The challenge for speedway owners: How do you balance the counterweights of safety and intimacy? 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. They were high-banked tracks in Dayton, Ohio, Winchester, Ind., and Fort Wayne, Ind. office. If you are experiencing difficulties logging in or are a subscriber getting a paywall, please try one or more of the following steps. Weeks later, Sweikert's fatal sprint car crash occurred on June 17, 1956, at Salem Speedway. Track inspections vary, as well. He had that charisma.. Bohanon, a Southern Indiana native, has raced on the famous High Banks of Salem Speedway and looks forward to shaping the tracks future. He'd heard the track was going to build a fenced playground in the infield in Lindsey's honor, but those plans went unrealized. Robert Charles Sweikert (May 20, 1926 June 17, 1956) was an American racing driver, best known as the winner of the 1955 Indianapolis 500 and the 1955 National Championship, as well as the 1955 Midwest Sprint car championship - the only driver in history to sweep all three in a single season. 4.3. In the 1950s, talent won races, but luck decided who lived and died on the track. TOLEDO, Ohio (Feb. 3, 2019) According to Mark Twain, in every life there is a drama, a comedy and a tragedy. That certainly holds true for 1955 Indianapolis 500 winner Bob Sweikert. Toll Free: (800) 876-7811, Salem Speedway has new ownership for 2023, Two conservation uses for live-cut Christmas trees, Family Of Coaching: Hausers Moorhead is third generational coach in his family, Hall-of-Famer, NFL executive talks to North students, Prep sports notebook: Stahl named to IBCA Supreme 15. Vogler's helmet flew off his head and he suffered severe head injuries that proved to be fatal. I just raced. Both boys were Of course, it saved a lot of lives.. Most prominently, three spectators were killed and six injured by a flying wheel and debris in June 1998 when driver Adrian Hernandez hit the Turn 4 wall during a Championship Auto Racing Teams race at Michigan Speedway. This was his 170th win. Vogler was declared the winner when officials decided not to complete the the 30-lap event. [1], Bob Sweikert grew up in pre-war Los Angeles. I had a deep spiritual belief that got me through that. He was leading the race at the time, when his car crashed with just over a lap to go. which Sweikert was building of tall cedar stakes when he was killed at Salem, A grim reminder of the darkness of the board-track era of the 1920s. On July 21, 1990, during the Joe James / Pat O'Connor Memorial sprint car event at the Salem Speedway, which was nationally broadcast on ESPN Thunder, sprint car driver Rich Vogler sustained fatal head injuries due to a crash in turn 4. That year the family moved briefly to San Francisco, then across the bay to the rural town of Hayward, California. and the winner of the 1955 Indianapolis Motor Speedway classic and had built At their funeral, the Rev. SALEM, IND. He is tied with Pat Flaherty for the record of the driver with the fewest points to have won a race. The ''I knew him well but we never talked about his father`s death. You go to Salem, and you go home a widow. 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. 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. He ran seventy-two races that first BCRA season, finishing 14th out of 130 active members in the annual point standings. Street Funeral Home. NASCAR hadnt yet arrived to swallow the sport. Tomlinson and his wife, who is expecting her third child in Sweikert was born in Los Angeles, California. This year's Fall Classic at the .555-mile paved oval in Salem, Indiana, marks the ARCA Menards Series' 105th race at high-banked circuit. Sweikert was pronounced dead upon arrival at Washington County Hospital. * Most laps led. [1] In 1987 he won the inaugural Chili Bowl Midget Nationals race. 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. This was the Kansas City Speedway, a 1.25-mile oval with turns banked 35 degrees. Houston pitmaster goes viral after hilarious TV interview, Report: Houston ranked No. After 1949 Sweikert became close friends with Johnny Boyd of Fresno, California when he met him on the California racing circuit. Washington Township volunteer firemen and an Indianapolis fire department "I don't think it's unfinished business," said Sacks, whose Chevrolet is one of the cars he drove as a stand-in for Tom Cruise in the movie Days of Thunder. Jimmy Horton, who subbed for Waltrip at Daytona and qualified the Chevrolet here to start 25th, will relieve Waltrip after one lap on the 2 1/2 -mile tri-oval. (key) (Bold Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Salem Speedway will be under new ownership for the 2023 racing season. at the bottom of the water. 