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The Renaissance of Watkins Glen (J.J. O'Malley) · BREAK/FIX the Motorsports & Vehicle Enthusiast Variety Show

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Brake Fix's History of Motorsports series is brought to you in part
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by the International Motor Racing Research Center, as well as the
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Society of Automotive Historians, the Watkins Glen Area Chamber of
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Commerce, and the Argettsinger family.
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There was a moment in American motorsport when it looked like Watkins
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Glen, the legendary road course carved into the hills of Upstate New
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York, might never roar back to life.
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By the early 1980s, the circuit that once hosted the world's
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greatest drivers had gone silent.
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The gates were locked, the asphalt was cracking, and the ghosts of the
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infamous Bog of the mid-'70s hung over the place like a storm cloud.
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But the dream of racing at the Glen never really died.
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It just needed the right people and the right vision to bring it back.
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So today on The Logbook, our History of Motorsports series, guest speaker
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JJ O'Malley, who's been chronicling motorsport since 1973, from the newsrooms
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of National Speed Sport News to the pages of the Pocono Record, is diving
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into the remarkable story of how Watkins Glen was resurrected, and how Corning
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Enterprises stepped in when hope was thin, and how a community, a company,
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and a handful of true believers fought to return world-class motorsport to
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a track that once had defined it.
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Thank you very much.
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Before we talk about the dark years, see how we got there, how I got there.
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My introduction to Watkins Glen and stock car racing came on the very same day,
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which was- July 29th ... July 29th, 1973.
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I was driving to my first stock car race, the United States Auto Club Acme
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Super Saver 500 at Pocono International Raceway, and I picked up a hitchhiker.
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He was heading south on the PA Turnpike to Pittston, Pennsylvania, coming back from
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a rock concert with the Grateful Dead, the Allman Brothers, and The Band, held
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in a place called Watkins Glen, New York.
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He was telling me it was an unbelievable concert.
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Three bands jammed together at the end, an incredible crowd, half a million people.
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I think the final estimate was 600,000, which is bigger than Woodstock.
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Before I dropped off the hitchhiker at the Pocono exit, I told him I wish I had heard
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about the concert instead of the race.
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At the time, I just finished my sophomore year at King's College in
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Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, working on my master's, and I was working
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at the Wyoming Valley Observer.
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A year earlier, the flood resulting from Hurricane Agnes devastated Wilkes-Barre.
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That temporarily halted the two major newspapers in town.
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I was a stringer for The Observer.
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Overnight, we went from 3,500 to 200,000 circulation.
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Eventually settled down to 30,000, which is still pretty good.
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I was tasked with covering everything from my usual high school
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sports to city council meetings.
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For instance, the sports editor covered the main events at the
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boxing cards at the Scranton CYC.
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I covered the undercard, and I was at ringside for Larry
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Holmes' first pro fight.
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I covered an exhibition in Scranton featuring former champion Muhammad Ali.
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I even talked to a race car driver named Brian Redman.
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So when the IndyCars came to Pocono in June of '73 for the Schaefer 500, I was
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along as the support writer-photographer, which is very good experience.
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But that August, there was another big race at Pocono, a USAC stock
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car event that included the top two finishers in the Schaefer 500,
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A.J. Foyt and Roger McCluskey.
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The sports editor and the main writers weren't interested.
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I got to cover it all by myself.
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Richard Petty came back from a cut tire and a lap down and made it up on
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the 2.5-mile track without a caution to win the Acme Super Saver 500.
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Walking back to my car, I found myself next to a 10-year-old
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carrying the big Liberty Bell trophy, along with his sister.
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That's how I met Kyle Petty.
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I also got to cover other races at Pocono, Trans-Am, Formula 5000.
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There was another big race in Wilkes-Barre, the Giants Despair
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Hill Climb, which I got to cover and got to know the local hero,
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Oscar Coveleski, who drove the McLaren he once drove in the Can-Am.
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More importantly, he owned a hobby store in nearby Scranton.
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I started writing press releases for Oscar and even a small book, which was
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called The ABCs of Model Car Racing.
