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  • Will Rodgers Claims the Victory in a Thrilling Carneros 200 at Sonoma

    Will Rodgers Claims the Victory in a Thrilling Carneros 200 at Sonoma

    Will Rodgers holds off five Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers and earns his first career win at Sonoma Raceway in the Carneros 200 in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West.

    Rodgers led 35 laps, set the fastest lap of the race and finished ahead of Aric Almirola in dominating fashion with a margin of 4.420 seconds. Last year, Rodgers finished under a second behind teammate and Cup champion, Kevin Harvick. One year later, he masters the track and dominates the field, besting five Cup drivers including teammate William Byron who finished third. He credits much of his success in today’s race from his learning experiences last year with Harvick.

    “It was very positive for me to have that experience last year,” Rodgers said about having Harvick as a teammate throughout the weekend in 2017. “Being beat every lap out of Turn 11 and on restarts, those are the two things I went back and really looked at and prepared myself to do today. So by having that experience, it definitely helped get us to victory lane. Obviously, everything that Kevin’s [Harvick] helped us with so far has been phenomenal, and I’m very appreciative of that.

    “I can tell you we wouldn’t be racing here this weekend if it wasn’t for Kevin, so I’m really, really happy I had that experience last year and was able to seal the deal this year.”

    After the opening laps, the No. 10 car of Matt Levin crashed in Turn 10 to bring out the first caution. Hailie Deegan battled a loose racecar and lost some spots after the first restart. Alex Bowman lost his motor after 10 laps of competition. No caution was waved for this incident.

    With 18 laps in the books, Hollis Thackeray in the No. 38 Butte Auto Parts Chevrolet stalled at the top of Turn 2. This caution was determined by officials to be the first break of the day. Will Rodgers, who had led every lap thus far, came into pit road for service. Aric Almirola was the first car to elect to stay out on the track and inherited the race lead.

    Later in the run, the No. 51 Ford of Carlos Vieira spun on the exit of Turn 10 to bring out the third caution flag of the race. At this point, Daniel Suarez battled his way to the second position with Rodgers and Byron fighting their way up through the field as well.

    The caution again came out for the fourth time of the day the No. 08 Chevrolet of Travis Milburn stalled on the exit of Turn 7 on lap 46. Towards the end of the race, Todd Souza in the No. 13 Central Coast Cabinets Toyota lost his motor with 18 laps to go.

    With 14 laps to go, Will Rodgers battled his way through the field and passed Aric Almirola for the lead a lap after the final restart. He held the lead and kept it for the remainder of the event. Daniel Suarez and Ryan Partridge rounded out the top five. Hailie Deegan continues her streak of top-10 finishes with a seventh-place result and earns Rookie of the Race honors. This was Rodgers’ first career win in the K&N Pro Series West. He also holds three career wins in the East Series in the middle of his third season of racing. The K&N Pro Series West races next weekend in Oregon at Douglas County Speedway.

  • Kyle Larson Earns Back to Back Poles at Sonoma Raceway

    Kyle Larson Earns Back to Back Poles at Sonoma Raceway

    With just two rounds of qualifying, Kyle Larson ran the fastest time in the second group with a time of 75.732 seconds averaging 94.597 mph. He will lead the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup 38-car field in the Toyota / Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

    “I think the first round, I just wanted to get a fairly smooth lap in and not make any mistakes to try to get into the Top 12. I felt like I ran a clean lap, but I felt there were areas I could make up some time. A lot in the breaking zones. And I feel like I made up most of my speed in the final round, there. So, it’s cool to get a pole at my own home track here in Sonoma and DC Solar’s home track as well.” Larson said.

    Larson also won the pole position last year, but struggled all race long and finished in the 26th position. He shared with FOX Sports earlier today that their focus was on qualifying last year. This year, they shifted focus into race trim and were still able to earn the top spot. Larson has never started outside the top-10 here at the northern California road course.

    Martin Truex Jr. was fastest in final practice, and will start tomorrow’s race from the front row with Larson. Truex was one of three drivers who was in the top-10 in both practice sessions yesterday along with Jamie McMurray and Michael McDowell.

    “Our 5-hour ENERGY Bass Pro Shops Camry has been really fast. I feel like we have a really good race car, better than we do qualifying – that’s off to a good start for us tomorrow. Excited to race here, I love this place and hopefully we can get it done tomorrow.” Truex said.

