Peltier and Cristiani win Spears Mfg Southwest Tour and Modified mains – By Tim Kennedy.

Irwindale, CA., Mar. 23 - Spears Mfg touring Southwest Tour super late model and Spears modified divisions began 2019 point seasons Saturday on the Irwindale Speedway half-mile. The R. J. Allen, Inc. and Traffic Management, Inc.-sponsored event offered a purse of $25,495 for the super late model series. Senneker Performance ensured the winner would receive $5,000. It was the 19^th Spears SWT super late model race at Irwindale during the last 15 years.

The large purse attracted an all-time high Irwindale field of 34 super late models, topping the former record at Irwindale of 30 cars in 2010. Eight past super late model champions (with 15 championships) were in the field. Sixteen drivers had recorded super late model feature victories. Drivers came from five states in each division.

There were 16 modifieds from the former Lucas Oil Modified Series. The series is now called Spears Modifieds presented by Lucas Oil. The same Hoosier tires were used in both racing segments by both divisions. MAVTV Network recorded the event for later telecast.

About 3,000 spectators viewed a pair of 50-lap segments for the super late models and a pair of 40-lap segments for the modifieds. Drivers with the best finishes in the combined segments were the winners in each division. Ties were broken by the highest finishes in the second segments. 

The new format commemorated the 50^th year anniversary for long-time racing sponsor Spears, based in So Cal.

Two drivers removed all doubt about the winner in each Spears division. Preston Peltier, a 41-year old veteran super late model driver in major national events, came from his base in Brighton, Colo., and raced at Irwindale for the first time. He won both 50-lap super late model segments and earned $5,000.

Peltier, a 2010 PASS South and PASS National champion, drove the Generator Source Hamke chassis for Colorado-based Ed Vecchicrelli. He has employed Peltier for three years to race and maintain his fleet of five super late models and two modifieds. Peltier left his Bakersfield-area home at age 18 and worked until three years ago as a fabricator at Rick Hendrick Motorsports on the No. 24 NASCAR Cup car driven by Jeff Gordon.

Peltier now races in high-dollar super late model events around the nation, including Snowball Derby 300-lap races in Pensacola, Florida where he earned a pole position. He also excelled at Colorado tracks and at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Wash., where he won two Summer Showdown races. He has raced in the last three high-dollar Winter Showdown 300s in Bakersfield, where he finished third this year in a Rowdy chassis for Hamke/Kyle Busch Racing.

MODIFIEDS: Trevor Cristiani, 25, from Boise, Ida., duplicated Peltier's dominance by winning both 40-lap segments of the modified event in his own STR chassis. It was his second visit to Irwindale. He duplicated his August 18 victory last season as a modified series rookie aboard a car owned by Don Newman, from Eagle, Idaho.

With cool temperature during late afternoon, one-lap track records in both series were broken. Four drivers topped the Spears super late model record of 17.272 set by Derek Thorn on March 25, 2017. Peltier, Thorn and Trevor Huddleston broke Thorn's old mark. Then Dylan Lupton, a 25-year old Californian who has raced in NASCAR national series for four years, turned the new record of 17.055 (105.541 mph) as the 19^th of 33 qualifiers in a car owned by his father.

Cristiani broke the modified series one-lap track record of 18.470 set by Ryan Partridge on April 30, 2016 with a lap of 18.424 (97.699 mph). Sixteen modifieds raced for Spears Mfg points for the first time. The series has nine events scheduled this season at five speedways in Arizona, California, and Nevada. 

Both Spears divisions will return to Irwindale Speedway on July 20 for second events this year.

A 35-lap Southwest Tour Truck Series 35-lap main event with nine trucks opened racing as the first event. Ronnie Davis, Jr. led the final 34 laps of a 35-lap event. He won by 5.699 seconds over Mike Kelperis. Steve Reeves, Robert Vandermooren, Ron Nava, Ed Cutler, Barry Kelperis, George Perret and Curtis Burns followed. Davis became the third winner after three SWTT races at three tracks--Lake Havasu, Ariz., Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring. and Irwindale.

SLM RACES:

A 33-car field of super late models participated in time trials. Willie Allen's car had a stuck throttle during practice and hit the wall during practice, sidelining his car. The eight fastest qualifiers drew for starting positions in the first four rows of the first 50. Fastest qualifier Lupton drew a six, putting Jeremy Doss on the pole. Doss led the first lap and Thorn led laps 2-4. Fifth starter Peltier executed an exciting three-wide inside pass on lap 5 and led three laps. Thorn retook the point on lap 8 after a two-by-two restart following a caution flag.

Peltier retook the lead on lap 12 with another inside move in the second turn and remained in front to beat runner-up Doss by 0.666 in a 26-minute event with four yellow flags. Twenty-eight drivers finished with 20 on the lead lap. Thorn ran the fastest lap of 103.502 mph but he placed third, 1.017 seconds back. Fourth through tenth place finishers in the first 50 were: Lupton, Criag Raudman, Jeff Bischofberger, Jacob Gomes, Eric Schmidt, Kyle Neveau and Linny White.

The second 50-lap segment used a ten-car inverted starting lineup based on the first segment finishing positions. Neveau led the first eight laps over Thorn and Peltier. Thorn took the lead on lap 9 and led to lap 20 when Doss took charge and led through lap 29 with Peltier pressing for the lead. On lap 30 entering the third turn, Peltier shot to the extreme inside in traffic and took command of the race. He won by 0.947 over Bischofberger, who started fifth and took second on lap 32.

