**Editor's note** By way of introduction, Cody Dinsmore is a NASCAR historian, and comes to us from the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame in Dawsonville GA, where he has conducted tours for several years. As noted later, he is also a member of the RacersReunion radio show, Racing Through History. What makes Cody so unique is that he's been doing those things since age 11. Cody turned 16 on August 16, 2012. Happy Birthday Cody, and welcome to the RacersReunion writing staff. Gentle readers, please make him feel welcome as well. We here at RacersReunion are very proud of our young protégé.

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Remember When

by: Cody Dinsmore

Remember when racing was considered a sport only for the ones with the most guts and adrenaline?  Even though some women raced, it was known as a “Man’s Sport." Remember back when racers were the toughest, built from moonshiners, grease-monkeys, and war veterans ... when the cars were built from junkyard cars and by the end of the day, if it was all torn, up, you had to find time away from your real job to work on it? Only if you were in the big leagues did you have the money to build another monster. Most drivers of the day raced their moonshine cars or some backyard jalopies. Heck, some even used their family’s own means of transportation.

[caption id="attachment_2270" align="alignright" width="150"] Wilbur Rakestraw after a win a Lakewood Speedway - 1957[/caption]

Remember when they ran at places like Lakewood, the Peach Bowl, Suicide Circle, Hickory, Columbia, Daytona, Chattanooga,  and the list goes on? The money wasn’t big considering admission was usually around a quarter. In those days, if it wasn’t a well-known track, you couldn’t trust the promoter; by the time the money was all counted, many a time would the boss-man run off with the money. If a driver would happen to win a race, they would earn a small amount. On a weekly circuit, $10 was a fair first place award, plus a small trophy. Neither one meant a thing to the drivers as they weren’t in it for the money and most trophies were the same at each track with no inscription on them.