MOORESVILLE, N.C. — NCAR, which is an acronym for Northern California Auto Racing, recently honored us with an award in appreciation of our service to racing in northern California.
It was part of the group’s third annual Dinner With Champions.
The event was held to raise money for a Northern California Racing Hall of Fame and Museum, which NCAR, under the leadership of Tommy Hunt, hopes to build in the near future.
Other honored guests were World of Outlaws sprint car star Brad Sweet and successful NASCAR team owner Bill McAnally. Legendary broadcaster Gary Gerould served as the emcee.
Many Northern California racing stars and personalities from the past and present attended. Drivers such as Jimmy Sills, Johnny Anderson, Jimmy Boyd, Rick Hirst, Rico Abreu, Colby Copeland and Andy Forsberg enjoyed the festivities. Famed car owner Clyde Lamar was also there.
The evening was full of great stories from the glory days of racing at historic venues such as West Capital Raceway and the Sacramento Fairgrounds Mile.
Thanks to the NCAR board of directors for the honor. We enjoyed the night and look forward visiting their Hall of Fame and Museum.
– Tanner Thorson, who attended the NCAR event, says his recovery from injuries suffered in a recent traffic accident is progressing. He has set a personal goal of returning to the track in time to compete in the in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series event at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway on Aug. 1.
– Ed “The Ace” McCulloch reported it was a change in tire brands that led to him eventually landing the Revel model sponsorship for his famed Funny Car. Ace used to run MHT tires on his car.
When he switched to Firestone, McCulloch asked officials why NHRA drivers weren’t compensated by tire companies like their Indy car counterparts. At the time, drag racers only got paid by tire companies to test.
Firestone PR guru Jim Cook got Revel and Castrol Oil to sponsor McCulloch to help make up for the dollars he was looking to get from Firestone. McCulloch was the first to get paid by Revel, the well-known model car company. All other teams that eventually landed model deals with Revel only received royalties.
– Ron Capps says the new Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat body has more downforce than its predecessor. The previous body was a lot lighter in the front end. Capps says he and his Don Schumacher Racing team are working hard to adapt to the new body.
Teammate Matt Hagan got the first new body last season and has a lot more runs with the latest design.
– Andrew Hines says his old Harley-Davidson Pro Stock Motorcycle chassis would slide the front end at more than 140 mph. This scrubbed a lot of speed when the front end would fold over. His new chassis doesn’t twist, so he is able to unlock more speed.
Hines feels the 15 pounds that the NHRA is adding to all of the V-Twins will cut about one mph off of their top speed.
Hines reports the Vance and Hines team is working on aero in an attempt to regain that speed.
– Mike Salinas picked up his first NHRA Top Fuel victory at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He credits nostalgia drag racer Adam Sorokin with helping get him to victory lane.
“Adam taught me how to live in the moment,” Salinas explained. “A half hour before the race I check out of all responsibilities and just relax with music before each run. I’ve never been so clear of mind at the races.”
All four of Salinas’ daughters are beginning their NHRA careers. Each in a different division.
– Ricky Stenhouse Jr. says he will compete in the Patriot Nationals World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series event May 24-25 at The Dirt Track at Charlotte. He claims it will be his only sprint car race of the season.
– During the track walk prior to the Monster Energy Supercross round at Denver’s Mile High Stadium, we visited with five-time motocross world champion Roger DeCoster.
We asked DeCoster, who currently heads up the racing programs for both KTM and Husqvarna in the United States, what there is left for him to accomplish in his career.
He said he’d like to lead Team USA to victory in the Motocross of Nations.
Team USA dominated this Olympics of Motocross for years, but lately the American team has struggled in the prestigious event. Many industry insiders believe the lack of success for Team USA can be tied to the focus of American riders on Supercross instead of motocross.
DeCoster believes the European riders corner a lot faster in motocross than American riders. DeCoster says that’s because U.S. riders are accustomed to a stiff suspension, which is needed to be fast on the Supercross tracks. He feels if he can get the U.S. riders to free up their suspensions, they will get the drive off the corners required to be competitive.
This year’s Motocross of Nations will be Sept. 27-29 at Assen in the Netherlands.
– Bill McAnally and Brad Sweet are discussing covering All-American Speedway in Roseville, Calif., with dirt to host a World of Outlaws race.