firemen drained it before leaving the scene. While completing the third lap, Sweikert was running near the outside wall in 4th place, side by side with his past teenage East Bay streets rival, Ed Elisian, in 5th. If hed come along a half-century later, Bob Sweikert might have been that lucky young driver. Street, and Edward Karsch, 3470 North Meridian Street, who were on the Broadmoor Eight years later, 81 Speedway's owner seems to disagree. Vogler's helmet flew off his head and he suffered severe head injuries that proved to be fatal. The two often raced together, and Boyd qualified for entry in the 1955 Indianapolis 500 when Sweikert helped him overcome mechanical handling problems in Boyd's car. His death prompted another burst of outrage over the sports dangerous side. Like our page to stay informed about passing of a loved one in Provo, Utah on facebook. Read More. "It kind of catapulted into the sky," Cindy Dutton remembers. Race officials later moved spectators back from the straightaway and built new fencing, now about 30 feet high, to protect them. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with World Championship points and participation. pool and its lure for children. 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. AUTO RACING: Salem Speedway has new owner DANIEL SUDDEATH daniel.suddeath@newsandtribune.com Dec 24, 2022 From left, Will Kimmel interviews new Salem Speedway owner and promoter Nick. Salem is a track steeped in history with many of the giants in auto racing having competed on the treacherous hills at some point in their careers, Names such as Ruttman, Carter, Sweikert, OConnor, Jones, Foyt, Unser, Andretti, Vogler, Allison, Parsons, Waltrip, Schrader, Gordon and Stewart are just a few names from the past that grace the list of past winners. Wife of popular Wild 94.9 radio host JV says new information suggests he will not be coming back, Bay Area federal judge orders extradition of woman suspected of killing MSU student in hit-and-run, Santa Rosa high school student stabbed to death in classroom, Harry, Meghan asked to vacate Frogmore, their UK home, East Bay lawmaker blasts open sore at BART, resigns from Senate committee, United Dumplings' fare in Rockridge 'meant to be enjoyed together', Three Bay Area men, including justice reform activist, plead guilty in Norteo RICO murder case, Walnut Creeks Shake Shack is finally opening this weekend. When Vogler got word of Fittipaldi's penalty, he went up to USAC to testify for him, calling the penalty "unjust." Vogler became the first driver to win the USAC Sprint Car and Midget championships in the same year (1980). High powered sprint cars accelerate down the straights at speeds reaching nearly 140 miles per hour. And with good reason; with 33-degree banking in the corners, Salem Speedway was built in 1947 with all out speed in mind. Drive. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. which Sweikert was building of tall cedar stakes when he was killed at Salem, They were joined by Myron Weinberger, 221 East 70th James Tomlinson, 5 years old, and Anthony Tomlinson, 3, lost But there are those who think he adapted to the track as well as anybody. He won the midget car track championships at the Indianapolis Speedrome in 1984 and 1985. I had a son who was killed in a crash as well.''. Yard of Sweikert Home. He is remarried now, and he's even found himself back at the track, racing a truck some weekends at Indianapolis Raceway Park. He was about to take the white flag for the final lap at the alf-mile oval in a race televised nationally by ESPN. of his death. Tragically, Reece would lose his life on the last lap of the 100 Mile USAC National Championship race at Trenton Speedway on September 28, 1958. He is thankful only that Lindsey had her back to the track when the tire bounced toward her. Insurers wait as much as three years between track visits, leaving opportunity for repairs and maintenance to lag. Drivers, nursing accumulated grudges, satisfy them on and off the track. at the bottom of the water. It was a time before safety thats just the way it was, said Steven Levinson, a semi-retired attorney and amateur auto racing historian, who grew up in Indianapolis in the 1940s and 50s. "It was," he said, "nobody's fault.". Racing but was replaced posthumously by Ted Musgrave. Bob Sweikert shortly before his fatal crash at Salem Speedway Sweikert himself took the checkers at Indy in the face of tragedy after two-time 500 winner Bill Vukovich cartwheeled over the backstretch wall to his death. It will be a process of getting those done over the next several years. The Salem Speedway joined The Hills circuit in 1947, and immediately demonstrated its potential for disaster. 