JOE JAMES, JR.

CARC Hall of Fame Inductee Class of 2011

            Our next inductee into the CARC Hall of Fame is a man who has raced most of his life including a rare victory at Lakeside Speedway as a seven-year-old. Joe James, Jr. (known in racing circles as Triple-J) started racing due to his father’s influence. Joe Sr. raced with the CARC as early as 1952 and raced through 1959. Joe Jr. was involved with a group known as “chug” racers; their cars were wood and motivated by push-power. As an entertainment addition, the CARC held a few chug races around the 1/5 mile oval and Joe Jr. won one of those races being pushed by his cousin Jimmy Pennetta. But that just merely whetted his appetite for the real thing. He then moved on to go-carts and motorcycles.

            Triple J started racing modifieds in 1968 after purchasing his first car from Doug and Pegi Plue. Grabbing his Dad’s number 54, he started doing well right away and began running in the Slow A field which was the second-fastest group of eight cars. Joe quickly ran up the leader board and moved into the Fast A field by his third year, 1971. He ran as high as second in points during the 1974 season. He was disappointed to lose his first real chance to win a trophy dash in 1971 when the coil wire fell off while leading on the last lap.

            His true passion was found in 1972 when Joe started racing CARC Late Models. He ran in the top 10 most of the year and found the Camaro more to his liking. He wound up doing “double-duty” by racing both late models and modifieds for a few years but eventually, mostly due to financial considerations, Joe wound up staying with the late models. Sharing driving time at Lakeside and Englewood Speedways, Joe did well racing against other local legends such as Don and Fritz Wilson, Larry DeChant, Joe Lehman, and Rick Carelli. He is proud to have run competitively with such men. A real highlight came in 1973 when he virtually swept the awards offered by the CARC for the late models. He claimed twenty out of twenty-two awards at the banquet, winning the late model championship, most main event wins, most quick times, fastest quick time, most trophy dashes, best-looking car, perfect attendance, most efficient pit crew, sportsmanship award, mechanic of the year and best dressed pit crew among others.

            In 1982 after Englewood closed, Joe went to the dirt and started racing at venues like Colorado National Speedway and Colorado Springs International Speedway. He had to re-learn everything he knew about driving fast, but it was good experience and helped him develop his car control skills. He did well, too, and one of his proudest moments at CSIS was winning a 200-lap race with a car borrowed from Mike LaGuardia, and also set a track record in that car.

            Joe raced whatever he could wherever he could and won championships at CNS and Lakeside. He returned to the CARC in the late 1980’s running a car he built with Rick Carelli and won his class championship in 1986 and 1987. He also set a final track record for the sportsman class at Lakeside with a 12:226 second run. After Lakeside was closed after the 1988 season and CNS was paved, Joe moved there pretty much full-time and has run there ever since. He won the track championship in 1994 and finished a close second in 1995 but was disqualified the final night for having the rear track on the car being 1/8” too wide. The crew forgot to measure a new wheel he used and that made the difference. Joe also raced trucks successfully at CNS.  He has also done well at regional NASCAR events.

            There is more to life than racing for Joe, of course. Although he eats and sleeps racing, he is a dedicated husband to his wife of 43 years, Jean, and father to son Joe III and daughter Jody. His father is still the pit crew supervisor and his mother Catherine was part of the team up to her death in 2003. Joe has two grandchildren, Rylee age nine, and Cody age six. His current pit crew includes Joey III, Randy Pennetta, Marlow Torfinson, Tony Guerrieri, Tony Garcia, and Mike Furtado. Joe is the crew chief.

Joe won’t tell you how many drivers he has helped with helpful tips, information, parts, and tires because he is not the kind to toot his own horn, but other fellow racers will fill you in on how generous he is and what a great sportsman he is as well. He is interesting to listen to and has wonderful stories once you get him to open up, as he’s fairly modest about his achievements. His worst injuries related to racing are actually from working on his cars. Ask him about those injuries sometime; they’re great stories!

DICK AND DAN DAY

Colorado Auto Racing Hall of Fame Inductees, Class of 2011

            Our next inductee, or should I say inductees, are two brothers who raced with the CARC for a generation. Both Dick and Dan Day were dedicated long-term members of the Club who gave it their all to go racing. Their lifelong love of the sport has put them in rare company as the CARC honors their achievements tonight.

            Dick is the older brother and he started racing with the CARC as early as 1950 at Englewood Speedway racing the #51 1937 Ford owned by Rod Davis. Dick ran well but figured out later that he was better at mechanics than driving. When the Club moved to Lakeside, Dick stayed involved with them but quit driving.

            Younger brother Dan took up the challenge and put on his helmet for the first time with the CARC in 1956. Frank Crater had just retired and left the number 88 available. Since Dan liked the number and it was one of the few available at the time, he jumped at the chance to put it on the side of his car and ran that number until he quit after the 1978 racing season. Dick became the crew chief and head mechanic on the car and would remain so on each of Dan’s cars until Dan quit racing. Tom Pryor was the owner on some of their cars.

