By Bill Wright
Knoxville, IA, June 3, 2021 – At long last the 31st National Sprint Car Hall of Fame weekend is upon us! We’ll be saluting our 2020 inductees, Bill Cummings, Walt Dyer, Greg Hodnett, Don Lamberti, Paul Leffler, Spencer Riggs, Tim Shaffer and Jeff Swindell on Saturday at Noon at the Dyer-Hudson building on the Marion County Fairgrounds. We’ll also celebrate our past inductees, and enjoy our bench racing session dedicated to late inductee, Steve Stapp, on Friday night.
Things start Friday night with refreshments on the second floor of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum at 6 p.m. At 7 p.m., we will hold our annual “bench racing session” with our National Sprint Car Hall of Fame inductees. The event is open and free to the public. We hope you can make it for some of the greatest racing stories you’ll ever hear.
This year, we’ll be saluting Steve Stapp, who recently passed away. We’re expecting his wife, Rosemary, to join the crew as we have some fun paying tribute to the “Bopper.” Dave Hare will be on hand to moderate the event scheduled for 7 to 9 p.m.
Some of the past inductees expected at this weekend’s festivities include Dave Argabright, Allan Brown, Shane Carson, Doug Clark, Gene Crucean, Jack Elam, Shirley Kear Valentine, John Mahoney, Bob Mays, Lynn Paxton, Tom Schmeh, Pat Sullivan, and more.
On Saturday, the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame induction banquet will commence at 12 noon at the Dyer-Hudson Hall on the Marion County Fairgounds. Lunch will be catered by The Rib Shack. Inductions will follow honoring our new members of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame: Walt Dyer, Don Lamberti, Spencer Riggs, Tim Shaffer, and Jeff Swindell will be here, as will the family and friends of Bill Cummings, Greg Hodnett and Paul Leffler.
Tickets can be purchased for $30, by calling the museum at 641 842-6176, or $35 at the door.
Following the banquet, things shift to the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum’s second floor, where the Hall of Fame plaques will be revealed.
In addition, National Sprint Car Hall of Fame inductees, John Mahoney, Bob Mays, and Pat Sullivan will be doing a book signing on the first floor of the museum at 4:00 p.m. Their new compilation (with Richie Murray) is “Rolling Thunder: 50 Years of USAC Silver Crown Racing, 1971-2020.”
For more information on the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum and the special events happening here, visit www.SprintCarHoF.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum
One Sprint Capital Place
Knoxville, IA 50138
Phone: 641-842-6176
Fax: 641-842-6177
E-mail: Info@SprintCarHoF.com
Website: www.SprintCarHoF.com