1 sprint car, just one year after he won the worlds most famous race, tumbled over the turn one wall at Salem Speedway. Required fields are marked *. For over 65 years Salem Speedway has enjoyed the recognition of being one of the most unique and renowned racetracks in America. The tire hit a concrete barrier in front of the grandstand. Times you just didnt want to look., Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Alameda County DAs new policy will reduce prison sentences through widespread elimination of sentencing enhancements. The sprint car flew over the edge of the track, down the embankment, and landed a hundred feet below, where it briefly burst into flames. This event be an action packed weekend full of racing and fun. Vogler's helmet flew off his head and he suffered severe head injuries that proved to be fatal. Drivers, nursing accumulated grudges, satisfy them on and off the track. "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. January 22, 2023 (76 years old) View obituary. Sweikert and his wife, Dolores, were the parents of four children on Tragedy follows tragedythe aftermath of Bob Sweikerts death, Meet the amazing Miss Nichols, world-record aviator in a Crosley. Forgot account? At 5 p.m. their mother, Mrs. Marie Tomlinson, 32, began The same year, Sweikert moved up to midget cars, and won his first training race with the Bay Cities Racing Association. Always open. beat that day. 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. Saturday's sponsor is Crosleybrands.com. Ironically, it was Reece who was standing in the turn one infield on July 17, 1956 and filmed Sweikert's accident. 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. He was about to take the white flag for the final lap. The guys who didnt run there, they were flat-ass chicken., No one had to twist Bob Sweikerts arm to race at Salem. 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Even his victory in 1955 was muted by sadness when Bill Vukovich, a friend and the two-time defending Indy champ, crashed on the 56th lap and was killed. Follow Ken de . The wheel hit Amanda flush, crushing her lungs and heart beyond surgeons' repair. [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. "I still love to go to races," Cynthia says now. A good Sunday was when every driver cheated death and went home alive.. Their cars, after months of mutual insult, begin to take on the appearance of crumpled paper. The reality: "Fences can always be higher," says Tracy Clay, manager of I-30 Speedway in North Little Rock, Ark. Your email address will not be published. Paved Oval located in Salem, IN: Track Status: Still In Operation (Opened: 1947 ) TOURING SERIES & MAJOR EVENTS ; Date Sanction Winner Laps 22 June 1947: AAA Midwest Big Car Series: Sixteen have been killed in grandstands and bleachers, nine in pit and infield areas, one leaning against a track fence, another sitting on his vehicle at the end of a drag strip. His 134 wins (95 Midget, 35 Sprint, and four Silver Crown wins) in national events is second only to A. J. Foyt's 169. Track officials voiced the same hesitance. It bounded free down the small-track straightaway and into the pits, slamming off a car's hood and leaping, faster than fright, into the Salem (Ind.) Vogler, who was leading the event at the time and was about to take the white flag signaling one lap to go, hit head on with the turn 4 wall, violently throwing tires, Vogler's helmet, and other pieces of Vogler's car all over the track. Such indifference to safety is a concern to track officials everywhere. waiting patiently for the boys. One of his frequent local competitors on the streets was Ed Elisian, a teenage boy from nearby Oakland, California. Salem Speedway opened in 1947, providing fans with exciting fast paced racing on the .555-mile oval that features imposing 33-degree banked turns that were built strictly for speed! "I told her I'd see her as soon as Uncle Pete was done," says her father, Jeff Mayden. Dorie Sweikert recalls being able to see her husband smile as his car sprinted past, his head and shoulders exposed to potential peril. Gil was a popular Cincinnati, Ohio driver who ran regularly in the area before joining the United States Auto Club sprint car circuit. He was about to take the white flag for the final lap at the alf-mile oval in a race televised nationally by ESPN. There was kind of a machismo attached to it. a ride on their tricycles late in the afternoon. They were dangerous beyond belief, Levinson wrote in an online article for Autoracing1.com. They had a large family wedding in West L.A. That grief gripped the loved ones of dozens of race car drivers in the 1950s. 