Learning To Love Oval Track Racing By: John E. Aibel

Road Racing at Watkins Glen

Despite the fact that my first exposure to auto sport racing was of the road race variety, I must admit it is not the best way for a spectator to view a race. Yes, I was in awe of the spectacle, the fancy cars, the sound of the Ferrari screaming down the strait, the wail of the BMW, the earth pounding deep moan of the Allards, and Cunninghams, and the high pitch whine of the tiny Crosley-powered cars. It was just hard to follow the race cars.

Who was leading, and in which class a given car was running? The racers just strung out into a parade of color. Witnessing only a small section of raceway, I just never understood the totality of the event.

I was aware of the other forms of auto sport, but had not witnessed them. My experience expanded greatly when my family was visiting our winter home located in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Palm Beach Speedway
photo by Getty Images

Way out west past the airport was the local fairgrounds where the local stock car track was located. I knew about such places by reading the car magazines of the era. Names like Langhorne, Pennsylvania, Trenton, New Jersey, where the sprint cars ran under the AAA sanctioning. These race series of course ended in the Indianapolis 500 race in May. Knowing about a sport, but never having seen this type of racing, I just had no clue as to what it was all about.

All of a sudden oval racing was real as we attended the races. Not sprint cars but what was called stock car racing, and modified stock cars. The National Stock Car Racing Association ran the show in Florida at the time. These cars did not look like new cars of the day, no they looked like old 1937 era Fords without windows and all stripped down. You could see the engines as they whizzed by. Nothing fancy about these racers.

Now I could understand the allure of oval track racing. I could see the whole track from the stands, and see who was leading, and how many cars were right there fighting for the lead. No train like line of cars, no, a tight side-by-side racing. Close exciting competition. I was hooked. This was real racing!

We attended many races at the West Palm Beach Raceway over the following years. I even became the fan of a great driver by the name of Al Miller. This man could “Drive” and was usually in the winner of the races I saw.

During the summers my friends and I would go to the local stock car tracks as spectators. We would attend the race track located in Springfield, Massachusetts, and Lebanon, New York. We always had a great time watching the banging and shoving going on.

One sultry night the mixture of humidity, and fine clay dust filled the air and obliterated our view of the backstretch. It was a surreal experience to hear but not see the action.

Yes, I do get the allure of oval racing despite being a confirmed road race devotee.