Big Car Races on the

Historic Half-mile Racetrack at the

Kansas State Fairgrounds

 Hutchinson, Kansas

Friday – September 20, 1935

 

 

Race Director – William “Bill” Bryant of Hutchinson, Kansas

 Starter – Aut Swenson

Public Address Announcer – Jack Story

 

Sanctioned by - International Motor Contest Association (I.M.C.A.)

 

Attendance – 14,000

 

The entire program was run off in 2 hours and 20 minutes 

 

 

 

Bill Morris

Bruce Craig photo

Bob Sledge

Pappy Noe collection

Oscar Coleman

Don Radbruch collection

 

 

 

Frank Sands

Wood collection

Tex West

Don Radbruch collection

Posey Reeves

Don Radbruch collection

 

 

 

Time Trials – 17 Cars - 1 Lap

Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

  1

Bill Morris*

Lincoln, NE

3

Messer Special

28.0

  2

Oscar Coleman******

Dallas, TX

1

Texas Special

28.5

  3

Bob Sledge

Houston, TX

5

Riley Special

29.5

  3

Tex West**

Dallas, TX

22 A

Riley

29.5

  5

Frank Sands

Minneapolis, MN

4

White Special

30.0

  6

Posey Reeves

Oklahoma City, OK

500

Cragar

30.5

  7

Pat Cunningham

St. Joseph, MO

K 1

Keyes Special  (Riley)

31.0

  7

Tom Holden

Denver, CO

R 2

Cragar

31.0

  7

Bob Wilson

Kansas City, KS

K 2

Gillette Special  (Riley)

31.0

10

Swan Peterson

Galesburg, IL

4

Frontenac

31.5

10

Jack Kannapel

Newton, KS

K 2

Frontenac

31.5

10

Ray Anguish

Topeka, KS

S 1

Chevrolet

31.5

13

Carl Mayfield

Oklahoma City, OK

C 13

Cragar

32.0

13

Kirk Washburn

Shreveport, LA

8

Chevrolet

32.0

13

Ed Foshay

Shreveport, LA

4

Scoffield

32.0

13

Howard Cox

Dallas, TX

4

Frontenac

32.0

17

Charles Pauley

Herington, KS

14

Riley

32.5

 

 

First Heat Race – 6 Cars - 5 Laps

Purse divided among the first three finishers

Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

1

Bill Morris

Lincoln, NE

3

Messer Special

2:03.0***

2

Oscar Coleman******

Dallas, TX

1

Texas Special

 

3

Tex West**

Dallas, TX

22 A

Riley

 

4

Bob Sledge

Houston, TX

5

Riley Special

 

5

Frank Sands

Minneapolis, MN

4

White Special

 

6

Posey Reeves

Oklahoma City, OK

500

Cragar

 

            Morris led this race all the way.  Coleman mounted a good charge for the lead but fell just short at the finish.

 

 

Second Heat Race – 6 Cars - 5 Laps

Purse divided among the first three finishers

 Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

1

Bob Sledge

Houston, TX

5

Riley Special

2:11.0****

2

Tom Holden

Denver, CO

R 2

Cragar

 

3

Posey Reeves

Oklahoma City

500

Cragar

 

4

Pat Cunningham

St. Joseph, MO

K 1

Keyes Special  (Riley)

 

5

Bob Wilson

Kansas City, KS

K 2

Gillette Special  (Riley)

 

6

Frank Sands

Minneapolis, MN

4

White Special

DNF

            Sands dropped out on the second lap.  Sledge and Holden raced to a “sizzling” finish.

 

 

Championship Dash – 4 Cars – 3 Laps

Purse divided among the first three finishers

 Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

1

Bill Morris*

Lincoln, NE

3

Messer Special

1:28.5

2

Tex West**

Dallas, TX

22 A

Riley

 

3

Oscar Coleman******

Dallas, TX

1

Texas Special

 

4

Bob Sledge

Houston, TX

5

Riley Special

 

            Morris won this race by a wide margin.  The race was pretty much a single file affair.

