Tribute
Saturday Night
Vallejo Speedway
2750 Broadway
Vallejo,Ca.
l remember each and every Saturday night driving up to the speedway and making that turn into the parking area. There it sat, "The Track of Titans", "The Coliseum Of Champions", "The Speedway of Super-Stars", "The Fastest 1/4 Mile in The West", atop the hill like a castle in those stories we grew up with. Depending on the time of your arrival there were different sensations that you felt, excitement, anticipation, anxiety, the smell of the fuel, the wafting aromas from the concession, the roar of the engines as the cars were "mud-packing" or "hot-lapping.
On those many Saturday nights between the hot-laps and time trials track announcer Jack Clayton would introduce the track principles, Promoter George Acree, Track Manager Frank Blado, Chief Stewart Dick Vosekuil (not sure of the spelling) and then in his own special way, as only he could and as only he would say "and up the street, round the corner and down the block" your starter and flagman, Jumpin' Joe Valente.
And then it was on, time trials, a chance to break the track record, the time to prove who was the big-dog, number 1 hot -shoe for the night.
As the qualifying and racing began, track photographers Bob Bockover and Bob Manzer owned the infield as they took the photos for the fans and the local newspapers, standing sometimes dangerously close to the racing surface throughout the night. l remember the heat races, 6, 8, sometimes 10 cars racing to see where they would line up in the dash, semi-main and or the main event.
The trophy dash, four heat race winners racing for championship points, bragging rights, the trophy, but the real prize was to kiss the "smokin' hot" trophy girl who usually arrived at the start/finish line in a way cool hot rod or a brand new car from most of the time Bill Lange Chevrolet in Vallejo.
Then the final heat or consolation to qualify for the semi-main and then perhaps transfer to the main, after that was the semi followed by the main event which on some nights was like a chess match, a choreographed ballet and other times it was like a battle royal, a no holds barred steel cage, last man standing type of race, and you know what, there was always inverted starts, yes sir, the fast cars always started at the rear of the field.
lt was at this "Taj Mahal of free for all" that l came to realize that this is NOT a contact sport, racing is a COLLISION sport, dancing is a contact sport.
The time, the place, the cars, the fans, the,stands, a perfect cocktail that enables those of us who were blessed enough to have been there to experience first hand, to have such vivid memories and a strong affection and devotion. We have hope and we pray that our stories, our experiences, our recollections, will some how reach those who didn't get to go there, that maybe through our words and their imagination that they will understand why we love VALLEJO SPEEDWAY SO MUCH. l know now, at this time of my life it made no matter who you cheered and or boo-ed, l would give anything except my children, my grandchildren or my life for one more season of the BEST HARDTOP RACING AT THE FASTEST 1/4 MILE IN THE WEST.
Michael Haney
Vallejo Speedway
2750 Broadway
Vallejo,Ca.
l remember each and every Saturday night driving up to the speedway and making that turn into the parking area. There it sat, "The Track of Titans", "The Coliseum Of Champions", "The Speedway of Super-Stars", "The Fastest 1/4 Mile in The West", atop the hill like a castle in those stories we grew up with. Depending on the time of your arrival there were different sensations that you felt, excitement, anticipation, anxiety, the smell of the fuel, the wafting aromas from the concession, the roar of the engines as the cars were "mud-packing" or "hot-lapping.
On those many Saturday nights between the hot-laps and time trials track announcer Jack Clayton would introduce the track principles, Promoter George Acree, Track Manager Frank Blado, Chief Stewart Dick Vosekuil (not sure of the spelling) and then in his own special way, as only he could and as only he would say "and up the street, round the corner and down the block" your starter and flagman, Jumpin' Joe Valente.
And then it was on, time trials, a chance to break the track record, the time to prove who was the big-dog, number 1 hot -shoe for the night.
As the qualifying and racing began, track photographers Bob Bockover and Bob Manzer owned the infield as they took the photos for the fans and the local newspapers, standing sometimes dangerously close to the racing surface throughout the night. l remember the heat races, 6, 8, sometimes 10 cars racing to see where they would line up in the dash, semi-main and or the main event.
The trophy dash, four heat race winners racing for championship points, bragging rights, the trophy, but the real prize was to kiss the "smokin' hot" trophy girl who usually arrived at the start/finish line in a way cool hot rod or a brand new car from most of the time Bill Lange Chevrolet in Vallejo.
Then the final heat or consolation to qualify for the semi-main and then perhaps transfer to the main, after that was the semi followed by the main event which on some nights was like a chess match, a choreographed ballet and other times it was like a battle royal, a no holds barred steel cage, last man standing type of race, and you know what, there was always inverted starts, yes sir, the fast cars always started at the rear of the field.
lt was at this "Taj Mahal of free for all" that l came to realize that this is NOT a contact sport, racing is a COLLISION sport, dancing is a contact sport.
The time, the place, the cars, the fans, the,stands, a perfect cocktail that enables those of us who were blessed enough to have been there to experience first hand, to have such vivid memories and a strong affection and devotion. We have hope and we pray that our stories, our experiences, our recollections, will some how reach those who didn't get to go there, that maybe through our words and their imagination that they will understand why we love VALLEJO SPEEDWAY SO MUCH. l know now, at this time of my life it made no matter who you cheered and or boo-ed, l would give anything except my children, my grandchildren or my life for one more season of the BEST HARDTOP RACING AT THE FASTEST 1/4 MILE IN THE WEST.
Michael Haney
