Phase Three...Racing

Phase Three...Racing

In the spring of 1962, Bill started driving the Sprite at the Sports Car Club of America level.  SCCA was the major sanctioning group for amateur racing  in this country.

Bill’s first driver’s school was in Midland, Texas, at Rattlesnake Raceway.  The track was built by Jim Hall where he developed the Chaparral, among other things.  It was fiberglass and had a wing on the back to help hold it down on the track.

Rattlesnake Raceway was a road course, built out in the middle of a sand dune area.  One time, another car went off the track and threw sand onto the pavement.  When Bill came around, being in the lead, he got into the sand and slid off the track  He rolled the Sprite.  The yellow flag came out and everyone else slowed down. The only damage I can remember was a scratch on top of his racing helmet and the radio antenna was broken off.

Bill had to have three driver’s schoosl before he would get his competition license.  The second one was in June at Green Valley Raceway in the Forth Worth area.  The school was on Friday and races were held on Saturday and Sunday.  Bill was allowed to drive the races as a novice.  The Sprite was marked with an “X” on back, to let other drivers know he was a ”newbie.”  The “X” wasn’t for “X marks the spot, hit here.”  It was to warn the “pros” this guy was new.  Watch out!  

There were 41 Sprites in Bill’s class (HP).  Because he was a novice he started from the very back of the field.  He couldn’t even see the front of the group.  The flagger dropped the green flag and everyone took off.  So did Bill!  He finished 17th one day and 19th the other.  Not bad for a beginner in such a large field!

For his last Driver’s School, he was back at Rattlesnake Raceway.  Jim Hall was a celebrity in the racing world and shared his facility and his knowledge with other racers.  And he was always in the pits with the rest of us.  One time, years later after we had moved to Colorado,  we went to see him race at a track north of where we lived.  When he saw us, he said, “Hi, Bill.  How are you?”  He was definitely a “people person.”

Bill’s second race was also at Green Valley in September.  

To say we were racing on a shoe string would be a gross understatement.  We bought his helmet, and his racing suit had to be fire proof.  They were expensive so we made some flame retardant powder out of Borax and a few other things, put it and water in a bucket, and soaked his suit in it.  My, how things have changed!  Bill remembers the suit being short sleeved.  It was the kind of one piece thing an old man might wear to work in his yard.  His shoes had to be leather so he wore his bowling shoes.  We towed the Sprite with my mother’s Dodge Dart.  She generously let us use it to go to all those races.  I think she secretly liked to have an excuse to stay home and work on her craft projects.

The third race was in Fort Sumner, New Mexico in October. It was at an old airport.  The course was set up on the landing strips.  All I can remember about the place was the remoteness of it.

The last race for 1962 was in November.   It was once again in Midland at Rattlesnake Raceway.  We enjoyed being there and it was the closest track to Lubbock.  The little Sprite had performed flawlessly all year long.

(To be continued.)