11/7/07 For Immediate Release
Contact: Ron Hedger 518-885-7481
NYSSCA HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES A "WHO’S
WHO" OF STOCK CAR RACING
Albany, NY Two fan-favorite dirt track stars, an
outstanding asphalt racer and fabricator, a five decade
NASCAR modified owner and a highly respected
journalist will comprise the New York State Stock Car
Association’s Hall of Fame inductees for 2008.
Florida’s Buzzie Reutimann, unknown when he came
north with his #00 coupe, was soon winning races from
Reading, PA to Middletown, NY. He became a leading
driver in the famed All-Star League as well, but is
probably best known for winning the very first of Glenn
Donnelly’s fall DIRT classics on the Syracuse Mile,
known today as the Rite Aid 200.
Reutimann backed up his 1972 Syracuse win over
NASCAR star Jerry Cook by edging Tommy Corellis in ’
73. The best he could do after that was second to Gary
Balough’s Batmobile in 1980, often considered a "first
in class" performance, but he was always in
contention. Still active in the Florida version of IMCA
modifieds, Reutimann also follows the NASCAR Nextel
Cup and Busch series, assisting son David, a popular
Toyota driver.
Another Syracuse winner, 1986 champion "Barefoot
Bob" McCreadie, enters the NYSSCA Hall of Fame with
an amazing 507 documented feature wins at some 54
speedways from Canada to Australia. New York’s
Canandaigua Speedway tops the list at 99, followed by
Brewerton and Weedsport, where he claimed 84 and
70 wins, respectively.
McCreadie’s 47 wins in 1994 eclipsed the career
records of most of his contemporaries, but he also had
eight other seasons where he topped the 25-win mark.
And whether he won or not, McCreadie always had the
crowd with him, representing the "little guys" of the
world against the elite.
Seriously injured when a car hit his motorcycle in a
parking lot, McCreadie now spends his time following
the career of son Tim, 2006 WoO Late Model champion
and currently a NASCAR development driver with
Richard Childress Racing.
Asphalt superstar Maynard Troyer became a household
name in short track racing the old fashioned way, by
winning races everywhere he went. But his second
career, fabricating the "factory built" asphalt modifieds
and radical Troyer Mud Busses that made Danny and
Alan Johnson famous, made his name familiar to
succeeding generations as well.
A steady winner at Spencer, Fulton, Lancaster,
Shangri-La, Oswego and elsewhere, Troyer’s Ford
powered Falcons and Pintos were always immaculate
and on the cutting edge technically. To look at just
three of the many tracks where he was a major force,
Troyer won four championships at Lancaster, had six
wins as an outsider at Stafford Springs, including
three consecutive Spring Sizzlers (‘77-‘79) and won the ’
76 and ‘77 Race of Champions on the treacherous
Trenton, NJ Speedway.
Troyer is also remembered for riding out a horrendous
series of flips at the 1970 Daytona 500, the low point of
his 14 event Winston Cup career. His Troyer chassis
business, today under the guidance of Billy Colton,
remains among the elite of fabrication shops and has
put countless drivers into Victory Lane.
Art Barry’s five-decade career as a NASCAR modified
owner and fabricator has seen him build scores of
asphalt cars for himself and others. He first came to
the forefront of the New York racing scene at Albany-
Saratoga, Airborne Park and Utica-Rome with a
winning coupe driven by Bobby Santos, grandfather of
current NASCAR up and comer Bobby Santos 3rd.
Since that time, his own cars have been wheeled by
such notables as Leo Cleary, Eddie Flemke, Brett
Bodine, George Summers, Jeff Fuller, Greg Sacks, his
son, Ken and Mike Stefanik, with whom he won the
NASCAR national championship in 2000 and 2001. A
tireless worker, Barry is also known for helping others
perfect their car’s handling, whether or not they were
customers of his Spearpoint Auto fabrication business.
