I saw many non-wing WoO races at Knoxville and at least one at Des Moines. We didn’t attend winged races so I only saw them without. They were our heroes the same as the USAC guys. They all started out without wings so I don’t think they cared one way or the other until the deaths and injuries started piling up. Ted Johnson couldn’t promote the stars if they were in the hospital. It was really cool seeing them run wingless though. Without wings I’d say Kinser, Wolfgang and Opperman were probably the best of the best, followed closely by Eddie Leavitt, Bubby Jones, Sammy Swindell, Lealand Mc Spadden, Ron Shuman and in the last few years, Tim Green. There were many other greats and the USAC list was awesome then too. Good times!