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For payment, I was happy to receive model cars or racing jackets,
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and also, Oscar sold Auto Week.
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That's how I learned about Formula 1.
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Nineteen seventy-four, I covered Pocono's first NASCAR race,
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Purolator 500, won by Richard Petty.
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The following year, I even made the trip to Watkins Glen for the
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US Grand Prix that Niki Lauda won.
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Lauda had a great battle with fist-shaking Emerson Fittipaldi.
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His brother Wilson drove his final F1 race in the number 30.
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I later worked closely with his son Christian for Sunday
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Group's Action Express coverage.
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In between covering, attending grad school at the University of Scranton
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in 1976, I traveled to many more races, including Alan Jones winning the
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final Formula 5000 race at the Glen.
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I also helped independent NASCAR driver Ed Negre find a car dealer to sponsor
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his Dodge for Pocono's 1976 NASCAR race.
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I started making plans for the '77 Daytona 500.
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I covered Ed at his home for a few days in Concord, North Carolina that
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December, and he took me to several of the shops Of the independent drivers.
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I even had lunch at the Apollo with Ed and a few friends, including
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Dale Earnhardt, who had driven Ed's car in his Cup debut at Charlotte.
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So I wrote a story, and I sent it to Auto Week about Ed's plans
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for the 1977 opener at Riverside.
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Never heard back.
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I also saw a copy of National Speed Sport News on Ed's workbench, so I
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sent them a copy of the story, too.
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I got a quick response from the editor/publisher himself, Chris Economaki.
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He said he had an opening for a copy editor.
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I set up what I thought was an interview the following
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week in Ridgewood, New Jersey.
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"Here's your desk," Chris said.
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Next thing you know, I was heading to Daytona with a brand-new job.
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It was quite a year, full-time racing, learning from the master, Chris.
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I went to Watkins Glen for the six hours, the Porsche Parade, and I covered
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Formula One races at Watkins Glen and Motecourt, and it was a pretty busy
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year through the following January.
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And then I got an offer to join the Pocono Record as assistant sports editor.
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That would get me close to my family and friends while getting to cover a
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wide range of scholastic, collegiate, and occasional s- pro sports and still
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getting to cover racing, including NASCAR at Watkins Glen and at Pocono.
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I did make a trip to cover the 1978 US Grand Prix at the Glen.
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Mario came in as world champion.
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They had a huge crowd.
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Mario had problems in warm-ups, and James Hunt won the race.
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But they took an insurance picture just in case Mario won because they were afraid
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they wouldn't get him to victory lane.
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What struck me most was the general atmosphere.
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It was pretty intense.
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I was happy to find my Gremlin alive and well in the parking lot,
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near gate one, the scene of the rock concert I never attended.
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So I was one less victim for the Bog.
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Even though that bus burning happened in '74, the results of it lingered on, and
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you, you weren't sure what to expect.
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So over the years, I covered all the action at Pocono.
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I remember the year Indy President John Cooper also ran Pocono, and
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he had Ron Meade of the Daytona staff helping in the press room.
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The Glen soldiered on.
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The final US Grand Prix was in 1980.
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It was won by Alan Jones.
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Then came 1981, and that's where our real story begins.
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'81 was a rough year for the Watkins Glen circuit, as the Grand Prix
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Corporation was in serious trouble.
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The problems were financial and also from public safety perspective.
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The annual Formula One race was tentatively on the '81 F1 schedule,
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but was removed in early May due to non-payment to the Formula One Constructor
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Association dating back to the 1980 event.
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The six hours ran, and it was won by Al Holbert, and the Super V
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also ran as scheduled with young Davey Jones among the field.
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One month later, the Grand Prix Association filed for bankruptcy
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under Chapter 11 of the US code.
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The August Trans-Am race was canceled, although the Glen Nationals
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were run as a non-spectator event.
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A 200-mile car at IndyCar race was scheduled for August 8th and 9th, but
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was rescheduled to fill the F1 slot on October 4th using the full course.
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Winning on a wet, cold day, Mario Andretti started from the pole, retired
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on lap 25 of 60 with the broken ring and pinion while leading by 40 seconds.
