To all my Racer Friends . My Friend Don Martin II has just written a nice book with the History and Photos of Chowchilla , Merced , Antioch , Petaluma and many more speedways. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please click these links and check out his books . Please help support the work he has done as this book is great for us racing fans and drivers and car owners. dcrrbook.blogspot/2015/01/introducing-dcrr-racing-book.html lulu/shop/don-martin-ii/dons-california-racing-recollections-best-of-the-blog-and-beyond/hardcover/product-21995056.html lulu/shop/don-martin-ii/dons-california-racing-recollections-best-of-the-blog-and-beyond/paperback/product-21995088.html Foreword When I opened the DCRR Book blog nearly eight years ago, it was with the intent of using it to generate interest in a racing history book centering around Antioch Speedway with possibly more books to follow. Obviously, I dropped the ball on that one as there have been no books until now. I have written an autobiography of my time in the sport and my experiences, but it is still in need of heavy editing. However, I realized something recently. With over 250 articles written, most of them posted, I already have the content for a rather interesting book. The blog has been filled with my observations on racing, past and present. Some older articles from past magazines were even posted. A few articles were written for the blog and have yet to be posted as of now. Those will be going in this book. Im hard pressed to really describe what this book is. Im not even sure anybody will be interested in my ramblings at this point. As I was putting together files to make into three separate books, it dawned on me that I should just make one big book with all of this. At this writing, it will be over 500 pages. Maybe I got a little carried away here? I admit that I was combing through archival articles for anything I felt was relevant to what I’m doing here. This led to some races of significance that I witnessed. There are season ending recaps. There are some stories looking back on the history of race track. I confess I wrote a few more of those as I was putting this together. There are lists of past champions. Its highly unorganized, and this is not really a history book per se. You will find a lot of history within these pages, however, and I suppose it could be called a precursor to that history book. You will get controversial opinions that were made at various times and some insight as to what I was thinking at certain times, such as what led to my departure from racing. The infamous 1999 point situation at Antioch Speedway is described from my point of view. This is something that has always bothered me. The time in which Antioch Speedway was up for bid and John Soares Jr. was pursuing the track is covered here extensively as well. I dove right into the Chowchilla-Merced promoter feud, and some of my observations are there as it came to an end. The beginning of the All Pro Series at Antioch is highlighted with a few articles. As I said, its a collection of different things from racing history, and I hope you will find it to be an interesting read. There could be more where this came from as I am sitting on a lot of information. I would like to acknowledge Gary Jacob, who wrote the Merced history piece back around 1993 or so. I updated it with more recent history and added early history that Gary didnt cover. Gary helped me update a lot of my history files and I learned a lot from him. He was one of the best writers, and he loved racing probably more than anybody I know. Mike Johnson for bringing me into the NCMA. Mike was an interesting character. He had a mind for the budget racer, but there were times when he frustrated me. Without him, there would be no NCMA. Jim Booth, for being a friend first and foremost and for making me feel like I belonged in the NCMA. Not everybody there was so welcoming. Don OKeefe Jr. is a dear friend of mine and I learned a lot from him. It wasnt just that we started Spec Sprints together, which is chronicled in this book. He was a friend to me and somebody who was there for me in tough times. He always pushed me to believe in myself and worked to hype my magazine up with my stories on his web site and the DCRR logo on his race car for a couple years. The support of Don & Linda OKeefe kept the magazine afloat in tough times. Joe Martinez has been a good friend to me as well and somebody I could always talk to. We had a really good website there for a while called California Racing Online. Perhaps youve heard of it. It all happened within a couple of weeks of he and I meeting during my first visit to Chowchilla Speedway. He edited my audio shows and put them on the site, though Im sure some of the things I said made him cringe at times. Also, Joe and his wife Lynn are L&J Photography. I was fortunate enough to feature their amazing photos in my magazine. Several of them are included in this book Christopher Bennett and Johnny Brocca gave me rides up and down the road to various races. Johnny is unforgettable as the tow truck guy at the track. He loved doing that. Chris was my assistant at Antioch Speedway and even announced Trophy Dashes and the occasional heat race for me. Without him, it would have been harder making my Merced visits. There were many people who gave me rides and allowed me to do what I loved to do at other tracks. Allan Nordstrom took me into his home and taught me a lot about