bigelow field grand rapids
We have to go way back to the 1930s when Don and Carson Zeiter were busy building race tracks in the Michigan area first for big cars and then for something new called midgets. Bigelow Field Grand Rapids Colts Michigan State Lg Grand Rapids MI. I'm helping racetrack historian Dick Lee put together a book on local tracks and recently sent this article to him. UARA ventured out of state to Bigelow Field in Bigelow Field Raceway Midget Auto Race Program 1950-Grand Rapids MI-Ads for C cleared payment - opens in a new window or tab, Report this item - opens in new window or tab. 1952. The purse for the night was Grand Rapids: Van Buren County Fairgrounds: Hartford: Vermontville High School: Vermontville: Vestaburg Kart Speedway: Vestaburg: Waterford Hills Road Race Course: Pinch-hit flagman Wesley DeVol made sure that Howard Dauphin would never forget his victory when Wes accidentally cracked Howard on his helmet with the checkered flag as Howard zoomed under the flagmans stand. That would have been from 1945 to 1954. The It was enclosed by an 8 foot fence of metal sheets on wood. pushed several individuals to look at the formation of a racing association for crowd of around 8,000 fans. racing was booming in the late 1930's and new tracks were springing up So they made the decision to concentrate their promoting efforts at the other tracks. When I was nine my parents moved their business just north of that location and we moved from our home on Loraine Street at the same time. It was during this period that the late Hank Heald tried to become the Bigelow Field promoter but was unable to put it together. Bigelow Field to his credit, was crowned the first UARA champion as he defeated first outdoor season in the record books, UARA planned indoor competition at race held in May of 1938. This brings us to the mysterious events of the 1940 season at Bigelow Field. from Hanson Park after difficulties arose over the purse structure for the 100 That doesnt surprise me. forward to even a bigger outdoor season in the spring. about a now-defunct little midget track built on a baseball field in Grand Rapids, Speedrome when it was built in 1950. https://archive . Pulling the brake with both hands, Stauber ran Kamp's Speedway raced midgets from 1940 to 1942. end on September 30 with Rubright, wheeling the Bob Lockard Willys, winning the With its It was certainly common to have promoters run off with the purse after a night of racing in those days but this promoter seemed to be legitimate. Talked with Kamp's Oil personnel, on the same property, and they have heard the stories however are not connected. Berlin Raceway began racing in 1951 and is still racing. ", Time Capsule: 1962, Mt. It seemed like there was a flip in every race.. When a new promoter from Indianapolis named W.R. Caine took over promotion at Bigelow Field for the 1940 season, it is not surprising that he would hire the best people he could find to operate the track. checkered flag in front of Saylor and veteran driver Don Hanley. Dust was a big problem at dirt tracks and steps were taken to keep the surface smooth and dust free. Bigelow Field. Bigelow Field was a minor league baseball park (GR Jets) that was converted to a race track for a season or two. The line would be a block long sometimes. The track always had a good safely crew who would tell the drivers, "If you spin, just pull it out of gear and well pull you off the track. Everything seemed to be going fine as opening day arrived. The following is a list of drivers who competed at Bigelow Field during its tenure as a race track. Ace Blixt was, by 1940, well established as the Michigan representative both for the the national auto racing weekly, the Illustrated Speedway News, and for the Central States Racing Association (CSRA) that sanctioned much of the racing in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. First of all, the attendance was not up to their expectations and Very pleased with purchase, UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN-MIGNON G. EBERHART-DELL MAPBACK PAPERBACK G (#233671409300). The only clue we have is a line in Dick Lee's story that states, "1940 found a new promoter out of the Indianapolis area who failed to pay some purses and soon vanished." n.d.. Helen Earlene "Beans" Risinger Grand Rapids Chicks collection, Collection 160. secondly, they had Ohio tracks they were promoting which had conflicting racing dates with Bigelow With some skeptics calling UARAs entries junk On the Fourth of July, UARA visited the newly View cart for details. Johnny Wohfeil also had a scare when he crashed and saw red spots on his windshield. lap Championship event. Ray Hyler, from Lansing, in the Brooks Offy flipped between turn three and four. Grand Rapids Press Library photos. window.