For some, working on cars for a living during the day just isn’t enough. To maintain their hydrocarbon high, these readers retire to the race shop in the evenings and hit the track on weekends.
Several months ago, we began asking our readers to tell us about their racing experiences. We’ve all followed the exploits of high-profile1 drivers in NASCAR, NHRA, Indy Car and other professional racing series. We thought it would be interesting to find out what some “regular folks” were doing at the1 tracks, and to learn more about their interests and successes. These folks are MOTOR readers, just like you. And like you, most earn a living during the day diagnosing and repairing vehicle’s for their customers.
Much of what follows is presented in quoted passages. That’s because we wanted to preserve what was stud, and the way it wtis stud, by the volunteers in this experiment-in their own words.
Ryon Joe Smithberger
Rytin Joe Smithberger is the owner of Smitty’s Automotive in Santa Fe. He has been racing since 1985 and owns three race cars.
My dad was a drag nicer Unfortunately, he died when I was only a year old. His dream was to own a garage and race cars. I always wanted to race, no when I was old enough and had a few bucks, I started racing and never quit. Then I opened my own auto shop. I quess it’s in my blood.
I now have three race cars, and last year I also started driving for Bill and Sherry York, owners of York’s Equpment. I met Bill and Sherry in 1989 and we became great friends. Among the great benefits to racing are the people yon meet and the friends yon make. Bill and Sherry never had kids of their own, awl today Bill and I are like father and son. It’s like racing with the Dad I never knew.
The Yorks own a 1989 Super Comp Ford Thunderbird with a 540-cubic-inch big-block Chevy. The car has a full chrome moly chassis with a four-link suspension. We have run a best of 8.85 seconds at 150 mph.
We finished third in points in the South West Drag Racing Association (SWDBA) and third in track points at Albuquerque National Dragway in 2005.
About five years ago the track closed for a cpouple of years, so we built a street stock dirt car to fill in the time. We finished second in points in 2004 and we icon five out of seven races in 2005. We had one second-place finish and our first DNF in 500-plns laps when we had a flat tire with three laps to go.
I race became I love the competition and because it’s a great way to make great friends.
Randy Rundle
For most, racing is a liohhy-something that can be supported only by a regular job and pursued during personal time. For a lucky few, racing is that job.
Randy Rundle is owner and founder of Fifth Avenue Antique Auto Parts in Clay Center, KS (www.fifthaceintemet garage.com). Randy started buying 1948-55 Chevrolet trucks back in the early 1970s to restore and resell, while he was still in junior high school. He always had a “driver” and one in the works. Soon after, he got into selling parts, because he learned there were lots of other people wanting to fix up their old Chew pickups.
One of th things I always had trouble with on those old trucks was the charging system. The 6-volt battery was always dead and the headlights were always a yellowish color. Starting was always a problem as well, so I always learned to park on a hill so I could coast clown and “dump the clutch” to get going.
It was because of this hands-on experience that I decided I was going to fix the 6-volt charging system once and for all. I decided in my simple logic that I would, apply modern charging technology in reverse and build a 6-volt alternator.
By the spring of 1987 I had a reliable working prototype. The key word here is reliable, with the output I wanted. I tested the new 6-volt alternator for six months on my 1951 Cheuy ½-ton pickup and it worked great! So I built about a dozen more and installed thein locally on antique vehicles with good success.
In 1989 I found out about the Great Race-a rally-type race where pre-1945 cars are driven 4500 miles across the United States during a two-week period. I looked for a high-profile car entered in the race that was likely to have charging problems and I got more than I bargained for in a 1936 Cord. The Cord, owned by Bud Melby of Seattle, had an electric shift transmission that was shifted via electric solenoids that were controlled by levers on the steering column. In addition, there was an electric overdrive, along with two electric fuel pumps and an electric radiator cooling fan, all 6volt. It didn’t take long to see why the original 40-amp Cord charging system could not keep up.
