5 Of The Strangest Moments From USAC Indiana Sprint Week
5 Of The Strangest Moments From USAC Indiana Sprint Week
Most moments in racing proceed in orderly fashion the majority of the time. However, those unpredictable moments in racing are what keeps us coming back.
Most moments in racing proceed in orderly fashion the majority of the time. However, those unpredictable moments in racing are what keeps us coming back. But even better, and more rarer, are the moments that make us crane our necks, send our mouths agape and make the ordinary moments not so ordinary in the end. That’s the category where these particular moments fall - the ones we will always remember, but still make us scratch our heads then and now.
5. The 0 lap race from Terre Haute in 1999
6 laps or 6 minutes, whichever came first, resulted in a rarity after a slew of incidents delayed the start of the non-qualifiers race in 1999 at the Terre Haute Action Track. In the end, 0 laps were run in the event that may go down as the shortest event in series history. I mean, you can’t get less than a zero laps race.
4. The water truck incident at Brownstown
In sprint car racing, a driver is locked-in, zoned-in, on the track and on the competition at all times. Nothing can break your concentration as you mash the throttle with dirt flying in your face and the adrenaline pumping. Imagine now, you come off turn two and see the water truck rolling down the middle of the track during your heat race. That’s just what these guys experienced during the 2011 ISW round at Brownstown Speedway.
3. Indiana Sprint Week at Eldora
Indiana Sprint Week in Ohio? What? The geographic aberration with the ISW series occurred in 1999 when the USAC National Sprint Cars crossed the border for the lone out of state race in the history the summer mini-series. We’re just as confused as you are.
2. The field simultaneously drives off turn three and into the fields at Bloomington
If your mother told you to jump off a cliff, would you also jump off that cliff? Not sure if any of these drivers talked to their mothers before this 2012 Non-Qualifiers Race during Indiana Sprint Week at Bloomington Speedway, but it looked like nearly everybody in the field followed suit in the third in one of the few on-track moments in USAC history that resulted in a hearty and lengthy belly laugh from the large crowd on hand.
1. Bill Rose gets fired right before the feature. Replaced by J.J. Yeley.
Entering Sunday’s Indiana Sprint Week finale at Lincoln Park Speedway, Bill Rose was riding high. The night before at Paragon Speedway, he had finally broken through for his long-awaited first career USAC National Sprint Car win, then locked himself into the feature finale for Sunday’s race with a second-place finish in his heat race. When ISW point leader J.J. Yeley missed the feature lineup, Rose was in a position to capitalize and, perhaps, be in position to claim the ISW title. However, just before the feature, Bill Rose learned he was fired from his ride and replaced by J.J. Yeley who’d go on to finish 7th and ultimately claim the championship. Meanwhile, a stunned Rose was begging, pleading for a chance at a ride, which he ultimately got from Billy Puterbaugh Jr. in the 11th hour. Rose started from the tail and finished a distant 18th in the end.
