At RacersReunion, we continuously talk about how it was back in the day, but I don't think we have ever set a definitive clarification of exactly what "back in the day" means. And, as I think about that, I am sure for each of us, the term has a different meaning. I consider it to mean back when the racing was with stock looking cars on really great tracks with super human drivers behind the wheels of those cars. I consider it to be racing under the lights on a half-mile dirt track or running The Southern 500 under the hot Labor Day sun in the Pee Dee of South Carolina.
Also, "back in the day" meant that we had friends in the infield at each race, most times the same friends in their motor homes, tents, converted school buses or whatever. We shared stories around the campfire on Saturday night as we waited to the sun to come up on race day Sunday. We put out tables of food and drink to be shared by all. We would grill hamburgers and hot dogs AFTER the race while waiting for the traffic to thin out, which, by the way, at Daytona, Charlotte, and Atlanta was always late into the night. We made good friends at the track back then, some of whom I have actually reunited with thanks to social media connections, and we immediately picked up right where we left off so many years ago. It is quite a comforting feeling to know those type of friendships have survived all those years.
One of my youngest grandson’s friends was looking at one of the pictures of a group of us taken last year. The boy was 11 years old and it was obvious he was intrigued by all the guys in the picture having grey hair, and some, no hair at all. The kid was not a race fan and the only thing he knew about racing was what my youngest grandson had told him which amounted to not much more than "my Pop is The Legend". The kid was concerned about so many old men being out on the racetrack. I was quick to tell him that we old guys don't race anymore (with the exception of Bill Blair and our own Bopper) but that we like to remember the way things were back when we were younger. I really think the kid understood but the subject was quickly changed to the video game those boys love to play.
You know, it really was what it was and what it was was awesome! Now that Jeff has brought me into the 21st century with Roku, I have learned that I can access You Tube on my television. Since I got the Roku device, I have watched a ton of races from the 50s as most of the Southern 500s are on there, although in like 25 and 30-minute films. I have found races from Hillsboro, NC on the one-mile dirt track we celebrate every September. Even found a 5-minute television interview with our own Frank Craig. I am convinced, now, that you can find almost anything on You Tube. Sort of like "Alice's Restaurant". Ok, ok, I realize that is straining the memory banks of many of you trying to remember that song, but if you recall, it went "You can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant". I sort of like that.
One reason I believe that "what it was" is so important, is because it is the foundation of a sport that reached a pinnacle before the turn of this century and has steadily declined since. In fact, it appears it is in free fall this season. I watched the last few laps of the Xfinity race Saturday as I had just gotten a shower from working in the yard all day and sat down to rest. The statement was made that Sunday's race was a "sell out". I must admit the infield campers appeared to be numerous and I was just a little nostalgic about such weekends. However, when I flipped the race on Sunday to check the crowd, I had to pull down my trusty dictionary to look up the term "sell out". Obviously what Mr. Webster states as the definition and what NASCAR puts forth as the definition are so far apart there is no way to compare.
So, tonight our show is going to focus on the Pennsboro Speedway in West Virginia. A track with a long and storied history that almost became a vapor in the memories of those who raced there and who attended races there. A history so vibrant in the sport that a dedicated group of folks have given their best efforts to bring about a RacersReunion at the track set for August 22nd and 23rd. Unfortunately, I learned of this event too late to arrange my schedule and budget to attend, but I have been advised that this is only the FIRST ANNUAL such event and, hopefully, next year The Legend will be a part of that "Almost Heaven West Virginia" moment.
I am impressed, and deeply touched, by the enthusiasm of the folks with whom I have spoken who are working on this project. I know what it means to them. After all, I was fortunate enough to have been a part of the Historic Columbia Speedway Reunion in 2009, which drew in excess of 35,000 folks. I am very fortunate to be a part of the Augusta International Raceway Preservation Society where just a handful of dedicated men give their all to see that the 100 plus years of Augusta, Georgia racing history is not lost. I am also an Honorary Member of the Historic Speedway Group of Hillsborough, NC, and I know how hard that group works to present the flagship reunion each year. In each of these groups, the "what it was" is something worth preserving for future generations. Sometimes I wonder if it even matters to the future generations but then I think of Alex, Eric, Cody, Daniel, Josh, and others in their teens, twenties and thirties, that care as much about the history as do I.
I am so honored to be a part of an effort to preserve the history of this sport. I am humbled beyond words to be in groups of some of the greatest names in the history of the sport when they get together in Daytona, Augusta, Hillsborough, or wherever it is that we all gather to meet fans and bench race. Being a part of all that is beyond words to describe to have been accepted by all these heroes and legends from the past leaves me speechless (imagine that Jeff) when trying to describe what it is like.
This past Friday night I discovered, on You Tube, a film of the 1963 Daytona 500. Although the film quality was a little off, I can remember being in that soggy infield that day when the race started and that number 3, Junior Johnson Chevy blasted out front only to be sidelined by mechanical issues, as were many of those fast Chevys. As I watched the race, I saw G.C. Spencer put that Chevy of his in the lead several times, a fact our own Alex used as a "Brain Strain" a few weeks back. I watched Fireball Roberts bring that red and white Pontiac into the pits with problems where the year before I had watched Fireball in that black and gold number 22 take it to Victory Lane. I watched the Fords of Ned Jarrett and Fred Lorenzen battle nose to tail and side by side. I saw three abreast, four abreast racing withOUT restrictor plates. I actually found myself cheering aloud when my now good friend Rex White was taking the lead in that gold and white number 4. Wow, that was really exciting for me!
That race came down to a fuel mileage deal, much like the previous two races of current day racing, with leaders Fred Lorenzen and then Ned Jarrett having to stop with less than five laps to go to get that "splash of gas" to make it to the end. It was about that time that the camera picked up the number 21 Ford of the Wood Brothers, driven by Tiny Lund, as he took the lead and gambled on having enough fuel to get to the finish. He did, and he won. The Victory Lane celebration was mild by today's standards, but it was pretty awesome seeing a young Tiny and his wife Wanda celebrating that big win. It was even more meaningful as I recalled the great friendship Ann and I had developed with Wanda in the years before she passed away.
The next time any of you have an opportunity to hang out with the old grey-haired men gathered around a table talking racing, stop off, and listen. Many of these heroes are in their 80s now, most in their 70s at least. We seem to lose more of these men every month as time passes. It would be a sad thing indeed to lose all those stories.
So, when Pennsboro Speedway has their reunion in just a couple of weeks, if you're anywhere near there, you owe it to yourself to stop in and listen. I know you won't be disappointed. This event will be the first of what will likely become a mainstay in the restoration of historic racing facilities. Most tracks are physically gone now and remain vibrant only in the memories of those who attended races there. Thankfully, Pennsboro is not such a track. I understand plans are being discussed that may even lead to a resumption of racing activity on that half-mile dirt track. We can only hope.
As we have said, "At the end of the day, it was what it was". In my opinion, what it was remains as awesome in my eyes today as it was when it happened all those years ago. And, ladies and gentlemen, racing back in the day was pretty dog gone awesome! The thought of the return of Pennsboro Speedway is reason for all of us to be extremely excited. Get more information at http://legendarypennsborospeedway.com
