[Chad Cunningham]

Good memories everyone... As former announcer of The UMRA, I have many great memories, and relationships I will cherish for many years. Here's a couple great memories:

The 96 (I think) championship between Jason Knoke, Jerry Frickman, and Terry Goff. I was helping Jerry Frickman at the time, and we thought we were primed to take the top prize, but we had terrible luck at the end of the season and we ended up finishing 3rd behind Jake and Terry. Not too shabby, finishing behind two of the best to ever drive TQ's!

Annyone remember Chris Coers taking his #22 Dairy Queen TQ up over the turn 1 fence at Twin Cities and through a utility shed outside the track. totally destroying the shed, but Thankfully Chris was ok.

A few years ago, at Shelbyville, Jason Goff decided his car wasnt "dirty enough" so he ran it into a Port O Let, and yes.... Just imagine how dirty it was... Quite funny though..

Many, many great memories... Thanks Jen for beginning this post. Helps us put things into perspective and remember how great TQ racing was and still can be!

[speidel21]

Originally Posted by badcoupe Either finishing a motor up at 4:30 in the morning and winning the feature in a close race with ron combs. Either that or Jim berry getting another win last year at osgood with my brother at the wheel. Nights after the indoor shows hanging with Bob Nichols since my brother was driving for him. Good times indeed

I remember that night at Rushville like it was yesterday. What a remarkable night, given the circumstances. When you going to get you another TQ, you know you like tinkering with them, surprised you have went this long without getting your hands on another one :thumb

[speidel21]

Originally Posted by Knoke77 Way to many memories to list them all but one that always sticks out in my mind was back in 1995. We had a two race weekend where on Saturday we ran at Montpelier followed up with a show on Sunday at Kokomo. After running Montpelier many teams hauled butt over to Kokomo and got hotel rooms. After getting settled in a few teams met up to finish off the evening. This group consisted of a group of guys that always had a good time after the races. Travis Welpott and girlfriend Toby Welpott Chris Coers and his cousin Derek Scheffel and his crew Me a few others that I can't remember. All in all I think there were around 12 people. At the time I was not 21 but managed to sneak into the hotel bar along with the rest of the group. Needless to say my eyeballs were about ready to fall out of my head the next day and I was almost late in getting to the track with the car. I ended up sleeping on the floor in Derek's room and almost froze to death until someone finally put a sheet over me. My dad chewed my butt from one turn to the other when I finally arrived. Another funny moment that night was watching Derek get stuffed through the small glass window above the door of Travis's room because he lost his key and the clerk wouldn't give him another. That and Chris getting ran out of the pool for jumping the fence and going swimming after it was closed. Another moment I will never forget was my first win in a TQ which came at my home track in Columbus. I was leading about half-way through the feature when there was a bad crash and Travis Welpott had to be taken to the hospital for a checkup. We had to wait for another ambulance to show up so they got us out of the cars until it arrived. I was so nervous I could hardly sit still. Jackie Brock took me off to the side and gave me some of the best advice I have ever received. I kept worrying about Terry since he has always been on of the best in a TQ. She reminded me that he was no different then me and that he put his pants on the same way I do which is one leg at a time. She got me calmed down and focused on what I needed to do and I took the win with room to spare.

Hey Jason, this was long before I started racing TQ's, but I dont think I will ever forget sitting at North Vernon at the last race of the season freezing balls with blankets watching in the stands when you were a contender in the point chase. What an intense night..

[TQ29m]

I guess some of the best, were the "Express Runs" to Oak Ridge, Tn, to Atomic Speedway. I don't know why we even bothered to rent a Motel room, by the time we got ck'd in, it was time to get to the track, and by the time we got back, it was time to leave, but the trip down and back, was more fun than the racing anyway, kinda like "Cannonball Run", or the "Great American Race", and "GumBall Rally", all rolled into one. Reminded me sometimes of a Road Course race, with Trailers! Atomic was a one of a kind place, we're probably all contaminted, just from going there. It's gone now, so I hear, no more high, high bank, with the built in watering from the top down, and 8 year olds, with a can of beer in one hand,and a steering wheel in the other, hot lapping the old mans stocker! Bob

[Osborn]

Definitely can't have this conversation without the mention of driver A.J. Felker. I've never seen so many jaw dropping performances. I've never seen a guy throw a car in a turn so damn hard. One memory comes to mind,., a track I believe in Evansville where I started my first race only to sit in the stands early to watch A.J. take the popular #29 to the front throwing slide job after slide job. Everyone was lifting 3/4 down the straight away to make the turn, and I don't thnk A.J. lifted the whole race. All I could think about was how in the hell do you get that good.

How about during the Rushville nationals, qualifying on the first lap. Driving it so hard in turn 3 only to smack the fence, come to a crawl. Gather it back up, hit the turn just as hard the next lap and set quick time. I was in the pit area with other drivers and all anyone could do is shake their head.

