O’REILLY AUTO PARTS
64TH HUTCHINSON GRAND NATIONAL AUTO RACES
JULY 17-18, 2020 O’Reilly Auto Parts 64TH Hutchinson Grand National Auto Races, KANSAS STATE FAIRGROUNDS, Hutchinson, Ks.
Friday, July 17, 2020
Saturday, July 18, 2020
2019 Champions:
*Thumper Division: Scott Miller, Hutchinson, Ks.
*Street Stock Division: David Blocher, Newton, Ks.
*AAAModified Division: Kendall Kemp, Maize, Ks.
*NCRA Modified Division: Cody Schniepp, Wichita, Ks.
*NCRA Sprint Car Division: Danny Jennings, Norman, Ok.
*NCRA Late Model Division: Daniel Smith, Beloit, Ks.
HISTORY OF THE HUTCHINSON GRAND NATIONAL AUTO RACES: The first “Nationals” were held at Taft Stadium in Oklahoma City in 1957. More than 100 teams showed up for the event that featured cars known in racing circles as “Jalopies.” They ran on a track that surrounded a football field. Both the field and stadium are still used today in Oklahoma City to host football games. Due to the large amount of competitors and limited space for parking, promoter Jack Merrick, of Dodge City, Ks, who was at the event that year, offered the spacious half-mile oval in Hutchinson, Ks. at the Kansas State Fairgrounds as a future home for the event. Merrick at the time was the promoter for auto races at the fairgrounds in Hutchinson as well as his home track in Dodge City, Ks. The following year (1958) the “Nationals” were moved to the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, Ks. under the guidance of Jack Merrick and named the “National Championship Jalopy Races.” Frank Lies, of Wichita, winner of the race in ’57 at Taft Stadium, would win the inaugural race in Hutchinson and again in 1958 before another Wichitan, Will Forrest would put an end to the Lies domination with a win in ’59. Kansas drivers continued to dominate the event for the first 14 years before a flashy young driver from Tulsa, Ok. placed his Jack Zink owned car in victory lane in 1971. Emmett Hahn would be the first driver outside of the Sunflower State to capture the crown. Hahn would go on to win a total of 3 titles in the event carding wins in ’71, ’77 and ’79. With the popularity of a fabricated full body car gaining interest across the country in the early ’70’s, Merrick added the Late Model division to the program in 1974. Don Kreie, of Dodge City, Ks. won his first and only title of the event that year. Oddly enough, the first year the full body cars competed in the event would be the only year the open wheel division did not crown a champion. A crash on the first lap of the championship feature in the Super Modifieds in turn one and the ensuing fire not only sent numerous drivers to the hospital but forced officials to cancel the remaining program. Jack Merrick remained the promoter of the event until his death in 1976. C. Ray Hall, of Wichita, Ks. General Manager of 81 Speedway located in Park City, Ks. became the successor to Merrick in 1977 and has remained the auto racing promoter at the Kansas State Fairgrounds to date. Hall’s first priority was to give the event a new name. With two divisions now competing for individual titles since ’74, and the division of the “Jalopies” changing to a new style and name of “Super Modified,” the 1977 event became known as the Hutchinson Grand Nationals. The name stayed with the event for five years when it caught the attention of NASCAR. A letter sent to Hall in ’83 from NASCAR said in part he would have to change the name because NASCAR had a patent on the name “Grand Nationals” as a stock car division. The Hutchinson National Auto Races was introduced as the new name of the event in 1983 and remained such through the 2005 event. With the demise of NASCAR’s “Grand National” division, for the 50th Anniversary of the event, Hall changed the name back to the Hutchinson Grand National Auto Races. It remains that today. As the event grew in popularity, new divisions were added to the program to accommodate the interest of other types of race car teams and their fans. That still remains a big objective of Hall today so as many teams as possible have an opportunity to compete in this prestigous event. From the searing heat of a July afternoonto the cooler evenings of a Kansas summer, temporary lighting was brought over to the historic half-mile for a try at night time racing with the 38th edition of the Hutchinson Grand National Auto Races. Four years later, in 1996, the permanent lighting in place currently was installed and the event has been contested under the lights with no thoughts about returning to a complete afternoon program.
With it's apparent days becoming numbered as more and more "Master Plan's" presented to the fairboard call for the removal of the legendary race track, history may one day be all that is left of an event that to the present has stayed the march of time.
Heading into the 62nd event in 2018, the historic half mile race track on the Kansas State Fairgrounds turns 108 years old.
How many more are on the docket before it's demise? We just need to appreciate the current situation and hope for a pardon that would continue to breath life into one of the greatest traditions in Dirt Track Auto Racing History.
***ADDITIONAL LIGHTING was added to the famed half mile oval with the start of the 2019 season. Kenny's Electric, of Hutchinson, Ks, had acquired a series of lights from a venue in northeast Kansas and installed 32 additional lights starting in turn one and continuing around the track to turn four.
Hutchinson National Champions:
Division: Late Models: 1974 Don Kreie, Dodge City, Ks. 1975 Tom Lutkie, Wichita, Ks. 1976 Steve Lutkie, Wichita, Ks. 1977 Bud Haehn, Wichita, Ks. 1978 Ted Shepard, Enid, Ok. 1979 Ferris Collier, Lampe, Mo. 1980 Ferris Collier, Lampe, Mo. 1981 Larry Phillips, Springfield, Mo. 1982 Charlie Randolph, Muskogee, Ok. 1983 Larry Phillips, Springfield, Mo. 1984 Larry Phillips, Springfield, Mo. 1985 Delbert Smtih, Wichita, Ks. 1986 Billy Moyer, Batesville, Ak. 1987 Doug Ingalls, Longview, Tx. 1988 Doug Ingalls, Longview, Tx. 1989 Deen Woods, Beloit, Ks. 1990 David Brack, Great Bend, Ks. 1991 Frank McGehee, Wichita, Ks. 1992 Larry McDaniels, Wichita, Ks. 1993 Delbert Smith, Wichita, Ks. 1994 David Hughes, Enid, Ok. 1995 Don David Jr, Hutchinson, Ks. 1996 Larry McDaniels, Wichita, Ks. 1997 Larry McDaniels, Wichita, Ks. 1998 Larry McDaniels, Wichita, Ks. 1999 Lonnie Smith, Wichita, Ks. 2000 Lonnie Smith, Wichita, Ks. 2001 Al Purkey, Coffeyville, Ks. 2002 Did Not Run 2003 Did Not Run 2004 Dean Moore, Grand Junction, Co. 2005 Frank McGehee, Wichita, Ks. 2006 Ryan McAninch, Wichita, Ks. 2007 Did Not Run 2008 Ryan McAninch, Wichita, Ks. 2009 Did Not Run 2010 Did Not Run 2011 Did Not Run 2012 Did Not Run 2013 Did Not Run 2014 Kyle Berck, Marquette, Ne. 2015 Damion Patocka, Enid, Ok. 2016 Chris Kratzer, Haysville, Ks. 2017 Chris Kratzer, Haysville, Ks. 2018 Cory Dumpert,
York, Neb. 2019 Daniel Smith, Beloit, Ks.