Movember; From the Bleacher Views archives December 2003
Spending time on the road gives you time to think. This past summer while on my drive to Deer Creek Speedway for the “Gopher 50” I thought about all the old races I saw at the Steele County Fairgrounds track. It wasn’t long before I thought of Dennis Welch and the great trips we had with him. With this being Movember and raising men’s health issues month, I’d like to remind all of us guys to be aware of our health risks and to get checked out.
Dennis Welch “The Greatest Race Fan”
In just a short time spring will be sprung and racing season will be at full strength. What has seemed like a very long winter will be reduced to distant memories once we hear the engines roar and see the dirt swirl as our favorite dirt late models tear up our famous tracks. All will be happy but for just a moment I would like you take some time out to help me remember “The Greatest Race Fan.”
The story is as old as Bleacher Views it self. To tell the story the best I can, I have to go back to those days back in the 1970’s when Davenport Speedway was one of the biggest Friday night racetracks in all the Midwest. Back in those days it was not uncommon for Best of the Best to make the trek. As youngsters we would get there early and watch the car haulers turn off of Locust Street and head toward the pits. We would be there right till hot laps just hoping that one more star would make it there.
It was during those days when I first met Dennis Welch who later would become my “Bubba,” in Bleacher Views. He never said much back then but we all knew he loved racing just like we did. There was never a race at Davenport he would miss. Each and every Friday night he watched and listened in his usual chair.
As the years went on and I moved away, my friend Moose became close friends with Dennis. I got my first introduction in 1987 to Dennis, during a trip to Owatonna Minnesota for the Gopher 50. It was a wild adventure and for many years we repeated our drive up north. Each time was more fun than the other and each is etched in our mind. The Pepsi, sandwiches, hotel and tailgating episodes are all stories in themselves.
When I moved back to Davenport in 1997 I got to know Dennis better. This was when I started Bleacher Views and rough drafted my concept. The one thing my column was going to need was a sidekick character and that was when Bubba was born. I’m not sure he knew what I had in mind at first. After we got published first here in BTW, he started to get nervous. As a shy but proud person, Dennis just liked to stay in the background. In Bleacher Views I sort of brought him forward. Even though most people never knew who Bubba really was, his best friends did and that was who mattered. He might not ever say he liked the attention but deep down, Moose and I knew he did.
With each racing season I would try to expand the Bubba character a little bit and it was always a blast to hear from Moose on what Dennis thought. Hearing things like, “That Mike is Krazy,” or “What’s that have to do with racing,” was all the satisfaction I would need to keep this Bleacher View thing going. I found myself writing for him. I felt if I could keep him happy and get him to smile and laugh, I was doing my job. If there was one thing Dennis knew, it was racing. Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights were his. He saw almost 100 races a year and was a promoters dream. He would get there early and stay late. Yes he knew racing and I was his fan.
During the late part of 2001 things started to happen that would change our lives forever. Dennis was diagnosed with testicular cancer. It was not good from the start and everyone was scared especially Dennis. He was brave from the very beginning and stayed in the fight till the very end. Dennis didn’t seem like a tough guy but he was the toughest SOB I’ve ever met as he fought the Big C. On December 2nd of last year (2002) we lost our Best Friend to a much better place. The pain and suffering was over for Dennis and our hearts are on the mend.
Two big moments stick out with me now as I think about Dennis. The race we had at the Pepsi Nationals in Burlington when he was first diagnosed and it felt like the end was near. On that night I saw Jeff Broeg in the pits and without asking him to say anything he talked about my column and Bubba while announcing the show. The look in those sad eyes that night made us all cry. The other was the first race last year at Davenport. After battling the cancer all winter and taking chemotherapy Dennis made the first race. He was a survivor and even in his frail condition, he was not to be denied his favorite passion.
During most of last year Dennis was very sick and made few races. He was at the last regular Friday night race and it became his last. When I got the call from Moose about Dennis passing I felt terrible. I hadn’t felt that way since my dad died and so here I am today. With racing just around the corner, we will be thinking about Dennis again. He like those close to you maybe gone but will forever be in our hearts. To those of us who knew Dennis Welch, we will always know him as a friend and brother but also as, “The Greatest Race Fan.”
Hey Mike, when your next race? Bubba I thought you went to the big racetrack in the sky? No Mike, I’m here, I’ll always be here. Sounds good Bubba, we’ve a got a big year ahead of us.