I believe he went on to win that big race. But the trophy didn't go home with him.

[Shawn]

Wow, this is a pretty cool thread! I'll post a few of my memories later, but Osborn, I agree with you. Felker was a man on a mission all of the time, for sure. I also agree that he did win that race. He was getting run, after run, off of turn two on Willis. He finally got far enough beside him that he held his ground going into three. Unfortunate for Felker, the race was taken from him after that...

[ringo18]

Some of my best memories are from the 80's when the guys from California,Illinois, North Carolina, and Florida would come in for the fair races. We would run the local fair circuit for two weeks. After the nights race everybody headed for the fair midway and the bumper cars. It was a site to see grown men in the bumper cars acting like little kids!!! lol
Bob Nichols garage was the home base and everybody would head to his house the next morning for repairs and to rerun the last nights race over a few cold brews. Great times!!!!!!

[jontheturboguy]

Come to think of it, I have a goood one...

It was 03 or 02 maybe? Not too sure.

Camped out for the Rushville friday/sat races...

Just finished the friday night at Rushville with RT Lowe, myself, Matt Arrington & friends, and Derek Fisher.

We woke up sat morning to start getting ready. RT had headed over to the 4H building to get a shower.

He quickly returned to let us know that a group of hobos were sleeping in said shower.

All of us smelly and filthy from the night before - started looking at what we could do.

Hmmm....

Eye spy with my little eye - RUSHVILLE COMMUNITY SWIMMING POOL.

Opens in ten minutes. Its $2 to get in.

GAME ON!

We all hit the pool at the same time. All 10 or so of us.

To see the look on the life guards' faces when the oil & dirt slick came up to the surface and followed the group around?

PRICELESS.

All of us drivers paid for it dearly that night though. We all had gotten severely sun burnt.

Strapping in that night was painful!

[TQ97]

[QUOTE=racephoto1;86435]AJ Nigh holding off Tony Stewart to make the A on Tony's last run at Rushville. Tony tried everything but apply the chrome horn to AJ.

QUOTE]

Wow...1997, and roughly my 5th start in a race car, that makes me feel old.
On this night, only 1 transfer from the B to the A. Started 11th in the B, I think Tony was 13th. We made our way up through the field and ran 3rd and 4th for quite a while. Finally the leaders took each other out on the last lap, I cruised by to take the win and transfer. Was kinda shocked that he never touched me on the track....he admitted later to Tate's mom....he couldn't get close enough or he would of! lol

Still have that videotape somewhere.....:checkered:

[TQ97]

Great thread to start.....

So many I could write a book, evidenced that I almost forgot about the aforementioned duel with Mr. Stewart.

As a kid and pre teen- as TQ2M talked about, hanging out with the other families, though I wasn't old enough to do what they were doing. Running around the tracks after the races, on our BMX bikes trying to impress the Kleine girls, with Collin Ambrose, RT Lowe, and the Martz Boys. Used to collect all the tear offs from the night.....I'm sure TQ2M and my brother and said group, had FAR more fun than we were having.... :respect::O: Later with my Dad, driving back from California with the TQ to run the fair races in 89 and 92.

As a driver - 2003 dominates by leading flag to flag for my 1st feature win at 03 Rushville Nationals. That win capped off 7 straight top 4's. My best finish previous to this streak was 7th in 02. That 7th at Vernon in 02 is memorable as I had spun in the B with 4 laps to go while in 2nd. Made it back up to the last transfer spot and started last in the A. Everyone was on the bottom and I went to the very top and made it up to 7th at the end, and with 5 more laps very likely could of been my first win. Finally, in 07 with the car not firing in hot laps, figuring out it was a bad battery, changed it, missed my qual spot, so I was placed last in line and would only get 1 lap. I asked for a warm up lap before the green, was told no, went out and set fast time.

2 final ones.....in 93 while living in Ventura, convincing my Dad (not an easy task at all) to step out of the family car for an up and coming USAC driver to run the car at Turkey Night at Bakersfield. Dad had led a feature there earlier in the year and was primed to go back. Said driver took the lead with about 10 to go and we won the biggest race of the year.....driver, Tony Stewart. And I have to point out, both Dad and my brother were against my idea. :moon: Also...Jon....this is the car you bought from Bonemma...it was Jay Drake's 89 and 90 Champiopnship TRC car (Gary Howard built). We sold it to Bryan Stanfill in 94 or 95. He ran it awhile and sold it to Bonemma. If you know where that car is now, I need to know. I know Matt Bamberry had it last I knew.

Finally if I want to keep racing :icon_smile_blackeye:shout....my favorite TQ memory of all time, better be Columbus in 89, when I was 13. After the feature I went to the fair with one of those Kleine girls and we had our first kiss outside turn 4.....10 years later she became my wife. :Steer