90-year-old driver set to run in 2 Tucson races
McGriff has been around since NASCAR’s infancy
Hershel McGriff Jr., 61, is scheduled to drive in the multi-race program at Tucson Speedway in Arizona on May 5.
For those who might be surprised that a 61-year-old will be driving a race car, consider this: Also racing at Tucson that night will be Hershel McGriff Sr., Hershel Jr.’s 90-year-old father.
The number is not a misprint. McGriff turned 90 in December and plans to race in two 100-lap races as part of the K&N Pro Series West schedule at Tucson.
McGriff has not yet been approved by NASCAR to compete at Tucson. He is scheduled to have an on-track test this week.
McGriff, who last raced in 2012, has a notable motor sports history. Among other accomplishments, he drove in the first Southern 500 NASCAR Cup Series race in 1950 at Darlington Raceway, won the Pan American cross-Mexico race (also in 1950) and scored four Cup series victories in the 1950s.
McGriff was named one of NASCAR’s 50 greatest drivers in 1998 and has been nominated for the NASCAR Hall of Fame several times.
A longtime resident of Oregon who now lives near Tucson, McGriff ’s racing roots go back to the early days of NASCAR. He works out regularly and looks younger than his years, but, racing at 90? Really?
“How many guys are driving at my age?” McGriff asked. “I don’t know anybody. I was 84 the last time I raced, and I was going pretty strong. I feel about the same now. Nobody would know how old I am unless somebody tells them. I try to keep up with the group.”
McGriff says he’s racing at Tucson, a three-eighths-mile paved oval, because he got an offer he couldn’t refuse. Bill McAnally, who owns several cars that run in the West Series and is a longtime friend of McGriff ’s, offered the driver a one-race ride as a “gift” for his 90th birthday.
“It’s a birthday present,” McGriff said. “How can I turn that down? There are a lot of young kids in the series now, but I think I’ll be able to keep up with them.”
McAnally, whose current West Series driver lineup includes 16-year-old Hailie Deegan, said he is happy to provide a car for McGriff and added he isn’t concerned about a “very senior” citizen competing.
“He’s not trying to win a bet or impress a girl,” McAnally said. “It’s something he wanted to do. It’s been a while since he raced, but he’s working out and getting ready.”
Will this be McGriff ’s last race? Probably, he said, but he’s not willing to make a definitive retirement statement.
“Why do I need to say that?” he asked. “If I don’t say it, then I’m open to anything.”