I grew up at Cajon Speedway back in 1960. I was 4 yrs. old when I was a trophy queen at the 1/4 midget races there. How come Nascar doesn't have trophy queens riding on the hood of a car going around the track after the race like Cajon Speedway did back then? I remember everyone's anticipation at what the queen would look like for that weekend. I raced my go-kart's and mini-bikes there. Every Saturday my dad and I would be sitting on the westside bleachers rooting for our favorites such as John Borneman, Cactus Henyen, Smilin' Ed Hale and so many others. My brother, Marty Frisk, raced demolition derby out there for so many years. He was the double '0', the same number I raced at Kartsville. These pictures are so sad but the best pictures are in my heart and can never be torn down.
to look at this picture and see this, wooooooo, as far back i can rember i have Ed Hale my uncle, i was at that race track ever sat night for almost all of my life, since 1969. my father raced there too. but i miss the track on sat nights and i miss Ed Hale,
I went to the races since I was a kid. I am a fan of Jimmie Johnson. That was spoiled a little when a guy said, you would think that Jimmie would try and bring stock car racing back to San Diego some how. Seeing how it was a part of what made him. Since then, it haunts me as a Jimmie Johnson fan.
Sadly, the sign board was cut up in August 2009 and put in a 40 yard scrap metal bin with tons of other metal to recycle, so I imagine it will wind up in China. I wish the person that knew how to run it had contacted me a few weeks ago! We would have saved it. But no one around here knew how to operate all the sophisticated electronic equipment that was in the box attached to the support pole. And it was on ebay for several years with no one willing to buy it cheap. Dave
Im very sad at this news Im reading , about the closing of cajon speedway. I grew up there , my late father who has passed , took me there every saturday night when i was a kid . we used to sit to the right of the tunnel , so Im sad now this done.
I came down to San Diego from Portland the week before grandpas funeral, and on that day, walking out of the church, you could see the smoke rising into the sky as they burned the remains of the old track. I have a lot of memories at that track as a young boy, watching the races, going down into the pits to see grandpa afterwards. As sad as it was, it was kind of fitting I guess. He was there for the first race in 1961, and he ran the last race at the end of '04, and they left us together. RIP. I miss ya Grandpa.
"TRACK CREW" I can still hear ol Doc yelling out as the lights on the top of that old truck came on as we all pilled in to go clean up the track of what ever oil or fuel or even that green colored "Its only water" coolant that was to slick to run on up off the track so we could pile back in and get back to turn 4 to watch some more short track racing at its best. To say that I miss it just doesn't say enough!
well its been a year. i miss my uncle ed, his laugh and his big smile. uncle ed still lives in our hearts and i know he is racing where up where he is at! the picture looks like a 3 0 8 and a 7 at least thats what i belive thanks for the years smiling ed we love you daren hale
On my buisness trips to san Diego a visit to the speedway was a must.As a member of a whelen modified tour race team it was a pleasure to visit Cajon Speedway.I remember one trip more than most.The Grand Americian Modifieds were running and there was a Man & wife team running and they had Troyer Modifieds from NY State.That really amazed me to find those cars running is a Calf.racetrack.The track will sure be missed as we have lost many here on the east coast in the name of progress!Just once i would like to see them tear down a shopping mall and build a speedway!!
RIP "Smilin' Ed", aka "the Gentleman" - he was my entire family's favorite driver of all time at Cajon. He will be missed, as will "the fastest 3/8 mile paved oval in the west".
Thanks for taking and posting all the pics. I started going to Cajon Speedway as a young kid with my parents in the 70's, and it's been a part of my life ever since. What a sad, empty feeling to see it demolished. At least the tree-huggers and greedy developers can never take our memories away!
This was Jon Busath's # when he raced Ponies. 314, or 3.14 really. Busath had American Pi Racing. Jon later worked in the timing tower and would run the clock during qualifying. His wife Judy passed checks out in the pits. Jon is a real thinker; you'd be hard pressed to meet someone better educated in so many different areas.
Please wait...
