

20.  Larry Behrens, Northfield, Minn.

1977 – Merryfield Gains Triple Crown Win

 

Harlan, Iowa (September 2, 1977) – If you had your money on one of the favorites to win the 50-lap feature on Friday night, you were holding a winning ticket.

The odds-on favorite to take his third special-program title in four appearances here in 1977 did just that. Joe Merryfield of Des Moines is just tough to beat.

Merryfield led from start to finish during the non-stop marathon to win the “Fall Finale” at Shelby County Speedway, taking the main event with room to spare over second-place finisher Curt Hansen of Dike, Iowa. Taking the top prize of $1,000, “Injun” Joe collected $250 in lap money as well.

Consistently staying low in the corners, Merryfield out sped the rest of the pack with relative ease. Hansen would pose the only problem for the race’s polesitter, but Hansen would get boxed in by lapped cars numerous times late in the race killing any chance for a late-race challenge.

Merryfield also left them in the shadows in two other races, winning the trophy dash and third heat.

Bill Wrich of Kennard, Neb., Merryfield’s partner on the front row, would settle for third place behind Hansen. Shelby County Speedway point champion Randy Sterner of Blair, Neb., was fourth.

Speedway officials made the big boys work for their cuts of $7,000 plus purse. The top four finishers in the heat races advanced to the A-main; the top two to the trophy dash, in which positions for the first five rows of the “A” field was determined.

Results –

Heat #1 – Bill Wrich, Kennard, Neb.

Heat #2 – Rex Nun, Lincoln, Neb.

Heat #3 – Joe Merryfield, Des Moines

Heat #4 – Al Humphrey, Giltner, Neb.

Heat #5 – Bill Kirk, Salix, Iowa

Trophy dash – Joe Merryfield

B-main – Dave Chase, Council Bluffs, Iowa

Feature –

1.     Joe Merryfield

2.     Curt Hansen, Dike, Iowa

3.     Bill Wrich

4.     Randy Sterner, Blair, Neb.

5.     Bill Kirk

6.     Bob Kosiski, Omaha

1963 – Nelson's Plymouths Steal Du Quoin Show

"The Great Dane" Norm Nelson proudly displays his trophy after winning at Du Quoin. 

 

Du Quoin, Ill. (September 1, 1963) – The Norm Nelson Plymouth team completely outclassed the field by finishing one-two in Sunday’s 100-mile USAC stock car championship before 20,100 state fair goers.

Nelson flashed by Johnny Shipman’s checkers a scant second ahead of Paul Goldsmith, who had won the last two stock car meets here. Curtis Turner and Don White, both driving Fords, edged out the new one-lap record holder, Herb Shannon, driving a Plymouth.

Shannon led the 28-car field for the first nine laps, most of which were under yellow. Lloyd Ruby cracked the outer rail on the south turn during the initial lap.

On the 10th circuit, Goldsmith, who replaced A.J. Foyt after the latter moved into the Zecol Ford, scooted past Shannon on the main stretch. His lead was short-lived, however, as Nelson edged Goldsmith on the very next circuit.

A foursome vied for the third spot as Shannon gave way to Rodger Ward, White and Parnelli Jones. By the 50th circuit, Jones had captured the coveted spot only to ultimately lose it when an empty fuel tank forced him into the pits. Curtis Turner improved his 11th starting position and overhauled the group by lap 55.

The day was dotted with mishaps. During hot laps, Foyt plowed into George Vuillemot’s spinning Pontiac, without any serious damage to either car. After the green following Ruby’s mishap, Lee Drollinger spun in the north turn. Three circuits later, Gary Bettenhausen spun in the same spot. On lap 35, Foyt, who wasn’t having a good day, spun in turn two but got restarted. However, three laps later, he called it quits for good.

The Nelson team had the field lapped after Jones moved into pits on lap 96. The twosome also grabbed $6,500 of the record $20,600 purse. Nelson’s share was $3,824, also a record for a winning driver.

Records commenced early in the day when Herb Shannon erased Paul Goldsmith’s two-year-old track record of 41.07 seconds. Shannon turned in a scintillating 40.44 mark on the dirt mile.


Results –

1. Norm Nelson
2. Paul Goldsmith
3. Curtis Turner
4. Don White
5. Herb Shannon
6. Rodger Ward
7. Parnelli Jones
8. John Rostek
9. Elmer Musgrave
10. Whitey Gerken