They settled in Indiana, to be close to the Speedway where Sweikert hoped to race and win. As firemen worked, the Rev. He died a week later. Orem, Utah. Required fields are marked *. Salem is a track steeped in history with many of the giants in auto racing having competed on the treacherous hills at some point in their careers, Names such as Ruttman, Carter, Sweikert, OConnor, Jones, Foyt, Unser, Andretti, Vogler, Allison, Parsons, Waltrip, Schrader, Gordon and Stewart are just a few names from the past that grace the list of past winners. I had a son who was killed in a crash as well.''. There is also a Team Vogler Classic at the Indianapolis Speedrome. I just raced. He was leading the race at the time, when his car crashed with just over a lap to go. The bodies were taken to the Conkle West 16th LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Racing is returning to Salem, Indiana. NASCAR hadnt yet arrived to swallow the sport. Search Provo obituaries and condolences, hosted by Echovita.com. February 27, 2023 (100 years old) View obituary. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The wheel came off in Turn 2, snapped from its axle in a two-car collision. In 1947, Sweikert met his first wife, Marion Edwards, at a party at UCLA. You go to Salem, and you go home a widow. Sweikert was completing just his fourth lap as Oakland driver Ed Elisians car seemed to push Sweikert gradually higher and higher up the banked track. The crash happened about 40 minutes earlier. [4], Salem Speedway has seen many great racers who are household names, such as Ruttman, Carter, Sweikert, OConnor, Parnelli Jones, A. J. Foyt, Al Unser, Mario Andretti, Vogler, Allison, Parsons, Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Busch, Kasey Kahne, Ken Schrader, Joey Logano, and the list goes on. At smaller tracks, insurance companies are the primary arbiters of fence height and design. Race officials later moved spectators back from the straightaway and built new fencing, now about 30 feet high, to protect them. Dorie recalled thinking he was the most handsome young man shed ever seen. "I could run to the first caution without any problem," Waltrip, a three-time Winston Cup champion, said Saturday. Carol Ann Williams. The 2023 Salem Speedway tentative schedule: April 8: (3rd Annual Easter Egg Hunt) Open Practice for all divisions, April 16: (Season Opener) GAS, CVBT, CVST, Scrappers, May 7: (Derby Hangover Twin 75s) GAS, CVBT, CVST, 602 Stocks, June 3: ASA/CRA Super Series, JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour, GAS, June 17: (Semis on The High Banks) Semis, CVBT, Scrappers, July 1-2: (Firecracker 200 Weekend) GAS, CVBT, CVST, 602 Stocks, Legends, July 22: (Midwest Street Stock Battle and Late Models) GAS, CRA Street Stocks, CRA Late Model Sportsman, CVBT, Aug. 19: (Dollar Beer and Cruise In) GAS, CVBT, CVST, 602 Stocks, Scrappers, Sept. 9: (End of Summer 100) GAS, CVBT, CVST, Legends, Oct. 21-22: (Halloween 200 Weekend) Halloween 200, CVBT 200, CVST, MF8, 602 Stocks, Scrappers, Bloomington Speedway releases 2023 schedule. That year the family moved briefly to San Francisco, then across the bay to the rural town of Hayward, California. Donald Davidson, historian for the Indianapolis 500, said Sweikert is highly regarded among those familiar with the sports heritage. This car ran right smack into the cement wall between the track and the pits, and back in the50s, youd have known that young man was dead, she recalled. Speedway infield. It bounded free down the small-track straightaway and into the pits, slamming off a car's hood and leaping, faster than fright, into the Salem (Ind.) Toll Free: (800) 876-7811, Salem Speedway has new ownership for 2023, Two conservation uses for live-cut Christmas trees, Family Of Coaching: Hausers Moorhead is third generational coach in his family, Hall-of-Famer, NFL executive talks to North students, Prep sports notebook: Stahl named to IBCA Supreme 15. Coming out of the 4th turn, the two cars started down the straightaway in front of the grandstand. [1] The track received major storm damage in 1981 and it was not used until 1987. Then came a June 17 sprint car race at Salem Speedway. In a 1998 incident, an out-of-control race car climbed over a fence at a Phoenix speedway and came to rest just 15 feet from fan seating. Richard Kavanagh, pastor of St. Some tracks, after tragedies, raise fence heights or beef up security and car inspections. [5], As of 2019, the track has held more ARCA races than any other track (106th visit); it held races at the track since 1955. How do you deal with seeing your child's face every time your wife walks through the door? A naturally gifted mechanic, he frequently won street races throughout the East Bay. This year's Fall Classic at the .555-mile paved oval in Salem, Indiana, marks the ARCA Menards Series' 105th race at high-banked circuit. Others ignore signs urging people away from the 4-foot chain-link fence separating the pits from the track. Published In. As the field favorite going for his third consecutive He had reached the first pinnacle, but not the pinnacle, recalled Dorie Sweikert, his wife at the time. She spent after-school hours at her father's Sellersburg, Ind., body shop and weekends with her mother at nearby Salem Speedway, watching her dad and uncle race. Dr. Dan Anderson pronounced Vogler dead at 11:40 p.m. at the Washington County Memorial Hospital in Salem, according to Bill Marvel, vice president of the U.S. Auto Club. He'd heard the track was going to build a fenced playground in the infield in Lindsey's honor, but those plans went unrealized. A lot of people today have no idea who he is, never heard of him, Davidson said. One compromise