Ode To Our "Legends" by Dale Swanson (year 1995)
Yes "God" or Old Man upstairs. We do confess we learned to run .Those mountain turns not just for funHow we "Legends" bought our tires. Was no secret to the stars.Those night runs with that old coupe. With other loads and a lot of soup. Was what kept those race cars on the road.And also got the city guy a load.When load delivered out came the white wash and the brush. On went the name and number in a rush.Maybe thats how "White Lighting" got it's name -cause it sure ain't "Orange Crush".We didn't realize that when Bill France's dream became reality.What it would do for our speciality. As the tracks progressed- came 90 then 120- then 150- then on beyond 180 and some.Now the crowds to the races came. First 500 only, then they (NASCAR) grew by leaps and bounds. Until now they are 100,000 and beyond.If Louie Chevrolet, Henry Ford & "Cannon Ball" (Baker). Could look down up on their sons. They would think MY GOD. Look what we could have done. At 90 miles per hour we were only "half done"
THANK THEM FOR THE START OF THE BEST DAMN SPORT AROUND
Thanks DexterI will see a lot of my Legend Racing Friends again in Daytona Beach and I will as always remind them who they are and that they are not forgotten in racing history.Zetta Baker
Hello Zeta, and thank you so very much for sharing some very unforgetable information. It gave us yet another look at the dedication to the world of racing. We have a close friend in Florida who was helping us get involved in what we believe is the organization you so graciously shared with us. His name is Johnny West. We had to curtell our plans to attend one of the banquets Johhny had invited us to attend, but six by-passes came unexpected while camping at Daytona Speedway in 2006. This is where one could learn what racing dedication is. Never was the a medical problem eveident, so all of this was quite a shock. After six days in Halifax Medical Hospital Billy was released, only to return to the camping area with nurses coming to the track everyday to attend his needs. The nurses stated that was a first for their in home care! We stayed for another week until the running of the Daytona 500. At our present age driving to Daytona is out of the question. We miss it, as three weeks were spent at the track every year.Didn"t intend to take so much of your time with all this information, it was only the name of Johnny West which brought back the memories. Again, we say "THANK YOU" for all you have done for the namesake of racing and great men, which we probably would not have known about.We also appreciate your giving us the honor of becoming friends with a "special" racing individualsuch as yourself.God bless and we love you,Billy and Barbara Scott