Raudman, the 2001 NASCAR Elite Divison SWT champion, was sixth on lap 42 following a red flag to clear an accident scene. He used outside passes during the final eight laps to charge forward quickly and earned third position, 3.082 seconds behind Peltier. Raudman, from Cottonwood, and his long-time car owner Dave Reed have announced that 2019 will be their farewell racing tour.

Peltier said he followed the NASCAR SWT Series as a teenager living near Bakersfield. He had never raced at Irwindale or even seen the track in person. He watched a video of an Irwindale race and after competing on the track Saturday said, “I love this kind of racing. Irwindale reminds me of a big Tucson Speedway because of the progressive banking. This place is cool.” He thanked Linny White for the set-up.

Seventeen of 28 starters finished the second segment and all drivers completed 50 laps. Thorn ran the fastest lap of 101.983 mph, but dropped out of second place on lap 24 after contact between the two leaders near turn three caused Thron to spin to the infield. He completed 31 laps. Fourth through tenth finishers were: newcomer Jace Hansen, from Greeley, CO., Lupton, Doss, Gomes, Tyler Fabozzi, Bobby Hodges and John Moore.

Combining finishes in the two segments (low total wins), the top ten SLM drivers overall were: Peltier (P. 1 & 1 = 2) - $5,000; Raudman (P. 6 & 2 = 8) - $1,500; Lupton (P. 5 & 3 = 8) - $1,250; Doss (P. 2 & 6 = 8) $1,000; Thorn (P. 4 & 5 = 9) - $850; Bischofberger (P. 7 & 7 = 14), Hansen (P. 14 & 4 = 18), Fabozzi (P. 11 & 8 = 19), Hodges (P. 15 & 9 = 24), John Moore (P. 18 & 10 = 28) - $525.

MODIFIED RACES:

Jason Irwin, from Albuquerque, started second in the first 40-lap segment and led the first 23 laps. Cristiani started fourth, slipped to fifth early and reached second place on lap 20 as the first three cars raced in a tight pack. Cristiani executed an inside pass on Irwin in turn three on lap 24 and held the lead to the lap 40 checkers. Dylan Cappello, from Peoria, AZ, passed Irwin in the closing laps and trailed the winner by 1.039.

Irwin, Las Vegas resident Justin Johnson, and 15-year old Irwindale late model driver Ryan Schartau finished in P. 3-5 respectively. All three drivers were less than four seconds behind Cristiani. Rounding out the top ten were the Kay brothers Cody, 25, and Jeremy, 18, from Reno, NV. Cody raced the former Austin Barnes STR chassis past Lucas Oil Series championship car that he raced as a rookie in 2018.

Newlywed Ryan Partridge, who started at the back after a mechanical problem and lost a lap with a trip to the infield pit area on lap 2. He regained a lap under caution and raced up to P. 7 in his own Racecar Factory-built modified. Rookies Hunter Corbitt and Jeff Longman finished ninth and tenth. All 16 starters finished with 12 on the lead lap. Irwin ran the fastest lap of 96.458 mph. The 20-minute race had two caution flags for debris and a spin.

The second modified 40-lap segment inverted the first seven finishers from the first 40. J. Kay led the first 17 laps from pole position and battled seventh starter Cristiani for three laps. Then Cristiani again used an inside pass entering the third turn and opened a 2.126 second victory margin over J. Kay. Cappello placed third, 2.915 seconds back with 15 drivers racing at the finish.

Rounding out the top ten were: Schartau, Johnson, the 2011 Irwindale NASCAR super late model track champion, Irwin, Partridge, C. Kay, Travis McCullough, and Corbitt. Kyle Keller, the IS third-mile track junior late model track champion at age 14, made his modified debut and first start on a half-mile. He placed 11^th with 39 laps. Cristiani averaged 92.493 mph for the all-green, 12-minute race. Cristiani ran the fastest race lap of 94.379 mph.

Combining finishes in both modified 40-lap segments (low total wins), the top ten modified finishers overall were: Cristiani (P. 1 & 1 = 2), Cappello (P. 2 & 3 = 5), J. Kay (P. 7 & 2 = 9), Schartau (P. 5 & 4 = 9), Johnson (P. 4 & 5 = 9), Irwin (P. 3 & 6 = 9), C. Kay (P. 6 & 8 = 14), Partridge (P. 8 & 7 = 15), Corbitt (P. 9 & 10 = 19), and McCullough (P. 11 & 9 = 20).

The next Spears Mfg SWT super late model race in the nine-race schedule will be April 13 at the one-third mile All-American Speedway in Roseville, CA. The next Spears Mfg Modified race on May 4 will be a combined show with the Spears SWT super late models at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring, a three-eighths mile near the 1.5-mile speedway.

The next Irwindale Speedway event on Saturday, March 30 will feature the touring NASCAR K & N West late models for a 150-lap feature on the half-mile. A number of “Night of Destruction” typical events will follow on the third-mile and infield.

IRWINDALE SPEEDWAY 20TH SEASON RESUMES 

By Tim Kennedy

Today we share the March 9 Irwindale Speedway race report written by my esteemed colleague Tim Kennedy.  