    McMurray will start in the fourth position, which ironically was his final result from both practice sessions yesterday. He won consecutive pole positions in 2013 and 2014 at Sonoma.

    AJ Allmendinger has become NASCAR’s road course ‘ringer’ over the years, with some exciting finishes here and at Watkin’s Glen International. He drove the No. 47 Chevrolet into the fifth starting position.

    Some drivers were not pleased with the first qualifying session, however. Earlier in the afternoon, the K&N Pro West Series had their qualifying session. During their second qualifying group, Bill Kann in the No. 18 Chevrolet lost an engine throughout the second half of the esses. While safety crew did run through the turns to clean the track surface, they had to stop the qualifying session two extra times to check the area again. As the Cup Series drivers took the track for their qualifying session shortly after, many drivers did not turn a lap. As the timer ran down, drivers were forced to turn a lap on a crowded track, forcing many drivers who were at the front of the practice sessions to get a poor start, such as Michael McDowell and Clint Bowyer who expressed his frustration on Twitter.

    Hendrick Motorsports continues to improve as an organization and places three drivers in the top eight starting positions with Chase Elliott, Jimmie Johnson and William Byron.

    Team Penske raced their entire stable into the final round of qualifying with Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano taking the final spots.

    Tomorrow’s race for the Toyota / Save Mart 350 will air on FS1. Coverage starts at 3:00 p.m. EST. Tickets are still available on the Sonoma Raceway website.

  • Will Rodgers to Lead the Field in the Carneros 200 Pro Series West Race

    Will Rodgers to Lead the Field in the Carneros 200 Pro Series West Race

    Will Rodgers ran a 79.081 time to snag the pole for this afternoon’s NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race for the Carneros 200 at Sonoma Raceway. The race is set to start later today at 4:30 p.m. EDT.

    After setting a blistering pace in qualifying by almost a full second faster than the rest of the field, Rodgers will claim his second consecutive pole at the 1.99 mile road course and second career pole in the Pro West division. Last year, he earned the pole and a runner-up finish to teammate and NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series champion, Kevin Harvick.

    Bill Kann, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet, ran in the second group after running 17th in practice, but had catastrophic engine issues, putting out the yellow flag for their qualifying session.

    Rodgers, along with all five NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series drivers, started in the third and final group of qualifying. All three qualifying groups were set by practice times. Rodgers and William Byron were the only two drivers to run an average of over 90 mph around the circuit.

    The five Cup Series drivers will start as follows:

    • Erik Jones starts P13.
    • Alex Bowman starts P7.
    • William Byron starts P2.
    • Aric Almirola starts P5.
    • Daniel Suarez starts P6.

    Hailie Deegan, who struggled to find a quick lap in qualifying, put down a fast lap and will start in the third position for the race as the fastest rookie in the No. 19 Mobil 1 / NAPA Power Premium Plus Toyota. She was also the fastest in the second group of qualifying and currently sits seventh in the points standings.

    All three of the NASCAR Next drivers in this afternoon’s field will start in the top-10: Will Rodgers on pole, Hailie Deegan in third and Derek Kraus in the eighth spot. Derek Kraus, driver of the No. 16 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, was last year’s rookie of the year and has earned two career victories in the West series.

    The rest of the top-10 starting results are Ryan Partridge in fourth, Derek Thorn in ninth and Kody Vanderwal in tenth.

  • Scott Pruett to Pace the Field for Toyota/Save Mart 350 in Sonoma

    Scott Pruett to Pace the Field for Toyota/Save Mart 350 in Sonoma

    Northern California native and former road course ringer Scott Pruett will drive the Toyota Camry pace car at the Toyota/Save Mart 350 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, June 24.

    Pruett, who announced his retirement after 50 years of racing following the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in January, found great success as a five-time champion in the IMSA Rolex Grand-Am SportsCar Championship along with 60 sports-car series wins. He has also competed in both NASCAR’s premier Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Pruett raced his way to a third-place finish here at Sonoma in 2004. While he never competed full time in the stock car series, he was considered a ‘road course ringer’ from 2001 – 2008, after having 28 starts in the 2000 season. He also ran in 11 races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series through six seasons.

    It brings many memories to Pruett as he prepares to pace the field in Sunday’s race.

