Forum: Racing From The Past (go)
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So I am enjoying all the photos of the Oklahona supers. So I am on Lap 7 looking at Buddy Cagle & Pete York Two very familar drivers and cars to me. The caption says they are on a PAVED ROAD COURSE?!?!?... Really?? Man, I lived and breathed racing in Tulsa in the early-mid 1970's. Why did I never hear about that??

Then I also had another question. Lap three has a shot of Ray Crawford. Always a front runner at Tulsa wearing the number 55. But this particular photo shows his car with a radical roofline. Like an early wing variation. Seems I would have remembered that car. Any idea when that photo was taken? Maybe after 1976 when I joined the service?

The 55 was probably for OKC. They allowed the wing shaped top for one season I believe. I'm sure others will know for sure. I don't believe Tulsa allowed them and NCRA I don't did either?? The road course was maybe out at Zink Ranch area? I have heard before and I might be talking out of place on this? It might have been at a whole different area of the North of Tulsa.

Warren Vincent
Cans 4 Kansas Heroes

Warren i think the picture of York and Cagle may have been takin at War Bonnet Raceway in War Bonnet OK..If i rememeber right it was west and north of OK City 2 or 3 hours drive from Tulsa....They had a race there in 1968 or 1969 and they may have ran or tryed to run it again there again later that year or the next year i am not sure..I was at the raee in 69 my Dad did not run but we went and watched ..I know some weird things about the promotion of the first race there and some of the people who tryed to make it happen but i better not say...I think they didint do real well and it was turned into a housing delevelopment or one that was having trouble getting started so they had the race to try to make money....The race went well and it was fun to watch..many of the guys didint want to run there because it was asphalt and alot of them had never run on asphalt before and ddint know how to set there cars up, and some of them were afraid they may tar up there equipment..There were several drivers there walking ariound but didnt race...It was like a sports car race you had to find a turn and wait for them to come by again...You could not see the whole track...Tim

Win as if you are use to it.And lose as if you enjoyed 
it for a change.Its hard to get to the top and alot 
harder to stay there.

War Bonnet was about 20-30 miles west of Tulsa by Lake Keystone. It ran 3-4 years there was a SCCA trams/am race there in 67/68 that Mark Donohue won in Roger Penske's's Camaro. That was the race were the Penske crew were able to get 22 gallons of gas in a 20 gallon fuel cell. The supers ran there in 1968. Pete York was in the Del Torance car and that was the last year he drove for Del. Jackie Howerton started to drive for him in 1969. I am looking at my NCRA yearbooks and he Crawford car with the wing/ roof was ran in 1977 at Tulsa and on the NCRA circuit. It was not allowed after that season, the Zink car ran a top similar to this in the 1973 and 74 seasons. The NCRA rules said that wings or body parts constructed to give the affect of a wing will not be allowed starting in the 1978 season. Ray Crawford ran a lot better in 1978 after they bought him the Stanton car with no roof.

Ray

I know I have short term memory lose. Now I can admit to long term memory lose. I remember now.

Both the Hahn and Crawford cars are on the site somewhere. The earlier Hahn car is a little more suttle than the wing roofs of the later 70's. It had the look of a regular roof but had the appearance it could be used to put down force on the car.

Warren Vincent
Cans 4 Kansas Heroes