Irwindale, CA., Mar. 9 - Irwindale Speedway completed a six division, seven main event program Saturday despite the rainiest winter in recent So Cal history. Three sunny days followed days of rain and permitted racing on City of Irwindale Night. Four races ran on the half-mile and three on the third-mile. Racers entertained an estimated 3,000 spectators. They braved chilly (for So Cal) temps in the low 50s to watch 56 cars race in a show lasting two hours and 45-minutes.

Featured events were a pair of 30-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series LKQ Pick Your Part late model main events presented by Sunrise Ford on the progressively-banked half-mile. Those events bookended the racing program as the first and seventh main events. Thirteen cars started both events.

Fastest qualifier Ryan Vargas, 18, started on the pole in a straight-up start based upon qualfying times and led all 30-laps in the opener. He drove the No. 26 Alec Martinez Chevy rented for the evening. It was his No. 23 Vargas family car through the 2017 season when Vargas drove it to three Irwindale feature victories, including a 100-lap season finale. Saturday was the fourth late model victory at Irwindale for the former So Cal resident who relocated to Concord, No. Carolina in 2018.

Vargas, the 2012 INEX Bandolero track champion, raced the No. 2 Toyota for Max Siegel's Rev Racing last season in the NASCAR K & N East Series as a Drive for Diversity driver. He raced in 14 events with six top ten finishes and placed sixth in final points among 60 drivers with K & N East points. He is currently seeking a sponsor to continue his racing career in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck or Xfinity Series.

Trevor Huddleston started third and battled Blaine Perkins for second to lap 26 when he took second. He trailed Vargas by 0.648. Perkins, from Bakersfield, and Jace Jones, in his late model debut, followed. Jones drove the HPR No. 55 Chevy that his brother Jagger, 16, drove during the past two seasons. He is a son of versatile sports car, Indy Car, and stock car driver P. J. Jones and grandson of 1963 Indy 500 winner Parnelli Jones. He celebrated his 14^th birthday February 22 to become eligible to race on half-miles.

All 13 starters finished the first feature with ten drivers on the lead lap. The winner averaged 90.548 mph. Rookie Jones, from Scottsdale, Ariz., ran the fastest lap of 93.211 mph with his family and brother (a NASCAR K & N West 2019 rookie) present to witness his strong showing.

SECOND LM 30: The 13-car field used a ten-car inverted starting lineup for the second feature based on finishing positions in the first 30. That put Vargas and Huddleston in the fifth row. Two cars collided on lap 2 in the fourth turn. Rodney Peacher's car nosed into the outside wall hard but he escaped injury. A 12-minute red flag ensued. Kevin Furden led four laps and Lucas McNeil led laps 5-20. The first six cars ran in a pack during early laps with passing plentiful.

Huddleston spun into the infield after contact on the restart and had to restart at the back. He moved forward quickly and dueled Perkins for second before making an outside pass exiting then two on lap 12. McNeil ran high and Huddleston low to lap 21when the leading duo lapped two slower cars simultaneously in the third turn. Huddleston darted to the inside under McNeil and had the lead by turn four. He opened a 2.204 victory margin over McNeil.

It was Huddleston's 44^th Irwindale career feature victory. He is a three-time (2015-17) track and California State Whelen Series champion. He moved into sole possession of sixth place in Irwindale Speedway feature victories. The third-generation driver is one victory shy of tying his father's 45 victories. His father Tim, also a three-time Irwindale late model champion, is co-promoter at the track with Sunrise Ford dealer and K & N West car owner Bob Bruncati. Huddleston. 22, is now racing a Bruncati-owned Ford for the second season in the NASCAR K & N West Series.

Rounding out the top five in the second 30 were Perkins, Vargas and rookie Jones. His grandparents and brother Jagger watched his late model debut after he raced only a legend car on the third-mile from age 12. The top ten drivers completed all 30 laps in a race concluded at 9:48 pm. Most fans skipped a pit visit and hurried to their vehicles and drove home.

OTHER WINNERS: Other races on the half-mile included a fully-inverted Lucas Oil Irwindale Race Trucks 30-lap race with seven trucks. Fastest qualifier and 2018 series champion Lucas McNeil, 25, passed early leader Andrew Porter on lap 4 and led the final 27 laps. He averaged 86.963 mph during a ten minute, all-green race. Porter trailed by 0.966. Jacob McNeil, brother of the winner, was third. Past series champion Ron Peterson earned fourth with a last lap pass of fifth place Nico Mongenel.

The Spec Late Model 20-lap main, also on the half-mile, went to Kenny Smith, 72, the reigning series champion and oldest champion in Irwindale history. He set fastest qualifying time, started last and led the final six laps. He beat laps 1-14 leader Ed Cutler. John Watkinson, 61, and 23-year old series rookie Troy Andersen, an enduro car veteran, followed. The formerly named S2 Cars built by Racecar Factory in Irwindale began racing in 2009. Four cars raced Saturday.

THIRD-MILE MAINS: Super stocks, INEX Legend Cars and four-cylinder enduro cars raced on the third-mile. Winners included Rich De Long III, driving his No. 84 Chevy SS, in a 25-lap super stock main. The series 2018 track champion broke his own one-lap track record from 2018. His 16.341 (73.361 mph) topped his old record of 16.431. The winner became the third race leader on lap 4 with an inside pass of the backstretch. He won by a straightaway over laps 2-3 leader Jerry Toporek (Dodge Dart). Position three through five drivers Rich De Long (father), Harry Michaelian, and lap 1 leader Bridgette Shaw completed 29 laps.