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Rocky Moran lost power in his Dan Gurney Eagle while leading with only
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three laps remaining, giving the victory to Rick Mears, followed by
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Johnny Rutherford and Bill Alsup.
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That proved to be the end of an era.
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The final pro race for the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Association.
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The Pocono Record might have even run a few graphs of the UPI wire copy.
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So 1982 was the beginning of the Glen's dark years.
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A few years later, I asked Bill Green to do a story for a vintage weekend
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program to explain what happened during the off years, and that became the
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beginnings of the Griswold to Gordon book in 1998, which I wrote with
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Bill with plenty of assistance from a good friend, Michael Argetsinger.
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The Grand Prix Association held negotiations in early 1982 with the
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Long Beach Grand Prix Association, the Bank of New York, and the SCCA to
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hold two race weekends, including a Can-Am Super V event on July 9th and
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11th and the Formula One Grand Prix.
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The Grand Prix never had a scheduled date.
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Other tentative schedules called for a six-hour Can-Am weekend, a
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Trans-Am, and a July IndyCar weekend.
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But all this was not to be.
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On June 14th, both weekends were canceled due to the extremely
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complicated and delicate legal problems surrounding the reorganization
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of the Grand Prix Association.
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But continuing the legacy dating back to 1948 The circuit did hold several
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non-spectator races, including the Glen and the Finger Lakes Nationals
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and several other closed circuit event, including two motorcycle races.
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The biggest action took place away from the track.
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On April first, the Bank of New York began legal action against the Grand
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Prix Corporation, which would eventually lead to foreclosure and the sale of
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all property under a three point four million dollar rebuilding program.
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That led to a heralded public auction held at ten AM on November tenth, ironically
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only a few hundred feet from the original nineteen forty-eight start finish line.
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Some one hundred onlookers were on hand braving the November
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chill to witness the auction.
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Earl Butler, the court-appointed referee, took only seven minutes
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to explain the terms of the sale and actually sell the property.
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Corning businessman Ted Marx put up an opening bid of a hundred thousand dollars.
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That was quickly followed by a one point two two five million dollar bid
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by Kenneth J. Patutius, who was the vice president of the Bank of New York.
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The auction was over.
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Sometime after the auction, Bill France Jr. met with the Bank of New York
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to discuss ISC purchasing the track.
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However, the availability of Darlington Racing diverted his attention.
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Only recently, looking back on this, I recall the importance of
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international competition to Bill France Sr. when he was establishing
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Daytona National Speedway, knowing that European-style motorsports would help
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bring attention to his new racetrack.
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That led to a major event at Daytona in nineteen sixty-two, leading up to a
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twenty-four-hour race four years later.
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The name of the nineteen sixty-two event was the Daytona Continental.
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During the weekend following the sale of the track, the Glen Region d-delegation
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attended the SCCA Northeast Division Convention in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
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Glen Region members formed the Glen Region Green Flag Committee and charged
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themselves with planning the future of the Glen Region, racing in general
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at Watkins Glen, and dealing with any potential purchasers of the circuit.
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The committee felt it had information which would be beneficial to any
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potential purchasers of the circuit.
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The members were Chairman Adrian Ketcham, who was the outgoing regional executive,
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Jim Escrow, region attorney, Norm Glueck, who was the incoming RE, Bob Perry, Jerry
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Buckby, Dave Davies, Stan Dobremill, Bill Green, and Connie Davies, his secretary.
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After a few meetings, their objective was clear: to find
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a new owner for the racetrack.
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Nineteen eighty-three was another dark year at the track, but there was plenty
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of activity taking place away from it.
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In early February, the Green Flag Advisory Committee met at the SCCA National
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Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, where they sought out the club's feeling about
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the future of racing at Watkins Glen.
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They obtained important feedback and returned home with a new ray of hope.
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Meanwhile, National Speed Sport News lost two key employees.
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Chris Economaki asked me to help out covering a few key events,
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beginning with the first Charlotte Motor Speedway media tour.
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The Pocono Record supported his idea, knowing that I would be able to obtain
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information, helping our coverage of the events at Pocono International Raceway.