The late Les Deuel was a "writer’s writer" who covered
the local scene for both the Albany Times-Union and
the racing trade papers. He was also among the first to
host a radio show devoted totally to regional short
track racing.
He knew everybody in the pits and at one time or
another, wrote about most of them. Deuel especially
loved the "characters" of racing. He told readers about
the larger-than-life men who drove the snarling
modifieds of the day, relating their foibles as well as
their accomplishments, in the process attracting
readers to area speedways to watch them perform.
The newest NYSSCA Hall of Fame members will be
inducted at the association’s annual awards banquet,
set for Saturday, January 19th at the Polish
Community Center on Washington Avenue Extension in
Albany. The next day they will be introduced to the
public at the Saratoga Automobile Museum, located on
the Avenue of the Pines in the Saratoga Spa State
Park. The event is set for 11 am in the Racing in New
York gallery, site of the permanent NYSSCA Hall of
Fame display.
Update - 1/13/07
Also of note will be the unveiling of the Museum's 'The
Syracuse Mile' display which includes one of Jim
Hurtibise's Champ cars, Gary Balough's winning
'Batmobile' and Cliff Kotary's 1963 State Fair winning
#90 - should be great fun, see you there.
Update - 1/27/07
The best laid plans don't always work out. Last Sunday,
after showering, shaving and uh.. well you know, I
dressed up nice and was ready to go. Picked up my
cellphone to find a message left by Clara Kotary - Cliff
was in the hospital with a fluctuating heart rate. I
called Mr's Kotary and got his number. Meanwhile,
Cliff's son Roy called from Chicago where he had
attended his daughter's wedding to relate the news.
Apparently Cliff begged the doctors to allow him to go
the event to no avail. I called Cliff and we chatted - get
'em next time. He's feeling better now and on the road
to recovery. Short story long I scuttled my plans and
called Ron Hedger. Ron soldiered on without us and
later related that the Syracuse display as well as the
HOF induction ceremonies were a great success. He's
promised photos which I'll post as soon as I get them,
and sooner or later, I'll got out there myself.
Contact: Ron Hedger 518-885-7481
NYSSCA HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES A "WHO’S
WHO" OF STOCK CAR RACING
Albany, NY Two fan-favorite dirt track stars, an
outstanding asphalt racer and fabricator, a five decade
NASCAR modified owner and a highly respected
journalist will comprise the New York State Stock Car
Association’s Hall of Fame inductees for 2008.
Florida’s Buzzie Reutimann, unknown when he came
north with his #00 coupe, was soon winning races from
Reading, PA to Middletown, NY. He became a leading
driver in the famed All-Star League as well, but is
probably best known for winning the very first of Glenn
Donnelly’s fall DIRT classics on the Syracuse Mile,
known today as the Rite Aid 200.
Reutimann backed up his 1972 Syracuse win over
NASCAR star Jerry Cook by edging Tommy Corellis in ’
73. The best he could do after that was second to Gary
Balough’s Batmobile in 1980, often considered a "first
in class" performance, but he was always in
contention. Still active in the Florida version of IMCA
modifieds, Reutimann also follows the NASCAR Nextel
Cup and Busch series, assisting son David, a popular
Toyota driver.
Another Syracuse winner, 1986 champion "Barefoot
Bob" McCreadie, enters the NYSSCA Hall of Fame with
an amazing 507 documented feature wins at some 54
speedways from Canada to Australia. New York’s
Canandaigua Speedway tops the list at 99, followed by
Brewerton and Weedsport, where he claimed 84 and
70 wins, respectively.
McCreadie’s 47 wins in 1994 eclipsed the career
records of most of his contemporaries, but he also had
eight other seasons where he topped the 25-win mark.
And whether he won or not, McCreadie always had the
crowd with him, representing the "little guys" of the
world against the elite.
Seriously injured when a car hit his motorcycle in a
parking lot, McCreadie now spends his time following
the career of son Tim, 2006 WoO Late Model champion
and currently a NASCAR development driver with
Richard Childress Racing.