Former 410 sprint car driver and 1998 Perris Oval Nationals feature winner Rodney Argo, the fastest qualifier in a 17-car field, drove a 1999 Honda Prelude. The Gardena resident took command of the 25-lap race by lap 6. He won by half a lap (-8.812) over Bory Molina's Toyota Celica. Bobby Ozman placed third. Thirteen cars finished and the top four logged 25 circuits. Cars this season are divided into two classes based upon power. Fourth place Brad Stellman won in the less powerful class with his Honda Accord.

Albuquerque, N. Mex. resident Cameron Morga, 19, set fastest qualifying time and started at the back of a nine-car INEX Legends field. He charged through the field and took the lead on lap 4. He won the 35-lap event by six seconds. He also won three years ago in the same car No. 54 coupe on his first visit to IS. Morga ran Saturday's fastest race lap--74.367 mph. He also has raced touring Lucas Oil Modifieds during the last two seasons.

Morga told spectators during his finish line interview over the PA mic, “I won here three years ago (July, 2016) on my first visit to this track. This is a very demanding track for legend cars,” he added.

Ricky Schlick, series five-time champion Darren Amidon, and Parker Stephens, from Olympia, Wash., completed the top five. All nine starters finished with seven cars on the lead lap.

The next race at IS will be Saturday, March 23 with Spears Mfg SW Tour super late models and Spears Modifieds (former Lucas Oil Modifieds) scheduled.

An open letter regarding the future of 
West Coast pavement sprint car racing.

My name is Jeff Trout.  For those of you not familiar with me, my history is that I raced in several forms of oval racing, dirt and pavement, in California from the early 90's until the early 2000s.  I was a Bay Cities Racing Association (BCRA) board member as well as a competitor and car owner.  I also raced late models and tracks.  I made two starts in a pavement sprint car with the United States Auto Club (USAC) and I must say that was the best racing of my life.  Recently, I've been involved in road racing, which I will discuss later.

 I have been looking at how to improve pavement sprint car racing on the west coast for a couple of years. It started when I decided to get back into oval racing after spending a few years with another fellow BCRA racer, Richard Miglori, racing sports cars.  During that time, I learned a lot about the Chevrolet Gen III/IV engines like the current Knoxville sealed sprint car motor (CT525) and Tim Schwanke's sealed sprint car engines.

I was at a Northern California Modified Association (NCMA) meeting recently and gathered information on what their plans were for this season and to submit a request to try a new engine, an LS that I would have built, tested on a dynamometer, sealed and then submitted for approval to NCMA to run on an exhibition status as a proof of concept.

I feel that this engine can reduce costs, especially maintenance costs.  We road raced a stock LS3 engine (except for a cam change) for 4 years in endurance races from 3 hours to 25 hours for four years with only an annual valve change with zero engine failures! 

In the Midwest, they use the LS engine in two sprint car series and they have saved their sprint car series.  they have gone from a hand full of cars at one track to over 100 cars at several tracks over two series about 200 miles apart.  Admittedly, it is dirt, but I feel the business model is the same.

After my discussions with the Midwestern racers, I concluded that with their help, I can put together something that in the short term can increase car count and exposure while lowering the cost of racing a sprint car and provide a competitive playing field. 

It is my pleasure to announce that my company, Pacific Racing League, LLC has acquired a national sanction with Performance Open Wheel Racing, Inc. (POWRi) to hold pavement sprint car races under the POWRi Pacific Sprint Series banner. This sanction will bring sponsors, and exposure through POWRi's in-house TV company,

We plan on making the series an experience for racers and fans on and off the track with a lot of innovative marketing ideas. I named my company Pacific Racing League, because I plan to use what I have learned working for the Anaheim Ducks and approach this venture as a sports league, treating each car owner, driver and track promoter as a partner in our success.

The key to this series, short term, is to use rules that have been proven to equalize the competition around different engine combinations using balance of power measures with weight and restrictions on the most powerful engines to increase car count, and therefore leverage that growth with local track promoters. 

Hopefully, racers can use what they have be competitive.  The physics of pavement, non-wing sprint cars is that less power and less weight can be competitive against high horsepower, heavier cars because they hook up much better and can use all their power band. This has been proven in several pavement stock car series that run engines that make from 385 to 600 horsepower (HP) together.

We plan on putting on some demonstrations later this year with the potential for a race or two toward the end of the year and a 12-race schedule in 2019. We have already extended an invitation to enter a co-sanction of these events with NCMA. 

You can find out more at http://prlsprints.com/  and we are on twitter at @pacificsprints and on Facebook at POWRi Pacific Sprints, or you can email me at jtrout@powripacific.com.

I look forward to working with all of you and please spread the word.

 Thank You

Jeff Trout

 President, POWRi Pacific Sprint Series

 8605 Santa Monica Blvd #52394

 West Hollywood, California 90069-4109

 (805) 380-8106

Professor Speed:

Danny McKeever and the Mind Game of Going Fast

A book recommendation from Kevin Triplett

As we approach the INDYCAR Long Beach Grand Prix race weekend, I highly recommend an excellent book for racing history buffs, and for any road racing fan in general.  The scope and breadth of material in the engrossing Professor Speed: Danny McKeever and the Mind Game of Going Fast focuses on the story of the man known “as the driving instructors to the stars” but covers much, much more racing related material.