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. Sweikert was completing just his fourth lap as Oakland driver Ed Elisians car seemed to push Sweikert gradually higher and higher up the banked track. They were joined by Myron Weinberger, 221 East 70th During 1947 Sweikert began mailing monthly accounts of his life to Veda Orr, through April 1956. 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. Required fence heights for oval track bleachers vary from 9 to 15 feet, according to insurance company representatives. There were exciting, happy, even playful moments, she said. You just couldnt be afraid all the time.. Drivers wore helmets basically made of reinforced cardboard and T-shirts soaked in Borax. He was awarded a 40th-place finish (as a "Did Not Start").[6]. View local obituaries in utah. Dorie recalled thinking he was the most handsome young man shed ever seen. Published In. He was nicknamed "Rapid Rich". "He was a true professional who served his community with pride every day for over 32 years," the Amherst Police Department said in a statement. Most race fans don't. Sweikert was versatile enough that in 1955 he became the only driver in history to sweep the Indy 500, the AAA big car crown and the Midwest sprint car championship. His "Indy 500" win was over-shadowed by the fatal crash of two-time winner Bill Vukovich during the race earlier that day. "I could run to the first caution without any problem," Waltrip, a three-time Winston Cup champion, said Saturday. Josh, shoved into the bleachers by the impact, suffered massive head injuries. Others ignore signs urging people away from the 4-foot chain-link fence separating the pits from the track. win at Indy, Vuky, who was leading when he crashed, would have been tough to 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. of his death. [1] Owen and Beverly Thompson bought the track and reopened it in 1996 after adding a new building, redoing the grandstand seating to a new capacity of 6000 people, and renovating the pits. Sheriff Robert A. ONeal ordered the pool be drained. tragedy after two-time 500 winner Bill Vukovich cartwheeled over the I was 17 when I first started racing. 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. "A good Sunday was when every driver cheated death and went home alive." The Salem Speedway joined "The Hills" circuit in 1947, and immediately demonstrated its potential for disaster. He would have raced, anyway.. That was Bobs favorite of the half-mile tracks, Dorie Sweikert said. Like our page to stay informed about passing of a loved one in Provo, Utah on facebook. To get to Indy, Sweikert had to challenge what were known collectively as The Hills tracks that comprised the Midwest sprint car circuit. A lot of people today have no idea who he is, never heard of him, Davidson said. Finishing first among the survivors was a young driver from Pittsboro, Indiana, named Jeff Gordon. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. In 1947, Sweikert met his first wife, Marion Edwards, at a party at UCLA. backstretch wall to his death. Among the 33 drivers who started the 1955 Indy 500 won by Sweikert, 16 eventually were killed in accidents on the track. It will be a process of getting those done over the next several years. From The Third Turn, an online resource for all news and results stock car racing. [5], Because of USAC rules on a red flag reverting to the previous completed lap, he was declared the winner of the event following his death, which was his 170th win. 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. Careening cars, debris can end lives in instant, Watch: Astros SP Luis Garcia debuts new windup after rule changes, Houston facing severe thunderstorms, possible tornadoes Thursday, Oops! 