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The media tour took many of the NASCAR shops in getting a look behind the
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scenes at Charlotte Motor Speedway, including a tour of the road course
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with track promoter Humpy Wheeler.
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The tour also rekindled my interest in working in racing.
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Next event, Daytona 500.
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Cale Yarborough drove to victory.
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Ken Squier referenced my cover story for Speed Sport years later
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when Cale was inducted by Squier into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
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But for Watkins Glen followers, the real story was in the grandstands.
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Corning Glass Vice President and Comptroller, Jim
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Reisbeck, was in the crowd.
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He was sitting with fellow Corning residents Kevin Kuhn and Tim Putnam.
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Their discussion following the race touched on the lead article in that
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morning's Daytona Beach News Journal, which was dealing with the huge economic
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impact the races had on the Daytona area.
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Reisbeck said he thought it would be pretty neat to have a Winston
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Cup race that would add economic viability to the Corning area.
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Kuhn told him there was a racetrack in the area that was for sale that wasn't
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too far from Corning in Watkins Glen.
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Reisbeck said he'd never been to the Glen.
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Kuhn said the idea was worth some talk Then in the race, Richard
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Brooks had a strong run, finishing fifth in an unsponsored car.
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Jim was a race fan first and foremost, but he was also, and more
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importantly, a very astute businessman.
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The next morning, Riesbeck visited the NASCAR offices, and he asked at
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the front desk, "How does one get involved in sponsorship?" And they
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kinda looked funny, and they sent down the NASCAR PR guy to talk to him.
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The guy told me later, "I saw a guy in shorts and a T-shirt, and when
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he introduced himself as being with Corning Glass, that really got my
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attention. I took him right upstairs." Obviously, the talks were a success.
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Jim made a great impression on both Bill France Jr. and his father.
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Back home in Corning, Riesbeck quietly requested an economic study of the
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impact of Formula 1 and the six-hour races on the region's economy.
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Some new players entered into the conversation.
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Glenn Region Activities Director Tom Sparling had an auto repair shop
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in Riverside, just outside Corning.
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On March 1st, he went to nearby Putnam Auto Sales to borrow a few parts.
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During an ensuing conversation with Tim Putnam, who had been at the 500, Sparling
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learned that a Corning Glass executive might be interested in the track.
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When he returned his tools three days later, Sparling learned the
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name of the Corning executive, and he re- quickly relayed Jim
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Riesbeck's name to Aid Ketchum.
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Ketchum first contracted Jim Escrow, the region's lawyer.
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He didn't know Riesbeck, but he said he would contact the
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Corning corporate attorney to see if they had any information.
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Aid also called Dave Davies.
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After a short conversation, Davies said he would call Riesbeck.
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Davies and Riesbeck then spoke on the phone for about 45 minutes
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regarding the track and if there were any indications that Corning
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might be interested in purchasing it.
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Dave told Jim to call him if he needed any additional information.
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Meanwhile, Escrow called Ketchum with the information that Corning Glass attorney
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had no knowledge of any attempt on Corning Glass work's part to purchase the track.
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Then Riesbeck received the results of his economic survey.
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He was pleased to find that both of the annual race weekends had a
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significant impact on the region.
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He was particularly impressed with the increase in sales of Steuben Glass,
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which is high quality crystal handmade in Corning, during race weekends.
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On March 16th, Davies received a call from Riesbeck to set up a quick morning meeting
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for the following morning at 11 o'clock.
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Ketchum and Davies took Riesbeck to the track for his first look at the place.
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Riesbeck was amazed that the circuit looked as good as it did.
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He had been told it needed a lot of work.
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The Green Flag Advisory Committee met the following Saturday at the
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home of Dave and Connie Davies.
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There was a discussion about a reported offering of two point six
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million dollars by British Motor Brokers, a firm dealing with antique
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cars headquartered in Scotland, who were interested in buying the track.
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But those talks failed to materialize.
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During this time, only four members of the committee knew of
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Riesbeck's interest in the track.
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Next, Corning Glassworks formed Corning Enterprises, which was a wholly owned
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subsidiary to boost the economy of Steuben, Chemung, and Schuyler Counties.
