Memories of Lakeside Speedway

It was the summer of either l946 or l947, and my father and I began the habit of driving across town in Denver Colorado once a week, to watch the Midget auto races. I believe race night then was Wednesday. The thrill began as we drew within a couple of blocks of the area, and I could see the tall light towers shining down upon the white fences which surrounded the track. Once inside, we found seats in line with the start/ finish line, and waited for the time trials to begin. Time trials went off like clockwork, with one midget leaving the track, another midget taking his single timed lap, and a third midget just entering the track. The pits were not in the center of the track as at so many other tracks I saw in later years, but at the end of the track, leaving the track middle area quite open, holding only a little white truck.

The cars made a wide variety of noises, and smells, but the most vivid memory, is that of the colors! The cars were every possible color, often a single color, and they sparkled under the lights, including that of driver Roy Bow, who had painted his midget in yellow plaid! The Kenz and Leslie cars were red and black, and were numbered 27 47 and 67. Number 67 was Ford powered, and the other two were Offys. At least once, the Ford beat both the Offys. One of the drivers was named Billy Boyd, which was easy to remember, as my father was named Billie Boyd Clarke.

Some of the cars had huge exhaust pipes, and made deafening noise as they went by. They were the ones that also made the strongest smell ( I know now that they were 2-strokes...) I stood so close to the action, leaning against the floor to ceiling wire fence, that I went home with a checkered design on the front of my white shirt.

During intermission, two child sized cars took the track, and drove slowly around the adult track. I now suspect that they were 1/4 midgets, though all I knew at the time was that they were being driven by kids!!! I asked my dad about the possibility of us getting one, and he informed me that “those little cars are for rich kids...” As luck would have it, a few years later he and I got into 1/4 midget racing, and now...50 plus years later, I am still actively involved in 1/4 midget racing, and it still is indeed the domain for the most part, of “rich kids”.

I left Lakeside with a lifelong love for racing and race cars in general, and the midgets in particular, the adult size Kurtis Kraft midget being I believe the best looking race car of all time.

We left the Denver area before l948, and to this day, I don’t know how long Lakeside survived the urban sprawl that tends to soak up all the memories of the past, but I do know, that those evenings watching those little cars, will never leave me. I was born in ‘43, so when I was watching these little cars, I was either three years old, or four...

Darryl Clarke