TALLADEGA, Ala. — The International Motorsports Hall of Fame welcomed a new class of inductees Thursday night.
The group included stock-car racers, drag racers, engine builders, a land-speed record setter and a racing promoter.
The six new members are land-speed record breaker Art Arfons, NASCAR champion Robert “Red” Byron, drag- racing driver and engine builder Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins, car fabricator Frank Kurtis, NASCAR car owner and driver Everett “Cotton” Owens and Winston promoter Ralph Seagraves.
“This is the best of the best,” said Tim Arfons, son of the late Art Arfons. “If you get included in this, you’re on top.”
Now the Class of 2008 is forever enshrined in a museum that honors legends throughout the motorsports spectrum, from such famous drivers as Richard Petty and A.J. Foyt to such well-known names as Enzo Ferrari and Henry Ford.
“This puts me in the same place with people who got a whole lot more recognition than I did,” said Jenkins with a smile that belied his “Grumpy” nickname.
Seeing his late father be inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame was especially gratifying for Colbert Seagraves. He said that since Ralph Seagraves’s contribution to motorsports occurred largely away from the track, it would be easy for people to overlook him.
“I know my father would be extremely honored,” Seagraves said. “This International Motorsports Hall of Fame has such meaning because it encompasses everything. It encompasses Formula One, road racing, motorcycle racing. For him to be included in this group — with all the famous drivers — it’s huge. It just adds a lot of legitimacy to what he did.”