    “I’m so honored and excited to be back at Sonoma,” said Pruett, who has seven Cup Series starts and a Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car victory on his home track in Sonoma. “I love this track. It’s right in my backyard, and I have many great memories here. I can’t wait to lead those boys to the green flag, and just hope I remember to pull off into pit lane!”

    Pruett has also been inducted into two hall of fames in 2017,  the Motorsports Hall of Fame and the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. He started racing go-karts at the age of seven and holds 10 professional karting championships.

    Pruett will be recognized during the NASCAR Drivers’ Meeting and the Pre-Race Show before the start of the event. Tickets are still available for the first road course race of the 2018 season, the Toyota/Save Mart 350. For tickets or more information, visit www.sonomaraceway.com/NASCAR or call 800-870-7223.

  • Road Courses Are Now a Favorite of Fans and Sonoma is Next

    Road Courses Are Now a Favorite of Fans and Sonoma is Next

    It’s back to the left coast for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series this weekend. The first stop is the Sonoma road course on Sunday. It’s a race where so-called road racing experts don’t mean much anymore, Oh, there were be some, but the regulars have gained the skill to win these races with their superior machinery.

    Last year, it was Kevin Harvick in a Stewart-Haas Ford winning. Right behind him was his teammate Clint Bowyer in another SHR Ford. Both will be favorites and both are hot. Harvick has won five times in points races and added the All-Star race. Bowyer has won twice (Martinsville and Michigan). There will be plenty of other drivers chasing them. Four race winning driver Kyle Busch, current champion Martin Truex Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, and Kasey Kahne, are all former winners and will be in the field on Sunday.

    Racing on road courses has become popular with drivers and the fan base. Charlotte Motor Speedway is going to use its infield road course, called a ROVAL, in September. Later in the season, the Cup drivers will make their usual stop at Watkins Glen International. So, what is everyone’s fascination with road courses in NASCAR’s top series? Close racing is the answer.

    A full 30 percent of the tracks raced on in the series are on 1.5-mile tracks that have been very uncompetitive in recent years. Fans love the close and fender-rubbing racing on road courses. Many felt that the racing resembled the kind of race they see at Martinsville, Bristol, and Richmond. The boredom of the so-called intermediate tracks (1.5-miles in length) led to the love for road courses by many people. The jury is still out on whether the Charlotte ROVAL will fill the bill, but it is very clear that NASCAR is trying to give the public what they want.

    The Toyota / Save Mart 350 will start at 3:00 PM on Sunday. Practice will be at 11:40 and 2:40 Friday and qualifying will start at 11:45 on Saturday. Let’s hope the fans get what they want. It should be a good show in front of a good crowd.

  • Five Cup Drivers to Make K&N West Start at Sonoma

    Five Cup Drivers to Make K&N West Start at Sonoma

    Last year, Kevin Harvick made a substantial impact for many young drivers, including NASCAR Next driver Will Rodgers. This year, five NASCAR Monster Energy Cup series drivers will start in the NASCAR K&N Pro West race in Sonoma on Saturday, June 23.

    Alex Bowman, William Byron, Daniel Suarez, Eric Jones and Aric Almirola will join the 31-car entry list for Saturday’s Carneros 200.

    Erik Jones and Daniel Suarez will compete in the No. 20 and No. 54 Toyota cars owned by David Gilliland

    Alex Bowman will drive the No. 24 Chevrolet owned by Bill McAnally, and run as a teammate for Hailie Deegan. William Byron will be in the No. 27 Jerry Pitts Chevrolet, that won last year’s event with Kevin Harvick behind the wheel.

    “It kept me from sitting around and trying to find something to do on Saturday,” said Harvick about last year’s race. “I’m sitting around and there’s guys out there making laps and learning things, and I think that’s the most important thing is to never take for granted that you have to try to expand your knowledge and keep an open mind to making things better.”

    Aric Almirola, who missed last year’s Cup race due to his back injury from his crash at Kentucky Speedway, will pilot the Tony Stewart owned No. 41 Ford.

    Three drivers in the current NASCAR Next class are also scheduled in the entry list for the first K&N West road course race of the season. Among those is Will Rodgers, pole winner of last year’s race, who had a second place finish to Kevin Harvick. Derek Kraus, who won the season opener at Bakersfield, has already claimed three poles so far this year and currently sits third in the points standings. Hailie Deegan, daughter of the freestyle motocross stunt rider Brian Deegan, has finished no worse than eighth in all five K&N West races this season.

