Tales of the "old days"

RACN911

RACN911

Well-Known Member
Well since it's not looking the greatest for racing this weekend (crossing fingers for sunday), I thought I would share a few memories of old.
I remember when I was 7 or 8 (thirty years ago) my parents taking me to Highland. I can still remember the smell, where we sat, who I rooted for (Bob Faust, Rick Kloos, And one of the Kruep's) I remember going down in the pits and sitting in the racecars, running around the old wooden scales, and asking a hundred questions. I was hooked from that moment, and begged em to take me whenever they had time. Once I got my drivers liscence, I hit a racetrack at least once a week. I remember seeing Marty Sr rolling over in the heat race, starting in the back and winning the feature one night (been a fan ever since) I remember the likes of Smilin Joe, Allan Gieseking, Mark Oller's Chevelle, Kurt Richter "Days of thundering" someone after a heat race (I still give him grief about that). When Dick Taylor, Mark Voigt, Kevin Gundaker came to town it was a big deal. I remember The chrome headers on Dennis Sellers Modified. The fights and arguments, The program with the drivers pictures, the quarter Midget that was raffled off every year. Yep I still get goosebumps.
My wife's parents took her and her siblings to Belle Clair. She still talks about the time she won Jr fan club, and got to ride with Danny Moser (she was 7 and still has the pic). My oldest son won Jr Fan club last year and got to ride with Brad Venhaus (he was 7 and the pic is framed and on his wall) Pretty funny.
I remember my first time to Belle Clair. For me and thee other friends, it was our first time at the track. We walked in the front straight made a right "hey no one is sitting here up in turn one". We got hammered with dirt and moved. Lol. Same night seeing Hammerman's "War Wagon", and thinking "what in the world is that thing?", and "WOW that thing is fast".
I remember the first time I saw a enclosed trailer thinking "man that guy must be good, and have a bunch of money", now everyone has em, and if I could afford one, I'd have one too. The old "bread vans", box trailers with open trailers that matched the racecar. The hand painted sponsors and graphics. The race car was literaly a work of art, not that I don't apreciate the new wraps, just like the "old shool" look.
Just reminiscing a little this morning.
I love hearing about the old days.

Adam
 
i ran highland when they had the football field in the infield,,had a flat still won the heat but they had a rule,,cant run on a flat,,so no checkered flag,,i got pizzed and spun my tires leaving the track,,just so happenes i left tire tracks on the football field,,got kicked out for a week...l
 
I go back a little further, when I was 10 my friends uncle always took us to St charles and Belleville and rooted for Ray Eby, I was at belleville the nite one of the coupes made it up and over the fence and on the laps of several racefans, My uncle owned a body shop in valley park, we use to get free season passes to put the Lake Hill Speeday sign at the corner of his park n lot on 141 pointing to the right sending people down the correct street to the track, My uncle sponsored Schrader and we painted several of his race cars and when i was 12 yrs old my uncle let me paint Kenny's 1970 chevelle. it was ugly beige and sponsored by A&W rootbeer the number 100, I got 7 runs in the painted but my uncle said eh its a racecar who cares, I think thats what was the breaking point for me and my older brother Big Jim, it was now in our blood,At age 10 I use to take all my plastic models and as i built them i took a soldering gun and melted the frt clips off the cars and used the tubes thats all the parts where attached to, to make roll bars and rub rails and putting three fat tires and a skinny tire on the left front.I worked after high school for Elmer Sago in his shop, I use to help him on his and Tubby Blacks sprint cars turning wrenchs, painting them etc.. A few years later Big Jim got his 1st street stock "if thats what you wanted to call it" I called it a death trapp as the welds all looked like it was bubble gummed together. I never wanted him to get hurt and decided to help him build and race better cars and together we did do that and had tons and tons of fun racing in the street stock class division as it was a very friendship based hobby, Later on we built Jim a limited sportsman car and then a few years another we had fun lots of it, we built a streetstock as well, it was very fast as well but i had no desire to drive it so we had a friend pilot that car, I enjoyed building and turning the wrenches that made our cars some of the best looking and fastest back in them days, Them are memorys that will never be forgotten and its cool to know that we got to watch Schrader and the Wallaces when they raced our local tracks. I feel that I am very lucky to have seen and done and supported racing in our area as much as I could
 
