It Was A Joke!

Would someone, please — for every reason in the world — tell William Michael and all the rest of the misguided codgers in NSSN’s readership that Paul Ruiz’s letter was a joke?
He was merely highlighting, with what was supposed to be humor that many of us got, the puerile actions of an immature driver. He was taking the side of an innocent senior citizen race-track employee who was victimized by a driver so low I won’t even write his name.
Stop treating Mr. Ruiz like he was the bad guy, and for all the rest of NSSN’s readership, learn to read and get a sense of humor, please!

Thanks For Tribute

Thank you! I was beginning to think you were never going to do a Through The Lens page for Jan Opperman. Every week when my paper would arrive, the first thing I would look for was a TTL tribute to Opp.
I’m a long-time subscriber to NSSN (40-plus years) and a huge fan of Jan Opperman. My collection of photos of The Man is now past the 200 mark and constantly growing.
Jan can’t thank you enough for helping to keep his memory alive. Please let me thank you on his behalf.

Olson Showed Arms, Heart

I was shocked when I saw the picture and read the paragraph about Kevin Olson at the Chili Bowl — I just didn’t think there were any brave race drivers any more.
The open-wheel cars can barely be called an open cockpit anymore. The driver’s compartment is edging closer and closer to complete encasement. I feel sure there are more and more drivers with the Rusty “I’d rather be strapped in an electric chair than in an Indy car” Wallace attitude and the lack of nerve.
I wish I could have seen Kevin at the Chili Bowl. I wonder if all the other guys just thought he was crazy or were there a few who wondered if maybe he was braver?
I have to say, I am shocked that the management allowed him to run without a uniform. However, I’m glad they did.
Could someone (USAC) please make a rule to take the side airfoils off the open-wheel cars? Let’s have open-cockpit cars again. Leave the closed-up cars to the guys who aren’t brave enough for open wheel.

All For ‘Bopper Day’

I really enjoyed the article on Steve “Bopper” Stapp. I can’t imagine how he looks with his grin, wearing that straw hat, complete with a flower. Only the Bopper could do that with confidence at a race-car gathering.
I based out of their shop for many years and got to know the whole family. You won’t meet a nicer bunch of people. The only thing bigger than Bobber’s bibs is the size of his heart. I’m glad I became friends with him and his family.
I think they should have “Bopper Day” at the races, where everyone wears bibs.

And From The Bopper...

Just wanted to say how much I appreciated Tia and Craig Dori inviting me to sit in on the roundtable at the Hoosier Racer’s Swapmeet the last Saturday in January. It was a pleasure for me to sit up on the stage with seven great guys and talk to all the people about “old-time racing.” I had a wonderful time.
During the roundtable, Dave Argabright and Kevin Eckert spoke of what a good promoter Earl Baltes was. I wish Dave and Kevin had been around in the days of J.C. Agajanian, who promoted some of the best races I have ever seen. When I was too young to be in the pits, Aggie let me work the scoreboard for him. I greatly admired the man. I was sorry to learn that his wife, Faye, passed away recently. She will be missed.
I want to thank Dave for the column he wrote about me in your last issue. My wife says he “hit my nail right on the head!”
All of my racing life I have read NSSN. It’s one of my good habits. Keep those issues coming.
A big hello to Chris and Corinne (Economaki), too.

Restoring Silver Crown

My race fans have been telling me for years about the Chili Bowl and, thanks to HBO Pay Per View, I finally got to see it. It’s the best $25 I ever spent.
If the new guys at USAC, Kevin Miller and Jason Smith are serious about restoring the Silver Crown series to its former glory, then two things have to happen.
Silver Crown cars have to come back on ESPN or pay-per-view, and for that to work the design of the Crown car has to change. Everyone loves a beauty contest, but no one wants to see an ugly contest. Chris Paulsen, owner of C&R Racing, addressed this problem in NSSN last spring. He said that several design people had been hired to change the front of the butt-ugly Crown cars. I never saw any change, so while I was in the pits at the Copper Classic last November, I talked to some people, and I was informed that several new designs were submitted to USAC but were rejected without any real consideration. That’s typical USAC — with their heads buried in the sand.
If Smith wants to make the Silver Crown cars a priority, then he must reach out to Paulsen, who I believe is a genius and who builds the best Silver Crown cars available. Let Paulsen redesign the car, then obtain the sponsorship to get the races back on ESPN or pay-per-view.
I guess we’ll find out real soon if Smith was the right man for the job or whether it should have been Pancho Carter.