SALEM - Salem Speedway is set to host the 33rd Halloween 200 from Oct. 22-24. Lindsey took to cars with the same fervor. Log In. The 2023 Salem Speedway tentative schedule: March 18: Riverside Drift Clinic April 8: (3rd Annual Easter Egg Hunt) Open Practice for all divisions April 16: (Season Opener) GAS, CVBT, CVST,. had intended to finish the job the day after the fatal Salem race. One compromise is to offer pit access to fans who sign a liability waiver, which isn't so much a safety solution as acknowledgment that the best viewing is also the most dangerous. Gil was a popular Cincinnati, Ohio driver who ran regularly in the area before joining the United States Auto Club sprint car circuit. Keep reading with unlimited digital access. July 22, 1990 12 AM PT Rich Vogler, five-time United States Auto Club midget champion, was killed Saturday night when he crashed during a sprint car race at Salem (Ind.) Amant. hunting for them, to call them to supper. But Dorie didnt believe it would happen to Sweikert. The Indianapolis 500 was part of the FIA World Championship from 1950 through 1960. Sacks had the pole at Daytona but was knocked out of the race in a first-lap crash that damaged 25 cars. In January 1953, Sweikert married his high school sweetheart, divorcee Dorie with her two children, with whom he had recently become reacquainted. We want all of our events to be big shows. "We have to be very careful what we ask them to do," says George Knight of George Knight Associates in Tulsa, Okla., a small-track insurance provider. "There's no way to stay ahead of these drivers.". Vogler`s late father, Don, was a midget driver until his death at age 54 in a crash at the Indianapolis Speedrome on May 3, 1981. Johnson's car, said C. Ray Hall, was using an experimental spindle, which serves as an axle for the front wheels. to Indianapolis and listed the house for sale. Perhaps in part because Bob Sweikert refused to accept fear, Dorie convinced herself he was safe from harm. The boys, only sons of Mr. and Mrs. Harold Tomlinson, had In May 1956, at his final return to the Indianapolis 500, Sweikert began in the 10th starting position and came in for a 6th-place finish, with the team's D-A Lubricant roadster. Tomlinson and his wife, who is expecting her third child in On the night Lindsey was born, he rushed to the hospital smeared with grease; hours earlier, he'd bought his first race car, a 1984 Impala Super Sport. (renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax). January 22, 2023 (76 years old) View obituary. A 37-year-old Buffalo firefighter died while fighting a four-alarm blaze on Main Street downtown that may have been sparked by work being done, While Amherst police were on the scene, a number of fights started among groups within the crowd in the mall lot on Alberta and in the Wegmans, The new renderings released by the Bills include an up-close view from the field level, three exterior stadium views with more detail than has. [1] The track closed in May 1995 when he declared bankruptcy. The likeable, rising superstar, who had just appeared on the front cover of Sports Illustrated, did not survive the crash. "The spindle just locked up and came off," he remembers. win at Indy, Vuky, who was leading when he crashed, would have been tough to He failed to qualify this year after an eighth-place finish, his best ever, in 1989. On the first lap of the first race held at Salem, on June 22, 1947, Clay Corbitt locked wheels with Jack Schultz, went over the banking and was killed. First there was the business of trying to defend his Indy 500 title. Such is what Jeff Mayden believed before his daughter was killed. They interrupted a broadcast with a special bulletin, and I was absolutely devastated, Levinson recalled. The names, logos, and other source identifying features of newspapers depicted in our database are the trademarks of their respective owners, and our use of newspaper content in the public domain or by private agreement does not imply any affiliation with, or endorsement from, the publishers of the newspaper titles that appear on our site. For as long as he remembers, his view of Saturday nights was framed by the edges of a driver's helmet. Required fence heights for oval track bleachers vary from 9 to 15 feet, according to insurance company representatives. He was one of the good guys. Salem Speedway. He said, I still cant relax. He said this was just one race. Mike Harrington: His team looks good, even without Alex Tuch. The worst such incident occurred in 1955 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France, where Pierre LeVegh's Mercedes flew over a 3-foot grass bank and small white fence into a crowd of spectators near the pit straightaway, killing more than 80. RACE CAR driver Bob Sweikert celebrates his win in the 1955Indianapolis 500 with his wife, Dorrie. Greg Sacks had his fill of those in the last race, the Pepsi 400 at Daytona, Fla., where accidents ruined the weekend for both drivers. Salem Speedway will be under new ownership for the 2023 racing season. A year later, on June 17, 1956, Sweikert, just turned 30, was killed when his sprint car shot over the edge of the high-banked, half-mile track at Salem, Ind. Waltrip, preparing to make his 500th NASCAR start in that July 7 race, sustained a slight concussion and broke his left leg the day before in a crash in practice and couldn't start. The boys 33-year-old father arrived at the pool shortly Five-time USAC midget champion Rich Vogler was killed Saturday night after his car crashed during a feature sprint-car race at Salem Speedway of which he was later declared the winner. . 1 most stressful city for workers in U.S. Turner: State takeover of Houston ISD could happen as soon as next week, Houston rap royalty Bun B on returning to Rodeo for another Takeover, 'Call me a Nazi': Former Houston-area pastor calls for state book ban. Coming out of the 4th turn, the two cars started down the straightaway in front of the grandstand. A naturally gifted mechanic, he frequently won street races throughout the East Bay. Sanctioning bodies, some of which require driver safety equipment, don't demand that tracks inspect cars, a survey by the Charlotte Observer found. Drive. He was nicknamed "Rapid Rich". At the 81 Speedway, Hall says cars are inspected on two occasions -- the first time they appear at the track and after they are involved in accidents. She figures it was a combination of factors, but mostly this: It was Bobs time to die, and he died.. In late 1952 his first wife, Marion, started divorce proceedings. Pit fencing, however, is rarely mandated. That car now resides in the Museum at the Indianapolis racetrack. That grief gripped the loved ones of dozens of race car drivers in the 1950s. You go to Salem, and you go home a widow. In a 1998 incident, an out-of-control race car climbed over a fence at a Phoenix speedway and came to rest just 15 feet from fan seating. 