I used love the smell of the cars right after the Feature:Clutch/Brake linings,Gear Lube,rubber and the dirt and sometimes motor oil. I miss them days too. Denny Knebel and Les Blankenship rolling down the Frontstretch(not on the same night,though),Mark Faust landing in the creek on the back.Kurt Richter working on his car under a tarp w/Mike Bedard(RIP). The first time Bloomer ever showed up at Highland,1988 or '89?..THX,Adam :)
 
FIREBALL said:
i ran highland when they had the football field in the infield,,had a flat still won the heat but they had a rule,,cant run on a flat,,so no checkered flag,,i got pizzed and spun my tires leaving the track,,just so happenes i left tire tracks on the football field,,got kicked out for a week...l
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lol, I thought it was a $25 fine too, my dad has some of the old video from highland on dvd when the football field was still there, if you would like a copy let joe h. or I know and I could probably get you one.

Dustin McClintock
 
I too have similar recollections the program at highland with the gremlin with red lettering I forgot about that until Adam mentioned it. That had to be 83 or 84 The Fausts all in the same heat, it seemed either Donnie Evans or Dennis Selllers set fast time all the time. I remember my cousin bolting a 1 in front of his 12 because Shorty ran the number in the sportsman. Later he ran Brad Snyders 28 mod and I won jr fan club and rode with him. I thought it was so cool to ride in a mod. I had been in his sportsman at Belleville I still am looking for the pic. This year my daughter won at Belleville and picked Mark and my wife rode with him when she was 8 or 9 he laughed when I reminded him and told him that he was old. The early 80's programs with Don kleins festiva Denny Rheinecker and Pee Wee on the cover I remember taking it to show & tell in kindergarten. From the beginning I could appreciate all the work that went into the cars the fab work to the paint and hand lettering to the history I was able to see. Donnie's 500th to Dixon with no left front to hammmermans crash when the throttle stuck. I remember the first time I saw Tom Utley pull in with his ramp truck that had the hand painted pictures of his cars on it. I think that is why I like the announcing be cause I appreciate the history. Don't get me wrong I still want to drive but untill my kids get older the announcing let's me get my fix.
 
RACN911 said:
Well since it's not looking the greatest for racing this weekend (crossing fingers for sunday), I thought I would share a few memories of old.
I remember when I was 7 or 8 (thirty years ago) my parents taking me to Highland. I can still remember the smell, where we sat, who I rooted for (Bob Faust, Rick Kloos, And one of the Kruep's) I remember going down in the pits and sitting in the racecars, running around the old wooden scales, and asking a hundred questions. I was hooked from that moment, and begged em to take me whenever they had time. Once I got my drivers liscence, I hit a racetrack at least once a week. I remember seeing Marty Sr rolling over in the heat race, starting in the back and winning the feature one night (been a fan ever since) I remember the likes of Smilin Joe, Allan Gieseking, Mark Oller's Chevelle, Kurt Richter "Days of thundering" someone after a heat race (I still give him grief about that). When Dick Taylor, Mark Voigt, Kevin Gundaker came to town it was a big deal. I remember The chrome headers on Dennis Sellers Modified. The fights and arguments, The program with the drivers pictures, the quarter Midget that was raffled off every year. Yep I still get goosebumps.
My wife's parents took her and her siblings to Belle Clair. She still talks about the time she won Jr fan club, and got to ride with Danny Moser (she was 7 and still has the pic). My oldest son won Jr Fan club last year and got to ride with Brad Venhaus (he was 7 and the pic is framed and on his wall) Pretty funny.
I remember my first time to Belle Clair. For me and thee other friends, it was our first time at the track. We walked in the front straight made a right "hey no one is sitting here up in turn one". We got hammered with dirt and moved. Lol. Same night seeing Hammerman's "War Wagon", and thinking "what in the world is that thing?", and "WOW that thing is fast".
I remember the first time I saw a enclosed trailer thinking "man that guy must be good, and have a bunch of money", now everyone has em, and if I could afford one, I'd have one too. The old "bread vans", box trailers with open trailers that matched the racecar. The hand painted sponsors and graphics. The race car was literaly a work of art, not that I don't apreciate the new wraps, just like the "old shool" look.
Just reminiscing a little this morning.
I love hearing about the old days.