Written by Andrew Layton and Tom Madigan, this book begins with the story of McKeever’s life against the backdrop of the development of road racing, then provides an overview of Danny’s racing career prior to becoming a driving instructor and the founding of his landmark driving school, Fast Lane, and a review of the “McKeever Doctrine,” the keys to going fast.    

This book available from Revolution Press LLC also contains chapters that concisely reviews the early history of the Long Beach Grand Prix and shares stories of the companion Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race which ran from 1977 to 2016, all accompanied by beautiful color period photographs.

From the forward written by Page and PJ Jones, the book is filled with personal insights from famous racers such as Elliot Forbes-Robinson and Lyn St. James, as well as actors including Patrick Stewart, Lorenzo Lamas and Perry King.        

The book can be purchased through Amazon by following this link:   

https://www.amazon.com/Professor-Speed-Danny-McKeever-Going/dp/1513623435/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1523570994&sr=1-2&keywords=professor+speed

Christmas Two-fer Special!

The famed photographer and author Pete Lyons has a fantastic Christmas offer.

 

 

Pete’s Fast Lines book of his collected columns from Vintage Racecar Magazine is now on sale at a reduced price of $19.95 Instead of original $24.95 …that’s $5 off!

 

 

For the holidays Pete is offering a  spectacular package deal- you will get the Fast Lines book and Pete’s brand spanking new 2018 VELOCITY CAN-AM Calendar for a combined special price of  $44.95…that’s $10 off!

Mailing them together in a single package will save you even more on postage.

Don’t wait- there are very few of Pete’s limited-edition 2018 Calendars are left at the publisher. This remaining stock is being combined with the Fast Lines book at this special, extra package discount only until December 31, 2017.

So get your order in NOW while Pete still has still has both items in stock!

And remember, Pete Lyons signs every book and calendar that he sends out, and he will gladly add a personalized greeting to a friend, family member or even yourself at no extra charge upon request.

Click the link below:

 https://www.petelyons.com/combined-offer.html

The mystery of Jay Frank 

 SOLVED

Stan Kalwasinski has recently uncovered new information and photographs! 

Stan's new information is listed in red

By Kevin Triplett

In the post war year, a racer named Jay Frank appeared in California Roadster Association (CRA) “hot rod” roadster races held at tracks throughout the Los Angeles area. Although local news reports referred to him as a “local driver” additional details are virtually impossible to locate as “Jay Frank” was likely a nom de guerre.  Many future Indianapolis ‘500’ stars competed against Jay Frank in the CRA roadster races, including future ’500’ winners Troy Ruttman, Jim Rathmann and Pat Flaherty as well as Andy Linden, Richard ‘Red’ Amick, and Jack McGrath.

Thanks to fellow historian Stan Kalwasinski, who recently interviewed Clint Frank, Jay Frank's son in Lafayette Indiana. Jay Frank's real first birth name in Chicago Illinois was John, known to his family as Jack. After service during World War II as a fighter pilot, Jay relocated to the Los Angeles area.

Historian Thomas Schmeh found the earliest article mention of Frank in the November 25 1946 edition of the Los Angeles Times that reported on the previous night's roadster race at Bonelli Ranch where Jay Frank won the 15-lap semi-main. Originally built as a rodeo grounds, the stadium with its 1/3-mile track evolved into a popular midget and roadster racing venue. Later paved and known as Sagus Speedway the track still owned by Bonelli family closed in 1995.  

In early December 1946, Jay Frank was credited with a heat race victory in the CRA's first visit to the Bakersfield Speed Bowl, a facility in Oildale California that has continued to operate under many names through the years and is still in operation as Bakersfield Speedway. During the 1946 CRA season, Jay drove the #48  1932 Ford roadster owned by Morris McGauhey.   

In early September 1947, Jay Frank finished third in the semi-main behind Roy Prosser and Yam Oka, and Prosser went on to win that night's feature event at the ½-mile dirt Carrell Speedway which was owned by contractor Emmett Malloy and was located at the corner of 174th and Vermont Streets in the South Bay community of Gardena.  The next night in action at Huntington Beach Speedway, Frank won the 15-lap semi-main ahead of Colby Scroggin and Lou Figaro.  

Jay Frank experienced success early in the 1948 CRA season; in early April driving for car owner Reg Schlemmer he finished second to defending CRA champion Ruttman at the ¼-mile paved Culver City Speedway. Three days later Jay Frank captured his first CRA feature victory in a 25-lap affair at Carrell Speedway.

 

A replica poster for the Huntington Beach

hot rod auto races

 

During the 1948 season there was a brief Southern California roadster racing sanctioning war, which began when Huntington Beach Speedway promoter Bob Ware formed the California Hot Rod Association (CHRA). Two well-known CRA drivers, Dick Vineyard and Yam Oka (one of five racing Nisei brothers) joined to CHRA. Together with Bonelli Stadium  (which Ware co-promoted) the CHRA sanctioned roadster races under the lights at Huntington Beach on Friday nights. However by early September the 1/5-mile dirt track inside Talbert Stadium returned to the CRA fold with Sunday afternoon events.    

In addition to dealing with an upstart rival roadster sanctioning body, the CRA series lost six of its major name drivers – Ruttman, Linden, Freeland, Davies, Chuck Leighton and Spec Friedan - to the short-lived Wednesday night midget race series promoted by Hollywood car owner Bill White which was conducted on a wooden track inside the Rose Bowl. After several weeks devoted to racing midgets, three of the CRA stars - Ruttman, Freeland and Davies returned to compete in the CRA roadster races at Carrell.

