1972 – Stott Takes Davenport Invitational

Track announcer Roger Bear interviews NASCAR star Bobby Allison as feature winner Ramo Stott looks on after the 100-lap "Invitational" in Davenport. - B.E. Tappa Photo

Davenport, Iowa (June 6, 1972) – Ramo Stott – starting on the pole position and then dropping as far back as tenth – steadily worked his way back to the front and hung on for a victory in the 100-lap Mid-Continent Open Invitational at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds on Tuesday night.

Stott, another one of those famous drivers from Keokuk, Iowa, outdueled John Moss of Iowa City and NASCAR star Bobby Allison of Hueytown, Ala., for the $1,000 first prize.

Sonny Morgan of Blue Earth, Minn., and Ed Sanger of Waterloo nailed down the next two spots to round out the top five finishers.

The crowd of close to 6,000 came to see Allison, the winner of more than a quarter of a million dollars last season and he didn’t disappoint. But credit Stott and Moss, for that matter, with a fine job of driving to finish ahead of him.

“It was a tough haul,” grinned Stott, one of the leading drivers last season on the United States Auto Club stock car circuit and winner of three features at Hawkeye Downs Speedway thus far this season where he is racing regularly.

By posting the night’s fastest qualifying time, Stott started on the pole but lost it almost immediately.

“For a moment I thought I had a flat tire, so I backed off so I wouldn’t cause a wreck. I dropped back quite a few spots and thought I was done. During the first caution my crew signaled to me that I was fine, so I went full-throttle from there on.”

Stott eventually moved his way back through the field, getting by Moss for the top spot about three-quarters of the way through the race. For the final 25 laps, Stott fought off the charges of both Moss and Allison but managed to hold on for the victory.

Results –

Time trials – Ramo Stott, Keokuk, Iowa (
Trophy dash – Terry Bivins, Kansas City
Heat #1 – Ed Sanger, Waterloo
Heat #2 – Don Hoffman, Des Moines
Feature –
1. Ramo Stott
2. John Moss, Iowa City
3. Bobby Allison, Hueytown, Ala.
4. Sonny Morgan, Blue Earth, Minn.
5. Ed Sanger
6. Ron Perdock, Washington
7. Don Hoffman
8. Verlin Eaker, Cedar Rapids
9. Ron Weedon, Pleasant Valley
10. John Connolly, Delhi

1982 – Burgess wins ‘Nabbefeldt’ Twin 55’s

Steve Burgess

Wisconsin Dells, Wis. (June 5, 1982) – Steve Burgess of Eau Claire, Wis., thoroughly dominated the night’s racing program, setting fast time, and then winning both of the 55-lap Lyle Nabbefeldt Memorial main events.

His only loss of the night was in the trophy dash, which was won by Tom Reffner off Rudolph, Wis.

Reffner finished second to Burgess in the first 55-lapper followed by Steve Holzhausen of Bangor, Wis., Mike Miller of Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., and Jim Weber of Roseville, Minn.

In the second 55-lapper, early leader Marv Marzofka of Nekoosa, Wis., came in a close second to Burgess with Jim Sauter of Necedah, Wis., in third and Mike Miller and Tom Reffner farther back in fourth and fifth.

Marzofka jumped to a half-lap lead by the mid-point of the second feature, but a blown engine on lap 35 erased Marzofka’s comfortable margin, and two laps later, Burgess had the top spot for good.

Burgess takes possession of the Lyle Nabbefeldt Memorial traveling trophy for on year before returning to Dells Motor Speedway in 1983 to be contested again. Nabbfeldt, a veteran driver from Wisconsin Rapids, lost his life at the speedway in a racing accident in 1973.

The traveling trophies were the idea of the Nabbefeldt’s children. Mike Miller, the defending champion, relinquished the trophy at this year’s event.

In preliminary action, Mark Schultz of Wausau, Wis., Rich Lofy of Nekoosa, Wis., Tom Lichtfield of Montello, Wis., and Greg DeLapp of Mauston, Wis., were heat winners and Jim Dundey of Wausau, Wis., and Lofy won twin consolations.

