Car Was for Sale When His Ship Came In

When Kenny Smith won the Pro-Four Modified division main event last Saturday night at Saugus Speedway, he had a “For Sale” sign on the window of his blue and red No. 43 Chevrolet Lumina. It was Smith’s eighth victory in 14 races this season and he had won the track championship, but he had also run out of money to finance his long-standing hobby.

Monday, the El Monte driver took the sign off the car.

He and his wife, Marylou, had just won the Super Lotto and its $24-million prize. He will collect $883,000, after taxes, for the next 20 years.

Smith, 46, has been racing cars regularly in Southern California since he was 16 at tracks such as Riverside Raceway, Irwindale, Speedway 605, Orange Show Speedway and Saugus.

“Kenny called the track this morning and left a message,” said Jim White, public relations director at Saugus. “He didn’t say what he wanted.”

Maybe he wanted to buy the track.

Smith told NASCAR Winston Racing Series officials that he might purchase a Southwest Tour car to drive next season.

Callahan’s restaurant in Azusa, where the Smiths purchased their winning ticket, had been one of the car’s sponsors.

Saugus Speedway will close its season Saturday night with its annual Fall Spectacular, a group of three 50-lap races for sportsman, Grand American modified and Figure 8s, plus a 25-lap train race and a destruction derby. Smith is not expected to drive as his class completed its season last week.

The 50-lapper for sportsman cars, the top of the line at Saugus, will be the last of the series. Next year, owner-promoter Roy Wilkings will discontinue the series because of its expense to competitors and replace it with a late model stock class, similar to the pro stock division raced this season.

The sportsman cars were getting so expensive that the fields were getting smaller and smaller, Wilkings said. By making late models the track’s premier series, he believed the track would have a better program with more cars next year for fans and competitors alike.

Sean Woodside, 23, a second-generation driver from Saugus, won his first sportsman track championship, beating Ron Daniels of San Bernardino, Craig Rayburn of Sun Valley and Gary Sigman of Carson in the season-long series. Woodside grew up around the track as both his father, Larry, and his mother, Pamm, are former Saugus drivers.

Woodside also hopes to move up to the Southwest Tour, which already includes such former Saugus veterans as Ron Hornaday Jr., Lance Hooper and Bob Lyon.

Dave Phipps of Simi Valley won his seventh track title and his fourth in a row in the Grand American modified division. His first three championships came as a sportsman driver in 1984, 1987 and 1988. He is the only champion the Grand Ams have known since the series was started in 1991.

Other Saugus champions include Brian Kelly of Arleta, pro stock; John Schultz of Valencia, street stock; and Jeff McCall of Gardena, mini stock.

Briefly

SPEEDWAY BIKES--Costa Mesa Speedway will play host to an Interstate Challenge Friday night at the Orange County Fairgrounds as a final tuneup for the U.S. Nationals, which will be held at the same track on Oct. 1. Seven riders from Northern California will meet seven Southern California regulars, headed by former national champions Mike Faria, Brad Oxley and Bobby Schwartz. . . . Steven Downing of Apple Valley captured the U.S. Junior Nationals last week at Speedway USA. Ryan Fisher of Riverside was second and Jimmy Fishback Jr. of Etiwanda was third.

SPRINT CARS--Ron Shuman will attempt to continue his charge toward the top of the Sprint Car Racing Assn. standings when the wingless sprinters race Saturday night at Santa Maria Speedway. Shuman, winner of the last two races, is third with 1033 points to 1060 for Rip Williams and 1047 for Mike Kirby. . . . The final race of the Budweiser Golden State Challenge series for winged sprint cars will be held Saturday night at Watsonville Speedway. Five-time champion Brent Kaeding and Steve Kent will decide the championship.

STOCK CARS--Ventura Raceway will close its Coors Light series season Friday night at Seaside Park. . . . Cajon Speedway will hold its final points races of the season Saturday night, followed by a destruction derby. . . . Orange Show Speedway in San Bernardino will feature pro and foreign mini stocks Saturday night. . . . Sunrise Valley Raceway in Adelanto will hold its monthly racing program Saturday night. . . . Glen Burke of Las Vegas captured the six-race Las Vegas-Blythe Challenge Series and also leads the Blythe track championship series by one point over Deryk Ward of Palm Springs with one race remaining.

ROAD RACING--The Cal Club will hold a series of regional championship races Saturday and Sunday at Willow Springs Raceway. Included will be the seventh round of the Toyota Sportsman Challenge series for stock cars. The response for the Toyota series has been so enthusiastic that Willow Springs promoter Bill Huth has scheduled a professional series next year for the same class.

MISCELLANY--Three-quarter midgets of the United States Auto Club’s western region will race Saturday night at Ventura Raceway. . . . Bakersfield Speedway will hold an American Motorcyclist Assn. regional dirt track championship Saturday night.