Sixth Annual National Championship Jalopy Races

On the Historic Half-mile Racetrack at the

Kansas State Fairgrounds

Hutchinson, Kansas

Sunday – July 29, 1962

 

 

(These cars were known regionally as “rails”)

 

 

Promotional Company – Merrick Racing Promotions (M.R.P.)

Race Director – Jack Merrick of Dodge City, Kansas

Flagman / Starter – Al Alexander of Wichita, Kansas

Trophy Queen – Glenda Abney of Newton, Kansas

 

Track condition – “muddy and rough with a large berm around the inside of the track”  

Attendance – 15,000

 

 

 

Lined Up for the Forst Heat Race on this Day

The #73 on the pole was either Jack Grimes of Wichita, Kansas who had been issued the #73 for that day or Paul Befort, Jr. of Garden City, Kansas who usually used the #73 but had been issued the #64 just for this day.  The #73 on the driver’s door is not a paper number but the number on the other side of the car may have been his paper #64.  Car #66 was co-owned by Buddy Carroll and Al Torson and driven by Jack Petty all from Wichita, Kansas.  Car #77 was driven by Don Belk of Manhattan, Kansas – Photo from the 1965 Hutchinson State Fair racing program 

 

 

Bill Nelson

81 Speedway program

 

Lee Salmans

Hutchinson News collection

 

David Ross

David Ross collection

 

Pete Jacobs

 Jacobs family collection

 

 Orval Beckel

David Ross collection

 

Frankie Lies

Lies collection

 

Gene Potts

Schrater family collection

 

Charlie Hiner

Charlie Hiner collection

 

Henry Ellington

Ellington collection

 

Jack Petty

Kenny Greteman photo

 

Alvin Riley

Gary Shinkle collection

 

Bill Bookout

Mullens family collection

 

Reuben Loepp

Mohawk Speedway program

 

Cliff Durr

Gary Virden photo

 

Todd White

Todd White collection

 

Dick Hendershot

Mohawk Speedway program

 

Charlie Pitts

Charlie Pitts collection

 

Forrest Coleman

National Jalopy Championship program

 

Grady Wade

Kenny Greteman photo

 

Dick Walker

Bob Mays collection

 

J. D. Cox

Lies collection

  

 

Keith Cofield

Claudine Cofield collection

 

Ted Maupin

Lies collection

 

Walt McWhorter

Bob Mays collection

 

Ray Riner

Kenny Greteman photo

 

Melvin Herrell

Melvin Herrell collection

 

Roy Bryant

Lies collection

 

 

First Heat Race – 10 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

Time 

  1

66

Jack Petty

Wichita, KS

 4:33.0

  2

78

Wylan Cattrell

Wichita, KS

 

  3

84

T. J. Newman

Wichita, KS

 

  4

85

Jim Holland

Hutchinson, KS

 

  5

64

Paul Befort, Jr.

Garden City, KS

 

 

65

Keith Harb

Wichita, KS

 

 

67

Jay Schrock

Hutchinson, KS

 

 

68

Jim Goodson

Junction City, KS

 

 

69

John Riead

Hutchinson, KS

 

 

70

Bob Riner

Wichita, KS

 

 

72

Melvin Cattrell

Wichita, KS

 

 

74

Fate Martin

Wichita, KS

 

 

75

George Smith

Wichita, KS

 

 

76

Jerry Bernbeck

Utica, KS

 

 

77

Don Belk

Manhattan, KS

 

 

79

Jim Kirkland

Partridge, KS

 

 

80

Alvin Riley

Medora, KS

 

 

81

Chuck Cadmus

Phoenix, AZ

 

 

82

Don Wiedel

Hutchinson, KS

 

 

73

Jack Grimes

Wichita, KS

 

 

83

Matt Rohrer

Hutchinson, KS

 

  DNF

71

Al Gunn

Phoenix, AZ

 

Gunn’s car crashed into the fence in the northeast turn.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Second Heat Race – 10 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

 

  1

62

George Witzke

Wichita, KS

 

  2

58

Bud Montgomery

Denver, CO

 

  3

57

Bill Smith

Denver, CO

 

  4

51

Phil Simmons

Norton, KS

 

  5

53

Bob Moberly

Colorado Springs, CO

 

  6

50

Walt McWhorter

Wichita, KS

 

 

49

Jim Hill

Wichita, KS

 