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Conrad Stimsky headed this group, which included the Corning
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Merchandise Store and the LPGA Golf Tournament held annually in Corning.
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Corning Enterprises felt the revival of top-flight professional racing at
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the Glen would provide jobs and boost the economy of the Tri-County region.
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From that point on, things moved very quickly.
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Around March nineteenth, Riesbeck met with members of ISC in
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Daytona to discuss possible joint venture with Corning Enterprises.
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On March twenty-sixth, a joint meeting of the Glen Region Contest Board and
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the Green Flag Advisory Committee was held at Ade Ketcham's home.
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It was at this meeting that Tom Sparling had the honor of telling
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the assembled group that Corning Enterprises and Jim Riesbeck were
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the light at the end of the tunnel.
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Then at the end of the month, Riesbeck met with the Bank of New York Vice President
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Petrudias, who was in charge of the racetrack account, to discuss a possible
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purchase of the track with the backing of Corning Glassworks Board of Directors.
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At the April meeting of the Glen Region Board of Directors, members
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of the Green Flag Advisory Committee reported on Corning's projections
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for the track and were asked to keep discussions confidential.
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On April 7th, a groundbreaking dinner took place at Pieri's
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Restaurant in Painted Post.
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Cameron Argetsinger, the founder of Racing at the Glen, attended.
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Frank Ganung, supervisor of the town of Dix, where the
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track is located, was there.
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George Douglas and Riesbeck, representing Corning Glass, with
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Ade Ketcham, Dave Davies, and Bill Green representing the Glen Region.
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At this dinner meeting, Riesbeck said he was going to the Bank of New York on April
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18th with a purchase offer for the track.
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After making the offer, Riesbeck returned to the bank on April
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29th, and he presented a deposit check drawn on Corning Enterprises'
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account to purchase the property.
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Three days later, the offer was approved.
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Corning Enterprises had a ninety-day option for the purchase.
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On May 5th, a dinner meeting was held at the Corning Hilton, attended by
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Riesbeck, Douglas, Ganung, and Green.
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Of major importance was the need to permanently close the two town-maintained
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roads that ran through the circuit, Wedgewood Road and Reinhardt Road.
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Previously, the town allowed the temporary closing of these roads
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during race events, but it was felt the permanent closing of these roads was
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crucial for the future of the track.
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After considerable discussion, it was felt that this could be worked
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out, and a formal proposal was presented at the next monthly meeting
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of the town of Dix on May 20th.
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The meeting was successful, and the roads were deeded over to Corning Enterprises
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during the final closing of the property.
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Later in the week, Riesbeck, Ketcham, and Green took a two-hour tour of the
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track, including three parcels not included in the foreclosure sale, fifty
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point three acres, which were part of the Grand Prix Corporation assets.
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Another important meeting took place at the M&M Club in Montour
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Falls, attended by community leaders and race-involved individuals.
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This included Bill France Jr. of NASCAR and ISC, John Bishop and Bob Raymond of
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IMSA, Reisbeck, Stemski, and Douglas of Corning, Vic Franzese and Gil Smith of
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Schuyler County Industrial Development Agency, Rex Richards and Phil Smith
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of the Schuyler County Legislature, attorney Cameron Argetsinger, founder
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of Racing at The Glen, Ganong, Bill Clark, who was president of
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Glen National Bank, Ed Dalrymple of Whitewater Development, Gary Herzig, the
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Schuyler County Chamber of Commerce and publisher of The Watkins Glen Review,
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and Ketcham & Green of the Glen Region.
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My next big event was the World 600 at Charlotte on Memorial Day weekend.
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One of the many Charlotte pre-race media activities was a press
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conference announcing a new sponsor.
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Jim Reisbeck took the podium, and he announced Corning's
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new line of sunglasses.
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Chameleon Sunglasses would become the primary sponsor of Junie Donlavey's
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number 90 Ford Thunderbird, driven by Richard Brooks, who was the
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fifth-place finisher in the Daytona 500.
