As I said, at the end of Part III, I will now take you back to when I started "going out on my own".  And, mostly it was by my "lonesome".

Uh oh, a sprint car race coming up at the one mile dirt track at the New Jersey Fairgrounds in Trenton, N.J.  What is the best way there?  Did I pay enough attention, when I was a "passenger" in some previous visit?  Good old US Rt. 1 - South.  Off I go!  The old '46 Chevy 4 door "boat" was running pretty good.  POW!  Right rear lets go.  Darn!  Pull over - change the tire.  No wonder it went flat.  Smooth as a baby's behind!  You know what I mean.  You have probably "been there - done that" with your first set of wheels.  You ran the tires until they would go no more, as long as the "fuzz" didn't pull you over for running the "baldies".

Onto Rt. 33 to the fairgrounds.  Pull in, park off the first turn.  Go get the ticket, which was a lot cheaper than what it cost today, and walk in.  Walk across the track.  Into the "Pits".  The pits were right on the track frontstretch, back then.  Check out the cars.  Talk to some of the drivers.  Security?  What was that?  Hey, I was about 18 years old.  Looked about 16.  You always look younger when you are small in stature!  To this day, I can not figure out how one was able to get into the pit area - before the days events, without a "pit pass".  Who won?  Can't remember that.  Back then, it was probably one of Sam Traylor's cars.  Perhaps Ernie Saxton might have some records from back then.  I know that Johnny Thomson was running at this time, when I was starting out on my own.  He probably had the Johnny Thomson Fan Club up and running..  Oh yes, please note the correct spelling - Thomson.  Have to make sure of that.  Do not want to get Mr. Saxton going!

Langhorne.  Dirt & oil surface.  Fast.  Bloody fast.  A great big one mile circle.  Everyone drove it differently.  Back then, in the mid to late fifties, there was no problem with a sprint car running 50 mile races, as far as fuel goes.  And, at the "Horn", there were enough 30 and 50 mile races.  A 100 miler for the midgets was no problem, IF you were running a "big" fuel tank.  If you had a small tank, then there was a problem.  George Rice can attest to that.

I believe that I was a spectator to more sprint car races at the "horne" than any other type of  race cars that ran there.  More than likely, because they ran there more often.  Langhorne was also known as a "killer" track.  "Puke Hollow".  What a name for one little section.  I was on the scene, unfortunately, at Langhorne, to witness the last rides of some fine drivers.  Larry "Crash" Crockett.  "Iron" Mike Nazaruk.  Was fortunate to see Gordon Reid at Langhorne, before he ran his last race on one of the "high banks" in the mid-west.  Crocket was running the Engle-Stanko number 31.  A red offy powered sprinter.  Nazaruk, in the John Pfrommer number 29.  Man, was Mike fast on that track.  I can still visualize his last lap past the stands on May 1, 1955.  Wiping off his goggles, as he headed into turn "one", if you could call it turn one.  Never to complete that lap.  The car - flying through the air.  Mike too.  A sad day - May 1, 1955.  "Iron" Mike was on the program cover that day.

The Sam Traylor race team.  Three nice, clean sprinters.  Sam always was fortunate to have good "shoes" in his cars.  Thomson, Keller, Campbell, Musselman, Johnson.  I recall the day that Keller lost part of a thumb.  He and Thomson had a "chance encounter" up in what you would call turn four.  Al flipped along the fence.  Two cars from the same team.  I often wonder what Mr. Traylor was thinking when that happened.  Charlie Mussleman.  He was not the smallest, nor the biggest driver, physically, but on one occasion, I guess he was just the right size.  Charlie was in the Traylor number 77, an orange colored sprinter.  Coming out of "turn four", he road up over the wheel of another car, that I think he was lapping.  When the car came down, the front end "dug in".  A violent series of flips occurred.  Somehow, Charlie was tossed out on the first flip.  Back then, they only used "lap belts".  Shoulder harnesses were not yet out.  I have to say that Charlie's belt had to have broken.  Usually, when I went to a speedway, I would sit up rather high.  Langhorne was no exception.  Mussleman got thrown pretty high, that day.  Almost as high as I was in the stands. There are a series of photographs that depicted both the car and Charlie going through the air.  I do believe that Ray Masser was one of the photographers that had some shots of the Mussleman flip.  I found one on a web site.  I am pretty sure that it is a Masser photo.  I am hoping that it will be shown somewhere in this part of this series of my memories.  Those that run this web site, will know if it is possible to show the photo.  Also a photo of Larry "Crash" Crockett might be included.  Again, depending on, if it can be shown.  It is another photo I found on a web site.