It took quite a sales job on my part to convince Bud that I could fix his car. I offered to give him the alternator for free in exchange for an advertising endorsement if it worked. The Cord shifted better than it ever had before, and the original batterry stayed in the car for the entire race. Bud finished in tlie top ten that year.
Parked next to Bud in the pits that year was Howard Sharp, who was driving a 1929 Dodge Sport Roadster-one of only 1200 made that year….The folloiving year I put an alternator on the 1929 Dodge. For the next two years the Sharp Racing team got closer and closer to winning the Great Race. Now that their battery and starting problems were over, they could concentrate on the navigation part of the race. Finally, in 1993 they won first place-$30,000 in prize money and a neio Buick Roadmaster. I had finally estabUslted a track record for the alternator.
I still help prepare about a dozen cars for the Great Race each year and I continue to sponsor Howard Shar}),just as I have evenly ear since 1989. Howard now dnves a 1911 Velie in the Great Race. Most years it’s the oldest car entered. There is also a lot of satisfaction in seeing a car that you prepared, especially one as old as the Velie, being driven across the U. S. every year without a breakdown.
The Great Race has been a good experience for me. It’s a way to find out what you know versus what you think you know. It also teaches you to pay attention to the details. Ignoring the smallest details can endup costing you the most money.
Dennis Flaherty
Dennis Flaherty is a sales representative for ALLDATA in Huntington Beach, CA. He started racing in the ’60s with a supercharged ‘56 Ford. Business and family responsibilities kept him away from racing until a few years ago, when he returned to road course racing with his three sons.
Brady Flaherty drives a ‘93 Camaro Phil Hausman helps out with parts and Dennis’ third son, Sean, handles the video, video editing and production.
The Flaherty clan has raced at several famous west coast road courses, including Fontana Raceway, Willow Springs Raceway, Buttonwillow Raceway, Bakersfield, Infineon Raceway, Thunderhill Raceway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
After 35 years of marriage, I think it’s great that my wife has to go to a racetrack to see her boys. After we got married, I sold my Shelby GT500 ($2400) for a station wagon. That’s what I drove until the boys got their driver’s licenses.
The racing only came after Ryan and Brady had graduated from college. Our youngest son Sean is in his junior year, majoring in engineering at Santa Clara. The participation-working together and independently, then coming together as a team once a month-is very rewarding. Winning is just icing on the cake. The people we race with are as great a group as you could ever hope to find. There is nothing like a National Auto Sport Association (NASA) event.
Michael Lindquist
Michael Lindquist is president of Wilton Service Center, Inc., in Wilton, CT. Its a three-bay full-service repair facility, with Getty gasoline service. He has been an automotive technician since 1984 and claims to have loved racing for as long as he can remember.
My dad was always on a pit crew way back in the late ’60s and 70s at tlie Danhunj Racarena, in Danbunj, CT. I got my first taste when I was in 6th or 7th grade racing go-karts until I was in 10th grade.
We have a late-model stock car that we race at Thompson Speedway in Thompson, CT. It has a tube chassis with a fiberglass/aluminum/plastic Monte Carlo body. We run a two-barrel carb with 10:1 compression, headers, stock clutch and a solid cam. It’s making a little over 400 hp, I think.
, and was the 2005 NASA Camaro Mustang Challenge (CMC) Western Champion. He also broke the lap record by three seconds at Fontana Raceway last season. In 2004, Brady was the runner-up in CMC and won Rookie of the Year honors that year. Dad and Crew Chief Dennis Flaherty also won a McGyver Award in recognition of his wrenching expertise in 2004. Another son, Ryan, drives the Maximum Motorsports ‘89 Mustang,and is a prior winner in the American Iron racing series.
I still help prepare about a dozen cars for the Great Race each year and I continue to sponsor Howard Shar}),just as I have evenly ear since 1989. Howard now dnves a 1911 Velie in the Great Race. Most years it’s the oldest car entered. There is also a lot of satisfaction in seeing a car that you prepared, especially one as old as the Velie, being driven across the U. S. every year without a breakdown.