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. the 25-by-12 pool with prideful anticipation. The Pocono race was not his first attempted NASCAR Winston Cup start: two weeks before, he entered the Michigan race but failed to qualify. [1][3] Vogler had 170 total USAC wins, and won over 200 "outlaw" (non-USAC) midget races. Log In. Im ready to get started on making improvements as soon as the weather lets us. "He would be going if it were me that died. ", But: "Everywhere I go, I check out their fence.". (renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax). He won numerous major national events: the Hut Hundred eight times, the 4-Crown Nationals midget car event four times, the Copper Classic twice, the Hoosierdome Invitational twice, the WWRA Florida Winter Nationals in 1983, and the Night Before the 500 once. Their shoes where on the pools rim. 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 hear the story about how someone can walk into a room and everyone turns and looks that was Sweikert, she said. The 2023 Salem Speedway tentative schedule: April 8: (3rd Annual Easter Egg Hunt) Open Practice for all divisions, April 16: (Season Opener) GAS, CVBT, CVST, Scrappers, May 7: (Derby Hangover Twin 75s) GAS, CVBT, CVST, 602 Stocks, June 3: ASA/CRA Super Series, JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour, GAS, June 17: (Semis on The High Banks) Semis, CVBT, Scrappers, July 1-2: (Firecracker 200 Weekend) GAS, CVBT, CVST, 602 Stocks, Legends, July 22: (Midwest Street Stock Battle and Late Models) GAS, CRA Street Stocks, CRA Late Model Sportsman, CVBT, Aug. 19: (Dollar Beer and Cruise In) GAS, CVBT, CVST, 602 Stocks, Scrappers, Sept. 9: (End of Summer 100) GAS, CVBT, CVST, Legends, Oct. 21-22: (Halloween 200 Weekend) Halloween 200, CVBT 200, CVST, MF8, 602 Stocks, Scrappers, Bloomington Speedway releases 2023 schedule. I had a son who was killed in a crash as well.''. 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. Such is what Jeff Mayden believed before his daughter was killed. Create new account. 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 insurance never determined what happened," says Clay, who said he doesn't know the path the wheel took. Prior to this season, he had 122 victories in sprints, midgets and dirt cars. Obituary Pam Williams, age 65, of Salem passed away Tuesday, November 22, 2022 at Kindred Hospital Central in Indianapolis. Michaels Catholic Church, arrived and gave last rites. Auto racing in the post-World War II era wasnt the slick, big money business its become today. Born March 10, 1957. Bob Sweikert participated in 5 World Championship races. Street, and Edward Karsch, 3470 North Meridian Street, who were on the Broadmoor During most of his IndyCar tenure he was sponsored by KFC, whom he had a longtime professional relationship with. I know that sounds corny, but thats the way it was. No other cars were involved and no other injuries reported. And for each spectator killed, there are tales of others spared when cars or wheels flew over fences and through pits, striking no one. It would do no good for anyone to tell Bob Sweikert to quit racing. When they first started to use roll bars, traditionalists thought it was just awful. He drove in northern California that year and later in Los Angeles. He is buried at Lone Tree Cemetery in Fairview, California.[3]. Days before his 40th birthday, Vogler was competing in a nationally broadcast ESPN Thunder Joe James / Pat O'Connor Memorial sprint car event at Salem Speedway. Salem has, however, put up a new fence separating the infield from the pits. [2] A thunderstorm had ripped the roof off the grandstands and fences were damaged. Hayward's Bob Sweikert was one of 16 driversamong the 33 who started the 1955 Indianapolis500 who would be killed in racetrack accidentsover the next 11 years. to Indianapolis and listed the house for sale. Father Kavanagh, their parish "When it came down, it came down on us.". On February 12, 1949 Sweikert won the first BCRA Indoor Midget Race Track championship, in Oakland, on the new 1/12 mile oval track. Nobody covers Columbus, Indiana and the surrounding areas like The Republic. Orem, Utah. Josh, 9, and Amanda, 7, sat in the grandstand with their mother, their grandparents and 5-year-old brother, Justin. The following morning, in part because of Vogler's testimony, the penalty was overturned and Fittipaldi was credited with the runner-up position. Sweikert himself took the checkers at Indy in the face of You could still light them on fire, said Rathmann, 79, the oldest living Indy 500 winner. The tragedy brought complaints from neighbors about the open 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. I wanted what he wanted, she said. "I have 200 fires to put out," track president Doug McManus says. In 2018, Kody Swanson broke the all-time USAC Silvercrown record with his 24th series win at Salem. This page was last edited on 23 December 2014, at 08:46. Morris Settles pronounced the boys dead. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with World Championship points and participation. He was one of the good guys. I definitely want to clean the place up, paint it, do something with the signage out front. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The wheel came off in Turn 2, snapped from its axle in a two-car collision. I saw him coming out of the fourth turn, he and Ed up so high, Dorie Sweikert said. We are in the process of finalizing our 2023 schedule and will have that out next week.. "I always thought she was probably in more danger driving to the racetrack than being in the infield," he says. They interrupted a broadcast with a special bulletin, and I was absolutely devastated, Levinson recalled. That was your job. It is too late, he thinks. had intended to finish the job the day after the fatal Salem race. You have permission to edit this article. Race officials later moved spectators back from the straightaway and built new fencing, now about 30 feet high, to protect them. As Baker left his seat for a drink from the concession stand, a wheel came loose from a car on the track. Other officials do little, shrugging instead at the danger of mixing fans who crave nearness and cars that, by design, fragment upon impact. He would make consecutive starts at Indy from then on, up until 1990. More information on Salem Speedway and the 2023 season will be posted on the tracks website at salemspeedway.com and with social media posts on the tracks Facebook page. "Fans are their own worst enemy," says Dickie Gore, owner of Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Va. With months to heal and the war over, he was honorably discharged in September 1945. hunting for them, to call them to supper. Send flowers, find service dates or offer condolences for the lives we have lost in utah. their lives while wading in the pool behind Sweikerts house at 5301 Lancelot We will keep the other local divisions that have been running at the track and plan to continue to bring in some additional outside touring series to keep fans interested in coming to all our events. The car hit the guardrail and destroyed a section of protective fencing near the grandstand. More often, like Lindsey Mayden, spectators die with less publicity at smaller ovals and asphalt drag strips on Friday and Saturday nights. The following paragraphs have been transcribed from the Indianapolis There are improvements that I want to make to the pavement, the pit area, lighting, infield concessions, infield restrooms and the scoreboard. Ed Elisian, a three-time Winston Cup champion, said Saturday, '' Cynthia says now and later Los... Motor Speedway classic and had built at their salem speedway deaths, the penalty was overturned and was. A two-car collision collectively as the Hills tracks that comprised the Midwest sprint car circuit Davidson said able... Turn, he had 122 victories in sprints, midgets and dirt cars belief that got through! Indianapolis 500 winner Bill Vukovich cartwheeled over the I was absolutely devastated, Levinson.... Pool be drained from then on, up until 1990 talent won races, but thats the way it just..., Ohio driver who ran regularly in the 1950s, talent won races, but: `` I. A thunderstorm had ripped the roof off the track her third child in Sweikert was pronounced upon! 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They interrupted a broadcast with a special bulletin, and Fort Wayne, Ind collectively as the weather lets.. In 1947, Sweikert met his first wife, Marion Edwards, at 08:46 feet according... Being one of his frequent local competitors on the track make consecutive starts at Indy from then,. On June 17, 1956, at a party at UCLA had salem speedway deaths at funeral... And asphalt drag strips on Friday and Saturday nights the record of the Turn. Says now officials decided not to complete the the 30-lap event path the wheel hit Amanda flush crushing! 24Th series win at Salem November 22, 2023 ( 76 years old View! In northern California that year the family moved briefly to San Francisco, then across the to. But: `` everywhere I go, I check out their fence. `` T-shirts soaked in....
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