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. three weeks ago to make her home. [5], As of 2019, the track has held more ARCA races than any other track (106th visit); it held races at the track since 1955. ''Rich saw his father die,'' said Marvel. 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. Find an obituary, get service details, leave condolence messages or send flowers or gifts in memory of a loved one. Bloomington Speedway has released its 2023 racing schedule as the track will celebrate its 100-year anniversary this season: April 7 Season Opener to 100th Year at Bloomington Speedway 410 Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stocks, Hornets, April 14 Larry Rice Classic USAC Sprints, Super Stocks, MMSA, April 21 410 Sprints, 305 IMCA Racesavers, Hornets, April 28 410 Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stocks, Hornets, May 5 410 Sprints, 305 IMCA Racesavers, Modifieds, Hornets, May 12 Roddy Strong Memorial (Modified Purse will be increased from last year) 410 Sprints, 305 IMCA Racesavers, Modifieds, May 19 410 Sprints, 305 IMCA Racesavers, Super Stocks, and Hornets, May 26 The 10th Josh Burton Memorial with Fireworks MSCS Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stocks, MMSA, June 2 410 Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stocks, June 9 USAC Indiana Midget Week USAC Midgets, MMSA, Sprints, June 16 Honoring Kevin The Pup Huntley plus Fireworks 410 Sprints, 305 IMCA Racesavers, Super Stocks, Hornets, June 23 410 Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stock, Hornets, July 14 (Rain Date for Roddy Strong Memorial) 410 Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stocks, Hornets, July 28 USAC Indiana Sprint Week: Kinser Memorial USAC Sprints, 305 Racesavers, Aug. 11 410 Sprints, 305 IMCA Racesavers, Modifieds, Hornets, Aug. 18 410 Sprints, Super Stocks, Hornets, MMSA, Aug. 25 410 Sprints, Super Stocks, Hornets, Sept. 1 Rain Date for Josh Burton Memorial MSCS Sprints, Modifieds, Super Stocks, MMSA, James Essex writes a motorsports notebook for The Republic. "It could have been a nightmare," the track's owner said then. Vogler, leading the race at the time, was running alone when he crashed coming off the high-banked fourth turn. February 27, 2023 (100 years old) View obituary. Sweikert returned to Hayward and opened his own small business, Sweikert Automotive, an automotive repair shop based out of his parents' garage. 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. Community See All. Sweikert's mother, Grace, often visited Bob's firstborn until Grace died. He ran seventy-two races that first BCRA season, finishing 14th out of 130 active members in the annual point standings. AFTER 30 years away, Dorie Sweikert returned to the Indianapolis 500 Speedway in the late 1980s and saw how much the sport of auto racing had changed. the 25-by-12 pool with prideful anticipation. [2] Major auto racing series that run at Salem are ARCA and USAC. Both tracks also increased their fences' overhang. [4], Salem Speedway has seen many great racers who are household names, such as Ruttman, Carter, Sweikert, OConnor, Parnelli Jones, A. J. Foyt, Al Unser, Mario Andretti, Vogler, Allison, Parsons, Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Busch, Kasey Kahne, Ken Schrader, Joey Logano, and the list goes on. 1949_07_25 -2 Drivers Killed at Salem Speedway- Louisville Courier-Journal pg 1 (1 of 2) Parts of the car were strewn about the front stretch between the turn and the start-finish line, but the protective roll cage and the driver's pod remained attached to most of chassis. As firemen worked, the Rev. At Clay's I-30 Speedway, track officials weren't aware of a hole in a wire fence near the pit area outside the track's oval. Running close to the wall, Sweikert's right rear wheel clipped a steel beam sticking out onto the track from the wall at the end of the stands. The guys who didnt run there, they were flat-ass chicken., No one had to twist Bob Sweikerts arm to race at Salem. [1] He competed in the Indianapolis 500 five times, and his best finish was eighth in 1989. There was always the darkness the thing about Vukie.. Country Club golf course behind the Sweikert home. Sheriff Robert A. ONeal ordered the pool be drained. "I still love to go to races," Cynthia says now. It was a very scary thing the sound was so frightening, said Dorie Sweikert, now 79 and living in Redding. [1], Bob Sweikert grew up in pre-war Los Angeles. Bohanon, a Southern Indiana native, has raced on the famous High Banks of Salem Speedway and looks forward to shaping the tracks future. More often, like Lindsey Mayden, spectators die with less publicity at smaller ovals and asphalt drag strips on Friday and Saturday nights. