DuQuoin State Fairgrounds Racetrack
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DuQuoin State Fairgrounds Racetrack
DuQuoin State Fairgrounds Racetrack is a one-mile (1.6-km) clay oval motor racetrack in Du Quoin, Illinois, about southeast of St Louis, Missouri. It is a stop on the ARCA Menards Series, USAC Silver Crown Series and American Flat Track. History The DuQuoin State Fair was founded in 1923 by local businessman William R. "W.R." Hayes, who owned the fair and ran it. (It did not become run by the state of Illinois as a true "state fair" until the 1980s; it is now officially called the Illinois State Fair in DuQuoin, as opposed to the longtime one at state capital Springfield.) At the start Hayes had a half-mile harness-racing track on his 30-acre site, with wooden grandstands that seated 3000. In 1939 Hayes started buying adjoining stripmined land to develop its potential as parkland, replanting it and turning the strip pits into family-friendly ponds and lakes. He eventually expanded his little fairgrounds into 1200 acres. The DuQuoin "Magic Mile" racetrack was constructed on re ...
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Du Quoin, Illinois
Du Quoin ( ) is a city in Perry County, Illinois. It is best known for hosting the annual DuQuoin State Fair and the Street Machine Nationals. The population is estimated at 5,761 in the 2020 census. Geography Du Quoin is located at (38.0068, -89.2349). The city of Du Quoin is located in the southeastern portion of Perry County, Illinois. According to the 2010 census, Du Quoin has a total area of , of which (or 98.85%) is land and (or 1.15%) is water. Climate History The area east of Du Quoin is known as Old Du Quoin. In the early 19th century, Du Quoin was near the Lusk's Ferry Road, an important early road that connected Kaskaskia with Lusk's Ferry on the Ohio River. The road ran easterly out of Steeleville to a point southwest of Du Quoin. There it turned to the southeast to cross the Big Muddy River and head for Lusk's Ferry. Du Quoin had its start at its present location in 1853 when the railroad was extended to that point. The city was named after Chief Jean Bap ...
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Meadowlands Racetrack
The Meadowlands Racetrack (currently referred to as Meadowlands Racing & Entertainment) is a horse racing track at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. The track hosts both thoroughbred racing and harness racing. It is known popularly in the region as "The Big M". Meadowlands has year-round horse racing as well as a number of bars and restaurants. History Opened in the mid-1970s, Meadowlands Racetrack held its first-ever harness race on September 1, 1976, while thoroughbred racing commenced on September 6, 1977. With the exception of the opening season of 1976, autumn has been dedicated to the thoroughbreds, while the rest of the year features standardbreds, or harness horses. The advertising campaign that accompanied the start of thoroughbred racing at the Meadowlands in 1977 was noted for its use of the slogan "Racing with the Moon", originally popularized in 1941 by bandleader Vaughn Monroe (alluding to the fact that post-time is in ...
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1953 AAA Championship Car Season
The 1953 AAA Championship Car season consisted of 12 races, beginning in Speedway, Indiana on May 30 and concluding in Phoenix, Arizona on November 11. There was also one non-championship event in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The AAA National Champion was Sam Hanks, and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Bill Vukovich. Chet Miller died while practicing for the Indianapolis 500. Schedule and results : The Indianapolis 500 was AAA-sanctioned and counted towards the 1953 World Championship of Drivers. : 73 laps were completed. Race stopped due to flipped car. Final standings reverted to 51 laps because of red flag and work done on cars. Half points awarded. : No pole is awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, in this schedule on the pole is the driver who started first. No lap led was awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, however, a lap was awarded to the drivers that completed the climb. Final points standings Note1: The points became the car, when not only one driv ...
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Chuck Stevenson
Charles Stevenson (October 15, 1919 – August 21, 1995) was an American racecar driver. AAA and USAC Championship Car series Stevenson drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series, racing in the 1949–1954, 1960–1961, and 1963–1965 seasons with 54 starts, including the Indianapolis 500 races in 1951–1954, 1960–1961, and 1963–1965. He finished in the top ten 37 times, with four victories, two of them coming in the 1952 season when he won the AAA National Championship. Panamericana race In 1951 Stevenson drove a Nash-Healey course (pace) car that was supplied by the Mexican Nash automobile importer in the grueling Carrera Panamericana race. This endurance event is described as one of the most dangerous automobile races of any type in the world, and Stevenson had to be ahead of the racers to ensure the way was clear. In both 1952 and 1953 Stevenson won the sedan class driving a "well-prepared" Lincoln Capri. He is the only two-time winner in the history of th ...
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1952 AAA Championship Car Season
The 1952 AAA Championship Car season consisted of 12 races, beginning in Speedway, Indiana on May 30 and concluding in Phoenix, Arizona on November 11. There was also one non-championship event in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The AAA National Champion was Chuck Stevenson, and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Troy Ruttman. Johnny McDowell was killed at the Milwaukee while qualifying for the Rex Mays Classic. Joe James died in the San José 100 race. Schedule and results : Indianapolis 500 was AAA-sanctioned and counted towards the 1952 FIA World Championship of Drivers title. : No pole is awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, in this schedule on the pole is the driver who started first. No lap led was awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, however, a lap was awarded to the drivers that completed the climb. Final points standings Note: The points became the car, when not only one driver led the car, the relieved driver became small part of the points. Points for dri ...