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Chameleon would also become the primary sunglasses of NASCAR, and Corning,
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in partnership with ISC, was taking an option to purchase the defunct
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racetrack in Watkins Glen, New York.
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I asked Jim Reisbeck at the announcement if that meant NASCAR Winston Cup
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Racing would be coming to Watkins Glen.
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Reisbeck's reply was that that was not part of the discussion.
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Months later, when I was on the inside, I asked him again.
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He gave me the same answer.
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I also asked Chris Economaki what he thought, and he said, "If anyone can
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pull it off, Corning Glass can." On July 17th, following the Sunday lunch break
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during the Glen Nationals, Reisbeck and Stemski made the long-awaited
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announcement to the track workers.
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They told the volunteers and drivers of the plans they had for the Glen.
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The announcement met with applause and loud cheers of approval.
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I have a quote from Bill Green.
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"I remembered being at the track on a very nice, bright, sunny day. It
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was like the Glen had just come out of a dark tunnel. The Glen was now
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alive and on the road to recovery."
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Shortly after this, Corning Enterprises appointed John Saunders to general
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manager of the track, a Corning native.
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He had managed Belhurst Castle and was running the Corning Museum of Glass shop.
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Corning PR director Eugene Saunders mentioned that his son attended races at
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the Glen while attending Ithaca College.
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Corning had found its racing expert.
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Saunders soon made his first hire, Carol Hadler, as his executive assistant, and
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that proved to be an excellent choice.
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The Glen did hold seven non-spectator events in 1983.
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Among the highlights, local drivers Craig Horning and Bob Henderson
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placed in their respective races.
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And also during the events, everyone helped in, drivers, crew workers,
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everyone, to keep the races going.
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And Dave Davies there is part of the crowd fixing a tire wall.
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Among the other noteworthy on-track modifications was the removal of the
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infamous Scheckter Chicane on August 17th.
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That had been in place since 1975, often called Jody's Joke.
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Its removal was a very big selling point for the new management.
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With the future looking very good for the track, the Glen Region
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Green Flag Committee was disbanded, having met its objectives.
25:12
New to racing, Corning Enterprises joined with the business the foremost
25:16
name in American auto racing, International Speedway Corporation,
25:21
owners of the famed speedways at Daytona, Talladega, and Darlington.
25:25
ISC would take a 20% ownership of the circuit.
25:29
A new entity, Watkins Glen International, was announced at a press conference
25:34
at the famed 21 Club in New York City on Tuesday, September 20th.
25:38
Conrad Stemski was announced as chairman, Bill France Jr. the vice chairman.
25:44
The final closing of the property was October 28th, when the two
25:48
public roads were formally closed.
25:50
On the ride back home from Newark on the Corning corporate jet following
25:54
the big announcement, Roger Reinhart of the Watkins Review and Express
25:58
needled Stemski about giving his new GM a little more clout.
26:02
And Stemski elevated Saunders to president On the spot.
26:06
I wasn't at the press conference.
26:08
I received a very nice invitation, even a follow-up call from Carol
26:12
Ladler if I was going to attend.
26:14
I asked her if it was to announce a NASCAR race.
26:16
She seemed surprised by the question and told me it would be IMSA Camel GT.
26:21
I wasn't excited about driving to the city unless there was a potential
26:24
interview, maybe Bob Tullius, Al Hobert, or Hurley Haywood.
26:27
So I asked if any drivers would be there.
26:29
Again, no, the weekend guest would be Bill France Jr. So my next assignment for
26:34
Economaki was the October National 500 to Charlotte, which was Richard Petty's
26:39
controversial 198th career victory.
26:42
I had one brief discussion with Humpy Wheeler about possible
26:45
employment on his PR staff.
26:47
Unfortunately or fortunately, it was cut off, and I never resumed talks with Humpy.
26:52
I don't remember any conversation about Watkins Glen up to that time.
26:56
In the meantime, WGI's new president was looking for a media director.
27:01
France had wanted someone from the region.
27:03
John Cooper, who had helped out at Indy and Pocono, remembered
27:06
me covering the Pocono races.
27:08
I casually knew Jim Foster, the Daytona Speedway president.
