Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

What your thoughts?

http://www.slidejobs.com/MIkesTake/swindell-kinsertake.html

Not even close.

AL POMBO and MARSHALL SARGENT....out here in Cali.

TSA...It's not a GROPE...it's a Freedom Pat!

LOL Who and who?

I'd say Steve and Sammy had (have) a great rivalry, but nothing beats Steve, Sammy and Wolfie battling it out at the big races in the 80's. All in their prime, and all had MONSTER win years (who can forget Steve winning 24 of the last 25 WoO races following the Nationals in 1987. What about Wolfie winning 50% of the races entered in 1989.

Back then you KNEW that one of those 3 cars were going to victory lane when they rolled into Eldora, Knoxville or Williams Grove.....

But everyone still paid to get in because they knew the racing would be Awe Inspiring...

My two cents: Neither one of the following has the long history of Steve and Sammy but what about: (A) Jan Opperman and Kenny Weld.

(B) Larry Dickson and Gary Bettenhausen

By the way I'm not Posse but I do respect their open wheel racing : tracks, drivers, car owners and fans.

Al and Marshall with Kenny Takeuchi at San Jose here:

http://cmpvideo2go.com/

My money goes on Opp and Weld. Kinser and Swindell let professional issues stay professional most times.Opperman and Weld let things get personal. Weld was THE guy when Opp showed up, but Weld also was the one to find Opp and break the news of Jay's death--I really think something came out of that night, something that not even Kenny understood.

Then they both forgive each other and die in the same year.

yeah no doubt when the "big three" were in town,it was gonna be intense.if sammy wasnt always testing tires or other things if may have been even better!!! and to think we were paying around 10-15 bucks and traveling all over the place to watch em!!! i know i put on thousands of miles over that time and can honestly say they were worth it ten times over!!!

livin on the coast of n.carolina,no dirt to be 
found,thank god for hoseheads!!!!!

This topic can have multiple good answers. One I'll toss in:

Ascot Park / CRA in the 80's. To see Ron Shuman, Dean Thompson and Bubby Jones sling in out on a regular basis was just a dream to watch.

Great article. Steve and Sammy....truly God's gift to sprint car racing. We are indeed fortunate to witness their efforts.

If Steve wins the title this year he should be on the cover of every major sports mag in the country. No sex and gambling addiction, no tatoos, 1 wife, pants that fit, no AIDS, never bites anyone's ear off, doesn't beat the women around him....just talent, guts and determination like none other. Thanks Steve for being the ultimate hero.

Luna's Ford engine style that won 2 WoO titles and 3 
Kings Royals before a weight rule against the best EVER
in their prime and now DOMINATES super dirt late model
racing is no longer allowed/wanted in a WoO sprint
car.... Was Luna a miracle worker?

nick rescino and howard keading in the 70`s at san jose speedway

We all take so many things for granted,,, Just how lucky have we been to watch those three through their careers??? I for one have been around since all of them started and wow talent that will probably never be matched ever again.

DAmn right I feel lucky to have seen those 2 plus Wolfie run from their early days until now...

I gotta go with Weld/Opp as biggest rivalry though.

Loose is when you hit the wall with the rear of the
car, tight is when you hit the wall with the front of
the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall and
torque is how far you move the wall.

Best rivalry in ALL of motorsports history ???

I'd say Ford vs. Chevy is pretty hard to top.

R.A.

S.H.S.

Roger Larson and Darryl Dawley. Not only were they rivals on the track they did not like each other. They were as different as night and day much like Opperman and Weld. At times I think they didn't care if they won or not just if they finished in front of the other. The ONLY thing that they shared was their passion for sprint car racing and the Knoxville, Iowa track which ultimately claimed both of them in the same crash.

Thread says Motorsports, so I would put Cale Yarborough vs Bobby Allison. Sprint Cars I would have to go with Weld and Opp or Gary and Larry.

My wife told me if I went to one more Sprint Car race 
she would leave me.................I'm sure gonna miss 
that ol' gal. 

If he wins the points what should be looked at is he is a 56 or 57 year old man that still has enough left in him to compete and win against the very best the sport has to offer. I have been a sports fan for almost 50 years and the stats this man has is unreal compaired with other sports. UCLA winning 88 basketball games in a row comes close IMO. He is 3rd on Knoxville`s all time win list with 58---they are all WoO shows I suppose---- as in not running there every week. Has been in the A main on Saturday night of the nationals since 1979-----thats every year. And there were some years where he crashed his car and still made the main (1980 he drove Trostles car without a wing and won his first) . How many times did he start dead last in a 10 car heat and still get into the show every year.....how many times did he run his time trial towards the end and still be in the top 5 in time trials when everybody was anywhere from a half a second to more off of what quick time was. The numbers this guy has put up over the years is second to none---Doug and Sambo were/are good but still not close to what Steve has done and is still doing.

OK I do agree it's the best, especially with Wolfgang thrown in there!

Actually they were so dominant that when someone else won it seem like a Hugh accomplishment!

But I am surprised that no one has mentioned: Foyt - Andretti

I don't belive there has been any sport, where there were 2 people competing with/against each other for 32+ years. So yeah it has to be the best 1 on 1 rivalry.

Go Sammy!!!!!!!!!

The older I get, the faster I used to be.

Few times I saw Steve and Sammy go at it; not ONLY on the track but also in the pits with fists flying !!!!

Long Live  20 Time  World Of Outlaws Champion Steve 
Kinser #11