 

52

Melvin Herrell

Hutchinson, KS

 

 

54

Ernie Jacobs

Wichita, KS

 

 

55

Gene Coffman

Liberal, KS

 

 

56

Harold Schroeder

Kansas City, MO

 

 

60

Harold Armstrong

Wichita, KS

 

 

61

Todd White

Hutchinson, KS

 

Witzke finished 1/8 mile ahead of second place Montgomery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Third Heat Race – 10 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

Time 

  1

39

Cliff Durr

Derby, KS

 4:01.0

  2

32

Al Baldus

Kansas City, MO

 

  3

28

Leland Salmans

Larned, KS

 

  4

31

Dick Hendershot2

Hutchinson, KS

 

  5

35

Dick Walker

Arkansas City, KS

 

  6

30

Frank Lies

Wichita, KS

 

 

29

David Ross

Dodge City, KS

 

 

33

Dick Unger

Wichita, KS

 

 

34

Verlin Smith

Enid, OK

 

 

36

Vester VanSickle

Hutchinson, KS

 

 

37

Joe Lehman

Denver, CO

 

DNF 

38

Ray Riner

Wichita, KS

 

Riner crashed through the fence in the south turn.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fourth Heat Race – 10 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

 

  1

19

Grady Wade

Wichita, KS

 

  2

14

Bill Nelson

Wichita, KS

 

  3

11

Orval Beckel

Wichita, KS

 

  4

1

Charlie Lutkie

Wichita, KS

 

  5

21

Tommy Bell

Edmond, OK

 

 

2

Stanley Trahern

Amarillo, TX

 

 

3

Forrest Coleman

Wichita, KS

 

 

4

Pete Jacobs

Wichita, KS

 

 

6

Charlie Hiner

Wichita, KS

 

 

7

Roy Bryant

Wichita, KS

 

 

8

Gordon Woolley6

Waco, TX

 

 

9

Bill Bookout

Wichita, KS

 

 

10

Bob Roberts

Sedgwick, KS

 

 

12

Ted Maupin

Wichita, KS

 

 

15

Gene Angel

Hutchinson, KS

 

 

17

Doran Raine, Jr.

Conway Springs, KS

 

 

18

Bill Elliot

Wichita, KS

 

 

20

Earl Hughes

Buffalo, OK

 

  DNF

5

Henry Ellington

Hutchinson, KS

 

  DNF

16

J. D. Cox

Wichita, KS

 

Lutkie started last and charged through the field to finish in 4th place.  Cox spun out in the northeast turn and collected Ellington who then flipped several times.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trophy Dash - 5 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

Time 

  1

14

Bill Nelson

Wichita, KS

2:25.0 

  2

78

Wylan Cattrell

Wichita, KS

 

  3

1

Charlie Lutkie

Wichita, KS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Semi-Final Race – 30 Cars4 – 30 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

Time 

  1

57

Bill Smith

Denver, CO

15.05.0

  2

66

Jack Petty

Wichita, KS

 

  3

78

Wylan Cattrell

Wichita, KS

 

  4

52

Melvin Herrell

Hutchinson, KS

 

  5

51

Phil Simmons

Norton, KS

 

  6

56

Harold Schroeder

Kansas City, MO

 

DNF

50

Walt McWhorter

Wichita, KS

 

DNF

81

Chuck Cadmus

Phoenix, AZ

 

DNF

83

Matt Rohrer

Hutchinson, KS

 

McWhorter led the first 23 laps before dropping out of the race.  Cadmus and Rohrer tangled in the south turn.  18 cars finished the race.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feature Race – 40 Cars5 – 50 Laps

Place

Car #3

Driver

From

Time 

  1

1

Charlie Lutkie

Wichita, KS

21:51.0 

  2

86

Gordon Woolley

Waco, TX

 

  3

4

Pete Jacobs

Wichita, KS

 

  4

11

Orval Beckel

Wichita, KS

 

  5

9

Bill Bookout

Wichita, KS

 

  6

30

Frank Lies

Wichita, KS

 

  7

33

Dick Unger

Wichita, KS

 

  8

21

Tommy Bell

Edmond, OK

 

  9

37

Joe Lehman

Denver, CO

 

10

14

Bill Nelson

Wichita, KS

 

DNF

6

Charlie Hiner

Wichita, KS

 