The Great Race has been a good experience for me. It’s a way to find out what you know versus what you think you know. It also teaches you to pay attention to the details. Ignoring the smallest details can endup costing you the most money.
Dennis Flaherty
Dennis Flaherty is a sales representative for ALLDATA in Huntington Beach, CA. He started racing in the ’60s with a supercharged ‘56 Ford. Business and family responsibilities kept him away from racing until a few years ago, when he returned to road course racing with his three sons.
Brady Flaherty drives a ‘93 Camaro (No. 70), and was the 2005 NASA Camaro Mustang Challenge (CMC) Western Champion. He also broke the lap record by three seconds at Fontana Raceway last season. In 2004, Brady was the runner-up in CMC and won Rookie of the Year honors that year. Dad and Crew Chief Dennis Flaherty also won a McGyver Award in recognition of his wrenching expertise in 2004. Another son, Ryan, drives the Maximum Motorsports ‘89 Mustang (No. 17), and is a prior winner in the American Iron racing series.
Phil Hausman helps out with parts and Dennis’ third son, Sean, handles the video, video editing and production.
The Flaherty clan has raced at several famous west coast road courses, including Fontana Raceway, Willow Springs Raceway, Buttonwillow Raceway, Bakersfield, Infineon Raceway, Thunderhill Raceway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
After 35 years of marriage, I think it’s great that my wife has to go to a racetrack to see her boys. After we got married, I sold my Shelby GT500 ($2400) for a station wagon. That’s what I drove until the boys got their driver’s licenses.
The racing only came after Ryan and Brady had graduated from college. Our youngest son Sean is in his junior year, majoring in engineering at Santa Clara. The participation-working together and independently, then coming together as a team once a month-is very rewarding. Winning is just icing on the cake. The people we race with are as great a group as you could ever hope to find. There is nothing like a National Auto Sport Association (NASA) event.
Michael Lindquist
Michael Lindquist is president of Wilton Service Center, Inc., in Wilton, CT. Its a three-bay full-service repair facility, with Getty gasoline service. He has been an automotive technician since 1984 and claims to have loved racing for as long as he can remember.
My dad was always on a pit crew way back in the late ’60s and 70s at tlie Danhunj Racarena, in Danbunj, CT. I got my first taste when I was in 6th or 7th grade racing go-karts until I was in 10th grade.
We have a late-model stock car that we race at Thompson Speedway in Thompson, CT. It has a tube chassis with a fiberglass/aluminum/plastic Monte Carlo body. We run a two-barrel carb with 10:1 compression, headers, stock clutch and a solid cam. It’s making a little over 400 hp, I think.
It’s difficult to go racing without help. Most of the readers we spoke with mentioned friends or family who help them follow their racing dreams. Mike is no different.
Bob Mattera is my main everything man. He is at it every minute ivith me, and without him I would not be doing this right now. It’s great knowing you have someone who is easy to work with, who will show up to work around my crazy hectic life and is into racing. Bobby is just happy making it to the end of a race, with no great expectations other than having a beer afterwards, telling some war stories and having some great laughs. Bobby makes it fun for me.
Mike Christianson is my secondary main man. He’s always around when we “get behind” (which is most of the time) and will do whatever needs to be done.
Pat Kretschman is the ultimate spotter. He also is great at setting up the car and coaching nu- on driving. The only problem is that Pat is also my service manager at the Cetty station, and it’s difficult for bot h of us to leave on the same afternoon or night to go racing.
Carol Angotta is my girlfriend and the love of my life. She brings sanity to my crazy life. She never makes me feel guilty about my interest in racing and never feels neghicted when we are in “thrash” nwde (most of the time) to get the car ready for a race weekend.
Amy Bartram is the shop bookkeeper. Site also serves as our timekeeper, picks up and makes sandwiches and beer for us after the races.
