Growing Up

I've mentioned before on this blog that I was an auto racing photojournalist beginning in 1971 and continuing on through 2006.  The mid 1990s I began to reduce the amount of races that I covered per year.   From 2002 through 2006 I only did a few local races each season. In that time span I covered pretty much every major and minor racing series.  That means of course that I also covered many of the greatest drivers.   Foyt, Andretti, Petty. Pearson, Earnhardt, B. Unser, A.Unser Sr. A. Unser Jr., Rahal, Mears, Fittapaldi, Kinser, Swindell, Trickle, Senneker, Eddy, Moyer, Norm Nelson, Ernie Derr and on and on.  One thing that many of those names have in common is they are retired.  Some are long retired or deceased.

In the late 1970s a new phenomenon began to appear.  Top drivers were getting younger and younger. That has continued until recent times but three drivers that I photographed when they were teenagers, continue to be major players today.  I cannot help but remember the first time I photographed a race with these guys competing.

Mark Martin was 17 the first time I was fortunate to see him race.  It was an event that including almost every top short track/asphalt late model star in North America.  The race was the (1976 I believe) second (I also did the first) World Cup 400 at I70 Speedway in Odessa, Missouri.  I had heard a little about "The Kid" already but had forgotten about him as the 400 hundred lap grind began.  Somewhere about mid race this teenager took the lead and led the likes of Trickle, Senneker, Shear, Eddy and the rest, lap after lap, after lap.  The thing I remember most is that he drove like a 35 year old veteran.  Speed, brains and class all wrapped up in the "kid".  He did not win that day but I never forgot.  I was privileged to photograph Mark in races sanctioned by ASA, Artgo, NASCAR and more.  I was also privileged to see him win at Anderson, Indiana, Slinger, WI, and The Milwaukee Mile.  I photographed him almost win his first NASCAR Cup race in Bristol, Tennessee, as he came up a few feet short to Davey Allison.  At 53 mark continues to show how to do it with class today.

Forgive me for not remembering the years of these next two meetings.

Jeff Gordon was the youngest star to ever make a name for himself when he strapped into a WoO sprint car ar 12 years of age.  Much of my first views of a young Gordon were on tv on ESPN's Thursday and Saturday Night Thunder.  Mainly USAC Midgets on the pavement at locations like Indy Raceway Park, Wincester Indiana etc.  I beleive he was 16 (I'm not sure) when he showed up for the USAC/Badger co-sanctioned Pepsi Nationals in Sun Prairie, WI one warm Sunday night.  He had just raced on tv the night before at IRP.  He was taking hot laps in his dirt track midget when he "hooked a rut" and took a violent series of flips. The tough kid walked away but his car was mangled.  His team decided to begin the process of turning his Sat. Night Thunder pavement car into a dirt car.  They needed to remove the car's asphalt aero body work, change gearing, shocks and springs. There would be no time for qualifying or competing in heat races.  They got his car "dirt ready" just in time to tag on in the back of the C Main.  From last to first it was, and on the the B Main.  From last to first it was and on the the main event.  Well he only made it to second in the feature event. Still pretty good for a kid. He made a lot of heart stopping moves on that night, but always knew when to ease up.  No more crashes after that nasty rut during hot laps.

I must admit that prior to my first time seeing Tony Stewart in action I had not heard of him.  I learned later that he was another kid making a name for himself but I had not been following USAC's Midget, Sprint Car or Silvercrown divisions that season.  The USAC 100 lap Midget race held on the Friday evening before the June Milwaukee Mile Indy (CART) race had just been reinstated at the 1/3rd mile dirt Hales Corners, WI Speedway.  100 laps on this track was like 500 laps on an asphalt track.  The track was usually hard slick and "bullet proof" before the feature started. 80 laps into the feature I still had not heard of Tony Stewart.  He quietly remained on the lead lap as one car after the other crashed out.  He was in fifth place. It was time for tough Tony to move.  One by one he eliminated the competition and took the lead with 3 or 4 laps left.  Once again I watched a young driver who would go on to become a legend, drive like a veteran.  I went on the cover Tony in races in the USAC Silvercrown series and NASCAR's Nationwide series before he moved on the the Sprint Cup series.  I never had the opportunity to cover an Indy Car (IRL) race when Tony was competing.  He is arguably the hottest driver currently racing in any major series.

I have also have been lucky enough to cover events when Steve Kinser and Sammy Swindell were youngsters. 

The most exciting part of all of those years of racing photography was seeing young drivers at the beginning of their careers.  I always wondered if that one would be the next star, and was amazed at just how often it turned out that they were.

I will finish with a few pictures (again) of cars at local short tracks between 2003 and 2006.

Dirt late Models...Hales Corner Speedway, WI

IMCA Modified...Wilmot Speedway, WI

NASCAR North Division Regional Race...Lake Geneva Raceway, WI

Current NASCAR Truck Series competitor and third generation driver Eric Darnell

Second generation driver, Eddie Hoffman

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Hales Corners (1/3rd mile dirt) and Lake Geneva (1/3rd mile asphalt) are tracks that no longer exist.  Wilmot Speedway is another 1/3rd mile dirt and is still in operation.

Please join us on a regular basis for more talk about the sport of auto racing.  Non-profane comments and opinions are always welcome.