I saw a 100 mile midget race at Langhorne.  Pretty sure that Bill Homeier won in the Jackson number 9, a light blue and white offy.  A young man, by the name of Nick Duino was there that day.  His father had bought a midget from Sam Traylor.  A red number 55.  The Duino lad was quite new to the midget racing scene.  A little to new to be in action, at Langhorne, in the opinion of at least two that I know of.  "Crocky" Wright, I have read, made an attempt to talk the young man out of running at the "horne".  So did Nick Fornoro.  I guess that Nick was pretty convincing.  Again, from what I read, the Duino lad really thought about not running.  But then he noticed that there were really not that many cars there.  Something changed his mind.  I was under the stands, with my movie camera, down in the area that you might call turn one.  The red 55 went past.  The "Puke Hollow"  area of the speedway was to claim another.  I often wondered how the Duino boy would have done in future racing.  Somehow, to me, the name "Duino" was a natural for a race driver.  According to the "History of Midget Racing" a series of books authored by "Crocky" Wright, Nick Duino's last race was on June 29th in 1958.  I am quite sure that this was the only midget race I saw at Langhorne.  But, somehow, some dates do not seem right to me.  The next paragraph explains.  Ah yes I remember it well, at least that is what I am thinking.

As stated above, I was "under" the stands with my camera.  The grandstand at Langhorne was built "level".  The track, however, was lower down in the "turn one" area, and higher in the "turn four" area.  I always sat up in the turn four part of the grandstand.  Well, the day of the midget race, I found a gate in the cyclone fence, that was between the guardrail and the stands.  There was a chain and padlock on the gate, but there was an opening of about four inches.  Right in  a spot that one could view the "starting line".  Oh, what I shot I got of the start of the race.  Those "two rows" became about "eight rows", when Nick Fornoro dropped the green flag.  Awesome!  Now is where the dates get confusing.  My next trip to Langhorne was for the annual "Indy" car race.  Well, remembering the opening in the fence, and the great shot I had of the midget start, I purchased my ticket for the "first turn" area.  Again, I go under the grandstand.  Ah!  Nobody is by the gate in the fence!  I "parked" myself there.  Got "unparked" real quick, too.  Good old "Security".  "Can't stay under here, son" I was told.  I tried to explain that I had no problem at the previous race, when the midgets were here.  "Well, these cars are much bigger", Security said.  I had to leave.  As I said, I had my ticket for the area right above where I was under the stands.  Got to my seat.  Yep, you guessed it.  Could not see the cars directly in front of where I was sitting, because the grandstand was up so much higher than the track surface!  Hey!  I am supposed to take movies of the race!  What to do?  Had to do the only thing I could.  Get out of my seat, and go down to the "walkway" that was in front of the first row of seats.  I still think the "steel work" railing was painted a bright red in color.  So, I stand up, and lean on the railing.  Then, I realize that I am blocking the view of those behind me.  Those that were sitting.  What to do?  Oh well, guess I will have to sit on the "walk way".  Very uncomfortable.  Ah!  Sit on the edge of the walk way!  Great!  My butt is on the walk way, and my feet are dangling OVER the track!  The cars will be going under me!  Hey, remember I talked about the "great shot" I had for the start of the midget race?  That could not compare to the "shot" I got of the Indy car start!  Awesome!  More than awesome!  Just as the green flag came out, and the cars started to accelerate, an "Arial Bomb" went off!  Damn, it seems like it was right over my head!  I did not think that one could jump that high while sitting down!!  Oh yes, the camera caught it all!!  Great shot of cars, coming out of turn four, the green flag waving, the bomb goes off.  I jump.  Great shot of the sky!  Then back to the track!  This was the day that Elmer George was having a tire problem with the right rear of his "HOW" offy.  The tire was really hot.  Smoking hot.  You do not want to blow a tire at Langhorne, at speed.  Black flag time.  Elmer kept going.  More black flag.  Elmer kept going.  Maybe he was leading?  Possibly.  Perhaps that is why he would not heed the black flag.  From the starters stand, you can see the started waving the black flag.  Another "flagger" is out on the track surface, black flag waving, every time Elmer came past.  Eventually, Elmer pitted.  I got some neat shots of that smoking right rear.  Someday, down the road, some of my shots will be seen on some of Dale Snyder's videos.  I am pretty sure that Elmer George got in trouble - big time, for staying on the track for so many laps while getting the black flag.  I am so sure that this happened a few weeks after the midget race.  The midget race, as noted above, was on June 29th.  The Indy car race at Langhorne, in 1958 was on June 15th?  I am not saying, mind you, that there is a wrong date someplace, but I am fairly certain that my memories of the order of the racing events occurred as I have them written down.  So, was the midget race earlier?  As we get older, we do have "brain fade", "daim bramage" and "brain farts".  So, please do not blame others for dates that, according to this old man, might be incorrect!

Gee, in this part, part IV, I only mention two tracks.  Tracks that I went to - alone.  I also went to Langhorne with others, but that would happen later.  I also went to other facilities.  Sometimes with my brother, and on occasion, with my father at times.  Different types of racing.  Places like Sebring, Florida for the 12 hour race.  Lime Rock, Connecticut for more road racing.  What was billed as a "Formula Libra" event.  About the only thing that did not race in that event was stock cars.  Plus other visits to Lime Rock. The "Road Race" at the airport in Montgomery, NY.  These stories will be out in future parts to this series.

Coming up, in Part V, you will read about my "first date" with the girl I would end up proposing to.  Some of the races that we went to - together.  Do you think she would accept my proposal?  Sorry, you will have to wait.  Part V will be coming - soon!

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the "Open Wheel Racing" website. TVR would like to express our thanks and gratitude to John LeVan, the editor of OWR. Check out the latest open wheel racing news at www.openwheelracing.com.
-DZ

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