    “I think it’s going to be fun! The track is hard, though. If you make a mistake, you’re definitely going to pay,” said Deegan, who will race in the No. 19 Mobil 1/NAPA Power Premium Plus Toyota for Bill McAnally Racing and have Alex Bowman as a teammate. “It’s cool they throw a couple of road course races into the NASCAR circuit. It’s just something cool and different than not everyone gets to experience.”

    The Carneros 200 will kick off the weekend with a practice session on Friday and qualifying on Saturday morning. The green flag is scheduled to wave for the 64-lap feature at 1:30 p.m. local time.

  • NASCAR Fans Need to Chill Out

    NASCAR Fans Need to Chill Out

    NASCAR fans are always looking for one thing; side by side racing, and passing for the lead a hundred times a race. That is what the fans say they want to see. But that just isn’t the reality, and it never has been.

    When people think of the old days of NASCAR, they think of names like Allison, Earnhardt, Petty, Bonnet and Waltrip, among others. They think of the 1979 Daytona 500 finish that saw Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough wreck going into Turn 3 on the last lap while racing for the win, and that is what fans want to see. But the reality of the situation is that was never the reality at all.

    NASCAR has had good racing in the past, but also in the present as well. But to say that the past was filled with constant side by side racing and last lap passes and many drivers competing for the win each week is just a fantasy that the fans of today have made up based on stories from their parents. Stories such as the battles that Darrell Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt had, or those of Bobby Allison and Richard Petty; while that did exist, it wasn’t the utopia that most fans try to make it out to be.

    There are many different complaints that we could cover today, like the size of the current field, to the racing, to the fact that we have had three drivers and two manufacturers dominate this season. We will touch on them all so that maybe we can open the eyes of the current fans and try to make them realize that we have some of the best racing that we currently have on track, is as good, if not better, than what we had back in the day.

    Let’s take a trip down NASCAR memory lane, shall we?

    The year was 1985. The place was the Talladega Superspeedway. Bill Elliott had just set a new record for the fastest 0qualifying speed for a stock car at 212 mph. Elliott started on the pole for the race and had an issue and found himself two laps down, which surely meant trouble for the fastest car in the sport. However, over the course of the race, Elliott was able to make up over five miles, two laps, and win the race. This was something that we will probably never see again in our sport, and probably something that would cause a majority of the fanbase to complain that the car was illegal or something else to that effect. Bill Elliott would go on to win a total of 11 races that season.

    Fast forward two years to 1987. In route to his third championship, Dale Earnhardt claimed 11 wins of the 29 races run that year, and most of them, in a dominating fashion. But keep in mind, this is the supposed “Golden Age” of NASCAR, where one driver didn’t dominate the sport and there were last-lap passes for the win each week.

    In 1981 and 1982, Darrell Waltrip had two 12 win seasons. In 1996 and 1997, Jeff Gordon won 10 races each year, and then came back in 1998 and won 13 races.

    And now, in 2018, we have people complaining that Kevin Harvick has won five races, Kyle Busch has won four, and Martin Truex has won twice.

    This is the most competitive field that NASCAR has ever seen. Gone are the days of the leader lapping the entire field and just completely dominating the race. Now you have 20-30 cars finishing on the same lap, and racing for every position. There may not always be a battle for the lead, but you don’t see the leader lapping the entire field, which means that there is more of a chance for someone to come and challenge the leader for the win.

    Honestly, NASCAR fans nowadays need to go back and watch some of the races from the 80s and 90s, and they need to truly be thankful for the racing that we see today because it could be a lot more boring.

     

    ~Follow me on Twitter @HMurray76

  • Sauter takes fifth win at Texas, fourth win of 2018

    Sauter takes fifth win at Texas, fourth win of 2018

    Although he didn’t lead until Lap 117, Johnny Sauter still managed to gain his fourth victory of 2018, taking the win over polesitter Stewart Friesen by 0.092 seconds in the PPG 400. The margin of victory was the closest in Truck Series history at Texas Motor Speedway, besting the June 2006 event which had a margin of victory of 0.116 seconds.