The construction of the CRA roadsters changed in the middle of the 1948 season after Carrell Speedway racing director JC Agajanian ordered CRA President Tom Sloan to institute new rules following the August 11th death of driver Fred Luce.  The Gardena oval had seen three fatalities during the 1948 season – Ed (Bob) Rozzano, Morris ‘Slim’ Mathis and Luce, and with the Tommy Wise’s earlier fatality in August 1947, four deaths in a year.

 

Two of the three new rules instituted were straightforward - first each car shall be equipped with only one carburetor; second, cars had to use “stock gasoline” not alcohol for fuel. The final rule required that all chassis “be reinforced with special emphasis on the driver’s compartment.”     

Late in the 1948 CRA season, prior to the “Grand Prix” at Huntington Beach Speedway Jimmy Davies led the points chase over Bob Cross, Linden and Ruttman. The “Grand Prix” featured a unique format with twin 50-lap features followed by a 20-lap finale that featured the top three finishers of each 50-lapper.

 

Ruttman who had returned to the driver’s seat of Bert Letner’s roadster after he midget foray emerged as the 1948 CRA champion after the December 5 season finale beating out Lou Figaro and Bob Cross. Jay Frank was credited with seventh place in 1948 CRA points behind Jimmy Davies, Jim Rigsby and Roy Prosser. 

Jay Frank began his 1949 racing season at Carrell Speedway and initially was reported to have finished in second place in the February 12th 100-lap stock car race that featured many of the CRA regulars. Fellow historian Jim Thurman uncovered a later news article that revealed that the car of Troy Ruttman, the apparent victor by half a lap over Frank, was disqualified when a post-race inspection revealed an “illegal motor.”  

A month later the next 250-lap stock car race at Carrell in addition to a new requirement that competitors make two pit stops during the race - one for refueling and one for a tire change, officials required that all entries undergo a “thorough inspection for confirmation of the strictly stock specifications” before their qualification run. 

Jay Frank in his roadster with the Hurricane Racing Association

photograph courtesy of Stan Kalwasinski

 

During the course of the 1949 season, Jay Frank and teammate Roy Prosser took their roadsters back to Chicago (his hometown) and raced with Andy Granatelli’s Hurricane Racing Association, which also sanctioned “stock car” (more like jalopy) races. In July Jay Frank raced in the Hurricane stock car program at the ¼-mile asphalt Rockford Speedway together with a group of future Indianapolis Motor Speedway legends.

 

In addition to the fastest qualifier Vince Granatelli, Pat Flaherty, Dick Rathman and Ronny Kaplan all raced in a 25-lap feature which was run in a downpour. Future 1960 Indianapolis ‘500’ champion Jim Rathman won the treacherous race while Jay Frank finished in second place.

During the month of August 1949 Jay Frank raced with the International Motor Contest Association (IMCA) during their inaugural season of stock car racing. At the ½-mile Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids Iowa he finished tenth and then finished thirteenth at the famed Milwaukee Mile (which was still a dirt surface) both while driving a 1947 Ford.

After the Midwest racing circuits shut down for the season, Jay Frank returned to the West Coast and appeared in the American Automobile Association (AAA) “big car” race at Carrell Speedway on Sunday afternoon December 4 1949.  Jay led the field on the first lap of feature but spun and his car was struck by the machine of “Bullet” Joe Garson and Frank suffered what was described in the Long Beach Independent as a “gashed chin.” The crowd of 8100 fans saw Johnny Mantz who starred at Indianapolis and would later win the first Southern ‘500’ take the 30-lap feature win.

Jay Frank spent most of his 1950 season in the Midwest. On Friday night June 23 1950, Jay Frank won the Hurricane stock car feature at Kokomo (Indiana) Speedway after he finished third in his heat race to advance to the feature starting field. Although Frank won the 25-lap feature, the evening’s star was Chicago-based Hurricane stalwart “Wild Willie” Sternquist who  won the trophy dash and finished second behind Frank in the feature after he started from the 21st position.  

 

Revolutionary change was occurring in “stock car” racing, and in February 1950, the AAA Contest Board voted to “sanction and supervise legitimate stock car racing events on track one mile or more in length where a creditable race can be held under approved racing conditions and only be accredited AAA racing promoters.”  This was the opening salvo in the long-running war over the legitimacy of Bill France’s newly formed National Association of Stock Car Racing (NASCAR) created just six months earlier.

The 38-year old driver who hailed from Los Angeles excelled in the five-race 1950 AAA stock car series which was open only to 1949, 1950 or 1951 model year American-built standard stock steel-topped sedans or coupes. Foreign-made cars, convertibles, “Jeeps,” police cars or station wagons were not eligible for AAA competition.

 

A typical 1950 Oldsmobile stock car

The inaugural AAA stock car event advertised as “the first major stock car race held in the United States since World War Two,” was held July 9th at the storied Wisconsin State Fairgrounds one-mile dirt oval in Milwaukee.  Jay Frank qualified his 303 cubic inch V-8 powered 1950 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 to start fifth in the 26-car field for the 150-mile race, behind veteran midget racer Myron Fohr, Dick Rathmann, Norm Nelson and Vince Granatelli. 

