Late 70's Tri-City Speedway Questions

Racerfan X

Racerfan X

The Thread Killer
I was about 10 years old in 1979. My father would take me to Tri-City just about every weekend. I am trying to jar my memory with some of the drivers back then. Please forgive the spellings on some of these names. I remember Russ Wallace, Len Gettimier, Wib Spalding, CC Corbin, Johnny Pryor, Bill Myers. Seems like there was a guy that drove with one arm (Don Carter?). Also a car 6699. Cant remember the driver. Anybody that can throw out some names and numbers or pics would be fantastic.. Lots of good memories....
 
I think you may be going back further than 1979. I think the years those guys raced there would have been 1975-1978 or so. I'm wanting to say 1975 for the year though. I just had a birthday yesterday so the mind gets away from me at times....lol

John Barr
The Trashdog
 
I was guesstimating on the year. Just got off the phone with my Dad and he said Kenny Schrum for 6699 sounds correct. Thanks everyone for the info. Keep it coming...
 
A couple of other names that popped into my head. Lou Thery, and Louie Janson. Where they ever regulars at Tri-City?
 
A few more popped into my head.....Dave Hollis-22 Jim Moughan Sr.-6 and Rusty Bell-F-40...these guys may have been before the mid to late seventies....Guess that makes me real old
 
You guys covered most of the late model drivers. The only other one that stands out is John Stanton # 51 I think. On the sprint car side I have a few, some of these guys were not necassarily regulars but would show up from time to time. Dick Sutcliffe, Chuck Amati, Ronnie Taylor, Junior Dietzel, the Blundy brothers, Bubby Jones, Rich Knibbler (killed at Try-City) I'm sure there were others...
 
sprint cars

Some more of the sprint drivers were Tom Corbin, Larry Gates AKA Buckwheat and I believe Danny Frye I remember him flippin over the wall in turns 3-4 when I was a kid not sure of the year.
 
If my memory serves me right,He didnt go over the fence. The LR came off and followed him into the corner. As he was sliding the tire bounced hit the roll cage and flipped him over. The tire and wheel went over the fence and landed in the pond outside. we chased it from one side to the other because it was still spinnig. The car was a White # 5 Stanton I beleive sponsored by Charlie Denton construction. That same car was later bought by an Austrailian guy I cant remember his name and shipped to Austrailia. The guy also drove midgets and from what I've heard he used to pack the fuel tanks full of parts and smuggle them into Austrailia
 
how about

kevin gundaker mike wallace jerry sifford bill shaw ken schrader i think maybe tommy helfridgeand a few others
 
Midwest Connection - 4 Tri City Feature Winners in 1979

WoO
May 23, 1979 - Steve Kinser
July 11, 1979 - Steve Kinser
Aug. 22, 1979 - Sammy Swindell
Oct. 18, 1979 - Doug Wolfgang

Have a good day...see you at the races,
longtimeracefan
Rich Edwards - Arnold, MO.

A few more drivers from the 1979 time period: Ken Schrader, Jack Ziegler, Cliff Cockrum, Jon Backlund, Gene Genneten, Bob Kaemmerer, Jerry Russell, Randy Bateman, Todd Bishop, Ron Milton, Dean Shirley, Bobby Layne, Rick Pennell, Ricky Hood, Ron Standridge, Cliff Blundy, etc. were racing sprint cars at Tri City from time to time. I do stand to be corrected on this listing.
 
Kevin Gundaker Actually drove Tobias's sprint car one night. Tobias's cars had a bad reputation that anyone that got in it seemed to get upside down.
 
longtimeracefan said:
WoO
May 23, 1979 - Steve Kinser
July 11, 1979 - Steve Kinser
Aug. 22, 1979 - Sammy Swindell
Oct. 18, 1979 - Doug Wolfgang

Have a good day...see you at the races,
longtimeracefan
Rich Edwards - Arnold, MO.

A few more drivers from the 1979 time period: Ken Schrader, Jack Ziegler, Cliff Cockrum, Jon Backlund, Gene Genneten, Bob Kaemmerer, Jerry Russell, Randy Bateman, Todd Bishop, Ron Milton, Dean Shirley, Bobby Layne, Rick Pennell, Ricky Hood, Ron Standridge, Cliff Blundy, etc. were racing sprint cars at Tri City from time to time. I do stand to be corrected on this listing.
Click to expand...

I have a sprint car in my basement that Dean Shirley used as a backup car in about 78/79 when he won three track championships Tri City.I-55 and Little Springfield.
I also have 3 midgets that at least 2 were probably ran at Tri City about that time.
The 39 car but I have no idea who may have drove it localy at that time. I do know that our own Bronco Billy drove it as late as '93 and that rich Vogler drove it earlier.
The 2 car was driven by Arnie Knepper and later by our own Midget Racer, Art Knepper.
I'll try and post some pics.
 

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bill berblinger owned that 39 car, and brian martinelli drove it mostly. it never really did very good. as far as the info about frye and the sprint car going over the wall, unless there were more than 1 instance(there usually is) frye took a ride over the wall in a tan #15 stapp sprintcar that was the same car that george snider took over the wall at winchester in 1975 in a usac race.the car was owned by jr. knepper at the time. the car was a grant king car, but after snider's crash, it was cut in half by steve stapp and he built a new car from firewall forward. tom bigelow drove it a year or 2, finishing 2nd in usac points in 75 or 76. frye bought the car and ran it a few times, and sold it to bob elder(elder cadillac) after frye crashed it at tcs. the car is restored to what it looked like in 76, and you may have seen it at an area car show. it is a yellow #55.
 
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