This past weekend was one to remember our fallen heros and the loved ones that we have lost, and as I have nearly every year since I can remember, I made the trek to Milligan Nebraska to do so for both in one.
My father was born between Milligan and Friend on my grandparents' farm. Although we made many trips down there, both just to visit and to hunt the surrounding areas, Memorial Days were always my favorites.
Each year until my father's death, as we drove down the day before the actual Memorial Day, my dad would turn the radio over so that we could listen to the Indianapolis 500. We would listen as famous names such as Parnelli Jones, AJ Foyt, Graham Hill and Rodger Ward drank the winners quart of milk after earning the victory at the famous Brickyard.
Then the next day, after spending the night at my grandparents' home in Milligan, we would make the trek to the cemetary south of town. We would decorate the graves of lost relatives before watching the ceremonies in one of the prettiest cemetaries I've ever seen. The entire grounds were ringed with huge cottonwood trees, and the lanes through it were also. And on Memorial Day the beautiful flowers adorning the graves themselves showed that spring had definitely sprung.
At last it was time for the ceremony. The sermon/speech was filled with pleas to never forget those who had served and made the ultimate sacrifice as well as the others who were interred there at the cemetary. My young heart and mind couldn't quite grasp what was being talked about, but the solemn atmosphere made me understand that what was being addressed was indeed something that needed to be taken to heart. The 21-gun salute quickened my heart nearly as much as the wail of Taps being played from the distance saddened it.
As my wife and oldest son and I drove to Milligan this past Sunday, I automatically reached for the radio tuner and sought out the broadcast of the 500. As much as I tried, I just couldn't recapture the thrill that I felt so many years before. And the old feelings were further driven from my heart as we approached the cemetary.
Long gone were the huge trees, felled so many years ago due to disease, wind and lightning. As we approached my father's final resting place, I noticed that the peonies next to his slab had not yet bloomed. We had planted them there because they were his favorite. Were he still with us, and these were some relative's flowers, I could hear him swearing at the fates that let this happen. I admit that I echoed those sentiments silently.
We dutifully cleaned his slab and the marker, and after stopping at the graves of my paternal grandparents, I asked my wife and son to give me a few moments.
I stood at the foot my dad's grave, and silently told him how much I loved and missed him. I related how much I wished that he were still here with us, and asked his guidance to help me through the every day trials and tribulations that life presents to us all. I also said that I was afraid that I had failed to be the man that he wanted me to become, but that I would do my best to try and do better; to attempt to be 1/2 of the person that he was. This has become my mantra, every time that I thought about him, which is daily; striving to fulfill his wishes and mine.
I know that I have done well by my children, my wife and those others who's lives I've influenced. But, as always happens when we try to compare ourselves to our heros, we fall short. And my father is, always has been and always will be my hero.
Dad, we love and miss you. Although you were taken from us over 45 years ago, you are still here in our hearts every day.
I hope that your peonies are blooming today.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
Welcome to "Views from the Pit Shack"
Thanks for visiting my blog.
As you can see from reading the main page, I've been around racing for a long time. Here's a little bit of background information so that you can gain some insight into my background.
First of all, I should introduce myself. My name is Greg Soukup, sometimes better known (for better or for worse) as The Eagle Pit Shack Guy. I’ve been going to races for over 56 years now. My first experiences were as a baby at Capitol Beach Raceway, here in Lincoln, Nebraska. My father loved racing, and we went every weekend.
Of course, I didn’t really appreciate the racing the first few years that we went. BUT!!! There is no doubt that I wanted to go all the same. You see, they had an amusement park there on the grounds also!! I got to ride the rides to my heart’s content, right up until race time. Then we went to watch the likes of Lloyd Beckman run their “hoodoos” around that little track. What’s the old saying? “If only I knew then what I know now”? Well, I think that one applies to me in every way. I wish that I’d spent less time on the merry-go-round and more time watching the races.
I also was fortunate enough to be taken to the IMCA races at the Nebraska State Fairgrounds each and every fall. Those sprints, or super-modifieds, or whatever you want to call them were something to see. Sleek monsters of chrome and sheet-metal, flying around that track, throwing dust and dirt everywhere!! That’s where I developed my ever-lasting love for racing. The old hoodoos were fun, but these beasts were so far above them that I can’t to this day describe the joy which I felt while sitting there on the boards of the stands.