Nelson another midget racing veteran led the first 20 laps before Fohr took over and led the rest of the way in a 336 cubic inch flathead powered 1949 Lincoln. Myron was chased across the finish line by Nelson, Andy Granatelli, Art Combs and Jay Frank all driving Oldsmobiles. Of the twenty-nine starters, ten were 1950 Oldsmobiles and nine were 1949 Lincolns 

Prior to the next 1950 AAA stock car race a 100-lap event at Milwaukee on August 25, race director Tom Marchese announced a new rule - no more than four cars of any make would be allowed in the 24-car starting lineup. The starting lineup featured a large number of established AAA stars; in addition to Fohr, the field boasted Tony Bettenhausen, Jerry Hoyt and Chuck Stevenson. 

Jay Frank led the field in qualifying in his Rocket 88, but in the race was never a factor; his Oldsmobile never led a lap and retired with a broken hub on lap 46. Indianapolis ‘500’ pre-war veteran Paul Russo inherited the race win in a 1949 Cadillac after leader Myron Fohr was forced to pit with just eleven laps to go.   

With a best lap of 56.89 miles per hour (MPH) Jay Frank qualified second for the AAA “Southern Illinois 100” held on Labor Day at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in Southern Illinois outpaced only by Myron Fohr in his 1949 Lincoln. On a sunny afternoon before a crowd estimated at over 10,000, Jay Frank led into the first turn and never looked back.

Frank lapped all the cars in the field except second place Myron Fohr by lap 25, then Fohr surrendered second place when he pitted on the 45th lap. In a race that ran non-stop in a time of 90 minutes and 26.57 seconds, Rodney Clark finished second behind Frank trailed by Don O’Dell in another 1950 Oldsmobile in third place.

A mere six days later, the AAA stock cars raced at Lakewood Speedway in Atlanta Georgia, the heart of NASCAR stock car country, in a race considered as an experiment by the AAA. Norris Friel the technical chairman of the AAA Contest Board told reporters that if the 200-mile race was successful, the AAA would sanction a 500-mile stock car race at Lakewood next year. The entry list featured all the three of the famous Flock racing brothers – Tim, Bob and Truman, known as “Fonty.”

For unknown reasons, the local Atlanta newspapers identified Jay as “Johnny Frank” and the AAA race records list him as “Jack Frank.” Frank led the race with 18 laps to go before his Oldsmobile blew a tire on the backstretch and he was forced into the pit area.  NASCAR regular Billy Carden from Marbleton Georgia in a 1950 Mercury won the three hour and thirteen minute marathon followed by Robert “Red” Byron and Norm Nelson while Jay Frank recovered to finish fourth. 
 

The “experiment” must not have been deemed successful, as the AAA stock cars did not return to Lakewood the following year for a 500-mile race, but did make a final appearance two years later with a 100-lap race which was marked by fatal crash of “big car” veteran Frank Luptow.   

The 1950 AAA stock car season wound up just one week after the Atlanta race with a 100-mile race held at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield. Norm Nelson came into the finale leading the championship with 760 points and only needed to finish the race to clinch the championship. Jay Frank who qualified for the pole position was second in points and in order to capture the championship he had to win the race and Nelson had to drop out of the race.  

Years later in an interview, Nelson recalled “that's exactly what happened. The engine in my Oldsmobile blew and he won the race." Frank finished the 100-mile distance at a speed of 69 MPH and won the race purse of $2000 and the 1950 AAA stock car championship with 830 points to Nelson’s 760. Nelson would go on to win the United States Auto Club (USAC) – the predecessor to AAA – stock car championship three times as a driver and five times as a car owner.   

The 1951 AAA stock car championship consisted of just three races, all run at the Milwaukee Mile. The first race originally scheduled for July 8th, was rained out and rescheduled for July 15. Once again the race featured an impressive list of future and current racing superstars including Rodger Ward, Tony Bettenhausen, Myron Fohr, Rex Easton and Jack McGrath.

The entry list totaled 58 cars competing for the 24-car starting field and included fourteen Oldsmobiles, 11 Hudsons, seven Plymouths and four each from Nash, Packard, Chrysler and Studebaker, as well as Chevrolets, Pontiacs, Cadillac and a Kaiser.  The defending AAA champion Jay Frank who now listed Leland Michigan as his hometown started on the pole in his #1 1950 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 sponsored by Bell Auto Sales with McGrath alongside in his 1951 Hudson Hornet.  

Frank led the first six circuits but the race was dominated by Bettenhausen in E.J. Carr’s 1951 Chrysler, as Tony led the next 138 laps. When Bettenhausen pitted, Rodger Ward took the lead and led the final six laps in his 1951 Oldsmobile and took the checkered flag in a new record time of 2 hours 12 minutes and 39.71 seconds.

The final two races of the 1951 AAA stock car season were run back-to-back on Thursday and Friday August 23 and 24 in association with the Wisconsin State Fair. Jay Frank’s name does not appear in the fragmented partial results of the August 23 race won by Nelson, before Nelson’s 1951 Oldsmobile was disqualified after a post-race inspection found a non-standard rear end gear ratio which Nelson claimed could be purchased in mountain states.
 

AAA officials awarded the win to Rodger Ward and based upon his two race wins in three races, Ward clinched the 1951 AAA stock car championship.  In the season finale the next day August 24 Jay Frank was credited with a ninth place finish driving a Chevrolet as he finished one lap behind winner Norm Nelson.

