Do you remember your first race?

FLORIDA STOCK CAR RACING KARNAC's FLORIDA STOCK CAR RACING
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My first race was at Sunshine Speedway … I don’t remember the exact year but it was somewhere around 1960. They were running modifieds at the time. I remember the entire front end of the Palmer’s Garage car falling out during warmups … that car used to sit out in front of Palmer’s service station on Bay Drive in ‘downtown’ Largo back then.

In the feature, Larry Brazil and Dave Scarborough tangled coming off turn 2 and both cars went out of the ballpark, landing in the swamp off the back stretch.

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Can’t remember my first race, but according to Dad, we were on our way to Ft. Lauderdale to temporarily live with my Grandma (God rest her soul…). We stopped in at Palm Beach Fairgrounds on the way down the Turnpike, and been hooked ever since. I was all of six months old in August of 1970.

The first race I can really remember was the '77 Florida 200 at the Gate, probably because of all the big names that were there - Trickle, Eddy, Howe, Glotzbach, Anderson, Balough, Mincey, Simmons, McGinnis, McCreary, Rogero, Rogers, Pletcher, Tissot, Gregory…maybe it was because I’d read about these guys all year long in National Speed Sport News, and here they were, at OUR track. I was seven years old, and I believe it was the first season we’d run on the west coast (Tampa and St. Pete), and we had Scarborough in our car.

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[QUOTE=SeminoleWind;12313]Great stories! Keep them coming!
It does seem that most of the posts are from people in their forties.[/QUOTE]

[SIZE=“3”] HA! What I wouldn’t give to be in my forties again!!

My first race was in 1967 in my Brother-in-Law’s (Kenny Faircloth’s) Late Model. Up to this point I had been crewing on his cars for a few years and was itching for some seat time but neither he or anyone else would give me a chance. Then one Friday night we pulled into Golden Gate for a regular event and Al Stagburg hit Kenny up to drive his Plymouth for the night. Kenny turned to me and said; “well Fenton, here’s your chance, but remember one thing, you tear it up, you fix it!” I remember I just couldn’t believe it!

The problem was though I was just in my teens and had never turned a lap in anything at all let alone a Late Model with a big block in it. However, I was bound and determined to make a good showing no matter what. HaHa, so much for good intentions.

I don’t remember why we lined up in the first heat like we did, whether we pulled pills or what, but the point is, I was lined up on the pole for the first time ever in a race with Kevin Crooks in the 81 car on the outside.

I remember being pretty excited about starting in the front but at the same time I was so nervous I couldn’t have sh$$ in a 55-gal drum. My right foot was bouncing up & down so bad on the pace lap I felt like it was keeping time to some fast music that I couldn’t hear.

Kevin was always a good racer and a hard-charger so I made up my mind he would be a good barometer to drive beside for experience so I was going to hold it on the floorboard and not lift into the first corner until he did. Now here’s where my memory really fails me. I can’t remember whether I drove into the side of him and sent him off the track in turn one or in turn three, but suffice to say I never made a complete lap and unfortunately, neither did Kevin thanks to my hard-headedness.

Now for a little ‘funny’ that ocurred a short time later in the pits soon after Kevin wreckered his car back out of the toolies and back into his pit stall for repairs.

I was laying under the ‘4’ car replacing the right front tie-rod and drag link with my legs sticking out of the front when Kevin arrived to discuss the weather, world events and other matters. You see, up until this moment, he thought Kenny was driving the car in the heat race as normal.

He kicked me hard in the foot and said; “What the hell’s-a-matter with you Faircloth??” Then when I started to push out from under the car someone said;“that wasn’t Faircloth, that was Fenton, his Brother-in-Law”. He turned and walked away muttering several epithets not repeatable here. I think it was something about my mother if I’m not mistaken.

Happy to report that we were able to joke about it not too long afterward and I still count Kevin as a friend to this day.

Here is a picture of that car the same year, albeit with my brother-in-law Kenny, at the wheel.

My second time out however had a better ending. Right about the time Kenny let me drive his LM I was already preparing my own Tornado car (4Jr). I purchased a piece of junk from another racer and was in the process of trying to breathe some fire back into it when I decided to debut the car, unfinished, at a 50-Lapper later that same year at the Gate.

I ended up winning that race, my first time out in my own ride. Below is a pic of the car that night in the winner’s circle (yes, with the left front fender missing and the number 4Jr scotch-taped on the door) with flagman Johnny Hicks and the then Sheriff of Hillsborough County, Malcolm Beard.

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WOW…this brings back some good memories…my first race was at EAUGALLIE SPEEDWAY…and it was in 1970…my uncle mike dicandio was a car owner and ron mccreay drove for him as well as dave mcabe( i think i mispelled his name)…but those days were the best…back then women werent aloud in the pits until after the races were over…but i was right there when the last flag was thrown…it was sad to see that place close its doors…but that didnt stop me from finding another place to go watch racing…im like jerry i would rather have a whooping than having to give up going to the track…orlando speedworld became my home track as well as nss…then i met my hubby and i told him if you dont like racing then you might as well leave now…but during our 20 years of marriage we have owned super stocks and raced at orlando and nss…we have now sold everything and moved to GA…and it stinks cause im away from the racing family that i have…thanks linda

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Do YOU REmember Your First Race

My first race was back in 1966 at the Heidelberg Raceway in Pittsburgh Pa. It had a 1/4 mile track in the midddle & a 1/2 mile going round the outside. At the time I did not know I was meeting what would become a very good friend & mentor when he rented a garage in an alley where I lived to work on his race car. From that time till about 1983 I crewed on his cars. We used to race Pontiac’s back then when very little was known about them,running at Lernerville,both Motordrome Speedway’s,Jennerstown, the old Schumker’s Speeedway in Latrobe,Pa which sits idle now,but known as Latrobe Speedway. We used to race starting on Thursday night at North Hills Raceway, go to Lernerville on Friday to Jennerstown or Latrobe on Saturday & end at Motordrome on Sunday. Then every so often there would be a Wednesday Special race sometimes

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1st race spectating? way too young to remember. would have been Vero Beach or Eau Gallie.

back then women werent aloud in the pits until after the races

children either.