the sport. These were the years when I became hooked on racing and wanted to be involved as much as possible. Al gave me many good racing tips that helped give the magazine big stories in the early days. And, no, I never spoke to anybody about the drivers strike of 1989 (or was it 1988) at Antioch. The magazine wasnt seen by anybody until the night of that race, just as requested by Sal Belleci. Bert Moreland for giving me my first access to the pits during race nights. I had to put up and take down the flag and clean the front fence. The late George Stiles for giving me a score keeping job at Antioch, and Brynda Bockover for putting up with my crap for years. She deserved better than that from me. Chuck & Marylee Griffin for making me feel like part of the team at Merced in my last three years in the sport. My final two years only saw me at Merced about once a month, and yet I was welcomed with open arms. I never meant to miss that banquet. It was a last minute thing. The fact that I won a Team Player Award at Merced means a lot to me. Though I never received that trophy, just knowing that I was honored in such a way means a lot. Tom & Cindy Sagmiller. Theres a maverick spirit in Tom that I think we share. Hes not one to just complain about things. Hell jump in and make a difference. Tom, above all others I have worked for, has treated me more like a friend. He took me into his home every week so I could cover the races in 2001 and even took me to his rivals track so I could announce there. Tom gave racing the shot in the arm it needed with Chowchilla Speedway in 2000, and Im proud to call him my friend. And yes, the milk was cold enough. Better than I deserved. Thank you Tom. John Soares Sr. for being a major inspiration to me from the moment I started going to the races. People may not always have liked him, but he was one of the best racing promoters California ever had. He was an innovator. He started trends. He actually inspired loyalty. He will always be my hero in short track racing. Jim Soares for being somebody who really pissed me off at times. I didnt always like the man, but I did respect him. He was a straight shooter with me, and sometimes that honesty was like a slap in the face to me. Racing is a little worse off since Jim passed away. John Soares Jr. for opening the doors that had always been closed to me. John took a chance on me, and he didnt have to. I think I did well for him in the three years I announced and did all the things I did. That tenure didnt end well, but I still appreciate what he and Donna did for me. I respect John, and I believe he is good for racing. When John is gone, there will be a huge void to fill if people want to see racing continue at the tracks he runs. I hope people appreciate what he does. So many people I cant acknowledge with lots of details, even though I would like to. Many people have touched my life in one way or another and made me want to continue in the sport. Jim Robbins, Mike Conley, Lance Cline, Steve Torres, Lonnie Fish, Dick Jacob, Ron Albright, Ron Rodda (brutally honest at times, but fair), Charlie Zeno, Butch Althar (one of the best announcers), Harry Osbourn (Ill never forget the nicknames), Scott Holloway, Mel Maupin (I miss you), Darryl Shirk, George Steitz (Thank you George), Andy Herbst (for not caving to the pressure), Johnny Sass (an honor to work with a legend), Anna Temple (for believing in me), Matt of Matt & Glass (for sponsoring me at Merced for a month), Johnnie Baptista and Rick Bollinger (For helping save the DCRR), J.D. Willis, Harlan Osbourne (for keeping me updated with great stories at Petaluma), Racing Wheels, John Kelley (MotoRacing), Veach Racing News, Southwest Stock Car Magazine, The Chowchilla News (for printing my stories every week), Buddy Cox, John Meyers (for being that voice on the PA), Vic Noon, Doug Laidlaw and Willie Williams (three of the best flagmen), Jack Menges, Green Flag Photography (Thanks for the amazing photos Mike), Furia Racing (for the conversation and sodas), Ron Brown (a friend no matter what), Lori Brown (thanks for leading Jackies lap), Bob Hansen, A2Z Printing (my first good printer), Dennis Daniel (For saving some of my files when I was in a jam).... This is what happens when I start thinking. So many names. Anybody who supported DCRR even once, offered me a drink on a hot day or food from the barbecue, all of the people I enjoyed conversations with, all of the drivers, the Sportsman division (the division I loved), the Spec Sprint Class Of 1999 (Thanks for believing in the division), the people who pissed me off for whatever reason. I actually have no use for random criticism, but if you had a point, even if I disagreed with you, I respect you. If it was for the love of racing, thats what matters... And... Jackie and dad. You two believed in me when at times I didnt believe in myself. Dad gets a chapter in this book, but I will add once again, I couldnt have done it without him. Jackie helped take my efforts to levels I never thought I could achieve. Not this kid from the grandstands. My biggest supporter and defender. My biggest regret is not being there for her as much as I probably should have been. I love you and miss you both. Anyway, Im still not sure what this is, but I think I have a pretty good book here. I hope you agree and enjoy the stories. I do have an auto biography of my time in racing. Perhaps that will be next. Thank You, Don
Posted on: Tue, 13 Jan 2015 22:05:48 +0000