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1990 SCCA Racing At Its Best
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- Category: Ponca City Grand Prix
- Published on Friday, 08 August 2014 15:26
- Hits: 1970
1990 SCCA Racing At Its Best
The dust has settled, the water barrels have been emptied and the 24th Ponca City Grand Prix is history. I'd like to share 
with you a few glimpses of what makes “our race” one of SCCA's greatest.
Over sixty full licensed flag people drove hundreds of miles to work Ponca's corners in the stifling heat. Station one carried a formula vee half the length of the guardrail. Station three pulled ton's of cars off the tires and rebuilt the barrels after every race. Those at station four stood in the sun with no hope of “action” at this non-turn. Thanks to all of you.
Dave Brown and the AmBucs offered a fantastic feed Saturday night. Bar-B-Qued chicken quarters, home grown tomatoes and sweet onions satiated the appetites of hundreds. All of it free!
Glenn Danford unselfishly loaned his car to the Stewards for a VIP parade car. The TR-3 looked magnificent and it got many times more comments than did the 1990 Dodge convertible pace car. Glenn's only comment was for us to “open her up more". Thanks Glenn for the nostalgic touch.
Camp Wentz and its magnificent art-deco 
pool was perfect for moonlight coolers. 0ver seventy drivers and workers camped at Wentz and they enjoyed it thoroughly. This appears to be the start of a new tradition.
The Miller Draft NASCAR stocker was the “race car" of the weekend. Its lunch time hot laps peaked the decibel meter and gave testimony to the popularity of the good ole boys. Two dozen of those stockers at Ponca would suck the paint off the barrels and leave the spectators limp in their seats.
The smell of hot brakes and seared clutches from the Showroom Stocks made up for the lack of noise. Perhaps the best race of the weekend, it featured the first NASCAR pickup at Ponca. Then two touch and go penalties for yellow flag passing made the finish even more suspenseful.
I marveled at Toly Arutunoff's ability to "put down” the big bucks teams with class. Even though he has enough money to buy the track (he owns Hallett) he showed up at tech on Friday night towing his Opel behind an LTD. Toly dropped off his HP GT and went back to Tulsa for a party Saturday. 0n Sunday he drove the National race without a clutch and finished fourth. No crew, no timers, no motor home, just love for the sport.
Finally Bob Kirby's comments about Ponca. He had raced here from California in 1968, but had not returned because of the big JuIy 4th races at Riverside. The demise of that "super track” let him return and dominate the EP field.
Perhaps that is the real story of Ponca, a track that has been unchanged for four decades. Nothing fancy, no catch fences or concrete canyons. Just amateur racers pursuing their hobby in the cottonwoods of 0klahoma.