DNF

32

Al Baldus

Kansas City, MO

 

          Early in the feature, third row starter Charlie Hiner (Pius Selenke #6) spun in the first turn in front of the remainder of the field - a tightly bunched field that was left with nowhere to go.  Their choices were to try to get stopped, pile into Hiner's spinning mount, turn into the outside board fence, or turn into that high mud berm that separated the track from the infield.  Al Baldus chose the outside fence, hitting it and overturning.  Bill Nelson (Bob Garner #14) chose the infield berm and did a slow roll over, over the berm landing on his top in the infield. Instead of scrambling from his car, he waved his arms so frantically many thought he must be injured. As it turned out, all he wanted was to get his car up-righted so he could rejoin the fray. Several men turned Nelson's car back over and he sped off to a point on the back stretch where he could reenter the racetrack.  He restarted the race one lap down on the back of the pack. What a show he put on though tearing through the field to finish in 10th place though still one lap behind! (Nelson always felt that, since yellow flag laps did not count, he had stayed on the lead lap and, therefore should have been declared the second place finisher he having passed everybody but Lutkie.)  Hiner recovered from his spin to run as high as third place before a blown radiator hose left him stuck atop the mud berm on the back stretch with about five laps remaining.
          When it was all over, the board fencing was almost completely missing at both ends of the racetrack.  Lutkie collected just under $2,000 for the victory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pace Lap for the Second Heat Race

#54 Ernie Jacobs, #51 Phil Simmons, #52 Melvin Herrell, #49 Jim Hill, and #50 Walt McWhorter – Melvin Herrell collection

 

 

 

Fourth Heat Race Action

Henry Ellington’s #5 car is shown here riding up over the spun-out #16 car (barely visible) driven by J. D. Cox and the dirt berm that surrounded the inside of the racetrack that day.  That is Bill Bookout in the #9 car at left – Charlie Hiner collection

 

 

 

 

Henry Ellington

This photo was taken just seconds after the one above it.  Henry Ellington received minor injuries when his car overturned several times after riding up over the #16 car driven by J. D. Cox and then onto the dirt berm in the north curve during the fourth heat race.  The engine was wedged against his foot and it took several minutes to extricate him from the car – Charlie Hiner collection.  

 

  

 

Lined Up for the Start of the 50-lap Feature Race on this Day

In the center of this photo is the #1 car that started from the pole position and won the race.  It was owned by Alden Davis and driven by Charlie Lutkie both from Wichita, Kansas.  The car’s usual number was 24.  The #3 car starting directly behind Lutkie was driven by Forrest Coleman.  Click our mouse on this photo to see another that was taken just a few seconds earlier – Lies collection

 

 

 

Starting the Pace Lap for the 50-Lap Feature Race on this Date

Left to right in this photo taken before a capacity crowd are: Pete Jacobs in his own #4 car; Forrest Coleman in Ernie McCoy’s #3; Roy Bryant in Lawrence Miller’s #7; Charlie Hiner in Pius Selenke’s #6; Bill Bookout in #9, and a few other cars that have yet to be identified.  Charlie Lutkie in Alden Davis’ #1 and Stanley Trahern in Lawrence Brooks’ #2 were off camera to the left of this photo – Charlie Hiner collection

 

 

 

Feature Race Winner

Left to right:  Alden Davis, Glenda Abney, and Charlie Lutkie – Lies collection

 

 

 

To view a YouTube video that was taken of the races on this weekend

Dwane Wolfe collection

 

 

 

 

 

1 The official program did not list a 13th position in time trials skipping from 12th to 14th position instead.

2 Richard M. “Dick” Hendershot (1925-1976) was fatally injured in a racing accident at Salina, Kansas.

3 Listed car numbers were assigned for this day only and were applied to the cars on sticky paper after time trials.

4 Thirty-four cars were scheduled to start the Semi-final race.

5 Fifty cars were scheduled to start the feature race but only 40 cars took the green flag.  The other ten had scratched from the event for various reasons.

6 The #8 modified driven this day by Gordon Woolley was powered by a Hudson engine.  By 1965, The Hudson in this car had been replaced with a 327 cu. in. Chevrolet engine and the car converted into a sprint car.  It was then co-owned by Buddy Carroll and Al & Marvel Torrsen and driven by Jack Petty.

 

 

 

 

Return to the Feature Race Winners at Hutchinson, Kansas web page