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1951 AAA Championship Car Season
The 1951 AAA Championship Car season consisted of 15 races, beginning in Speedway, Indiana on May 30 and concluding in San Mateo, California on November 11. There was also one non-championship event in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The AAA National Champion was Tony Bettenhausen, and the Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ... winner was Lee Wallard. Schedule and results : Indianapolis 500 was AAA-sanctioned and counted towards the 1951 FIA World Championship of Drivers title. : Race stopped after 101 laps due to rain. : No pole is awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, in this schedule on the pole is the driver who started first. No lap led was awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, however, a lap was awarded to the drivers that completed ...
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1950 AAA Championship Car Season
The 1950 AAA Championship Car season consisted of 13 races, beginning in Speedway, Indiana on May 30 and concluding in Darlington, South Carolina on December 10. There were also two non-championship events. The AAA National Champion was Henry Banks, and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Johnnie Parsons. Schedule and results : Indianapolis 500 was AAA-sanctioned and counted towards the 1950 FIA World Championship of Drivers title. Race stopped after 345 miles due to rain. : No pole is awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, in this schedule on the pole is the driver who started first. No lap led was awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, however, a lap was awarded to the drivers that completed the climb. Final points standings Note1: The points became the car, when not only one driver led the car, the relieved driver became small part of the points. Points for driver method: (the points for the finish place) / (number the lap when completed the car) * (number the lap wh ...
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Tony Bettenhausen
Melvin Eugene "Tony" Bettenhausen (September 12, 1916 – May 12, 1961) was an American racing driver, who won the National Championship in 1951 and 1958. Bettenhausen was nicknamed the "Tinley Park Express" in honor of his hometown. He was nicknamed "Tunney" after heavyweight boxing champion Gene Tunney. "Tunney" later became "Tony." Bettenhausen was part of the midget car " Chicago Gang" with Emil Andres, Cowboy O'Rourke, Paul Russo, Jimmy Snyder, and Wally Zale. They toured tracks in the Midwest and East Coast of the United States. Racing career Midget cars Bettenhausen won the track championship at the Milwaukee Mile in 1942, 1946, and 1947. He was the Chicago Raceway Park champion in 1941, 1942, and 1947. In October 1950, he was involved in a race in Sacramento, California, when his car locked wheels with another racer's car, causing a crash through the guard rail, resulting in fatal injuries to spectator Peter Bernard Stuberak, and injuries to two other spectat ...
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1949 AAA Championship Car Season
The 1949 AAA Championship Car season consisted of 14 races, beginning in Arlington, Texas on April 24 and concluding in Del Mar, California on November 6. There were also two non-championship events. The AAA National Champion was Johnnie Parsons, and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Bill Holland. The season was marred by George Metzler's death at Indianapolis in practice, Bill Sheffler's death at Trenton also in practice, and Rex Mays's death in the final race at Del Mar. Schedule and results : No pole is awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, in this schedule on the pole is the driver who started first. No lap led was awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, however, a lap was awarded to the drivers that completed the climb. Final points standings Note: The points became the car, when not only one driver led the car, the relieved driver became small part of the points. Points for driver method: (the points for the finish place) / (number the lap when completed the ...
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Kurtis Kraft
Kurtis Kraft was an American designer and builder of race cars. The company built midget cars, quartermidgets, sports cars, sprint cars, Bonneville cars, and USAC Championship cars. It was founded by Frank Kurtis when he built his own midget car chassis in the late 1930s.Biography
at the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame
Kurtis built some very low fiberglass bodied two-seaters sports cars under his own name in between 1949 and 1955.
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Johnnie Parsons
Johnnie Woodrow Parsons'' The Talk of Gasoline Alley'' – 1070-AM WIBC, May 15, 2007 (July 4, 1918 – September 8, 1984) was an American race car driver from Los Angeles, California who won the Indianapolis 500 in 1950. During his racing career, he drove for several seasons, including his AAA championship and Indianapolis 500 win, for Ed Walsh's team. Walsh was an owner of Kurtis Kraft, the leading constructor of AAA championship cars. Parsons was a charger, needing cars to race against, frequently moving from last on the grid to a win in spectacular displays of dirt track driving ability. Johnnie Parsons had the dubious distinction of being the only Indianapolis 500 winner to have his name misspelled on the Borg-Warner Trophy. The silversmith carved "Johnny" instead of "Johnnie." He had a son named Johnny who competed at Indy a dozen times. In 1991, during a trophy restoration project, it was proposed to correct the spelling, albeit posthumously. However, it was decided to k ...
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Offy
The Offenhauser Racing Engine, or Offy, is a racing engine design that dominated American open wheel racing for more than 50 years and is still popular among vintage sprint and midget car racers. History The Offenhauser engine, familiarly known as the "Offy", was an overhead cam monoblock 4-stroke internal combustion engine developed by Fred Offenhauser and Harry Arminius Miller. Originally, it was sold as a marine engine. In 1930 a four-cylinder Miller engine installed in a race car set a new international land speed record of . Miller developed this engine into a twin overhead cam, four-cylinder, four-valve-per-cylinder racing engine. Variations of this design were used in midgets and sprints into the 1960s, with a choice of carburetion or Hilborn fuel injection. When both Miller and the company to whom he had sold much of the equipment and rights went bankrupt in 1933, Offenhauser opened a shop a block away and bought rights to engines, special tooling and drawin ...
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