    Sauter’s victory came with a bit of a scare, as he ran out of fuel going into Turn 3 on the white flag lap. But as he hit the banking the engine managed to fire back up before sputtering coming to the finish line. Sauter blocked Friesen adequately enough to grab the checkered flag.

    Friesen and rookie Todd Gilliland led the field to the green flag, with third-place qualifier Noah Gragson taking the lead on Lap 2. Caution soon came out on Lap 8 when the No. 45 of Justin Fontaine bounced off the fourth turn wall. The caution came out again on Lap 13 when the No. 83 of Bayley Currey snapped loose in Turn 3, hitting the wall with his right rear quarter panel. The third caution came when the 16 of Brett Moffitt, who was within reach of the points lead coming into Texas, crashed going into the second turn on Lap 29. Moffitt’s Toyota would finish 18th, keeping him third in points, 95 out of the lead.

    Gilliland would go on to lead the most laps overall on the night (62), while Friesen and the No. 98 of Grant Enfinger won the first two stages, respectively. Sauter’s GMS Racing teammate Justin Hayley finished third while Enfinger finished fourth and Matt Crafton finished fifth. Gilliland would finish sixth while Tyler Young took seventh, Cody Coughlin finished eighth, Spencer Davis took home ninth, and Noah Gragson finished the top-10.

    The win was especially emotional for Sauter’s Crew Chief Joe Shear, who lost his wife in December.

    “Every time we come to Texas, it’s a big race,” said Shear. “My wife and her family were from Dallas, so this is always a big race for us. She was always such a supporter, so this win is big for me.”

    Sauter joins Kyle Busch and Mike Skinner as the only Truck Series drivers to win four or more races in the first eight races of the season. When asked about being a lock for Homestead-Miami at the season’s finale, Sauter was blunt on his stance.

    “We’d be crazy to think we’re a lock for anything,” said the 2016 Truck Series champion. “Anything can happen.”

    The next race is June 16 at Iowa.

  • Busch domination in the Xfinity Series Pocono Green 250 at Pocono

    Busch domination in the Xfinity Series Pocono Green 250 at Pocono

    Update: The No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota failed post-race inspection height measurements following the race.  The car was too high in the left front, according to a NASCAR spokesperson.

    Kyle Busch dominated Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) Pocono Green 250 at Pocono Raceway by leading 64 of the 100 laps to capture his 92nd career win in the series, first NXS win this season and the first at Pocono.

    “This is pretty cool to check off the list and a win here at Pocono feels really good. Thanks to NOS Energy for supporting us. This Toyota Camry was very fast. I want to say thanks to Xfinity and of course these fans. It’s everything it takes for us to make it to the race track every week. The fans are amazing in this sport and I appreciate that.” Busch said.

    Busch won stage one and was caught speeding on pit road during the caution for the stage. He restarted in the back of the field for stage two. “It was last week, too, but we were able to overcome our deficits this week.” Busch said.

    Chase Elliott finished second, Daniel Hemric third, Austin Cindric finished fourth.

    “It was awesome to be able to experience running up there against Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch and those guys. That is experience that I can’t give up. I love racing around those guys. I gotta have more races like this and need to get some stage wins so that we can be comfortably competitive come the playoffs.” Cindric said.

    Pole sitter Cole Custer led 23 laps and finished fifth. “We had a really fast Haas Automation Mustang, we just didn’t have really good long run speed. That was our biggest problem.” Custer said.

    On lap 60, Elliott Sadler was pushing Justin Allgaier and Allgaier got loose and spun into the outside wall, collecting Christopher Bell along with some damage to Dylan Lupton’s No. 28 Ford.

    “There was nothing I could have done there with Justin (Allgaier) for that matter. We were just victims of Pocono restarts. It just got really hairy. It was exciting. That’s why sometimes we love it and sometimes we hate it.” Bell said.

    Sadler finished sixth and has a 62-point lead over Custer in the series points standings.

    The series heads next to Michigan International Speedway on Saturday, Jun 9 for the LTi Printing 250.  Race coverage begins at 1:30 p.m. ET on FOX and MRN.

