Do you remember...

[BlingxBling]

As the winter rolls through North Eastern Pennsylvania, message boards manage to find the topics lingering amongst questions of the up coming season. Unfortunately, there is just so many things one can talk about before a conversation trickles down to nothing. Usually when I stumble upon someone at the raceway who has a past of attending since back in the 80's, I find myself in a "do you remember when" conversation...With racings families changing over the years, I find those people far and few between. So for entertainment, a blast from the past, I thought I would post a few of my memories in which I gathered over the years of attending....

(p.s. Geno these would make for great contest questions for giveways during the season....)

-When Dino Oberto was the announcer, each night was ended with him saying "Think green for Evergreen..."...
-Art Keiser was race director and could always be found on his tower, did I mention it was in the middle of the race track infield?...
-Split consi's were needed for the thrillers...
-Brian Defebo winning a feature for the first time in '93..in a thriller...
-Bobby Dresser getting life flighted after an incident....
-Paul "flying farmer" Bausher in his unusual looking #91 modified...
-Tony Dell in that orange "X" and his upright accident...
-The Joey Chitwood show during intermission....
-Charlie Klatt, 28K, from Catawissa....
-Just using the name Markovic could be confusing, you had to be specific...back in the day Terry and John both raced...
-Brian Wozniak's stunning season in thrillers...
-Mark Swartwood's attempt to join the Joey Chitwood show, taking his #89 over the fence and into the parking lot of turn 3/4
-Roger Heffelfinger didn't drive the 31, but a green and white 57...
-Getting a lesson on what a Big Block Modified was and Tony Siscone being the one to beat when the ROC rolled into town and so did names like Doug Wolcott, Ken Wooley, Jan Leaty...
-Richie Jensen...latemodel/street stock shootout...enough said...
-Jerry Hartman showing a liking for the wall that would only make Shawn Burd Jealous
-A late arrival (missing the first heats) had you parking back near the entrance, near the woods...
-Legend cars made a few shows throughout the year...20+/race...
-The metal bleachers not exsisting, but the wooden stands that were up on the hill....
-Rain showers sent everyone under the trees in the back, they only ever lasted a short while...
-Midnight meant the lights went out...
-The sprint cars that came to town that always required a push to get the engine started....
-Food at the concession stands were under heat lamps and long lines were almost a never...
-Monster trucks crushing cars during intermission...
-The pick 5 contest....
-The driver of the week write up in each program...
-Mechanic's races and powder puffs twice a year...

This is just 1/3 of what I remember...I will save more for later...

[johnjr531]

Very cool thread Bling. I would also like to add a few of my memories; how about when Don Edgar in his #57modified went over the fence, where the old scales are. When there was actually a bar very near the track, and how about the names like, # 37 gentelman Joe Scarboro, or the # 35 of Jerry Roushey , Harry Ahouse, Pete Comstock, & Dave Reynolds from the old streetstock days when the cars were actually streetstocks! ;) The night the lights went out during the Mod feature. 1 more to add, how about mod drivers like #61 Jeff Rex, Magee Miller, and Don Wagner in his #24 streetstock, there are a lot more. Maybe others can add some old memories, come on people! thanks. :wave:

[Geno]

Just a few…..

-Don Kepping’s “pumpkin patch” in the stands.
-Kirk Buchanan winning in his first outing in both a thriller and street stock
-Brian Gallucci winning on opening day as a modified rookie in ‘91
-The other Yamelski….Butch
-Jeff Rex was mentioned. Won the mod championship over Wagner in ’92 without winning a feature

Wasn’t ignoring the thread Bling, just been busy Honest!

Just for the record…ya know what pain Dresser was complaining from? His crotch belt grabbed…well, nevermind. :( Thankfully, he was all right, but that’s why they brought in Life Flight.

