MOTOR RACING / VINCE KOWALICK : Benson Learning to Drive in Prime Time

Joe Benson pulls into Saugus Speedway armed with bundles of bumper stickers, piles of T-shirts and stacks of autographed photographs.

He shakes hands with fans, schmoozes with drivers and addresses the crowd between races. He wears red-and-white racing coveralls bearing one-tenth the grime of those worn by track drivers.

No one ever said shaking the label of “celebrity racer” would be easy. Especially for a guy known as “Uncle Joe” to radio listeners throughout Southern California.

Then again, Benson might be picking up speed.

Benson, evening disc jockey for KLOS (95.5 FM) in Los Angeles and one of the most popular radio personalities in Southern California over the past decade, will make his fourth appearance of the season tonight at Saugus.

More significantly Benson, who has moonlighted as a race-car driver since 1987, will be making his first appearance of the season behind the wheel in the track’s Pro Four Modified division. Benson is scheduled to race again Aug. 7 at Saugus.

Improving as a driver, Benson has increased steadily the number of times he has taken the wheel during his 10-month schedule of promotional visits to various West Coast racing venues.

Driving at Saugus, he says, has been his most difficult task.

“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Benson said of Saugus’ flat, third-mile oval. “If you’re doing 17-second laps, that means you’re doing four corners in 17 seconds and there is no time to even breathe. There is no room for error.

“I have no delusions about how well I drive. The main reason for me going to these places is to mingle with people who listen to the radio station and to see who my listeners are and what they think. It’s a chance to get some feedback.”

Racing fans have grown almost as accustomed to seeing Benson at the track as they have listening to him talk about it. His itinerary includes stops at drag strips, road races and Mickey Thompson Stadium Off-Road Series events across California, Arizona, Washington, Nevada and Utah.

Benson’s appearances at Saugus, coupled with his Sunday night “Rock and Roll Race Report,” which typically devotes about five minutes of air time to results of the previous night’s action at Saugus, have made him as popular as punch in the pits.

“There are some disc jockeys who have that kind of popularity and they act like it,” Saugus promoter Ray Wilkings said. “But Joe is down to earth and a really nice guy. The crowd really enjoys his being here.”

All of which makes matters a bit difficult when it comes time to take the wheel--and be taken seriously. Somewhere beneath the pile of promotional paraphernalia is a stock-car driver trying to get out.

“I think a lot of the drivers don’t take him seriously, but he is learning very quickly and he is improving,” Wilkings said. “If you don’t drive all the time, you don’t get any better at it.”

Said Benson: “I was quite concerned about resentment (from other drivers) because I was coming in and driving only occasionally. But the first thing I realized is that I did well enough in my first race and (the drivers) recognized I could handle the car, so I gained some respect.”

Benson, 43, who lives in Glendale, participated in four main events last season at Saugus. His best finish was fourth. However, he emerged from one heat race a bit red-faced after spinning out on the final lap while he was leading. Benson attributed the mishap to a mechanical failure.

But Benson has made his point.

“The second thing we realized is that if I’m there, I’m bringing them more attention,” he said.

That’s where being a celebrity comes in handy.

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Break in the action: Ron Hornaday Jr. of Palmdale is the points leader in the NASCAR Southwest Tour, and Rick Carelli of Denver leads the Winston West standings at the midseason break.

Hornaday (1,423 points), the tour’s defending champion, boasts three victories among a tour-high eight top-five finishes in nine starts. Doug George of Atwater, Calif., who has three victories, is second with 1,394 points. Craig Raudman of Redding, Calif., is third with 1,256 points.

Raudman is the leader among tour rookies with 72 points. Lance Hooper of Palmdale, Sportsman division champion at Saugus in 1991, is fourth among rookies with 62 points. Keith Spangler of Northridge, second in the Saugus Sportsman class in 1989, ranks fifth with 61 points.

Carelli, who finished second Sunday to Ken Schrader of Fenton, Mo., at Portland Speedway, has a series-high three victories in eight starts and 1,373 points. Hershel McGriff of Portland is second with 1,269 points. Dirk Stephens of Tumwater, Wash., (1,266) is third and Bill Sedgwick of Acton (1,138), the series’ defending champion, is fourth.

Among rookies, Stephens (78) and Wayne Jacks of Las Vegas (57), who ranks fifth in the overall standings, are first and second.