The Short Chute

PAGE 2 - Newsletter #75 - Summer 2001

Club Notes

Hello Everyone,

Congratulations to Helio Castroneves on winning the 85th running of the Indianapolis 500. Also, congratulations go to Scott Sharp, Texas, Eddie Cheever, Kansas City and defending champion Buddy Lazier, Richmond, Colorado, Nashville, on their victories in this summer’s Indy Racing League events. It looks like a great battle shaping up between Sam Hornish and Buddy Lazier for the IRL championship. Best wishes to all drivers and crews for a safe and continued exciting balance of the season.

A sincere Get Well Soon goes to IRNLS drivers Davey Hamilton and Scott Goodyear. They are recovering from injuries suffered at Texas and Indianapolis.

Milwuakee Show

The next two scale auto, hobby and toy swap meets will be held on September 16, 2001 and November 4, 2001. There will be a special Model Contest at the September 16 show. The location of the events is Serb Hall at 5101 W. Oklahoma in Milwaukee, Wis. The hours of the show is 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Admission is $5.00. Also available is a preview admission at 7:30 AM for $20.00. For additional show information or to be placed on their mailing list, write to: Unique Events, W241 N8938 Penn Lane, Sussex, WI. 53089 or call Jim Welytok at 262-246-7171 after 4:00 PM. E-mail to: unievents@aol.com

We would like to hear from someone who attends these shows. Find anything special?

NMPA Hall Inducts Four

The National Motorsports Press Association Stock Car Hall of Fame will induct four new members. A.J. Foyt, Dale Earnhardt, Glen Wood and William C. (Bill) France on September 1 at the Darlington Country Club.

National Midget Racing Hall Induction

The National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame will enshrine four on August 26. The induction will take place at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. The 2001 inductees are Les Scott, Gordon Betz, Eddie Haddad and Tony Stewart.

Formula 1 Memorabilia Show

The second Annual Grand Prix of Motorsports Memorabilia show will be held from 11 AM to 6 PM on September 239, 2001. The show will take place at The Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. For more information you may call Ken Breslauer at 727-895-3482.

Best Damn Garage in Town

(This column was pieced together from a story by Dick Mittman at Indy500.com, an Associated Press story and my own memories. Greg)

I was sitting in the IRL Tech garage/office in the Indy garage area with my step-brother Mark Bridges on May 10 when someone said, “hey, did you guys know Smokey passed yesterday?” That’s how we found out. No one in the area wondered “Smokey who?”

“Smokey”, in racing circles could mean only one person; Henry “Smokey” Yunick. Mechanic, Car-builder, Innovator, Racer, Legend.

Black and Gold, unique cowboy hat, Fireball Roberts, Side-car, Chevy’s, rules circumventer, Pontiacs, Twin-turbo-chargers, Paul Goldsmith, Daytona on the Beach, Curtis Turner, Character.

Smokeys 1964 Side-car driven by Bobby Johns

Smokey helped develop Chevrolet’s original small-block V8 engine in 1955. “He was about as good as there ever was on engines” is echoed throughout auto racing. He was a heck of a designer and dreamer. Of course a bunch of his “dreams” would run him afoul of the rule enforcers once in a while.

Smokey was legendary at “bending” the rules. He was so good that you just couldn’t call it something nasty sounding like “Cheater”. He was an artist. He was like magic. You know it’s there but you can’t see it.

The famous Chevelle mentioned above is sometimes referred to as the “3/4 scale Chevelle”. In those days NASCAR was just starting to head down the path that has led to the cookie-cutter shaped cars we have today. They said they didn’t want cars that weren’t stock. Smokey’s Chevelle looks like a ‘66 Chevelle. I heard that when they used the measuring devices it didn’t “measure” like a ‘66 Chevelle.

One year, figuring his car had been tricked up, NASCAR officials dismantled his entire carburetor and pulled the fuel cell out. They told Yunick he had violated 17 rules. Unfazed, Yunick started up the car, void of it’s fuel cell. As he was driving away he yelled, “better make that 18.”

Earlier this year Bridges was with Smokey and Yunick had posters of two of his favorite cars; the 1958 City of Daytona Beach Spl. that brought him and Paul Goldsmith to their first 500 and the 1966 Chevelle that Curtis Turner put on the Pole at Daytona.

Smokey asked Bridges if he wanted the posters with his autograph on them? Bridges jokingly asked “who would want your autograph?” Then, took the posters and gave them to me. All that black and gold with Smokey’s autograph in gold Sharpie. Man, are they cool!

Smokey, who lived in Daytona Beach, Fla., died of leukemia in his home May 9. He was 77.

“”Smokey was quite a character,” Tony George said. “That’s what racing needs today, more characters. He will be missed.”