Hoopers Blaze Checkered Trail : Lance Back at Saugus, Where Winning Is a Family Tradition

While most kids played baseball or football after school, Lance Hooper spent his spare time in the garage, working side by side with his father getting a car ready for its next race.

“From the time I was about two weeks old, I’ve probably been at the racetrack every Saturday night,” Hooper said.

Tonight won’t be an exception. Hooper, 28, from Palmdale, has entered his blue and orange Pontiac Grand Prix in the NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour at Saugus Speedway.

If history accounts for anything, Hooper can be considered a favorite in the 100-lap feature.

Hooper’s roots run deep at Saugus. The Hoopers have won a division championship in each of the past four decades.

Lance’s uncle won one in the 1960s. His father, Ray Sr., claimed a title in 1970, and his brother, Ray Jr., won a title during the ‘80s.

Lance kept with tradition by winning the Sportsman Model title in 1991. On the Southwest Tour, he is in fourth place in with 934 points.

He finished second, less then a second behind Craig Raudman, last week at Las Vegas.

When the Southwest Tour stopped at Saugus in September, Hooper won. He figures there’s no reason why he can’t take the checkered flag again.

“The points leader [Jim Inglebright] and some of the other drivers will have trouble at this track and I look to capitalize on that,” Hooper said.

Few racers are as familiar with the Saugus surface as Hooper, who has nearly 25 years of experience at the track.

“To me, Saugus is certainly the most-difficult track on the circuit,” Hooper said. “It’s flat and there are no banks on the turns. Banks are usually forgiving to a race car.”

Since graduating to the Southwest Tour, Hooper has won three tour races and set track records for fastest timed lap at both the Phoenix International Raceway and Colorado National Speedway.

The Southwest Tour consists of 18 races at 14 different tracks around the Western United States. Hooper said visiting different tracks “makes for better racing.”

“Everyone racing is a champion from somewhere and each week we’re visiting [some racer’s] home track,” he said.

M.K. Kanke of Granada Hills, Bob Lyon of Agua Dulce, Doug Renno of Canoga Park and Keith Spangler of Chatsworth are included in tonight’s field.

Hooper won in Bakersfield on April 8, then followed with a series of disappointing finishes.

A race at Sears Point in Sonoma brought more misfortune. On the second lap, a shock bolt broke and his car sailed over an embankment into a ravine.

But as the only factory-sponsored driver on the circuit, Hooper overcome such setbacks.

“Knowing that a company is investing in you gives you an idea for the future,” Hooper said. “You can stick with your plan even if things don’t go your way for a while.”

Ironically, Hooper’s unique knack for avoiding trouble prompted team owner Ray Claridge to select him as his driver.

“Lance was brought to my attention because he had the most natural ability on the West Coast,” Claridge said.

“He avoids the situations that put most people out of the race, and that is a talent.”

One of Hooper’s goals is to win a Winston Cup title in five years.

But if that doesn’t work out he would like to extend his family’s streak of championships at Saugus.

“I’d like to go for a fifth decade,” Hooper said. “Auto racing is a male-dominated sport but it’s not a physical sport. There’s no reason a female can’t drive.

“I’ve got a daughter. . . . You never know.”