Comments from Terry: 

Finally got out there...
(from Terry Fick)

This was October, 1994, the first night out for the car. The night ended in a DNF because the engine builder (leaning against the car) made a rookie mistake on the valve train thus adding an unnecessary vent hole to the top of one piston. The car owner (also leaning against the car) had a long discussion with the engine builder the entire drive back from Woodstock, GA (Dixie Speedway, home of Bill Elliott) to B'ham, AL. The driver (leaning against the car) did not talk to the engine builder for weeks.

The car was an '89 Gambler which I bought from Mike Bryner, who worked for Gambler. He was going to run the car on asphalt so he used those gaudy MRT orange locks on carbon fiber wheels. He liked them because for $125.00, they would repair any and all damage, no questions asked. I learned very quickly that those wheels did not hold up well in the contact sport of dirt sprint racing, so next season they were replaced with aluminum wheels, which also look nicer.

But this was the first night as owner/driver, I took to the track exactly what you see here.

Over the next few years I bought more and more wheels, shocks, bars, resulting in my speed and competitiveness increasing, until 2001. Running fifth in the feature at Sugar Creek Speedway in SC I cut the RR coming off four. The next thing I saw was a light in the grandstand. I thought, please, don't let me go into the crowd. Suddenly I was jerked hard. When I opened my eyes again I was on the track, facing the infield, and looking to my left I saw the rest of the field coming right at me. Do you have any idea how stupid it is to yell for people to slow down when you have a helmet on? Anyway, everybody missed me which is good since it was the open side facing them.

The car was destroyed, all but two tubes were bent in some manner. Turns out I did a Michael Waltrip at Bristol deal, hitting the opening to the pit, but instead of cutting the car in half I was launched. Guys in the pits told me I was a good 20 feet up, hitting the catch fence on the way down.

I replaced this car with what was sold to me as a Gambler but was actually a J&J formerly owned by Ernie Ainsworth. That car lasted two races into 2002. It was destroyed at Lanier, GA in an asphalt race I ran as a favor to the promoter to help fill the field. At that point, the money ran out. Funny how promoters are your best friend when they need a field filler but you they lose your phone number the next day, not even calling to see if you were hurt.

On one picture on your site a guy commented about the sportsmen drivers, how it was all about the racing, about fun. It is just too bad fun at this game is so expensive. I often joked that racing was better than sex; more frequent and it lasted longer. I would also say that I did not know which was cheaper; racing or an affair including the cost of the divorce.

On another pic a guy says he was surprised how well dirt cars took to pavement. I really hate to disappoint him, but a car with standard bars and a Jacobs ladder handles terribly on pavement. If you have the money to switch to a panhard rod and coil overs (a dedicated chassis), or at least reverse bars on the rear, the beast becomes manageable.

Anyway, I just had some time to kill and thought I'd send you a pic. It's not PA-NJ-DE-NY and it's a sprint, so I don't expect you to post it. I just sent it along so you could see what I looked like and what I ran, and most importantly, what a guy who wanted to this from the time he can remember looked like the night he finally got "out there", even though he did not have the money and was way too old.

Terry Fick

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