__mirage2 = {petok:"igxyY7CEoZ3TSgU5rvCLqbDB5At9mC5j4ATdnNWfEhU-1800-0"}; Gary Brey | https://archive.grpl.org/repositories/4/archival_objects/88455 Accessed March 01, 2023. Grand Rapids History Center. It is interesting that the article states that he "comes with a record of never failing to pay the purses promised drivers." 2310 NW 3rd St Grand Rapids, MN 55744; 218-327-2001; GRAND RAPIDS Outpatient Substance Use Services. It was a He almost lost it coming off turn four, according to Howard Newland who was sitting next to Ralph in line to qualify. Melcher. Rubright came home second with Simmons third. We have had some inquiries of leasing the track for a few races this year but at this time we are only interested in selling and not leasing. Restauracja szybkiej obsugi zajmuje dzi cz terenu. Grand Rapids Jets (1948-1950) Colts z Grand Rapids (1941) Grand Rapids Dodgers (1940) Grand Rapids Tigers (1934) . Dates. A driver lost his life there when he drove into a dugout. If so, he fooled a lot of people. It has all the coolest stuff you'd ever want! On the 18th, only 11 cars are listed as competing with Joe Allan winning the feature. I know that my dad ran there numerous times. Bigelow Field fire. You say that you never heard of it? Carson is also credited with laying out the famous VFW Speedway half-mile track in Detroit in 1932 that is the topic of another feature on this site. The stadium burned down in 1952. Grand Rapids Press Library photos. Bigelow Field to his credit, was crowned the first UARA champion as he defeated Rubright, Scally, Saylor, Ambrose and Zukor in the final points tally. For 25 years it hosted some of the greatest names in racing including Art Hartsfeld, Sam Hanks, Paul Russo, Tony Bettenhausen, Cowboy O'Rourke, Ronnie Householder, Johnny Wohlfiel, Henry Banks and Duane Carter. Bigelow Field znajdowao si pod adresem 3873 Division Avenue South Grand Rapids, MI 49548. his Willys No. Extend Academy Student Certificate. They played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League from 1945 to 1954, [1] winning championships in 1947 and 1953. 1939. street and South Division. Verified Reviews . UARA actually had its roots in the City of Chicago, holding the majority of its 1940 found a new promoter out of the Indianapolis area who failed to pay some purses and soon vanished. There was a fairgrounds track between 36th and 32nd but it is. Former site of Bigelow Field (1937-1952). Posted by: Ballparks used in 1942 Negro League Season 1942 Season ParkID Ballpark Name City State AKR01 League Park Akron OH ALT02 Cricket Field Altoona PA ATL04 Ponce de Leon Park Atlanta GA BAL10 Terrapin Park Baltimore MD BAL14 Bugle Field Baltimore MD BEL01 Belleville Athletic Field Belleville IL BEL02 Belmar Memorial Field Belmar NJ BIR01 Rickwood Field Birmingham AL BOG01 Bogalusa LA BOS07 Fenway . View Sue A Bigelow results in Grand Rapids, MI including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. Night game at Bigelow Field. Carl Forgerg, Art Hartsfeld, Jake Jacobson, Bernie Jacobson, Al Mominee, Fibber Walters, Matt Heid, Iggy Katona, Bill Mackey, Cecil Green, Cecil Zent, Cecil Clees, Ralph Reel, Ralph Pratt, Potsy Goacher, Big Bill Spears, Charlie Messler, Ray St Johns, Teddy Tedrow, Bud Sparks, Ted Hartley, Gene Hartley, Hank Russ, Johnny Smigs, Louie Ludke, Don Ingersol, Hank Nykaza, Bill Vukovich, Sam Hanks, Paul Russo, Neil Carter, Harry Bennet, Leroy Warriner, George Jackson, Bill Wiltse, Gordon Vander Laan, Tony Bettenhausen, Cowboy ORourke, Ronnie Householder, Ronnie Duman, Hank Duman, Red Newman, Glen Rocky, Howard Daulphin, Doc Shanebrook, Gene Force, Duane Carter, Bill BJork, Bobby Grim, Bob Williams, Brick Eicholtz, Danny Keselowski, Johnny Wolfiel, Henry Banks, Ed Stanke, Emory Rice, Bob Breading, Johnny Tolan, Chick Barbo, Johnny Parsons, Sr., Cotton Farmer, Al Bonnell, Art Cross, Eddie Johnson, Harlen Hunt, George Fonger, Joe Sostillio, Bill Homes, Jerry Hoyt, Johnny McDowell, Manual Ayulo, Troy Ruttman, Tony Bonadies, Joe Barzda, Bob Ellingham, Jimmy Knight, Gays Biro, Chuck Weyant, Jack Turner, Bill Homier, Chuck Rodee, Bob Wente, Tommy Copp, Rex Easton, Van Johnson, Arnie Knepper, Ed Yeager, Rick Kerr, Chuck Arnold, Carl Scarborough, Mike Nazaruk, Jiggs Peters, Pete Romcevitch, Charies Szekendy, Al Plackey, Wally Zale, Johnny Zale, Gordon Gajdet, Wild Bill Boyd, Bob Zomerhuis, Dewey Omen, Gene allen, Howard Newland, and Bill Schindler. The field was home to a number of activities including race cars and baseball. 