Asphalt superstar Maynard Troyer became a household
name in short track racing the old fashioned way, by
winning races everywhere he went. But his second
career, fabricating the "factory built" asphalt modifieds
and radical Troyer Mud Busses that made Danny and
Alan Johnson famous, made his name familiar to
succeeding generations as well.
A steady winner at Spencer, Fulton, Lancaster,
Shangri-La, Oswego and elsewhere, Troyer’s Ford
powered Falcons and Pintos were always immaculate
and on the cutting edge technically. To look at just
three of the many tracks where he was a major force,
Troyer won four championships at Lancaster, had six
wins as an outsider at Stafford Springs, including
three consecutive Spring Sizzlers (‘77-‘79) and won the ’
76 and ‘77 Race of Champions on the treacherous
Trenton, NJ Speedway.
Troyer is also remembered for riding out a horrendous
series of flips at the 1970 Daytona 500, the low point of
his 14 event Winston Cup career. His Troyer chassis
business, today under the guidance of Billy Colton,
remains among the elite of fabrication shops and has
put countless drivers into Victory Lane.
Art Barry’s five-decade career as a NASCAR modified
owner and fabricator has seen him build scores of
asphalt cars for himself and others. He first came to
the forefront of the New York racing scene at Albany-
Saratoga, Airborne Park and Utica-Rome with a
winning coupe driven by Bobby Santos, grandfather of
current NASCAR up and comer Bobby Santos 3rd.
Since that time, his own cars have been wheeled by
such notables as Leo Cleary, Eddie Flemke, Brett
Bodine, George Summers, Jeff Fuller, Greg Sacks, his
son, Ken and Mike Stefanik, with whom he won the
NASCAR national championship in 2000 and 2001. A
tireless worker, Barry is also known for helping others
perfect their car’s handling, whether or not they were
customers of his Spearpoint Auto fabrication business.
The late Les Deuel was a "writer’s writer" who covered
the local scene for both the Albany Times-Union and
the racing trade papers. He was also among the first to
host a radio show devoted totally to regional short
track racing.
He knew everybody in the pits and at one time or
another, wrote about most of them. Deuel especially
loved the "characters" of racing. He told readers about
the larger-than-life men who drove the snarling
modifieds of the day, relating their foibles as well as
their accomplishments, in the process attracting
readers to area speedways to watch them perform.
The newest NYSSCA Hall of Fame members will be
inducted at the association’s annual awards banquet,
set for Saturday, January 19th at the Polish
Community Center on Washington Avenue Extension in
Albany. The next day they will be introduced to the
public at the Saratoga Automobile Museum, located on
the Avenue of the Pines in the Saratoga Spa State
Park. The event is set for 11 am in the Racing in New
York gallery, site of the permanent NYSSCA Hall of
Fame display.
Update - 1/13/07
Also of note will be the unveiling of the Museum's 'The
Syracuse Mile' display which includes one of Jim
Hurtibise's Champ cars, Gary Balough's winning
'Batmobile' and Cliff Kotary's 1963 State Fair winning
#90 - should be great fun, see you there.
Update - 1/27/07
The best laid plans don't always work out. Last Sunday,
after showering, shaving and uh.. well you know, I
dressed up nice and was ready to go. Picked up my
cellphone to find a message left by Clara Kotary - Cliff
was in the hospital with a fluctuating heart rate. I
called Mr's Kotary and got his number. Meanwhile,
Cliff's son Roy called from Chicago where he had
attended his daughter's wedding to relate the news.
Apparently Cliff begged the doctors to allow him to go
the event to no avail. I called Cliff and we chatted - get
'em next time. He's feeling better now and on the road
to recovery. Short story long I scuttled my plans and
called Ron Hedger. Ron soldiered on without us and
later related that the Syracuse display as well as the
HOF induction ceremonies were a great success. He's
promised photos which I'll post as soon as I get them,
and sooner or later, I'll got out there myself.