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The wheel came off in Turn 2, snapped from its axle in a two-car collision. In 1947, Sweikert met his first wife, Marion Edwards, at a party at UCLA. Salem, IN (April 20, 2021) - Champion Racing Association Powered by JEGS will head to the famous High Banks of Salem Speedway Fueled by the Hoosier Lottery, located in Salem, Indiana, this coming weekend for the Midwest 250 Presented by Scott County Tourism & Lucas Oil. LONG POND, Pa. -- Darrell Waltrip will be satisfied with a short day on the track today. The Pocono race was not his first attempted NASCAR Winston Cup start: two weeks before, he entered the Michigan race but failed to qualify. He had secured an overseas drivers license and was planning a racing tour of Europe in 1957. Salem Speedway will be under new ownership for the 2023 racing season. 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.. Just 12 days after Sweikerts bitter-sweet win at Indianapolis, the sport suffered its worst tragedy when a car at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France went off the track and into the crowd, killing 80 spectators. You have permission to edit this article. 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. There were no space-age helmets and flame-proof racing suits. And there were sad ones. He would make consecutive starts at Indy from then on, up until 1990. He learned to race on go-karts at age 9, graduated to stock cars as an adult. Vogler remained motionless for several minutes before being removed by ambulance. He walked over to his father`s car, looked in and then walked away. The other thing that was really noteworthy about him is most drivers then were hands-on, technically, but he more than most. We want all of our events to be big shows. She died five hours later, early the next day. Insurance companies, some fearful of legal liability, are reluctant to mandate any driver or car inspections. Track officials voiced the same hesitance. She attended most of his races, and even had the unthinkable chore of informing the wife of another driver that her husband had been killed. [4], NASCAR Southeast Series ran two races at the facility between 1996 and 1997; the races were won by Steven Christian and Ron Young respectively. 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. 1 most stressful city for U.S. workers, Turner: State takeover of Houston ISD could happen next week, Bun B on bringing Southern rap stars to Houston's Rodeo, 'Call me a Nazi': Former Houston pastor calls for state book ban, How the Houston Zoo moved its flock of flamingos to a new home, Astros show struggles with new MLB pitch clock rules, West Texans share apocalyptic photos of after massive dust storm, Houston leaders delay vote on Hobby Airport concesssions contract, The only Houston rodeo food guide you'll need, Watch: Houston Astros' Luis Garcia debuts new windup, Houston pitmaster goes viral after hilarious on-air interview with reporter. ", But: "Everywhere I go, I check out their fence.". Im really excited about acquiring Salem Speedway and looking forward to what the future entails for this historic track, Bohanon said. During a qualifying heat, a sprint car driven by Jon Johnson lost its tire and rim in a turn. His parents, Foster R Hess and Sarah Ethel Davis were married in Sullivan County, TN in 1928. He continued to tinker with the mechanics, then entered the 25-lap event, anyway. View local obituaries in utah. Vogler was declared the winner when officials decided not to complete the 30-lap event. Create new account. * Most laps led. The tragedy brought complaints from neighbors about the open Their shoes where on the pools rim. after the boys were taken from the water. She searched for nearly an hour before finding the tricycles their lives while wading in the pool behind Sweikerts house at 5301 Lancelot After winning the55 Indy title, Sweikert began plotting his next move. His 134 wins (95 Midget, 35 Sprint, and four Silver Crown wins) in national events is second only to A. J. Foyt's 169. That grief gripped the loved ones of dozens of race car drivers in the 1950s. 2894 Gallahad Drive, around the corner from the Sweikert house, ran to her aid. (key) (Bold Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Log In. Weinberger and Ostapenko began artificial respiration. After a complicated, sometimes off-and-on courtship, they were married in 1953. Dorie Sweikert recalls being able to see her husband smile as his car sprinted past, his head and shoulders exposed to potential peril. another. The event at one of the iconic short tracks in the county is being . A racecar moves around the track at Salem Speedway. In January 1953, Sweikert married his high school sweetheart, divorcee Dorie with her two children, with whom he had recently become reacquainted. Dr. Dan. We are in the process of finalizing our 2023 schedule and will have that out next week.. Floyd said plans were being made to fly Vogler to Humana Hospital in Louisville, Ky., before he was pronounced dead. "I have 200 fires to put out," track president Doug McManus says. They settled in Indiana, to be close to the Speedway where Sweikert hoped to race and win. 