Unfortunately, my father was killed in the line of duty as a police officer in 1966. I still went to the State Fair every fall, and watched the racing, but it just wasn’t the same. Racing just isn’t as much fun if you don’t have someone to share it with.
Shortly after Capitol Beach fell victim to development, I started going to Eagle Raceway and Midwest Speedway and for a short time Lincoln Speedway before it also closed. What a double punch!! Saturdays at Eagle, Sundays at Midwest!!! This had to be heaven, or pretty darn close to it. Kenny Gritz, “Little Joe” Saldana, Lloyd Beckman and Gordon Wooley were a few of the A feature winners at Eagle in 1968. How’s that for name-dropping?? In the ensuing years, I would get to see other greats at Eagle, such as Thad Dosher, Dick Sutcliffe, Jan Opperman and Lonnie Jensen. Those are but a few of the all-time greats that I remember seeing. I apologize for any others I may have forgotten.
Midwest had a few of the travelers come and try out the local talent there also. Every so often Ray Lee Goodwin Jr., Ed Bowes, the 3 Drouds (Senior, Junior and Rodney), Lloyd Beckman and many others would get to test their mettle against the likes of the legendary Jan Opperman, Doug Wolfgang, and even Steve Kinser. Again, my sincere apologies for any omissions.
Probably my most profound memory of Midwest (of so many) was the night Jan Opperman pulled in, unloaded and proceeded to lap all but 1 or 2 of the cars in the A Feature. I rushed to the pits, wanting to get a peek at the man who’d performed this miracle. I’d never heard of Jan Opperman!! But, then again, I wasn’t very worldly. Remember, I’d spent my entire life in Lincoln, Nebraska.
I managed to get my first look at this scruffy, long-haired, easy-going man who’d made monkeys out of all the local big boys. I managed to overhear him as he told someone “we’d have been faster, but I dropped a cylinder in the heat race”. Makes you wonder what would have happened if he’d had all 8, doesn’t it??
Approximately 6 years ago, I got the opportunity to actually get into the races at Eagle for FREE!!! Well, I hesitated no more than the infamous New York minute before I accepted. Then I found out that they’d actually PAY me to go!! Okay, had I died and passed to the great beyond?? Nosirreebob. I found out that they actually expected me to work, but all things considered, it was still a good deal.
I’ve been there nearly every race since, greeting the racers and fans. Meeting new “racing friends”, and renewing old acquaintances from time to time. I hope that one day, you and I will have a chance to meet and become friends. So, if you’re ever at Eagle Raceway, stop by the Pit Shack and say hello. I’m always looking forward to meeting others who love this sport as much as I do.
Around that same time, I was contacted to write for a now defunct website about sprint car racing. It was very enjoyable, and I found that I had a small knack for writing. I'll try and put up a couple of the things that I wrote for the website to fill in my "writer's block" moments.
A year or so ago, an aquaintence by the name of Ron Meyer convinced me to try my hand at writing for Flat Out magazine and Justin Zoch has been gracious enough to print a few of my interviews. The first time I read my name as the byline in a national magazine about sprint car racing was indescribable!! Thanks Justin, for giving me the chance to make a couple of bucks while doing something I love.
Currently I am still working in the Pit Shack at Eagle Raceway, and doing interviews with the night's winners each week. Then I write up the story of the evening's events for posting on the website. You can keep up with all of the goings on at http://www.eagleraceway.com
I hope you enjoy my blog, and that you check back often to see what's new at Eagle Raceway. I'll also try to keep you all advised as to some of the goings-on in the world of dirt track racing.
As you can see from reading the main page, I've been around racing for a long time. Here's a little bit of background information so that you can gain some insight into my background.
First of all, I should introduce myself. My name is Greg Soukup, sometimes better known (for better or for worse) as The Eagle Pit Shack Guy. I’ve been going to races for over 56 years now. My first experiences were as a baby at Capitol Beach Raceway, here in Lincoln, Nebraska. My father loved racing, and we went every weekend.
