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Making a $10,000 to win STARS race in a Street Stock |
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Believe it or not, this story is completely true. |
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In 1994, we traveled the STARS circuit winning the Rookie of the Year Title. During a weekend in North and South Carolina that year, we had a pretty interesting thing happen. It started out with a Friday night race at Antioch Speedway in North Carolina. We were there to run a feature that had been rained out earlier in the year. We started on the outside front row and were running 3rd when the engine blew up about half way through the race. Well, we only had the one car and one engine so we were basically done for the weekend. There was a two day $10,000 to win STARS show at Gafney, SC on Saturday and Sunday that we were planning on going to, so we went down there to at least get show up points since, at the time, we were running 8th in STARS points. STARS also paid $800 show up money to the top ten in points so we wanted to get that since we needed money to fix the engine now. When we got to Gafney Saturday morning, Walter (Stars official) told us we could get our show up points but the only way we could collect our $800 show up money was to at least take the green flag in qualifying. Well, the engine was completely junk so it couldn’t even get us on the track to get the green flag in qualifying. My brother and I were sitting on the back of our trailer sulking about how we wouldn’t be able to collect the $800 when we noticed the guy parked next to us in a street stock car warming the engine up. He asked us why we didn’t unload and we told him about the engine problem we had the night before. Then it hit me!!! I said to Chad (brother), I wonder if we could borrow one of these street stocks to take the green flag in qualifying so we could get our money? I went to Walter and asked him if I could use another car to qualify and he said ok. I asked him if as long as it met the wheelbase and weight requirements we could run it. He said yes. I said “Ok, I’m gonna borrow one of these street stocks and take my qualifying lap with it to get my start money”. I asked if he had a problem with that and he said as long as it weighs 2200lbs and has 104” wheel base he didn’t care what I used. We ran back and talked to the street stocker parked next to us and asked if I could use his car for 1 qualifying lap. I offered him $100 for the use of it. He said we could use it and he didn’t want any money for it but he had to run his heat race first. We were the second car out for qualifying and we were to qualify right after the street stock heat race. Well, his engine blew up on the last lap of his heat race and there wasn’t time to secure another car in time so we missed qualifying. We basically gave up at that point and decided to just watch. We went back to the motel after the races and thought about what we could do. Ray Callahan suggested going to a junk yard and buying an old 350 for a couple hundred bucks and putting it in the car so we could start the B-main on Sunday to get our start money. We couldn’t find a junkyard that was open on Sunday though. We decided to just go to the track and watch the race. When we got to the track we found out that there weren’t enough cars to run a consi so the track announced they would start all the cars in the feature. WE HAD MADE THE FEATURE AND NEVER UNLOADED OUR CAR!! Now we still had to take the green flag in the race to get any money. So I went to one of the street stock guys and asked if I could use their car for one lap for $100. They said ok but they had to run their feature right before our feature. They were running 2nd and would you believe that they blew up their engine on the last lap of the race!!!! The late model feature was lined up and ready to pull out on the track and I had no car again. I ran up to one of the street stocks as he pulled into the pits after his feature and told him that I had $200 and I needed his car for 1 lap. The kid got out of the car and asked his dad. His dad said ok so I gave the kid two 100 dollar bills and hopped in his car as the late model feature was rolling out on the track. I lined up in the 23rd spot right beside Davey Johnson. I still remember the look on Davey’s face when I pulled up beside him in an old street stock and revved up the engine and waved at him. He started laughing and just shook his head. Anyways, I started the feature, made $800 and some street stock guy made an extra $200 that day. I would bet that I am the only guy to have made a $10,000 to win STARS race in a street stock!!!
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