By Bob Baker
Knoxville, Iowa (September 5, 2011) – Excitement continues to build at the National Sprint Car Museum for Friday’s Classic Flat Track National Championship (CFTNC) and Saturday’s American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship races in Knoxville, as John Tibben brought his #60 vintage flat-track motorcycle to the museum today for display all this week. John’s Harley-Davidson bike joins two Garvis Honda motorcycles already in the museum.
Museum curator Tom Schmeh said today, “It’s funny, but you can already tell that excitement is beginning to build for this weekend’s CTNC/AMA shows at the legendary half-mile Knoxville Raceway dirt oval. Maybe it’s just the weather and the forecast, as it is supposed to be in the Seventies all week with virtually no chance of rain. I think that will get a lot of bikers out on the road this week headed to the Sprint Car Capital of the World, possibly for our museum-benefit poker run on Saturday afternoon. And I have to thank John Tibben for bringing his vintage racing bike back to the museum. John Tibben earned National Number 60, from 1959-70, and is AMA Number 37236. The long-time successful AMA flat-track racer and ambassador for the sport is a member of the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame (2004) and lives in Victor, Iowa. He has been a great friend of ours for a long, long time.”
Already on display in the National Sprint Car Museum are two rare Honda RS 750cc motorcycles, the #16 ridden by Ronnie Jones of Oklahoma City and the #80 ridden by Rich King of Waterloo, Iowa. Both bikes are on loan from George Garvis of Des Moines. The Ronnie Jones #16 bike won the last AMA Grand National at the famed Ascot Park in Gardena, California, on September 29, 1990. Interestingly, all three bikes are currently on display under original Ascot Park sprint car-related signage in the Knoxville-based museum.
The September 9-10 weekend opens on Friday night with the fifth and final round of the Classic Flat Track National Championship (CFTNC) Series vintage motorcycle races and closes on Saturday night with the AMA Pro Flat-Track motorcycle races.
The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame is located off turn number two at the legendary Knoxville Raceway and is open seven days a week, year-round. For more information, individuals can visit the museum web site at www.sprintcarhof.com and the race track web site at www.knoxvilleraceway.com. For information on the CFTNC Series, fans are urged to visit http://www.bikedays.com/id52.html. For info on the AMA Pro Flat-Track Series, enthusiasts can visit http://www.amaproracing.com/ft/.