Pre-Race Shows

On this forum in comments about the Sunday Daytona race (I'm not rehashing that in this post) , I mentioned I'd rather see a pre-race show such as the ones put on by the Red Baron Squadron as opposed to having to listen to the Zac Brown Band perform. That's no longer possible because a year or two back, Red Baron dropped the sponsorship of that signature flying group.

In 1986 & 1987, the Junie Donlavey #90 Ford Thunderbird driven by Ken Schrader in NASCAR Winston Cup competition was sponsored by Red Baron Pizza of Marshall, Minnesota.

In conjunction with that sponsorship, the Red Baron Squadron performed in pre-race at several NASCAR races in those years, giving a thrilling flying demonstration that had fans on their feet. I was lucky to see them perform before races at Charlotte, Michigan and New Hampshire.

The footage below is not from a NASCAR show, but I thought you might enjoy seeing what I was talking about.

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"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:00:58PM

Don't try this at home, folks!

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"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"

A roommate of mine in college and for a couple of years after we graduated dogged me regularly for being a race fan. Some in good fun - other times in true mocking fashion. I challenged him each time to go to a race - and each time he declined. Finally in the late 1980s, he caught himself watching Daytona. He sheepishly admitted his eye caught on the Red Baron Pizza 90 car. He wasn't sure who drove it - but he thought the car looked really cool.

I finally convinced him to make the trek with me to the 1990 Firecracker race. He hauled his bulky VHS camcorder with him and sported a Schrader Kodiak hat. On the parade laps, he walked down near the fence coming out of turn 4 near the entrance to pit road and started recording (glad this experience wasn't last weekend).

As the cars made their 'slow' parade laps, he looked back at me and shrugged. I motioned for him to stay down there knowing what would happen after they took the green. Sure enough, they were off and running and slowly built up speed with the use of the plates. But when they came off turn 4 at 190+, the wind buffeted through the fence and took the Kodiak hat off his head. He got his hat, looked back up at us, grinned, and mouthed "I like this."

I won't say he is a diehard fan. But to this day, he is at least conversational about racing. And the tipping point for him was Junie Donlavey's #90 pizza box.

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Schaefer: It's not just for racing anymore.

That was some cool footage, Dave! And Chase, isn't it funny the various ways that people are won over to racing? I literally saw in my mind...his hat blowing off..LOL! Some have never understood or "gotten" it, because they never gave it a chance. I am one who says..."How can you NOT love it"????