            History gets a little confused as to when Dick raced and when Dan raced. Dan actually did most of the driving after he started but raced under Dick’s name. Early rumors were that Dan did so because he was too young to race, but that wasn’t true. Dan actually started racing at Englewood in 1954 because he was too young to race at Lakeside, but when he started at Lakeside in 1955, he ran under Dick’s name because he would lose his job at the fire department if they had found out that he was racing. The fire department for which Dan worked at the time would not have approved of such potential danger. Dick did race one more season, however, in 1962 with an occasional one-off shot.

            In the late 1950’s, Dan procured a unique and ultimately successful sponsorship with a small local chain of stores called the 88-cent stores. Working with the natural connection of the number, the owner of the stores bought, owned and sponsored the Day-run operation. The contract called for a three-year commitment and the owner saw good advertising opportunities at the well-attended Lakeside races. He wound up selling the stores after the first year, however, and in return just gave the car to the Day boys. So it worked out well long-term anyway.

            Dan’s best years came in the 1970’s when he just missed the track championship in 1972, losing the title to the popular and CARC Hall of Fame member Blu Plemons by just two measly points. In 1974 he won eleven main events but still conspired to lose the championship to Jack Graham, who drove John Pachello’s juggernaut #19. In 1978, the Days won everything but the track championship. He set the year’s quick time at a 13:04 and won several more main events but lost to Rick Carelli driving for Al Starr. Dick was voted Mechanic of the Year and the team won the Best-Dressed Pit Crew award as well. Dan says that 1978 was the first year when the racing didn’t pay for itself.

            The two Day brothers were involved with the CARC in some way shape or form from 1950 through 1978, making the tow to Lakeside or Englewood virtually every week with rare exception. The dedication these men showed is an inspiration to today’s drivers and teams as we know today how much work is involved with keeping a race car going. Dan’s clean driving and Dick’s masterful mechanical work made them one of the best and most admired in the business during their stint with the CARC.

PEGI PLUE

CARC Hall of Fame Inductee, Class of 2011

            Our next inductee was recognized as one of the fastest drivers on the track and carries the distinction of being a woman. Pegi Plue was a one-of-a-kind driver and a flamboyant dedicated member of the Powder Puffs, the women’s auxiliary of the CARC.

            The idea of women drivers in the late 1950’s was considered rather a lark and while the women were given a 10-lap heat it was mostly considered a part of the entertainment package by the CARC. Some of the women proved to be more than competitive within their division, however, and respect was slow in coming and hard-earned. Drivers such as Audrey Bolyard, Jean Balderston, and Betty Miller began showing the way and soon others followed as women were more readily accepted on the track. One of the best of these was Pegi Plue.

            Pegi started racing in the Powder Puffs in 1965, driving the car she shared with her husband Doug. She caught on quickly and developed a fast but smooth style that more than matched some of the more veteran drivers. As a matter of fact, she learned so quickly that she became the Powder Puff champion in 1965 as a rookie! Great stuff, indeed! She also broke the womens’ record at Lakeside early in 1965, setting it at 14.38. Later that year, she became the first woman to break the 14 second barrier.

            Pegi was voted the Powder Puff club secretary in 1964 and again in 1965. She loved being a part of the club and its many activities related to racing. They built a modified made out of chicken wire stuffed with red, white and black tissue paper for parades and social events. Pegi was instrumental with this construction and loved towing it along parade routes. Another duty of the red-vested club members was to sell tickets and programs. It was a way to meet the drivers up close and personal, as they were making their rounds around the Lakeside grandstands. Pegi relished the activity and her growing legion of fans. Pegi just loved racing.

            Pegi then moved up the ladder of club success as Vice President. She claimed that title for the first time in 1966, then again in 1967, 1969, 1970, and 1971. The only break in that string, 1968, found Pegi on the Board of Directors. She was very popular among the Powder Puffs and the average CARC fan was beginning to take notice of her. It was easy to spot Pegi on the track, regardless of which car she might be driving. Her signature trademark was a long white scarf that she wore around her neck while driving. It would flutter out the back window of the car as she wheeled the car around Lakeside’s 1/5 mile oval. Most of her competitors would see only that, as she was usually ahead of them.

            Due to all of her commitments, Pegi ran an irregular schedule in the races after 1965. This took a toll on her list of victories but she ran well when she did and won several races and took several quick times. One of her most endearing traits was her open honesty. She was well-known for being opinionated and willing to share those opinions with those around her. You never had to guess where you were with Pegi; she’d let you know in no uncertain terms. That helped to make her a great club official. She was also decisive and made quick decisions that made sense.

            Pegi’s exclamation mark statement in CARC history came on September 7, 1969. She had borrowed Billy Vaughn’s #85 owned by Lester Kelly and qualified a spectacular 13.25 seconds. Not too bad, you say? The fastest male qualifier that evening was Don Wilson’s #19 with a 13.27, so Pegi had outqualified the entire field! That was the first time a female had ever performed that feat. It WAS one for the history books and one that was a unique situation until recently. Pegi’s mentors included Foss Foster, Ed Mailo, Sam Sauer and Joe Henry.