Adam
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man adam, you took me back in time too. im almost 31 and i remember a lot of that. my dad worked on jerry schmitts crew forever. all the moms and kids, we sat down in the box seats and us kids would sit in front of them on the concrete with our legs dangling over the front. i remember when my dad went out to help them remove the old wood fence in the corners. man them were awesome days. then we always went to the i55 nationals every year, back when it was a two day deal. man that was like my world 100. at that age, i thought that was the biggest race in the country all year lol. i also remember going into the pits afterwords and how long it seemed to take for them to open that gate, seemed like forever at the time, and EVERYONE from the stands seemed to go down there afterwords. it was the thing to do. id go try and find good used tear offs that were in decent shape and id tape them to my plastic full face helmet that they used to sell at wally world. gosh now that i think about it, that was all such a rush back then. thanks for the memories
 
96fast said:
man adam, you took me back in time too. im almost 31 and i remember a lot of that. my dad worked on jerry schmitts crew forever. all the moms and kids, we sat down in the box seats and us kids would sit in front of them on the concrete with our legs dangling over the front. i remember when my dad went out to help them remove the old wood fence in the corners. man them were awesome days. then we always went to the i55 nationals every year, back when it was a two day deal. man that was like my world 100. at that age, i thought that was the biggest race in the country all year lol. i also remember going into the pits afterwords and how long it seemed to take for them to open that gate, seemed like forever at the time, and EVERYONE from the stands seemed to go down there afterwords. it was the thing to do. id go try and find good used tear offs that were in decent shape and id tape them to my plastic full face helmet that they used to sell at wally world. gosh now that i think about it, that was all such a rush back then. thanks for the memories
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I remember a time when a driver paid his pit pass and a couple of his pit crew got in for free (wouldn't that help nowaday's)
 
i never got it but i recall if ya flipped at highlaand ya got a case of beer,,may be a urban ledgind
 
Ya you did use to get a case of beer but I was only 15 the first time I flipped I have way to many memories to post goin to the races with my grandpa sellers and uncle art.
 
Dan Dierdorf

Anybody else remember when he was in the pits at Highland? That man has huge hands and fingers. The story was that he was related to a driver,anybody know?..:)
 
What a great post... I remember marty as well taking that ride and coming back to win. Dan dierdorf as well. Yes the smell of the cars was a big thing when we where kids! Godfrey speedway when the sprints would come out and we would run to the fence. Watching rick rhoads,wes weinman,george price and dave jones go at it. It was always like a soap cause them guys use to fight and carry on and never could get back fast enough the nest week to see what they would do next lol. Rapid rick rhoads taking out the lights in turn 1 with power lines all over the car lol. Jake seets fighting for the points on champion**** night and he blew his motor,watched them change it in the pits on the front staightaway. Got the motor from ed baulman i believe. John seets and marty kopp going at it with john waitng for him in turn two and ramming him a dozen time lol. Boy oh boy im sure we could all go on and on with some great sh-t we all seen as kids lol
 
lowells place gave away the beer for rolling over moocho knebel may be the last to get it,me and the chili dawg used to watch in the stands when we were in the 8th grade korte meat processing gave away the wheres the beef award in the modified dash dawg said he would sandbag for those.they had the cool move award also, korte used to get that alot.
 
I remember when Bobby Whitehead worked at Counton Oil and had his car there. I used to sit in it..mustang late model while him and my dad talked. got to meet Louie Jansenn too alot. Nice guys. Bob Stanton..........Leroy Grossman........Wayne Pride.......those were the days. t shirt driving suits and really laid back guys driving cars mostly running junkyard parts.
 
Dan is married to bob and Joey gryzwacz ( pronounced geavatz) no way I spelled that right, but he is married to their sister n they are from collinsville and big race fans , I also remember a guy that always dressed like hulk hogan when I was around 5 or 6 looked like him to.
 
Dan Dierdorf
Anybody else remember when he was in the pits at Highland? That man has huge hands and fingers. The story was that he was related to a driver,anybody know?..

I believe it was Steve Brocco.

Also - Carl's Pit Stop Tavern (Carl Goff) donated many a case of beer for the first roll over of the evening!
 
QUOTE=Revin;800997]How about Donaldson's Cafe giving away all those chicken dinners @ Tri-City![/QUOTE]

Here's a pic with one of the origional Chicken Dinner slips attached. A friend won one and brought back a report and we never cashed any of ours in.

TRI CITY FEATURE WIN.jpg

THANX RICH

People say I'm getting crankier as I get older. That's not it. I just find I enjoy annoying people a lot more now. Especially younger people!!!
 
i also remember when mark faust went over the back stretch wall by basically ramping another car. and rick kloos barrel rolling dang near all the way down the back stretch. and man when that 50 car or that blue 11 car showed up, might as well sign the check lol. does anyone remember perry tripp? he drove a nice clean looking center steer car. man he was good too, but just like that he was gone
 
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