No matter how hard we try to sanitize it, racing is a dangerous sport. Obviously, some of the risk has been minimized through safety innovations, but reminders of the lethality of participation are ever present.
Like it or not, it is also what makes this endeavor so thrilling to fans. Reminders of the potential hazards that awaited racers were omnipresent in other eras. A series of so-called outlaw tracks in the state of Indiana during the days before World War II was simply referred to as “The Suicide Circuit.” In the post-war period, the legendary banks of Dayton, Winchester and Salem were noted in some circles as the “Hills of Death.”
The message was clear. The people who chose to race were a rare breed. Decades later most would agree this is still true. There is a strong streak of machismo among racers, and for some, even admitting fear is believed to be a sign of weakness. In private moments some will express a level of apprehension that comes in certain times and places.
Others remain forever buttoned up on the subject. It all begs the question: What race tracks are viewed by current and former racers as the most intimidating and how does one manage this anxiety? To explore the issue a cross-section of drivers were surveyed from a range of open-wheel disciplines.
Several overriding themes emerged, and it was clear that time and experience matter. What was once intimidating at first is less so after repeated visits. Accordingly, those who have consistently raced at Knoxville, Williams Grove, Port Royal or Eldora rarely identify those places as challenges. However, the story may have been vastly different at an earlier point in their career.
For example, Doug Wolfgang cut his teeth at Knoxville and then traversed the country with the World of Outlaws. Surprisingly, Wolfgang tabs Kokomo Speedway and the now-shuttered Sante Fe Speedway in Illinois as troublesome. However, Wolfgang’s response also belies the unique way he and other drivers ponder the question. Wolfgang never suggested these two tracks were stressful, he only recalls them as places he had trouble negotiating.
Like Wolfgang, Terry McCarl has turned thousands of laps at Knoxville. In his case it was Lebanon Valley Speedway in New York that got his undivided attention.
“It was very strange and if you got above the cushion the slightest you were going to stick it into the fence – and you were going very fast,” McCarl said. “That is about the only track that ever intimidated me. I was truly glad when the checkered flag came out. I really think all the World of Outlaw drivers just got in line and followed each other and waited until the checkered flag came out so we could get out of there.”
Shane Carson was an original outlaw, who spent valuable time racing with Des Moines constructor/owner Bob Trostle. His first days on the road produced some predictable challenges.
“In those days every track I went to was new to me,” he said. “But one I remember that was very intimidating was Hartford Speedway in South Dakota. It was a high-speed, high-banked half mile with no walls around the corner. In the summer of 1978, we built a lightweight version of the Bob Trostle production sprint car.
“It had a wedge design hood and was really built for me as the cage was lower and the car was a bit smaller than normal,” Carson recalled. “It was very fast. When Bob took me to Hartford, it was a handful. The track had marginal lighting and black dirt with no walls around it. It made it difficult to navigate one of those cars at high speed, but we did it and did well. But I do remember after that first race there when we had an open date on our schedule, I always elected to go elsewhere.”
Contemporary racer Freddie Rahmer regularly stares down the long straightaways at Williams Grove Speedway yet points to New Jersey’s Bridgeport Speedway as the one plant that causes him to pause.
“In its new configuration, it has high banking, and the pace is up the whole time you’re out there,” he noted “The best way to deal with it is only run what speed you are comfortable with and try to make the best decisions you can in racing conditions. But the more I race the more I get comfortable there.”