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. Bob Sweikerts death in an auto race last June was reflected SALEM, IND. 1,509 were here. On July 5th, 1970, he was driving for Mauri Amerling, at the Salem, Indiana speedway when. Mike Harrington: His team looks good, even without Alex Tuch. At the time, Vogler was scheduled to run the full Winston Cup Series in the near-future for U.S. left their home at 5241 Will Scarlett Lane, a block from the Sweikert home, for In September 1955 Sweikert became the only driver in history to win the original American motor sports Triple Crown, by sweeping the Indianapolis 500, the AAA big car National Championship, and the Midwest sprint car championship. It had been there in my head and in my heart for a long time, she said. "Some people said it went over the fence." From The Third Turn, an online resource for all news and results stock car racing. Italics Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. Sacks, who will start third on today behind Mark Martin and Ken Schrader, ran a strong seventh here in June after leading late in the race. I didnt even think Id hit 21. Too late for his daughter, and for his marriage, which lasted almost five years before bowing to the weight of Lindsey's memory. 1 sprint car, just one year after he won the worlds most famous race, tumbled over the turn one wall at Salem Speedway. backstretch wall to his death. Ostapenko and Karsch removed the boys from the water. No other cars were involved. Speedway infield. He drove in northern California that year and later in Los Angeles. In 2008, the viewing party was moved to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where 1996 scholarship recipient Ryan Newman won the aforementioned race. During most of his IndyCar tenure he was sponsored by KFC, whom he had a longtime professional relationship with. I was 17 when I first started racing. Stadium, Arena & Sports Venue in Salem, Indiana. He was leading the race at the time, when his car crashed with just over a lap to go. I had to work very hard at that, not to make it a negative. Sweikert's car, on the outside, brushed a piece of metal . Six days before, on Sept. 4, 1993, the family spent Saturday night as usual -- at the 81 Speedway, a three-eighths-mile clay oval at the north end of town where Paul Dutton raced sprint cars. IRS delays tax deadline for Bay Area, but California hasnt followed: What should you do? 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. I know that sounds corny, but thats the way it was. Send flowers, find service dates or offer condolences for the lives we have lost in utah. Now his dream was not just to win Indy, but to be the best in the world. His mother had married his stepfather, an electrician for the state of California, when Bob was an infant. I had a deep spiritual belief that got me through that. Sweikert finished sixth at Indianapolis the following May, but then died weeks later, at age 30, in 1956 after crashing a Sprint car at Salem Speedway. Track technicians had not inspected the car. A dozen years later, Elisian and Sweikert were engaged in the racing duel that led to Sweikert's fatal crash at Salem Speedway. Mrs. Sweikerts last order before leaving Indianapolis, the neighbors said, was that the fence be completed at once. In July 1995, Michael "Buzz" Baker, a visiting construction worker from Sabetha, Kan., paid to watch a Saturday night of races from the pit bleachers. At smaller tracks, insurance companies are the primary arbiters of fence height and design. The challenge for speedway owners: How do you balance the counterweights of safety and intimacy? And Karsch removed the boys from the Sweikert home when he crashed coming off the fourth... Parents, Foster R Hess and Sarah Ethel salem speedway deaths were married in Sullivan County TN. Will be satisfied with a short day on the track when the tire bounced toward her brushed piece... Karsch removed the boys from the Third turn, an electrician for the lives we have lost in.! Back from the Sweikert home Marion Edwards, at the Salem, Indiana when. Of getting those done over the fence. ``, they were flat-ass chicken. No! 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