Results –

Feature #1 –

1. Steve Burgess, Eau Claire
2. Ton Reffner, Rudolph
3. Steve Holzhausen, Bangor
4. Mike Miller, Wisconsin Rapids
5. Jim Weber, Roseville, Minn.
6. Kevin Stepan, Mosinee
7. Marv Marzofka, Nekoosa
8. Jim Sauter, Necedah
9. Tony Strupp, Slinger
10.Bob Gunn, Madison

Feature #2 –

1. Steve Burgess
2. Marv Marzofka
3. Jim Sauter
4. Mike Miller
5. Tom Reffner
6. Bob Gunn
7. Kevin Stepan
8. Jim Weber
9. Tony Strupp
10.Steve Holzhausen

1974 - Eaker Captures 3rd Straight Challenge Cup

Verlin Eaker accepts the five-foot-high trophy from Grand Marshall Lee Kunzman and Racestoppers Judy Michels (left), Cindy Voeltz, and Ann Vick, after he claimed his third straight Iowa Challenge Cup victory at Hawkeye Downs. - Tom Merryman Photo

Cedar Rapids, Iowa (June 4, 1974) - They may have to start calling it the “Eaker Cup.”

Whatever, Verlin Eaker continued his habit in the Iowa Challenge Cup stock car championship race by capturing the 4th annual classic Tuesday night at Hawkeye Downs before a crowd estimated at 6,000.

Eaker and his 1972 Nova led the final 29 laps of the 50-lap feature on the half-mile dirt track, en route to claiming his third Challenge Cup in a row.

The Cedar Rapids pilot also pocketed the lion’s share of the record $7,000-plus purse offered by the sponsoring Cedar Rapids Jaycees.

He won $1,580, including $1,000 for first place and $580 in lap prize money at $20 per lap.

Mindful that winning just one Challenge Cup “is nice”, Eaker said “winning three of them in a row gives me a great feeling. From where I started, I didn’t think I had a chance.”

“Other cars may have as much horsepower, but I think we out-chassised them tonight. Really, the car was working so good it made it look easy.”

Eaker started eighth in the 18-car field. But he was up to third by the ninth lap and had moved into second by the 11th tour.

Ron Weedon of Pleasant Valley was the man to catch at that point. By virtue of his top clocking of 25.51 seconds in time trials, he had earned the pole position and was setting a fast pace for the first 12 laps.

But on the 13th tour, Eaker and the rest of the field got a break when the second and final red flag allowed them to close on the restart. From that point on, Eaker was right on the bumper of Weedon’s 1973 Chevrolet.

By the 19th lap they were dueling wheel to wheel and were in a dead heat at the finish of lap 21. Eaker took Weedon on the backstretch of the next lap and six laps later Weedon was forced to drop out of the battle with a broken A-frame.

Eaker said the last restart was what he had hoped for. “I thought if I could close the gap and keep the pressure on him (Weedon), he’d make a mistake,” Verlin explained.

“I didn't think he could last the full 50 laps at the pace he was going.”

The restart also enabled Eaker’s crew to make a significant change during the lull.

He explained, “The nose had been pushing, so we took some weight out of it. We changed the wedge and then the car started drifting evenly.”

Eaker was not pressed after Weedon dropped out, but there was a jam-up battle for second place between Darrell Dake of Cedar Rapids and Ed Sanger of Waterloo.

In fact, they had gone at it for the entire race. Dake led from lap 38 until Sanger took over on lap 46. But Darrell and his 1972 Nova came right back on the ensuing lap to regain the number two spot and he stayed there the rest of the way.

Second-place money was worth $650, while Sanger picked up $550. Bill Zwanziger of Waterloo and Bill McDonough of Cedar Rapids rounded out the top five. McDonough is the Challenge Cup’s only other winner, having taken the initial race in 1971.

Sanger, McDonough, Bob Kosiski of Omaha, and Gordy Blankenship of Keokuk won the 10-lap heat events. Zwanziger topped the 6-lap trophy dash and Stan Stover of Reinbeck took the 25-lap consolation.


Results –


Fast time – Ron Weedon, Pleasant Valley (25.51)
Trophy dash – Bill Zwanziger, Waterloo
Heat #1 – Gordon Blankenship, Keokuk
Heat #2 – Bob Kosiski, Omaha
Heat #3 – Bill McDonough, Cedar Rapids
Consolation – Stan Stover, Reinbeck
Feature –
1. Verlin Eaker, Cedar Rapids
2. Darrell Dake, Cedar Rapids
3. Ed Sanger, Waterloo
4. Bill Zwanziger
5. Bill McDonough
6. Mel Morris, Atalissa
7. Ken Walton, Cedar Rapids
8. Roger Dolan, Lisbon
9. Duane Steffe, Colona, Ill.
10.Don Hoffman, Des Moines

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