 

 

Consolation – 8 Cars - 5 Laps

Purse divided among the first three finishers

 Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

1

Pat Cunningham

St. Joseph, MO

K 1

Keyes Special  (Riley)

2:07.0*****

2

Frank Sands

Minneapolis, MN

4

White Special

 

3

Bob Wilson

Kansas City, KS

K 2

Gillette Special  (Riley)

 

4

Swan Peterson

Galesburg, IL

4

Frontenac

 

5

Jack Kannapel

Newton, KS

K 2

Frontenac

 

6

Kirk Washburn

Shreveport, LA

8

Chevrolet

 

7

Carl Mayfield

Oklahoma City, OK

C 13

Cragar

 

8

Ed Foshay

Shreveport, LA

4

Scoffield

 

 

 

Pursuit Handicap – 8 Cars - 15 Laps

 Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

1

Oscar Coleman******

Dallas, TX

1

Texas Special

8:12.0

2

Bob Sledge

Houston, TX

5

Riley Special

 

3

Charles Pauley

Herington, KS

14

Riley

DNF

4

Ed Foshay

Shreveport, LA

4

Scoffield

DNF

5

Carl Mayfield

Oklahoma City, OK

C 13

Cragar

DNF

6

Swan Peterson

Galesburg, IL

4

Frontenac

DNF

7

Tom Holden

Denver, CO

R 2

Cragar

DNF

8

Kirk Washburn

Shreveport, LA

8

Chevrolet

DNF

 

 

State Fair Sweepstakes – 8 Cars - 10 Laps

Purse divided among the first three finishers

 Place

Driver

From

Car Number

Automobile

Time

1

Pat Cunningham

St. Joseph, MO

K 1

Keyes Special  (Riley)

5:05.0

2

Oscar Coleman******

Dallas, TX

1

Texas Special

 

3

Tom Holden

Denver, CO

R 2

Cragar

 

4

Tex West**

Dallas, TX

22 A

Riley

 

5

Bob Sledge

Houston, TX

5

Riley Special

 

6

Frank Sands

Minneapolis, MN

4

White Special

DNF

7

Posey Reeves

Oklahoma City, OK

500

Cragar

DNF

8

Bill Morris*

Lincoln, NE

3

Messer Special

DNF

            Morris’ engine developed a miss in it and he dropped out on the third lap.  Cunningham got off to a poor start and did not catch up to Coleman until the ninth lap.  Cunningham pulled along side of Coleman on the back stretch on the last lap and the two stayed side-by-side through the final corner.  Coleman gave his car too much gas in that last turn and slid wide out almost to the fence.  Cunningham took advantage of Coleman’s slip and moved to the inside of the track just beating Coleman to the finish line by about one yard.

 

 

 

 

Carl Mayfield

Charles Pauley photo

Charles Pauley

Charles Pauley collection

Pat Cunningham

Betty (Kerbs) Able collection

 

 

 

Swan Peterson

Don Radbruch collection 

Bob Wilson

Roy Eaton collection

 

 

 

* ”Bill Morris” is an alias used by Benjamin Franklin “Ben” Musick, Sr. (1908-1966)

 

** ”Tex West” is an alias used by Austin E. Wetzler (1903-1962) who is buried in Highland Cemetery in Junction City, Kansas.

 

*** It is much more likely that this race was run for 4 laps rather than 5 laps as reported in both the Hutchinson Herald and the Hutchinson News on September 21, 1935.  For this to have been the correct time for 5 laps, Musick would have had to have run an average of 24.6 seconds per lap yet the record for one lap of this racetrack was only 27.99 seconds at that time.  Running 5 laps that quickly on the state fair racetrack in 1935 would have been virtually impossible given the tires and other equipment available back then.

 

**** It is much more likely that this race was run for 4 laps rather than 5 laps as reported in both the Hutchinson Herald and the Hutchinson News on September 21, 1935.  For this to have been the correct time for 5 laps, Sledge would have had to have run an average of 26.2 seconds per lap yet the record for one lap of this racetrack was only 27.99 seconds at that time.  Running 5 laps that quickly on the state fair racetrack in 1935 would have been virtually impossible given the tires and other equipment available back then.

 

***** It is much more likely that this race was run for 4 laps rather than 5 laps as reported in both the Hutchinson Herald and the Hutchinson News on September 21, 1935.  For this to have been the correct time for 5 laps, Cunningham would have had to have run an average of 25.4 seconds per lap yet the record for one lap of this racetrack was only 27.99 seconds at that time.  Running 5 laps that quickly on the state fair racetrack in 1935 would have been virtually impossible given the tires and other equipment available back then.

 

****** Oscar Lloyd Coleman (1905-1938) was fatally injured while attempting to qualify for a midget auto race in Dallas, Texas.

 

 

 

 

 

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