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At the time, Vogler was scheduled to run the full Winston Cup Series in the near-future for U.S. I definitely want to clean the place up, paint it, do something with the signage out front. Washington Post columnist Shirley Povich wrote, The madness known as speed-car racing now has claimed one more well-known corpse, and there has to be a new revulsion toward the whole senseless business of motorized Roman Holidays for the dues-paying spectators.. "And it gets worse at the end of the night.". The tire struck Lindsey Mayden, 7 years old. Johnson, who confirmed the experimental spindle on the car involved in Josh and Amanda Dutton's death, says he drove it that night in a one-time arrangement for a local outfit. From age 16 Sweikert worked after school as a mechanic at the local Ford dealership in Hayward. Stadium, Arena & Sports Venue in Salem, Indiana. Current NASCAR Stars Chase Elliott, Christopher Bell, Erik Jones and Mitchells own Chase Briscoe have also competed on the High Banks while advancing their careers. Finishing first among the survivors was a young driver from Pittsboro, Indiana, named Jeff Gordon. 2803 Obituaries. I just raced. North American Racing Insurance settled with Baker's widow, Cynthia, for $1 million. He was only 28 years old, however he was one of California's brightest stars in the open wheel profession. After a complicated, sometimes off-and-on courtship, they were married in 1953. An Observer survey of track officials showed that few speedways inspect cars closely for more than basic safety items such as restraints and helmets. The NASCAR Grand National East Series ran one race at the speedway; it was won by Bruce Gould in 1973. Former USAC Midget racer Nick Bohanon has taken over ownership of the iconic Salem Speedway Fueled by the Hoosier Lottery, located in Salem. Death. A good Sunday was when every driver cheated death and went home alive.. And there were sad ones. Nobody planned this tragedy, he told them. Some neglect even those, conducting superficial prerace walk-throughs or no checks at all. 1949_07_25 -2 Drivers Killed at Salem Speedway- Louisville Courier-Journal pg 1 (1 of 2) In between, she got her first taste of the sport and it terrified her. Vogler, now dead at the age of 39, was declared the winner posthumously because of USAC National Sprint Car Series rules on a red flag reverting to the previous completed lap. Your email address will not be published. SALEM Former USAC Midget racer Nick Bohanon has taken over ownership of the iconic Salem Speedway Fueled by the Hoosier Lottery, located in Salem, Indiana. As firemen worked, the Rev. Handsome, charismatic, courageous, smart, successful, and on top of the world, Sweikerts life ended in tragedy when his yellow No. Lindsey, who wanted to be a veterinarian and a midget car racer. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Try 7 Days Free to get access to 836 million+ pages, 1949_07_25 -2 Drivers Killed at Salem Speedway- Louisville Courier-Journal pg 1 (1 of 2), Search the Largest Online Newspaper Archive. or. If you are experiencing difficulties logging in or are a subscriber getting a paywall, please try one or more of the following steps. Racing close with Elisian, both cars pushed high. In the 1950s, talent won races, but luck decided who lived and died on the track. Michigan Speedway raised its fences from 14 1/2 to 17 feet after its 1998 CART crash. It is definitely going to be an investment, but this place has such a great history that I think it can still be one of the nicest short tracks in the country., Bohanon added, We want to continue our Great American Stocks series, they have a great following and put on great racing. More often, like Lindsey Mayden, spectators die with less publicity at smaller ovals and asphalt drag strips on Friday and Saturday nights. "Fans are their own worst enemy," says Dickie Gore, owner of Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Va. This event be an action packed weekend full of racing and fun. The .555-mile oval that features imposing 33-degree banks was built strictly for speed. Vogler became the first driver to win the USAC Sprint Car and Midget championships in the same year (1980). I saw him coming out of the fourth turn, he and Ed up so high, Dorie Sweikert said. Not all would race The Hills. Six-time Indy 500 entrant Jimmy Reece refused, calling it the idiot circuit., For most drivers, the Midwest sprint car series was a necessary proving ground. Neighbors who learned of the accident called the sheriffs This car ran right smack into the cement wall between the track and the pits, and back in the50s, youd have known that young man was dead, she recalled. backstretch wall to his death. One day I just said, OK, and I wrote it., Dorie doesnt blame anyone for Sweikerts death. But he liked to race on them.. "He would be going if it were me that died. He failed to qualify this year after an eighth-place finish, his best ever, in 1989. Still others, inured by lap after lap of fan-friendly racing -- and unaware that almost one fan a month on average is killed or seriously injured on U.S. tracks -- think of spectator incidents as mere freak occurrences. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}, Sabres place Alex Tuch on injured reserve; top-line winger's status is uncertain, Paula's Donuts to move Clarence store that faced backlash for tax breaks to Amherst, Nebraska cheerleader competes by herself at state competition, but crowd doesn't let her feel alone, Chad Hall's departure from Buffalo Bills to Jaguars remains a bit of a mystery. Are a subscriber getting a paywall, please try one or more of the iconic Salem Speedway Fueled the. When he declared bankruptcy, in 1989 scheduled to run the full Winston Cup Series in the area joining... 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