My children each have their own attitudes about my involvement in racing. My daughter Marissa (14) is not. at all interested in racing. She will say tilings to me like: “So you can wreck it again? I don’t get it. ”
Christopher (9) would be in the garage and at the track more than me if he possibly could. When he was five years old he installed a “super power button” in the car for me. He gets red in the face non; when we talk about it but I still insist that the button be “installed” every time we repaint the car.
Juliauna (4) loves dirt bikes, snowmobiles and race cars! As soon as she is able, she will probably have grease under her pretty fingernails (if she wants to).
Many amateurs enter races every year and never taste victory. There’s always the hope that “next week” or “next year” will he different. For many, winning races is not the primary motivation. Some savor the competition, others enjoy the challenge of preparing the car and others simply look forward to time spent with close friends and family.
I won a heat race once. That wax the mont memorable racing moment for me. I felt like I had won the Daytona 500! I took the lead in the feature thai night after four or five lapa (the car wax unbelievable!). Everything was going great until I hit some oil dry that did not get cleaned up coming out of Turn 4 on a restart and the car sailed hard into the wall. Not only did I not win, hut the car needed a new front clip, etc. Ugghhh! I love racing.
I started racing in 1956 in Aquasco, MD, when a friend borrowed my ‘47 Ford Convertible and raced it before I knew anything about it. After that I raced a 1933 Dodge Convertible. We drove our curs to the track. There was no Christmas tree, only a flagman. There were very few rules and regs back then.
I quit racing in 1970 because of family demanda. In 2002 a customer came into the shop and we started talking about drag racing. He had a 1972 Dodge Demon he was racing. I went along to watch and was bitten by the bug again. We double-teamed his car for two years.
Not long after that, MeI decided he needed to have his own race car again.
It’s a 1970 Plymouth Barracuda that’s a completely custom build. The entire chassis is hand-made, including the roll cage, floors and dash. The headers also are custom-made. I built the engine myself. It’s a Chrysler 440 bond .30 over. The trans is a 727, which I also built. It has a trans brake but 110 box.
The last pass of the season last year was 135 mph and 10.15 seconds. With the modifictitions that I am making, the car will go in the 9-seamd range this season. Wa dyno’d the car last week and it’s developing 495 horsepower and 1900 fool pounds of torque to the rear wheels at 3500 rpm.
I’ve raced the Barracuda at Pueblo Motorsports Park, in Pueblo, CO, Bandimere Speedway in Denver, Julesburg Dragistrip in Julesburg, CO (one of the oldest track’s in the country), Speedway Raceway Park in Surprise, AZ, Southwestern International Raceway in Tucson and Douglas Dragwuij in Douglas, WV. I hope to race in kansas this year. Bob Bruier and Roberta Hinebaugh are my pit crew.
I bought this car in 2003. It look two years of hard work and lots of money to get it going. I am now 72 yearn old. I have passed both the physical and driving requirements to drive a 9-second car and I have been working to do that this year.
Michael L. Vellines
Michael L. Vellines is the owner of M & M Auto Repair, which opened in Kissimmee, FL, in 1984. Michael is an ASE Master Auto and Ll-certified technician. His shop does general repairs, with an emphasis on computer diagnostics.
In 1998, Rs son (also named Michael) asked if he could try out racing to see if he liked it; he was nine years old at the time! After watching some events together, Dad decided it would be a hobby they could enjoy together.
The younger Michael began in quarter midgets and has since moved up to the Allison Legacy series. The cars in this series are ¾-scale models of N EXTEL Cup cars. Chassis construction is similar to the larger cars, but a 2.2L engine from a Mazda B2200 truck provides the power.
The engines are sealed to keep costs down. The series dso mes a spec tire and spec shocks. Because everybody in the field has very similar equipment, it puts a greater emphasis on driver skill.
The father and son team relies on Ben Rothkopf (spotter), Denise M. VeIlines (backup spotter) and Bob Semple (crew) for support when they’re at the track. The touring series races in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Some of the tracks they’ve visited include Concord Motorsports Speedway, Hickory Motor Speedway, Peachstate, Lonesome Pine Speedway, Florence Speedway and Myrtle Beach.