By Bob Baker
KNOXVILLE, IOWA (February 27, 2010) – Tickets for the twenty-first annual National Sprint Car Hall of Fame (NSCHoF) induction banquet, slated for Saturday afternoon, June 5, are now available by calling the non-profit Knoxville-based museum at 1-800-874-4488. This year’s inductees include Bobbie Adamson, Hank Arnold, Fred Linder, Frank Riddle, Hal Robson, Herman Schurch, Clyde Adams, Casey Luna, Don Shepherd, George Bentel, Fred Brownfield, and Ben Krasner.
The banquet will be held from 12 Noon until 3 p.m. and it will again be co-hosted by Dave Argabright and Pat Sullivan. Tickets are twenty-five dollars each, and the dress code for the dinner/awards function will be “dressy casual”. To date, Bobbie Adamson, Fred Linder, Casey Luna and Don Shepherd have all indicated to museum executive director Bob Baker that they plan on being in attendance on the June 3-4-5 induction weekend. In addition, Fred Brownfield’s widow Debbie Brownfield Beitler, Frank Riddle’s son Jim, Hal Robson’s son Lee, and Hank Arnold’s son Larry and their respective families have all indicated that they are planning to be in Knoxville on Saturday, June 5.
For the first time ever, the NSCHoF induction weekend at the legendary Knoxville Raceway will feature three nights of the World of Outlaws (WoO) Sprint Car Series, concluding with the inaugural “Hall of Fame Classic”. Also on the card is the winged 305-cubic-inch sprint car division on .Thursday, June 3, and the winged 360 c.i. class on Saturday, June 5. In between, on Friday, June 4, the WoO Sprint Series will be joined by the eighteenth annual Knoxville Masters Classic, which has been won on occasion through the years by current National Sprint Car Hall of Famers Rick Ferkel (1993, ’94, ’95), Roger Rager (1999, 2001, ’05), Jimmy Sills (2003, ’04), Shane Carson (2006), and Sammy Swindell (2009). The Masters Classic is a winged 360-cubic-inch sprint car race for drivers age fifty and over, with this year’s first entrant being ‘rookie of the race’ contender Keith Prutzman of Hamburg, Pennsylvania. Interestingly, Keith’s son Eric is a crew member for four-time and defending Knoxville Nationals champion Donny Schatz, who will be racing in that weekend’s WoO races.
Those seeking more information on the NSCHoF induction weekend are encouraged to call the museum at 641-842-6176, or visit their web-site at www.sprintcarhof.com. Those wanting more ticket or camping information for the weekend’s sprint car races should call the track at 641-842-5431, or visit their web-site at www.knoxvilleraceway.com.