[BlingxBling]

Gosh the names of Jeff Rex and Magee Miller, do bring back lots of old memories. If I really dig through some of the boxes I have up in the attic, I am sure to find autograph cards from Magee. How about when Goldsworthy turned his modified over onto its roof coming out of turn 2? Steve Clark driving and winning the first time in a modified...or names like Frank Holby, Frank Zenzle, Gordon Buchman, Frank Greco, and John Heller were popular street stockers.. How about Wilson and Robert Reakes, Ken Sones, Glenn Ujvary... thriller drivers...How about the name Penny Faust? This one I am at a lost cause for the real name of the division in which she ran, because they actually run a divison down at MVS now with a different name. They were Pinto's, only made a showing once in a while. Chuck Swartzer not only driving in each divison but winning a feature in each, setting the record! Donny Kepping's Orange and White 71...lol the fight(s) that involved Roger Heffelfinger as he got out of his car right before going over the scales.

[White Lightnin]

Let's go back to the Spencer era at The New Evergreen Speedway. Anyone remember the street stock duals between #22 Dean Kline, #75 Eric Aigeldinger, #35 Gerry Roushey & #9 Pete Comstock? Gerry Roushey's 13 feature wins in 1980. Barefoot Bob McCreadie showing up in 1980 with his #9 DIRT car and coming in second to Tony Hirschman. He came back later in the year with a #1 low slung asphalt Chevette to win the ROC qualifier coming from the rear twice then winning the regular feature too all in the same night. #93 Pinky Sterling's yellow Camaro street stock. There was a combination modified and late model race and Richie Jensen took his fenders off and beat all of the modifieds with his Camaro LM. Bill Linkhorst's #77x1 Barracuda modified. Peppers Yerger and his Shamrock Special #777 upright car. Gus Lewis and Tony Hirschman bringing the very first Troyers to the track in 1980. Brett Bodine driving the #4 Quality Metals low slung Pinto and having the entire top of his engine torn off one night when run over by Butch Balliet's dirt style car. The big fights between the Spencer and the Kepping fans and the skunk that walked right through the middle of one of those fights.

[BlingxBling]

White Lightnin...wish I can say I remember back in 1980, but I wasn't born until late in '81.

[White Lightnin]

Hate to say it but I can even remember further back than that. Hahahaha! You missed a great Evergreen era.

[CJfilms]

The stories are great! Wish I could say I remember back even into the 90's !!! but I've only been at mountain since it was mountain, and this will only be my third year coming to the track... can't wait until I have some stories like that!

[richardpetey]

Who are you kidding, Joe! ................................. :eek:
You already have some Mountain stories that would curl Brittany's hair.............. :help:
UNCLE PETEY..................... :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave:

[greenflag]

Remember when some of them raced both Evergreen and Big Diamond with the same car? Ahhh, the good old days.

Paul Bausher ran the red #91 at Diamond, and I remember Gus Lewis going to Diamond as well. And I believe it was Carl Miller in the #77 and #177 Modifieds that ran both tracks.

Ron Babula used to race both tracks too if I'm not mistaken. He drove the #98x at Big Diamond. Had a lot of nice cars over the years.

There were quite a few Evergreen guys that would venture to Diamond every now and again, back 'in the day'

[White Lightnin]

Anyone remember Jack Flintosh and his 5jr coupe? It was an old Buzzie built dirt car. He ran at New Evergreen in the late 70's on pavement and took a few trips to Big Diamond and the 1/2 mile at Nazareth with the same car. I still talk to him from time to time. There were a lot of straight front axle dirt cars that ran here until the Troyers made their name starting in 1980. The guys that brought the low slung "pavement only" cars were #85 Gus Lewis, #60 Tony Hirschman, #77 & 28 Jerry Magee Miller, #71 & 07 Jim Zacharius, the Whales #28 of Tony Siscone, the Dolan built #2A of Daryll Amey, the homebuilt #23's of Ed Lilly, the #92 Mustang II of Terry Markovic & the #90 of Doug French with the air cleaner sticking a foot above the hood. Plus the #1 Price Brother's Special of Bob McCreadie. That Chevette couldn't have been much more that 38" to the roof line from the ground. 1980 was pretty much the end of the straight axle uprights, except for the #45 Hilbert coupe of Freddy Hamm.