Small cars, big men

We introduced you earlier to Ron Pollock of Niles, Ohio, through his book on Sharon Speedway, and later, his image of the only Tucker 48 ever entered in a NASCAR Grand National race, at Canfield Speedway in Ohio. Ron has now authored his third book, “Small Cars, Brave Hearts,” a history of Midget racing in northeastern Ohio. It’s a world I barely knew existed, and a terrific one to visit.

Look at this photo. It dates to 1941. The location is the Akron Rubber Bowl, which was then the brand-new home of the Zips from the University of Akron. Promoter Don Zeiter leased it for a series of races that used a 1/5-mile cinder track around the football field, and lasted through 1950. In this 1941 feature, Duane Carter leads Ronney Householder, Carl Forberg and Paul Russo. All of them, save Forberg, are enshrined in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, after the Midgets took them to Indianapolis. Forberg, a native of Omaha, retired as a driver in 1952 after an injury but won the AAA national Midget title as a car owner. He died in 2000. This photo is from the Jack Lemmo collection.

Then there’s this image, from the John Sandquist collection, believed to date from 1940 at Canfield Speedway. The name of the racer standing behind his Ford V-8/60 Midget is lost to history, but he’s unfazed by the ambulance next to him, which in those days, was a hearse, too. I was flummoxed trying to identify the coachbuilt hearse’s origins until our own Dave LaChance did some thumbing that revealed it to be a 1938 Studebaker Commander, based on the shape of the front side windows, the grille and the round badge on it. The badge made me think it was a La Salle, but Dave correct points out that the round La Salle badge was always on the grille’s right side. You can order this terrific book, required reading for any fan of American racing history, by calling 877-907-8181 or visiting www.coastal181.com.