EXPERIENCE PREFERRED, BUT NOT REQUIRED SUNDAY AT Du QUOIN

By: Jay Hardin - Track Enterprises Staff

You don’t have to be a grey beard to win one of the prestigious 100-mile championship races at the Du Quoin State Fair, but a look back at the ages of the winning drivers shows that an experienced driver with miles under the belts has a better chance of winning this Sunday, September 3rd's "Ted Horn 100" than one of the very young drivers in the field.  This year could see one of the oldest winners in Du Quoin history as a few in the field approaching, or beyond the half-century mark, stand a fair chance of crossing the finish line first.

Lee Wallard was 31 when he won the first championship race at Du Quoin in September of 1948, setting a trend of drivers 30 or older winning at Du Quoin that held through 1955 when Jimmy Bryan became the first under the age of 30 to win.  The next driver under the age of 30 to capture a championship event on the Magic Mile was none other than A.J. Foyt.  In 1960, Foyt won his first national championship race at Du Quoin on the way to his first of a record seven national titles.  At 25 years, 8 months and 20 days, he set a record for being the youngest championship race winner at Du Quoin, a record that would endure for over 30 years.

Foyt, Mario Andretti and Pancho Carter would be the only winning drivers at Du Quoin under the age of 30 for the next three decades.  Don Branson, Gary Bettenhausen and Chuck Gurney would be the only ones over the age of 40.

24-year-old Stevie Reeves had never won a championship dirt race when the USAC Silver Crown series invaded Du Quoin in September of 1991.  He barely crossed the finish line ahead of Steve Butler to become the youngest winner of the Ted Horn 100.  Ironically, the next year, Johnny Parsons became the oldest, a record he would break again in 1995.

Then 22, Kody Swanson became the youngest winner at the time in 2010, followed the next year by 19-year-old Kyle Larson.  However, Swanson and Larson remain the exception to the rule.  In 68 championship dirt car races held at Du Quoin, the race winner has been over the age of thirty 51 times and the average age of the race winner is 34.

This year could see a winner over the age of 50.  Ken Schrader, winner of three ARCA races at Du Quoin after he turned 50, is 62.  Last year’s runner-up and recent third-place finisher at Springfield, Jeff Swindell, is 56.  Brian Tyler, the 2008 winner, will be just short of 50.  While there will be a few drivers on the entry list under the age of 20 it’s a good bet that the winner, based on past history, will be of the 30 and over set.

USAC race fans will find out if old age and experience can overcome youth and skill on Sunday night as the annual “Ted Horn 100” takes place at the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds.  Practice begins at 5 p.m. with the Ted Horn 100 at 8.