Of course, I didn’t really appreciate the racing the first few years that we went. BUT!!! There is no doubt that I wanted to go all the same. You see, they had an amusement park there on the grounds also!! I got to ride the rides to my heart’s content, right up until race time. Then we went to watch the likes of Lloyd Beckman run their “hoodoos” around that little track. What’s the old saying? “If only I knew then what I know now”? Well, I think that one applies to me in every way. I wish that I’d spent less time on the merry-go-round and more time watching the races.
I also was fortunate enough to be taken to the IMCA races at the Nebraska State Fairgrounds each and every fall. Those sprints, or super-modifieds, or whatever you want to call them were something to see. Sleek monsters of chrome and sheet-metal, flying around that track, throwing dust and dirt everywhere!! That’s where I developed my ever-lasting love for racing. The old hoodoos were fun, but these beasts were so far above them that I can’t to this day describe the joy which I felt while sitting there on the boards of the stands.
Unfortunately, my father was killed in the line of duty as a police officer in 1966. I still went to the State Fair every fall, and watched the racing, but it just wasn’t the same. Racing just isn’t as much fun if you don’t have someone to share it with.
Shortly after Capitol Beach fell victim to development, I started going to Eagle Raceway and Midwest Speedway and for a short time Lincoln Speedway before it also closed. What a double punch!! Saturdays at Eagle, Sundays at Midwest!!! This had to be heaven, or pretty darn close to it. Kenny Gritz, “Little Joe” Saldana, Lloyd Beckman and Gordon Wooley were a few of the A feature winners at Eagle in 1968. How’s that for name-dropping?? In the ensuing years, I would get to see other greats at Eagle, such as Thad Dosher, Dick Sutcliffe, Jan Opperman and Lonnie Jensen. Those are but a few of the all-time greats that I remember seeing. I apologize for any others I may have forgotten.
Midwest had a few of the travelers come and try out the local talent there also. Every so often Ray Lee Goodwin Jr., Ed Bowes, the 3 Drouds (Senior, Junior and Rodney), Lloyd Beckman and many others would get to test their mettle against the likes of the legendary Jan Opperman, Doug Wolfgang, and even Steve Kinser. Again, my sincere apologies for any omissions.
Probably my most profound memory of Midwest (of so many) was the night Jan Opperman pulled in, unloaded and proceeded to lap all but 1 or 2 of the cars in the A Feature. I rushed to the pits, wanting to get a peek at the man who’d performed this miracle. I’d never heard of Jan Opperman!! But, then again, I wasn’t very worldly. Remember, I’d spent my entire life in Lincoln, Nebraska.
I managed to get my first look at this scruffy, long-haired, easy-going man who’d made monkeys out of all the local big boys. I managed to overhear him as he told someone “we’d have been faster, but I dropped a cylinder in the heat race”. Makes you wonder what would have happened if he’d had all 8, doesn’t it??
Approximately 6 years ago, I got the opportunity to actually get into the races at Eagle for FREE!!! Well, I hesitated no more than the infamous New York minute before I accepted. Then I found out that they’d actually PAY me to go!! Okay, had I died and passed to the great beyond?? Nosirreebob. I found out that they actually expected me to work, but all things considered, it was still a good deal.
I’ve been there nearly every race since, greeting the racers and fans. Meeting new “racing friends”, and renewing old acquaintances from time to time. I hope that one day, you and I will have a chance to meet and become friends. So, if you’re ever at Eagle Raceway, stop by the Pit Shack and say hello. I’m always looking forward to meeting others who love this sport as much as I do.
Around that same time, I was contacted to write for a now defunct website about sprint car racing. It was very enjoyable, and I found that I had a small knack for writing. I'll try and put up a couple of the things that I wrote for the website to fill in my "writer's block" moments.
A year or so ago, an aquaintence by the name of Ron Meyer convinced me to try my hand at writing for Flat Out magazine and Justin Zoch has been gracious enough to print a few of my interviews. The first time I read my name as the byline in a national magazine about sprint car racing was indescribable!! Thanks Justin, for giving me the chance to make a couple of bucks while doing something I love.
Currently I am still working in the Pit Shack at Eagle Raceway, and doing interviews with the night's winners each week. Then I write up the story of the evening's events for posting on the website. You can keep up with all of the goings on at http://www.eagleraceway.com
I hope you enjoy my blog, and that you check back often to see what's new at Eagle Raceway. I'll also try to keep you all advised as to some of the goings-on in the world of dirt track racing.
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