LOCAL MOTORSPORTS Brothers to battle at Memorial
Mark and Chris Parker are 1-2 in late model points.
A sibling rivalry could be brewing at Shady Bowl Speedway.
Brothers Mark Parker and Chris Parker are currently 1-2 in late model points after three races and look to battle for the lead Saturday at the Neal Sceva Memorial.
Shady Bowl honors the racing legend with its 51-lap tribute — the Urbana driver’s car number was 51 — on its ⁄ -mile paved oval. The late Sceva, who would have been 89 on Wednesday, won 615 features in four decades of racing and was the 1954 NASCAR stock car champion in Ohio.
Sceva’s son, Neal Sceva Jr., said he’s hoping to make the trip from Denver to make an appearance at the race.
He posted a tribute to his father on YouTube, including photos from his racing career (search “Neal Sceva tribute.”)
Mark, 21, and Chris, 24, enter Saturday’s race separated by eight points (258 to 250). Matt Parsons (248), Andy Peterson (221) and Russ Bobb (207) are giving chase. Speedway in Jones, Mich.
Reitenour has a pair of eighthplace finishes in her two previous races and is ninth in points (out of 21 cars), despite missing the first two races of the season.
“Megan did a great job while testing and racing here. She was fast right out of the chute. She is certainly a driver,” M-40 promoter Tony Eldridge said. “It’s a win-win situation for us all. Our hope is to add more diversity to the sport and more fans in our stands by having her race here.” Week – the Prelude to the Dream on Wednesday and the Dirt Late Model Dream next weekend — has arrived.
“When (Eldora owner) Tony (Stewart) first asked me to come and be in the booth to call the race,” the lead analyst on NASCAR on Fox said, “I was really excited. I was in shock almost, watching these guys who are running 200 mph at Daytona or Talladega, they’re so precise in their driving. Then I go to Eldora and it’s like Drivers Gone Wild. It’s a chance for them to go out and let their hair down. And boy do they do it.”
“At Bristol, Tenn., I went through the (speed) traps at 170 mph and the left front tire blew out. The car turned left and it barrel-rolled 13 times. Everybody thought I was killed. It tore the car completely apart except for the driver’s compartment. ... I had bones sticking out through my gloves and broken bones. It’s just part of it.”
How has racing changed since you started 41 years ago? “If you don’t keep up with it year to year you’ll get left behind. Technology changes day to day, it seems like. ... When I started racing it was around $3 a gallon for racing gas. Now it’s $10-11.”
Do you have a nickname? “My nickname back in the day was ‘Wheelstand.’ My car would take off and it would carry the front wheels way in the air. All the kids would say, ‘Hey, Wheelstand do a wheelie for us.’ It was a lot of fun. ... At Huntsville, Ala., I could carry the front wheels 7 feet in the air at over 200 feet from the starting line. I don’t do it like I used to.”
What’s one of your favorite racing memories? “When I used to build motors for customers I had six drivers win seven world championships. To watch your engine go down the track and your customer win the races, that was a lot of fun. I was glad I could help those guys win championships also.”
How long do you plan to keep racing? “I’ll be 58 years old in another month. I’ll probably go on through 60 as long as I can race. I have four race cars I take care of and that’s all I do is race. ... When we get older all we’ve got is memories. I don’t sit down to talk to somebody to brag, I do it to tell them a story.”