SpfldMile (Offline)
#21
6/25/13 8:47 AM
Little Springfield, or as we called it, Shaheen's. Sunday nights. Shows on the mile were always a highlight for me as a kid, too. Later on Dad and I started branching out to Granite City, Godfrey, and Terre Haute and DuQuoin later still. What great times.
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For those about to rock, we salute you.

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hoosierhillbilly (Offline)
#22
6/25/13 9:05 AM
Dad used to take me to,haubstadt on Sundays several times a season. It was a lonely drive back to Floyd county. Like a good kid, I would sleep all the way home. We used always eat at Lakeview truck stop. They had good cheeseburgers and plate lunches.
We would also hit other tracks too. I remember trips to Knoxville and Eldora. The best was a two week run. Eldora for 2-3 days, back home for fresh clothes and on to Knoxville. Fun times.
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cws9 (Offline)
#24
6/25/13 9:38 AM
Manzanita Speedway, Phoenix, Az. I always had dreams of someday racing there. Unfortunately, I never got the opportunity. A couple of my brothers got some races in though. Lots of good memories about that place.
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jjones752 (Offline)
#26
6/25/13 10:05 AM
Jalopies at the Carpinteria Thunderbowl and Gardena Stadium. CRA "Big Cars" at "the New" Ascot Park right after they renamed it from it's original name, Los Angeles Speedway, then Midgets on the new infield 1/4 mile at Ascot and Super Mods on the Quarter and the 1/2 mile after Gardena closed. Early-model Stocks at Saugus. Mostly my childhood addiction was fueled on Sundays when Dick "Leatherbritches" Lane called the action from Gardena, then Ascot on KTLA, Channel 5; the in-person trips were special occasions that I lost sleep anticipating, like the night before Christmas.
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Shawn (Offline)
#28
6/25/13 10:24 AM
I grew up going to Anderson Speedway on Saturday Night, every week. I was a fan of the figure-8 racing, but really loved the weekly late model series. My favorite driver was #31 Bob Fields, who would do battle with #51 Vic Hellis, #15 Rick Rhonemus (sp) among many others. It was always great racing, plus the cars always looked perfect. They were always squeaky clean and just beautiful.
We would then head to Mt. Lawn Speedway on Sunday and watch the same drivers to battle there. Usually we'd have a picnic, or some sort of meal on the way to Mt. Lawn. As a side note, I really think this is something that HAS to happen with Anderson and Mt. Lawn. They need to have the same rules and race on different nights. Plus, enforce and stick to the rules...for everyone.
We also followed the special shows at Winchester, Salem, etc. We were into the asphalt late models, which included ARTGO andASA. So, I remember going to Nashville Fairgrounds Raceway, Queen City Speedway, Baer Field, etc.. I was fortunate to see drivers like Butch Miller, Johnny Benson, Dick Trickle, Darrell Waltrip, Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin and others that moved onto bigger things. There were also the drivers that I enjoyed watching, like Bob Senneker (sp), Mike Eddy, Jay Sauter, Jim Sauter and many others. My Dad was one of the first members of the Mark Martin Fan Club. So, we traveled a lot helping them with the picnics, or whatever. What a great time!
My dad and I were talking on our way back from the USAC Midget Week show at Kokomo. We sure missed a lot of great racing on the dirt during that time. We both really wish we would have been turned onto the dirt racing scene a lot sooner, but I wouldn't trade the time at the race tracks while growing up for anything. It was time with family, every weekend. It was also creating memories with them. It was also what ignited my passion for racing. That's something that will last forever.
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tntbusco (Offline)
#29
6/25/13 10:30 AM
Kt have to agree with you about Avilla. Raced at both Warsaw and Avilla. Warsaw was a great place but Avilla was a track that was more fun to race on. Grew up 5 miles from Avilla but Warsaw was dirt so that's where we went
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ROSS (Offline)
#30
6/25/13 10:53 AM
Started at Mt. Lawn speedway where my Grandpa took tickets at the gate for many years and my grandma worked the concession stand. Grandpa used to let me run around the track in his pickup and I was hooked on racing. When I wasn't visiting grandparents I was going to action track with my family. Picking up a bucket of chicken and meeting other families in the infield. Great memories of throwing the football with my brother and watching the races. I can only hope I'm having the same effect on my own son right now.
By the way Shawn I was not a Fields fan. I was a Steve Ellis fan and they had some great battles. Also was a fan of LJ Lines. Mostly because my dad helped him when he was a kid. Bet we crossed paths many times.
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