Editor’s Note: In this monthly photo essay feature, National Sprint Car Hall of Fame photographer John Mahoney shares his memories and images from some of the most amazing and historic sprint car and midget races.
USAC Midgets, Indianapolis Speedrome, Sept. 18, 1982
Indianapolis Speedrome owner John Stiles loved midgets and worked with USAC to organize the unique Regional Midget Series at the fifth-mile paved oval in 1981.
In the face of much skepticism, Stiles also came up with the idea of hosting a 500-lap national midget event. Thirty cars started the first 500 and Mack McClellan survived the grind to post the victory, proving the doubters wrong.
I admit I was left scratching my head, trying to figure out the drivers’ race/fuel strategy as they drastically slowed their pace during the marathon event.
Stiles persevered and the second 500-lapper was scheduled for Sept. 18, 1982.
With one 500 under their belts, Lonnie Caruthers and his dad, “Red,” came up with a new strategy. Drive the 500 laps without making a pit stop. It worked.
Caruthers’ slow pace during the early stages of the race left him behind the frontrunners, and he didn’t take the lead until the 347th lap. He held on to the checkered flag and admitted that he probably had fuel for only four or five more laps.
Fifty-one drivers battled for the 33 starting spots with McClellan leading the pack during time trials. Rich Vogler, Warren Mockler, Mel Kenyon and Tom Bigelow completed the top-five starters.
McClellan led the first 29 laps before being passed by Mockler. Kenyon followed Mockler for 30 laps then took the lead for the next 60 laps. It was a Mockler-Kenyon show until Kenyon tangled with another car on lap 347, handing the lead and $5,000 win to Caruthers.
Jeff Nuckles came on strong during the closing laps to finish second, with Bigelow, Vogler and the driving duo of David and Tracy Potter rounding out the top-five finishers.
This story appeared in the June 21, 2023 edition of the SPEED SPORT Insider.