1st race competing was 1993 at Orlando Speedworld. ran one of Ron’s cars in Bombers (?) and stank up the joint. i was running 5th with 2 laps to go and i thought to myself “self, you could get a trophy tonight!” i promptly screwed up the next corner and let a guy get under me which put me back to 6th, one spot out of trophy contention. :frowning:

New Smyrna the next night was tons easier. i can’t even imagine how bad my first race would have been if it had been at a 1/4 or 1/5 mile track.

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My first race was at the Fonda speedway in NY. The year was 1955 and Junior Johnson won it. I was 3 weeks old and don’t remember a thing about it. I grew up around racing and I guess my earliest memories are from the old Midstate Speedway in NY which was a 1/2 mile dust track. They use to race Sunday afternoons and it would get dusty. I also have a lot of early memories from 5 Mile Point in NY. It was (and is) a 1/4 mile bullring. As a kid, my father was my obvious favorite and hero, but Dave Kneisel was my secret hero. Midstate Speedway went out of the racing business in the 70’s but they still hold an occasional antique car race there. 5 Mile Point is still going.

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My dad drug me (very happily I might add) to Old Dominion speedway in Manasis, Virginia in the late 70’s to see the home town boys Bobby ballintine, Jack Bland, Reds Kagel take on the likes of Morgan shepard, Darrell Waltrip, Harry Gant. We also went to Dosey Speedway (RIP) and Beltsville (RIP). As I grew up and entered the Navy, I seen races all over California and Texas before racing in my first race at Auburndale last year and of course it got rained out!!!

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[SIZE=“3”]Well the first track I remember going to as a child was Golden Gate Speedway, and my favorite driver was Milton Burysek he had a “Pink Panther” painted on his pink #25 late model and he was the coolest!! We went there until they closed it down.
My first race in a racecar was in 1990 in a powder puff race at the Lakeland International Speedway, I drove Roland Cook’s pinto stationwagon mini-stock and drove it right over one of those HUGE tractor tires coming out of turn 2, and still have the video to bring back the cool memories.[/SIZE]

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Wilmot Speedway, Kenosha County Wisconsin. I was about 4-5 (1975-6) and you could ride in the cars during the pack in session. I got to ride in one and still have the pictures of it!

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To young to remember the race, it was 1973 at the gate to watch my father race been going ever since.

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now let me tell you about first time i drove race car

don’t remember the track but my same uncle jimmy that took me and my brother don to races had decided we needed a race car we had been going for few years by now and we were about 14 -15 but looked older

and my uncle had bought this ole chev coupe from a driver and he was going drive it at last minute he chicken out i remember th track had telephone poles laying long ways all the way around the track about three high that was wall except in front of grandstands and i don’t know what that was but it was hard well

about fastest thing i had ever rode up to then was my dads ole flat head ford and some of his horses but i was not scared so i was voted to drive i do remember i started about middle ways on out side of this car i will never forget the # as long as i live f 97 and right behind me was another young man i learned later was one of allison o there was some real race car drivers in that race all except me

now the guy we bought the car from had gave me some driving advice i asked him how would i know when i got to turn when i was suppose to slow down and turn left ell he told me don’t slown down till i here the car on inside of me slow down then get on brakes turn left get it straight and sick the gas to floor and take off again

well car had good fast motor in it but brakes did not work too good cause i never heard the guy beside me lift or slow down and the guy behind me must have thought i wanted to go faster because be was pushing me and guy beside me gave me this ugly i don’t like you face and made a u turn

and got me in rear fender i do remember the car got real high in air and back then the seats was not very much and neither were seat belts i did not see much more i know car never turned over i do remember i was no longer holding the stering wheel i was holding on to something in floor when car finally got stopped it had went thru some of them rotten telephone poles and i was out in sandy field and motor was gone out of car

i also remember the guy my uncle bought the car from on credit telling me with little more pratice he thought i could do better and he had a nother car for sale .

well i did not have lot to say that night but i had decided i had started in wrong class and after about 6 months me and my brother got a car with out our uncle .

i have never regreted for one minute going to my first stock car race . i have enjoyed ever second and have met some of the greatest people in the world have made many friends and have made some enemys

my only regret is and i ask god all the time why god he was not tru racing yet he was not ready any we were not ready to let him go he still had races to win and people to please one other thing i would like to say i see young men racing today that there fathers raced when they were just young children .

a lot of them i raced with and a lot i know
if some of your fathers - brother - mothers - uncles were alive today they would be so proud of you

RON ABNEY SR

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Back in the late 50s my dad and his brothers built a car to race in Connecticut I don’t know where I was probably 4 and can’t remember ever going. We moved to Ft. Pierce in 61 and I saw my first race there I was 6 or 7 when that track closed for a while we traveled to Eau Gallie as a family night out every Saturday. Been hooked ever since I even got into drag racing bracket cars for awhile. but the wife won;t let me even think of circle track racin. I still love to this day can’t wait for Feb. Great post thanks for starting it. Tom

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Never forget…

Went to Hialeah In 1964, was about nine years old then.
I remember a driver doing donuts like a wild man in front of the flagstand. My brother told he was braking in his new tires. Guess the burning rubber got me hooked. Now it’s racing fuel exhaust, burning rubber and a wiff of sweet perfume. All three are expensive but they are a nice addiction to pay for…