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

Hey Gang,

Kendra and I sit down tomorrow with Jeff Gordon to talk sprint car racing. Anyone have any good stories or questions for him?

This could get interesting.....

I would be interested to know if he still considers Keith Kauffman one of his hero's and why.

Steve, If possible please ask him about his racing midgets at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, WI. If I remember correctly: first time there he went "went out of the ballpark" and then his next visit yielded a win in the "A" main. I believe both were USAC races.

Thanks to you and Kendra for what you're doing for open wheel racing, drivers, owners, fans, track owners and operators. Keep your voice "the money maker" in good condition.

Ask him why he has stood up the the NSCHoF (unlike Stewart and Kahne who have done several nice p.r. appearances and other BIG TIME fund raising for the HoF.)

I know he was a 'sorry ... can't make it after all' no show at least once when he had agreed to appear at the HoF.

He seems to forget that Thursday Night Thunder and the 23s were a big part of his step father's 'master plan' that moved him on to the 'big time.'

S.H.S.

Ask him why he chooses not to participate/fund an open wheel team, like Kasey and Tony do. And Bobby Labonte is involved with late models, as is Clint Bowyer. He can spend his money as he see fit, but it'd be nice to see him support the sport that got him to where he is......

Chuck.....

My sentiments EXACTLY!!!

SUPPORT WILDLIFE, go to a sprint car race! 

Agreed, agreed, agreed and agreed again.. Yes he can spend his money as he sees fit but, as posted above he would never have got the exposure to get ahead without e.s.p.n. and thursday thunder except us hard core guys that read cover to cover the trade papers. Im broke and currently with out a job and like many others i dream to hit the power ball and i without any hesitation would start a team to give a young guy a shot. remember the big guys were all little guys once...

http://www.gordonline.com/bio.html

After moving to Indiana, things were far from easy. In an interview with Newsweek, his step-father said that the family "slept in pick-up trucks and made our own parts. That's why I think Jeff is misunderstood by people who think he was born to rich parents and had a silver spoon in his mouth."

Half the lies they tell about me aren't true. 

Ask him if he remembers flipping into the parking lot at Millstream while running second to Jack Hewitt when he first came to Ohio driving the family car from Cal. #16? He flipped between the pit shack and the grader and ended up on his wheels without hitting any cars in the parking lot... Anybody else out there remember that?

ask him about driving Trostle's 20 backup car at Knoxville in 87. Timed pretty well with a steel block, transfered through his heat, got clipped and tangled up with some one, knocking him out. Step dad John Bickford took that experience building their own parts and formed MPD. I've owned quite a bit of MPD stuff over the years - spindles, torque tubes, etc.

Jeff may not have done as much for the NSCHoF&M as Tony Stewart and Kasey Kayne have but I know for sure that Jeff did one autograph session inside the NSCHoF&M during the 1993 Knoxville Nationals (in fact he shared a big table with, I believe Keith Kauffman among other top drivers and Jeff said he was honored to sit at their table because they were his heroes). Jeff's souvenir trailer (with Bob Rawson) was parked and open a couple of days of those Nationals on the grounds of the NSCHoF&M and Jeff had at least one autograph session in that trailer which drew a very large, appreciative crowd. Jeff also attended either the Press or Promoters luncheon that year--held at the Knoxville Golf Club. He watched a couple nights of those Nationals in one of the suites in the NSCHoF&M building and gave away a number of autographed shirts and hats. Jeff was also good about getting autographed items to the museum for their fund raising auctions.

Off the record ....one on one ...ask HoF board members now or more importantly prior about their opinion of Jeff Gordon.

I notice most of your kudos to JG are nearly 20 years ago.

His time is his time .... his life is his life ... he can do as he pleases. I could care less ..... just wonder why he hasn't done more (as sprinter 25 and others have mentioned) to give back a little bit to his roots.

There is a reason he is so UNPOPULAR with Cup fans and other drivers .....I think many of the reasons are being written about on this thread.

S.H.S.

I like Opperman's question, "if paid the same money and public exposure was the same, what form of racing would he choose", maybe it would be USAC sprints on asphalt who knows. Doubt if it would be a grueling WoO type grind. Just wish he'd stop spending money on children's hospitals and spend it on race teams.

 Lawlessness and liberalism equals Hell.  NY City, 
Detroit, Seattle, Chicago, Minnepolis, etc. We saw it. 
Burning hundreds of buildings, a thousand assaults and 
dozens of murders. Getting worser and worser.

"Just wish he'd stop spending money on children's hospitals and spend it on race teams."

That's just about the most disgusting thing I've ever heard.

yes i have to agree with you ,just what we need in the sprint car ranks,another high profile driver who will bring in big money to compete on the outlaw trail..Then we'll have kahnes four cars stewarts 2 cars and gordons 1 car traveling the u.s. in search of the coveted w.o.o. trophy ........YEE FUKING HAAA I CANT WAIT .......not .....im drunk will finish in morning and drive up the cost of the "PAYING FOR PARTS" drivers and teams since they dont................

This is why I posted this to start with. I knew some of the "hosehead keyboard idiots" would jump all over this and say how Mr. Gordon "owes so much to sprint car racing because that's where he started".

Begin sarcasm:

Forget all the millions of dollars he spends and donates per year to different childrens and other charities. He should be spending his money on sprint cars and let the kids fend for themselves. After all, those kids did not get him where he is now!!!! Come on, Jeff!!! Why don't you have 3 Outlaw teams out there!! End Sarcasm

I coulda swore he did own a majority of a race team...... Seems to me he went to Mr Hendrick and begged him to hire a driver cause he was bound to be a star.... Mr Hendrick said, "If your so sure, put some of your $ into it". Then 9 years later that team is the 5 Time defending Sprint Cup Champions... Seems to me like he made a pretty wise investment. At some point Hendrick bought majority back from Jeff but it was always flown under the Hendrick banner.

What about FORD? Didn't he drive Fords in the USAC ranks and the Baby Ruth Busch Series car for Bill Davis before Hendrick signed him? Using some of your theories shouldn't he be pouring $ into Roush Yates engine programs? OF COURSE NOT. How ridiculous some of you sound. ..............