Jay Frank celebrates a victory in a modified stock car

The year is unknown but note that the car's sponsor is from

Oconcnowoc Wisconsin  photo courtesy of Stan Kalwasinski

 

 

Following the 1951 season, Jay Frank’s name dropped from the racing headlines, and a July 1952 article in the Belvedere (Illinois) Daily Register published prior to the Milwaukee stock car race revealed that Jay Frank now claimed Oconomowoc Wisconsin as his hometown. Several years passed before Jay Frank now 43 years old reappeared on the racing scene in a pair of races during the 1956 NASCAR Pacific Coast Late Model (PCLM) season. West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame Chairman Ken Clapp recalls Jay Frank at that time as “a tall slim good-looking man with a mustache.”  Clint Frank related to Kalwasinski that his father lived for a time in Michigan before he relocated back to Los Angeles where he owned and operated several car washes.

 

 

A typical 1956 Ford stock car

 

Frank’s 1956 race appearances both came at the ¼-mile dirt Gardena Stadium oval. In the first race a 250-lap event on March 11, Frank finished 10th in a 1956 Ford built by Scotty Cain and owned by Joe Keaton. His second 1956 appearance came on April 8 as he finished in ninth place again in Keaton’s 1956 Ford. After he failed to qualify for the NASCAR PCLM race at Portland Speedway in June 1956, Jay Frank dropped out of the public eye.

Sadly, Jay Frank's life came to a sudden end on April 4 1965 when he stopped on the Hollywood Freeway to aid another motorist whose car was on fire. A following drunk driver struck and killed Jay Frank. Jay's son Clint Frank told me that he himself raced for a number of years in the four-cylinder division at the Shadyhill Speedway in Medaryville, Ind.

Although we know now much more information, the author is astill nxious to learn more about Jay Frank, either before, during or after his racing career. If you have some relevant information please contact the author at kevracerhistory@aol.com.

The author sincerely appreciates the contributions to this article by Thomas Schmeh, Dick Jordan, Ken Clapp, Donald Davidson, Jim Thurman Stan Kalwasinski and the members of the Nostalgia forum at TrackForum.com (http://www.trackforum.com).

 

 

 

 

Duffy Livingstone

By Doug Stokes / Stokes Communications 

 

August 19, 2017: Frank "Duffy" Livingstone passed away earlier this week at the age of 92.  He was, as he once confided in me, and as his closest friends always suspected, a Martian. 

There was always a wry look in his eye that told you he was in possession of far more information (about anything) than he was putting out at the time. That cockeyed smile, the quick wink (... or did I just imagine that he winked?), and then reaching into his pocket to draw out a quarter and hand it to me all without a word, always gave him away.

That he was in fact: "...not from around here," was pretty evident.  Not that he ever had any trouble at all acting like an actual human; it was just something that was part of the general surrounding ambiance every time that we ever spent any time together ... background music, if you will, no little twitchy antennas (at least not visible ones).

He was also one of the true "fathers" of American Karting and, perhaps the best damn welder who ever shook his head to have a mask fall into place before making welds that looked like DaVinci or Michelangelo had painted them. 

In fact, he was such a master of light metal welding that a couple of high-zoot aerospace companies thought so much of his work that they regularly dropped off mysterious packages at the back door of his SuperWeld shop in Costa Mesa very late at night and came back the next night to pick up the finished pieces of some very exotic parts (er ... "critical components") which (I'm quite sure) Uncle Sugar thought sure the big-dollar aerospace guys were doing at their digs. 

Duffy (or "Due-Fay", his preferred pronunciation) was a (seemingly) laconic fellow who was just "having fun" most of the time, (no ... make that all of the time).  But that mind, that remarkable, wonderfully diverse, brain of his was always on, always alert, always tracking.

 

His lasting contribution to the sport was the International Kart Federation.  He understood early-on that the sport needed solid rules and guidance if it was not only to grow, but to be taken seriously.  He lived long enough see that and more. 

When I served as the Executive Director of the IKF from 1979 to 1984, my first official act was to give our bookkeeper, Rosemary Judy, a dollar bill and ask her to cut a check to me for that same amount.  Duffy was then the IKF treasurer and, at that time, both his and my signatures were needed on organization checks.  One of my heroes and me, signing the same check!  Wow!  I wish that I still had that check (it's probably around here somewhere) to show people.

 

 

A few years later, after getting  a couple of threatening letters from some high-powered Hollywood attorneys representing the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, I indicated to the association President, the late John Strauser, that we needed to stop referring to our Pete Millar-designed Grand National Championship award in print as: "Karting's Oscar".  John agreed, I then suggested naming it for Duffy and (of course) the board of directors agreed. 

Duffy once told me that he was at an IKF GN event in the Pacific Northwest and found himself looking at the trophies that were lined up and on display before being handed out.  There was a little boy there marveling at the statuettes.  Duffy asked the youngster what all the fuss was about with the solid bronze trophy that was a statuette of a man in a karting suit and helmet holding a smaller version of himself, who was holding a yet smaller version of himself (and so on until all detail is lost). 

The kid's eyes got very wide and he related a wild tale of derring-do and heroism that had the man (whose nickname was given to the award) fighting dragons, curing disease, and most likely changing the course of mighty rivers in his spare time.   

"He was from a long, long time ago," the kid explained to Duffy.  "He was a really great man."  

You know what?  He was.                                                       

For those interested in reading more about Duffy Livingstone, may we suggest Brock Yates' book Hot Rod: Resurrection of a Legend.