    Unofficial Race Results
    NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS)
    Pocono Green 250 (Pocono Raceway; Long Pond, PA)
    Friday, June 1, 2018
    1 Kyle Busch
    2 Chase Elliott
    3 Daniel Hemric
    4 Austin Cindric
    5 Cole Custer
    6 Elliott Sadler
    7 John Hunter Nemechek
    8 Paul Menard
    9 Tyler Reddick
    10 Ryan Truex
    11 Ross Chastain
    12 Shane Lee
    13 Ryan Reed
    14 Matt Tifft
    15 Jeremy Clements
    16 Kaz Grala
    17 Ryan Sieg
    18 Alex Labbe
    19 Joey Gase
    20 David Starr
    21 Josh Williams
    22 B.J. McLeod
    23 Dylan Lupton
    24 Brandon Jones
    25 Tommy Joe Martins
    26 Garrett Smithley
    27 Matt Mills
    28 Spencer Boyd
    29 Josh Bilicki
    30 Chad Finchum
    31 Vinnie Miller
    32 Brandon Hightower
    33 Mike Harmon
    34 J.J. Yeley
    35 Michael Annett
    36 Christopher Bell
    37 Justin Allgaier
    38 Chase Briscoe
    39 Timmy Hill
    40 Jeff Green

  • 1922 INDY 500: Two Boys, a Train and the Making of a Race Fan

    1922 INDY 500: Two Boys, a Train and the Making of a Race Fan

    Stephen Cox Blog Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance

    Here’s a short story to help you enjoy this year’s 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500.

    In the spring of 1922, Alton Hartley was a college student at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. He and a friend decided they wanted to attend the 10th International 500 Mile Sweepstakes, as the race was then known, on Tuesday, May 30.

    Having no car, Hartley and his friend needed a cheap method of transportation for the 65-mile southbound trip to Indianapolis and the local freight train beckoned. Hopping trains was illegal and considered trespassing in the early 20th century, and every major railroad company employed armies of police to protect their property.

    These privately employed police were generally afforded the “right” to deal with trespassers as they saw fit, which routinely involved some pretty brutal tactics. As one traveling hobo from the 1930s recalled, “God help you if you ever get caught on railroad property… they have their own brand of justice and the police and courts are not part of it.”

    But Hartley and his friend decided to jump the next southbound freight train and take their chances. It wasn’t long before the onboard security officer found the two young men, who were horrified at their fate. Desperate to explain their situation, Hartley told the officer they were not hobos or long distance travelers. They were two college kids who just wanted to get to Indianapolis to see the 500-mile race.

    Fortunately, the railroad security officer must have been a race fan. Rather than being beaten, thrown off the train or sent to jail for trespassing, the young men were marched up to the locomotive and introduced to the engineer, where they were welcomed and given a spot to ride in relative comfort for the remainder of the journey.

    Much to their surprise, the train staff happily dropped the boys off in the town of Speedway on the west side of Indianapolis. As a parting gift, the train staff provided them two box lunches, a pair of general admission tickets to the event and a pile of newspapers which the boys were told to use as blankets while napping throughout the day.

    Box lunches in hand, they arrived at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway at 16th and Georgetown in time to see a 1,000-piece band perform in front of the grandstands at 9:20 a.m. Shortly afterward, racing legend Barney Oldfield drove his National onto the track to pace the field. The race began at 10 a.m, as was the practice at the time, with a hot-air balloon floating above the track carrying a huge American flag.

    California’s Jimmy Murphy wrote his name in the auto racing history books that day, taking the checkered flag shortly after 3 p.m. with an average speed of nearly 95 miles per hour.

    Making their way back to the train station, the boys had one more favor to collect. The railroad crew had promised to pick them up again after the event and take them back to West Lafayette after the race. Hartley, who related this story to his nephew, Pete Gruich, in 1991, said they gratefully accepted the offer for a return ride and made it safely back to West Lafayette to continue their classes.

    Hartley married his teenage sweetheart, Josephine, in 1926 and the couple shared more than seven decades together. An antique dealer by trade, Hartley remained an auto racing fan for the rest of his days. He died in 2001.

    And once upon a time, long ago, that’s how race fans were made.

    Stephen Cox

    Sopwith Motorsports Television Productions

    Driver, FIA EPCS sportscar series & Super Cup Stock Car Series

    Co-host, Mecum Auctions on NBCSN

    Alton Hartley (L) and nephew Pete Gruich in 1991 (courtesy Pete Gruich)
    Jimmy Murphy takes the checkered flag at Indianapolis in 1922