[drew6869]

The existing track is to big for the smaller kids in quarter midgets, gotta think some of the kids are only 5yrs old

[DAD]

If you have not experienced a quarter midget race you really don't know what you are missing. Kids start out at the age of 5 or so and race until they are in their mid teens or their poor old dad's can't push start them any more.

Quarter midget racing is a very regulated sport both in technical matters about the cars and also in racing and the driving practice of the young racers. If a young person learns the do's and dont's as a youngster they will tend to carry over as an adult racer. Our ranks are full of QMA graduates, they are among the best of the best. I would also bet the slide job originated in quarter midgets. I have seen races where there was a slide job twice a lap for the entire race. That is racing when done correctly and if you screwed up , just once and charged or blocked you would get the black flag GUARANTEED PERIOD.

The race tracks are a regulation 1/20 th of a mile and there is not another race car out there that can run as fast on one of these tracks as a quarter midget can. Just by the very small size of the race track they are true "bullrings" and these kids do the same things on their track that big time racers like Dave Darland does on their big tracks. Come to think about it I think Dave did his apprenticeship in the quarter midgets.

If you like close fast action racing a quarter midget track is the place to find it. They usually race on Sunday afternoons and The price is really cheap also. Back in the 50's and 60's the drivers would circulate through the fans for donations and that was it. I'm not sure they do that now, but it was a lot of fun to see who got the biggest haul for the day. The older you got the smaller your donations would get, them little kids have a definite advantage there.

A quarter midget track anywhere is a good idea.

Honest Dad himself

[DAD]

You know what would be a neat idea. If we could start an album on the old "IOW" of all the drivers that apprenticed in quarter midgets that went on to race in larger cars, posing with their quarter midget as kids. I know there are tons of these pictures out there. That was part of the sport. The car, the kid, and the trophies. I bet there are a million Christmas Cards with this theme on them out there.

Honest Dad himself

[luckybuc97]

Here ya go Dad!

[DAD]

What year is that push truck in the first photo, there reaches a time when that old truck just sits down, you know what I mean. At one time I was good for 3+ laps pushing a cantankerous AA.

Honest Dad himself

[drew6869]

Kameron Pollock, age 5. Remember the name. Last to 2nd in first ever race last year! Would have won but tapped leader coming out of 4 for checkards and spun him. Got put to the tail... He was mad as hell, lol. Great learning experience for him about sportsmanship and clean driving,even tho it was accidental. More pics in years to come!

[DAD]

Drew

Spoken like a true Quarter Midget Dad/handler. This will be but one of many learning experiences for him. At this age he doesn't know he is learning. But as he progresses these little black flag moments will bring about a real racing awareness in him and teach racing etiquette that will follow him as he progresses in racing. It is ashamed that many young racers do not possess this trait today.

Good luck, have fun, and don't forget to bite your tongue ever once in a while. The kids usually handle racing incidents much better than their parents do.

Honest Dad himself

[racin jason]

My 6 year old son Preston had a lot of fun racing quarter midgets for the first time this year.

[DAD]

Racin

Used to be some people named Wing that had a lot to do with that little track if I remember correctly.

Don't let Preston dance on the cage until he is at least 10 years old.

I used to help a kid named Preston Ford race quarter midgets after I got out. That kid was good, but at the time there was along dry spell between the time you got out of the Quarters and into the midgets. He was about as good as you could get with 4 or 5 national titles in B mod and AA and would have been an outstanding driver. This would have been back in the time of Charlie Workman, Tracy Potter, Sleepy and Bobby Tripp, The Carruther bros, Macky Mcleannan, Billy and Mike Roller, Mike Streicher, Steve Lotshaw and I think it was Rockey Wing from down your way were all racing Quarter midgets.

Honest Dad himself

[DAD]

I went back through some of my old pictures and found this one of a young guy auditioning for a ride in a Ralph Potter midget back in the mid 70's. The picture was taken at the old Big "Z" quarter midget track in Indy. He eventually got the job in one of Ralph's number 6 midgets and went on to follow his dad and older brother into USAC racing Midgets, Sprints and Silver Crown cars. He even did a stint with NASCAR, and he is still major force in racing today.


Can you guess who he is?

Honest Dad himself