Supermodifieds
 

This past weekend, I changed my original plan to attend the WoO finals and instead went to the North-South modified and East-West supermodified shootout. It had been quite a few years since I had seen the supers and my buddy had never seen them so off to Concord NC we went.
I know that a lot of the IOW members have seen these guys run and I'm sure they'll back me up when I tell you they FLY! For their first hotlap session we stood inside the pitwall coming out of the dogleg and the first time they came by at speed my friend jumped back about ten feet. Later he made the comment that those guys "must tape their eyelids open because there's no way they have time to blink."
I was really surprised and pleased that the car count was 38. Besides the guys from Oswego, there were some from NE and OH, plus a bunch from the West. We ended up spending a good bit of time with the 48 crew of Dale Lamborn from Carson City, Nevada. A nicer bunch of guys you won't find anywhere.
I was really afraid the feature was going to be a recipe for disaster: 32 rockets on a half-mile tri-oval, many of the drivers had never raced with each other or at that track, and the inversion had a number of the fastest cars scattered throughout the field. Even though there were some incidents, I think they all did a remarkable job. The race was won by AJ Russell, a young and very talented driver from CA., who started mid-pack. I was pulling for my new friend, Dale Lamborn, who finished 6th after starting 11th.
If you have never seen the supers race, check them out sometime, I bet you'll be impressed.
One other thing; if you're interested in creative race car engineering, you'll love the supers. I don't believe there were any two cars identical.

Re: Supermodifieds
 

I agree 100%, PJ. Those cars are incredible. I wish there was more of that type of racing in this area. Over the years I have seen them at Thompson, Oswego, Fulton, Star, Flemington, and Phoenix and have seen a great show each time. Check out my avatar - Ollie Silva's super from the late 70's!

Re: Supermodifieds
 

They are the only race cars with wings that float my boat (Oswego supers notwithstanding).

Re: Supermodifieds
 

PJ,

I make the annual show at Toledo in mid June every year. They race 2 complete shows in one night with the ISMA supers and the winged sprint cars of the AVSS on a Friday night. Toledo is a perfect track to watch them run, fast and smooth. It is usually a doubleheader weekend and they have run at various tracks on that Saturday night. Sandusky, Mansfield and M-40 are the usual venues. They also run at Sandusky for the annual Hy-Miler the last weekend of July. Quite a show.

I am always impressed when they open the gates after the races and invite the fans down. I could spend hours just listening to the drivers and car owners talk about their cars. This is the only type of racing that I am aware of that is a throw back to the old days of innovation and ingenuity in car design. And they are very proud to show you.

The MSA (Midwest Supermodified Association) is a fairly new organization that runs most of their races in Ohio and Michigan. I was hoping that they would make a swing to Baer Field in Fort Wayne, ORP and to Winchester some time. The supers at Winchester. NOW THAT WOULD BE FAST!:thumb:

Re: Supermodifieds
 

I grew up watching the supers at Star, and they never get old. They are simply amazing. There isn't much in racing like standing in the infield at Oswego and watching them fly around that joint. I have never seen a car come off the corner like they do. This year when we went to Oswego I was amazed at how hard they would pull off of 4, and blast down the front stretch.

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Dwight; I never got to watch Ollie race, but I remember seeing many pictures of that car in New England Speedway Scene and Cavalcade of Auto Racing. I think your avatar may be the first picture I've seen of the 0 with the left front on the ground!
One other note about this past weekend. One of the push trucks was a fiberglass bodied, drag racing jeep from CA. It had all the electronics and other goodies you would expect to see on a dragster. He had taken the wheelie bars off but left the slicks on. It really was an appropriate push vehicle for the supers.

Re: Supermodifieds
 

I went M-40 this summer to check them out.I had not seen them run for a while thoughs guys are fast,also cool fab jobs on the cars.

Re: Supermodifieds
 

WOW......you guys are finally talking about supers. I`ve been a faithful reader of this open wheel site for a while now and have always wanted to talk about the supers but they had the dreaded wings on them......:) It was a real fun time racing at concord and the west coasters were really neat guys to race with too. The fan turnout was very good the promoter was very happy esp. with the WOO in town 5 miles down the street. The supers are truely a poor mans indy car no 2 cars are exactly alike.....Alot of pics are on the ISMA site (i dont know how to post links) if any one wants to search it out. The #14 car is mine and to Dwight was real nice to see you use Ollie`s car as your avatar......that was restored here at our shop and is now displayed at many local race tracks around here.......:thumb:

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Originally Posted by Seadog:
They are the only race cars with wings that float my boat

Gotta agree with that statement !!
I agree with those who have indicated a desire to see more of their events in Indiana.:thumb:

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Originally Posted by grinch:
to Dwight was real nice to see you use Ollie`s car as your avatar......that was restored here at our shop and is now displayed at many local race tracks around here.......:thumb:

I had no idea your shop did the work on that, Jim! Great job! As for Ollie, I never saw a driver in my life that had more God given ability to sit behind the wheel of a race car - ANY race car - and make it go fast. May he RIP.

Re: Supermodifieds
 

i have been wanting to catch a race with the supers for a long time and have never gotten the chance...hopefully i will really soon...ive seen some video footage and its pretty intense

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Originally Posted by aussiemidgetfan:
My list of racing must sees in the USA now includes
-Oval Nationals at Perris
-North v South Supers
-Oswego 200 Supermodified weekend
-Belleville Midget Nationals
-Knoxville 410 and midget nationals
-Indiana Sprint Week
-Chili Bowl
-ALMS at Road America

You need to add the Little 500 to your list - it is unique and the most hectic and chaotic 2+ hours you'll ever see in motorsports. I wouldn't lie to you AMF!

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Originally Posted by Seadog:
You need to add the Little 500 to your list - it is unique and the most hectic and chaotic 2+ hours you'll ever see in motorsports. I wouldn't lie to you AMF!

I'll second that motion. I have attended 34 of the last 35 and you won't find another race anywhere with the non stop action all around the track. Quite a special event!:thumb:

Re: Supermodifieds
 

FYI, Jim Martel aka grinch is a living legend here in NE :checkered: His son J Scott, isn't a bad shoe either. By the way the #14 won best looking at the North vs South :thumb:

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Originally Posted by Dwight Clock:
I agree 100%, PJ. Those cars are incredible. I wish there was more of that type of racing in this area. Over the years I have seen them at Thompson, Oswego, Fulton, Star, Flemington, and Phoenix and have seen a great show each time. Check out my avatar - Ollie Silva's super from the late 70's!

Yes, I saw him in that car at Thompson. Good Stuff.:respect:

Re: Supermodifieds
 

Everything posted here about the Supers is true except if you want to really see fast go watch the HOSS or Auto Value 410 winged supersprints. In a match race at Mansfield (just under 1/2 mile) the HOSS car won in a 10 lap shoot out and in 20 laps would have lapped them. The King of Wings show in July at Winchester is the fastest short track show in the world. So be sure to mark your calender. We should be there 98j.