is to offer pit access to fans who sign a liability waiver, which isn't so much a safety solution as acknowledgment that the best viewing is also the most dangerous. I had a deep spiritual belief that got me through that. Your email address will not be published. Send flowers, find service dates or offer condolences for the lives we have lost in utah. When Vogler got word of Fittipaldi's penalty, he went up to USAC to testify for him, calling the penalty "unjust." He died the day after his sister, on his 10th birthday. On July 21, 1990, during the Joe James / Pat O'Connor Memorial sprint car event at the Salem Speedway, which was nationally broadcast on ESPN Thunder, sprint car driver Rich Vogler sustained fatal head injuries due to a crash in turn 4. There are improvements that I want to make to the pavement, the pit area, lighting, infield concessions, infield restrooms and the scoreboard. That was Bobs favorite of the half-mile tracks, Dorie Sweikert said. Wife of popular Wild 94.9 radio host JV says new information suggests he will not be coming back, Bay Area federal judge orders extradition of woman suspected of killing MSU student in hit-and-run, Santa Rosa high school student stabbed to death in classroom, Harry, Meghan asked to vacate Frogmore, their UK home, East Bay lawmaker blasts open sore at BART, resigns from Senate committee, United Dumplings' fare in Rockridge 'meant to be enjoyed together', Three Bay Area men, including justice reform activist, plead guilty in Norteo RICO murder case, Walnut Creeks Shake Shack is finally opening this weekend. 2803 Obituaries. He had that charisma.. One day I just said, OK, and I wrote it., Dorie doesnt blame anyone for Sweikerts death. At their funeral, the Rev. Most race fans don't. Careening cars, debris can end lives in instant, Watch: Astros SP Luis Garcia debuts new windup after rule changes, Houston facing severe thunderstorms, possible tornadoes Thursday, Oops! This page was last edited on 23 December 2014, at 08:46. Star, as published on Aug. 12, 1956, Mother Finds Pair in In Charlotte, speedway officials made no changes in the 10 months after the Michigan wreck, then raised their fences from 15 to 21 feet after their own open-wheel racing accident. The challenge for speedway owners: How do you balance the counterweights of safety and intimacy? Report: Houston is the No. She went back to California The .555-Mile oval that features imposing 33-degree banked turns was built strictly for speed. Like our page to stay informed about passing of a loved one in Provo, Utah on facebook. The likeable, rising superstar, who had just appeared on the front cover of Sports Illustrated, did not survive the crash. "It was," he said, "nobody's fault.". Send comments to [emailprotected]. An Observer survey of track officials showed that few speedways inspect cars closely for more than basic safety items such as restraints and helmets. Weinberger and Ostapenko began artificial respiration. Bob Sweikerts death in an auto race last June was reflected Although Salem says technicians inspect cars, Mayden, a former driver there, says cars drove often with deficient parts -- especially in the lower classes. You have permission to edit this article. "I'm happy to be in the front of the field, even if it's not on the pole.". Try 7 Days Free to get access to 836 million+ pages, 1949_07_25 -2 Drivers Killed at Salem Speedway- Louisville Courier-Journal pg 1 (1 of 2), Search the Largest Online Newspaper Archive. He was awarded a 40th-place finish (as a "Did Not Start").[6]. View local obituaries in utah. [1], Bob Sweikert grew up in pre-war Los Angeles. His father Donald Vogler died in a midget car accident at the Indianapolis Speedrome on May 1, 1981. Learn how your comment data is processed. Both tracks also increased their fences' overhang. She figures it was a combination of factors, but mostly this: It was Bobs time to die, and he died.. Nobody planned this tragedy, he told them. Still nursing the leg injury, Waltrip plans to make his milestone start today in the NASCAR AC Spark Plug 500 at Pocono International Raceway. After 1949 Sweikert became close friends with Johnny Boyd of Fresno, California when he met him on the California racing circuit. Martin took the pole for today's 12:10 p.m. race, qualifying his Ford at 158.264 mph. [1] He competed in the Indianapolis 500 five times, and his best finish was eighth in 1989. This was his 170th win. At the time, Vogler was scheduled to run the full Winston Cup Series in the near-future for U.S. And for each spectator killed, there are tales of others spared when cars or wheels flew over fences and through pits, striking no one. Bob Sweikert participated in 5 World Championship races. which Sweikert was building of tall cedar stakes when he was killed at Salem, Salem Speedway opened in 1947, providing fans with exciting fast paced racing on the .555-mile oval that features imposing 33-degree banked turns that were built strictly for speed! He drove in northern California that year and later in Los Angeles. Mike Harrington: His team looks good, even without Alex Tuch. He would have raced, anyway.. ''Rich saw his father die,'' said Marvel. 1 sprint car, just one year after he won the worlds most famous race, tumbled over the turn one wall at Salem Speedway. [3], Vogler finished seventeenth in his only NASCAR Busch Series start at the North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham in 1988.[4]. The event at one of the iconic short tracks in the county is being . Track technicians had not inspected the car. In the 1950s, talent won races, but luck decided who lived and died on the track. 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