We lost my favorite sheriff on Wednesday, November 5th, 2014. In reality, Art Keiser wasn’t a law enforcement officer, but he was definitely an enforcer of rules. He always grinned when he was referred to as ‘the Sheriff of Evergreen’ or Grandview, Mahoning, or Big Diamond or wherever he was employed to maintain a level playing field for the competitors at a particular race track. Our management group at Evergreen knew we needed to tighten our rules and their enforcement after our reopening season in 1988. Rules were a bit loose, by design, during our inaugural season in order to attract a reasonable field of cars to a track shuttered for the previous six years. Since each member of our management group had specific duties on race day at Evergreen, we were in unanimous agreement we needed to hire a race director and tech director to run the racing program for the 1989 season. We were also unanimous in our decision to offer the position to Art Keiser. With a commitment to enforce a track’s rule book comes the need to write an enforceable rule book. Our rule book at Evergreen for 1989 improved considerably and got better each successive year as rulebook passages were tested by racers and ‘grey areas’ were eliminated. Art, Art’s son, Terry, and I spent considerable time in my basement fine tuning Evergreen’s rules to be accurate and enforceable. Art and Terry proposed the rules they needed to promote competitive, yet cost-effective, racing and I tried to play the devil’s advocate to ensure the wording of these rules was enforceable and specifically reflected our competition goals. However, the true devil’s advocates were the racers themselves. Even including statements like, ‘If this rulebook does not specifically state you may do something, assume you may not.’ didn’t always give management the upper hand. Iconic readers of rulebooks, like Mike Rodriguez, kept all of us sharp. Specific rules for street stocks mandating OEM parts, GM in a GM, Ford in a Ford, etc. needed to be changed when Corvette trailing arms, complete with visible GM part numbers, wound up in a Chevelle. Art admitted we’d been beaten, but told ‘Mikey’, ‘Better start looking for something else. It won’t be legal next year!’ Before the races began Art would greet everyone in the pits with a heartfelt, ‘Thanks for coming!’ He was genuinely appreciative of every competitor who put in the time and effort to prepare a car to race at the track where he was employed. As I visited many race tracks around the country, I’d always share with Art every instance where a track used his signature, ‘Thanks for coming1’ to show appreciation to their fans or competitors. Although Art had never visited most of these tracks, he enjoyed every one of these ‘Art Keiser’ sightings, breaking into a broad smile as he looked over my photographic proof of ‘his influence’. Prior to an Evergreen event Art would answer anyone’s question or check any part presented, but once the event began he took his perch on an elevated platform we built for him on the infield. The stand gave him unrestricted views of the entire track and also provided him insulation from the competitors in the pits. During a racing program, Art would only allow drivers to cross to the infield to confer or ask questions. By the time drivers would get out of their cars and report to the second turn gate and request permission to cross the track, the next race would be on the track and they would have to wait. After the event, they could cross the track, but by the time they reached Art’s stand, the next race was on the track and they would wait again. By the time drivers had their audience with the race director, they had calmed down considerably and most kept their discussions to a minimum when they realized they needed to reverse the process to get back to the pits for their next race. One of the funniest stories about Art’s infield perch occurred at another speedway. A driver made the trek to see Art and calmly began his conversation with, ‘Hi Art,’ before he began waving his arms and making other exaggerated gestures. Art asked, ‘What can I do for you?’ and the racer replied, ‘Really, nothing, I just came to talk to you.’ Art continued, ‘So, what’s all the arm waving about?’ The racer replied, ‘Aw, the crew’s watching – I just wanted to let you know that was a good call you made in the heat race.’ When the racer turned to return to the pits, his crew knew he had given Art a piece of his mind. Each summer Art, Terry, and I made a mid-week trip to another asphalt speedway to get a first-hand look at how they ran their program. We visited Riverside Park in Agawam, MA, Waterford, CT Speedbowl, and Thompson, CT Speedway over the years, were always graciously received and, while I compared notes with the promoters, Art and Terry spent time with the race directors, inspectors, and racers. On the trip home we discussed those practices which we thought we could successfully incorporate into the Evergreen operation. I have always said, ‘It’s a lot easier to steal a good idea, than it is to think of one!’ Of course, Evergreen always reciprocated to requests to visit from other promotions and worked closely with Clearfield, PA Speedway for years. During our visit to Riverside Park, I snapped any number of photos and couldn’t resist adding captions to one of the pics for use in the Evergreen program. I made the decision to use it without checking with Art, so I wasn’t sure how he would react. Art loved it and the racers were smiling throughout the Evergreen pits – it did wonders for management-racer relations. Check the photos. Art always gave us 100% at Evergreen. Over the years our conversations provided Art with a better understanding of the overall promotion at Evergreen and the concerns which affected management’s decision making. Art Keiser has gone from acquaintance, to employee, to good friend and we’ve shared challenges and great times over the years. In the end, ‘The Sheriff’ will be missed by many in the racing community and, of course, by all of his family and friends. ‘Thanks for coming, Art!’
Posted on: Thu, 06 Nov 2014 02:14:17 +0000
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