I actually had a hand in seeing that this ever saw the light of day. A few years back, had a media friend of mine that secured a copy of it from a relative of the speedway's owners, and after some shrewd negotiating with the guy, secured my copy, as well as copies for several others in the tape trading circuit. I think this ranks up there amongst the holy grails of lost racing footage, even now.
Can't say that I blame them...especially with Penske moving back into the Ford camp in 2013 and I am guessing aligning with Roush. Hopefully Mopar won't overthink their team chart next year- less teams in the fold has actually meant some success for them. I still think they add another mid-tier team for next year. Wonder if Ganassi might be willing to flip- neither of their cars is hitting on much these days.
Petty to switch to Dodge? according to AR1.com sources, Richard Petty Motorsports will announce on Friday in Michigan that they will switch to Dodges next year. No word yet on whether Penske, which is switching to Ford, will continue to build the Dodge engines for RPM.( AR1.com )(6-12-2012)
Nascar Hall Of Fame confirms the passing of 2013 inductee Cotton Owens.
A copy of the letter I am enclosing...
June 13, 2012
Dear Mr. Donlavey:
Hello. My name is Jay Coker, and I am a longtime Nascar fan from Atlanta, Georgia. As a kid, I had the privilege of watching you as well as many other owners, drivers, and crews compete each week. Although I originally was raised as a Richard Petty fan, then eventually a Bill Elliott fan during the 1980s, I always had an appreciation for your team as well. Of course, you had many talented drivers compete for you over the years. While I was growing up, I specifically remember Jody Ridley, Dick Brooks, and Ken Schrader driving your cars. I was actually in attendance in Daytona back in 1987 when Schrader barrel-rolled your car coming for the checkered flag- that wreck literally happed right in front of where me and my father were sitting.
Anyway, the point of my letter is simple. The first one is to send my appreciation for all of the hard work and entertainment you provided fans like me over the years. Your team persevered through a lot of lean years, at a time when maybe 5-8 teams had major sponsorships. On top of that- your cars always ran well. I am a firm believer that it is only a matter of time before the people involved do the right thing and make sure you are rightfully nominated and elected to the Nascar Hall Of Fame. Your career and achievements certainly warrant being there.
The other point of my letter is this. A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of reading an article by longtime writer Tom Higgins about your greatest moment in Nascar- the day you went to Victory Lane in Dover, Delaware back in 1981. At the time, I had JUST turned 5 years old, and was still a couple of months away from attending my first race, the July race in Daytona. I actually didnt know the story behind the race for a long time, but when I heard it, I became determined to find some kind of video footage from that day so that I could see it for myself. Well, it took a lot of patience on my part, but a few years ago, I had a breakthrough and found a copy of ESPNs coverage of that race, the 1981 Mason-Dixon 500.
A couple of years ago, Jody Ridley was inducted into the Georgia Racing Hall Of Fame. At the time, I was approached by a member of the Hall that wanted a copy of the race, so that they could show highlights of it. I agreed, but only if they made sure that Jody would receive a copy of it for his own personal collection. They gladly obliged. From what I was told, neither Jody or his family had ever seen the video of the race, and it made a VERY pleasant surprise in what was a special night for him.
Back to Mr. Higgins- in his article, he mentioned that you would love to hear from fans that remember you and your team. It was at that time that I made a decision that I wanted to give you a small token of my appreciation- I am enclosing the video footage from the 1981 Mason-Dixon 500 for you, as well as a copy of the 1987 7-Eleven Twin 125s, a race that saw your Red Baron Frozen Pizza Ford beat my childhood hero, Bill Elliott, in a photo finish.
I hope that these races can provide you with fond memories from those two days for many years to come. To this day, you are well-remembered with your peers and fans alike. On behalf of myself, thank you for everything you have given to us as racing fans- your efforts definitely havent gone unnoticed.
Best wishes!
Jay Coker
Another story that holds a special place in my heart...
A few years ago, Jody Ridley was elected to the Georgia Racing Hall Of Fame. Well, I was approached about the possibility of procuring a copy of the race video, which was covered by ESPN during their inaugural season of "Auto Racing '81." Of course, I was very happy to oblige. Not only for the Hall...but for Jody as well. I made the deal with the provision that they make sure that Jody got a copy of it as well.
Well...when I got the follow up email about how the ceremony went- it literally made my heart light up. Not only did they give Jody his own personal copy of it- I was told that the Hall had the video on loop out in their lobby. From what I was told- neither Jody or his family had ever actually seen the broadcast. Apparently, they were VERY interested in watching it...they had watched it twice, and were about to watch it for a third when the Hall people let them know that they would like to close for the night at some point!
Now that I have Mr. Donlavey's information...it might be a good idea to make sure that he has a copy of his two biggest triumphs as well!
When Davey drove forWhitaker in '86, he ran the #7. Morgan Shepherd ran #77 for him that year as well. Was always fond of the number font on that #7 Skoal car!
Lost in all of this was the fact that Bill actually ran a lap even faster in winter testing that year...214.660.
Of course...there's this:
If you have the original ESPN broadcast of the race like I do, they show the crew building the car overnight during the intro to the song Night Owls by Little River band. Apparently they borrowed a lot of the parts from the #47 Ron Bouchard team, and when they showed the rebuilt car, you could definitely tell there was some serious modification, as the fender lines were still not exactly right. Bobby ran a Buick that season, but I'm not sure if they borrowed a Chevy front end for the race, but it was definitely a Monte Carlo front on the car on race day.
You also forgot to mention this was the weekend that Bobby Allison drove THROUGH the first turnguardrail in practice.