45 to victory in the 25 lap main event on June 20. The promoting end of the racing had been taken over by Jim Williams in 1946, (who had purchased the property and also built a motel next to the track). rough and dusty oval. dont accelerate and tear up the infield sod, don't spin your wheels. ID Card Office Online. win of the campaign, winning the Mid Season Title race at Bigelow Field in his One accident occurred during the running of the first heat race. The car stayed there for a few seconds and then just slid down the pole and ended up on all four wheels. June 04, 2011 at 03:12 PM. Great article Al! Hometown papers of well-known drivers like. Common Access Card Update Email Address. UARA visited the half-mile dirt oval at the Sandwich 1947 with over 60 different drivers competing with an average purse payout of n.d.. Helen Earlene "Beans" Risinger Grand Rapids Chicks collection, Collection 160. Earl Simmons of Maywood won the feature race that afternoon on a The surface at Bigelow Field was treated before Baseball legend, Satchel Page pitched here in 1941. 1958-1953 Varnedoe Field Thomasville Dodgers Georgia-Florida Lg Thomasville Georgia. action. feature event was fellow UARA organizer, Scally. The post holding the rail pulled out of the ground and the steel guardrail popped up and stopped just short of Spears face. (See "It's 1932 and Detroit has a New Speedway.). n.d.. Helen Earlene "Beans" Risinger Grand Rapids Chicks collection, Collection 160. Illustrated Speedway News: National Capacity: 3,000 (1940); 4,500 (1941); 12,000 (1949); 8,000 (1950) Dimensions (Left, Center, Right): 298-530-298 The catcher faced west. Shewbridge Field: FORT WAYNE DAISIES: 1946 - 1954: Memorial Park: 1945 - 1946: North Side High School Field: 1944: Nicollet Baseball Park (Minneapolis Millerettes) GRAND RAPIDS CHICKS: 1952 - 1954: South High School Football Field: 1950 - 1952: Bigelow Field (Wyoming Township) 1945 - 1949: South High School Football Field: 1944: Borchert Field . The Grand Rapids Stadium raced midgets and stock cars on occasion from 1951 to 1959. Add Joint Data Model Applet. the United States. Howard tells it this way. Bigelow Appliance Repair states they offer major appliance services Products & Services This company offers repair of Whirlpool manufactured major appliances including freezers, stoves,. night with the KK/Offy cars pretty much dominating feature races and the drivers Images of the coach and a couple of team photos are included. The fire stopped just short of their store. winner again at Hanson Park on August 29 with Saylor winning the 50 lap Labor Racing at Hanson Park pretty much came to an GRAND RAPIDS Outpatient Therapy, Psychiatry & Business Office. Additionally, several Chicks made All-Star teams from 1946 to 1954 including Wisniewski, Ziegler, Earp, Haylett, Ruth Lessing, Merle Keagle, Doris Satterfield, Earlene Risinger, Eleanor Moore, and Joyce Ricketts. The grounds were still being used for baseball where Michigan driver Don Ingersoll won at Bigelow Field on August 20. The fastest twelve cars started in single file inverted and the last car in line was black flagged at the end of each lap. $2,882.00 with Zukor setting a new track record of 20.13 seconds during time One of the more interesting aspects of racing at Bigelow Field was that in later years they ran a crack-the-whip race. | Visit ArchivesSpace.org AbeBooks.com: Bigelow Field Raceway Midget Auto Race Program 1950-Grand Rapids MI-Ads for Coca-Cola-Hires Root Beer-VG: -Grand Rapids MI -Sanctioned by Great Lakes Racing Association -Tri-fold scorecard format -Scored in pencil -Ads for Coca-Cola-Mission Orange Soda-Hires Root Beer -Historic Mid-West race program -Rare - GRADE: VG Grand Rapids Baseball Klub by to niewielki zesp League Baseball z siedzib w Grand Rapids, Michigan , USA, ktry gra pod kilkoma rnymi nazwami w rnych okresach pomidzy 1883 i 1951. | v3.3.0 organizational meeting, Scally was quoted as saying, We supply 90% of the cars Here we see the view of the grandstand from center field. followed by Saylor, Corky Singer and Larry Johnson. RICK KNIGHR 6168130260 , THANK YOU! Location & Hours Bigelow Fields 624 Kennebago Road Eustis Me, 04982 Phone: 207-246-2177 Get directions You are always welcome to view the herd from the road, keep in mind during the winter they are not as close to the road as in the summer. $2,010 per event. Then it went into the dugout with the front end down and back wheels up in the air with the engine still running full bore with the wheels spinning in the air. Starter Bill Mitchell - Racing Giant | Ford and motorcycle engine-powered midgets. Built in 1931 by local businessman and baseball enthusiast Clarence Bigelow III, Bigelow Field was also the site of a variety of other civic activities. //