27:12
He once set up a phone interview with me and Bill France Sr. regarding
27:17
the possible move of the Firecracker 400 from Daytona to Pocono.
27:21
That was quite an exclusive.
27:23
The headline story might have helped convince the Daytona business
27:26
community that ISC was serious about possibly moving the race.
27:31
I'm sure it also shook up Dr. Mattioli at Pocono.
27:34
Later on, I heard ISC also contacted Chris Economaki, Associated Press
27:38
lead motorsports writer Mike Harris, and Oscar Coveleski about what
27:43
they felt about my chances there.
27:45
So I was surprised when I had a call from Carol Ladler working
27:48
to set up an interview with John Saunders about possible employment.
27:52
Now it was my turn to call Chris Economaki.
27:54
He told me it was a great opportunity.
27:56
When I asked Carol if John would be attending the upcoming NASCAR banquet
28:00
at the Waldorf, we settled on that.
28:02
So on Thursday, after the NASCAR press conference, I went up to Pocono owner Doc
28:07
Mattioli's suite waiting to meet Saunders.
28:10
I remember talking with writer Ernie Saxon as people who were
28:14
coming into the suite were wondering which one was John Saunders.
28:17
Finally, a bearded kid tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I was JJ O'Malley.
28:21
And I said, "Huh?" And he says, "I'm John Saunders." That was
28:24
not my last surprise from John.
28:26
With permission, we went into Dr. Mattioli's bedroom for privacy.
28:30
We talked for maybe 15 minutes.
28:32
John always recalls me sitting on the high bed, my feet up from the floor,
28:36
me almost falling back several times.
28:38
The result, though, I did tell John I was interested in possible employment.
28:42
That night was incredible.
28:44
Vice President Bush made a surprise appearance to congratulate new Winston
28:49
Cup champion Bobby Allison, and even President Reagan made a telephone call.
28:53
NASCAR was really in the spotlight.
28:55
So I was wondering what would come next.
28:58
A few calls from Carol Ladler trying to set up a follow-up interview, and I wasn't
29:02
thrilled about driving all the way up to Corning from Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.
29:07
So on Saturday, January 4th, I flew to Greensboro, North Carolina,
29:11
and then we drove to Winston-Salem where I had dinner with Jim Foster.
29:15
Early next morning, I went to the Winston-Salem airport and waited
29:19
at the FBO office for a car parked on the runway, and John could
29:23
see me pacing back and forth.
29:25
Then I was called to the car.
29:26
Foster and Ron Mead were in the front seat.
29:28
I was in the back seat for a short conversation, and I was asked to
29:31
step outside for a few minutes.
29:33
So I was called back a few minutes later and John offered me a salary with a
29:37
little better than the Pocono Record.
29:39
Actually, it was a lot better.
29:40
And then I was excused, having to drive back to Greensboro for
29:43
the flight back that afternoon.
29:45
Monday and Tuesday, I was finally back in Corning, looking for an apartment,
29:49
and John took me for a ride to the racetrack, which looked pretty desolate
29:53
with about a foot of snow on the ground.
29:55
When I went to work at the Pocono Record the next morning, I was called into
29:58
the office of editor, Ron Bouchard.
30:00
How did he find out?
30:02
Instead, he offered me a raise.
30:04
I said, "Thanks, but I quit." And I gave him two weeks notice, part of which I
30:08
spent in Philadelphia for the annual Eastern Motorsports Press Association
30:12
meeting, and eager to talk to members of the racing media about what they
30:17
thought about Watkins Glen and why they should attend the races there.
30:20
Then I came up and to Corning, and on Saturday, January 28th,
30:24
was my first day on the job.
30:26
John gave me a very easy assignment.
30:28
I was to escort Bill Jr. to the Elmira Sports Banquet that evening.
30:32
Unfortunately, for everyone but me, Bill couldn't make it, so there was
30:36
much less pressure and I got to meet Ron Levandoski of the Star-Gazette, Paul
30:41
Lower of the Corning Leader, Fred Yonn of the Ithaca Journal, other members of
30:45
the local media that I'd be working with.
30:47
Carol Ladler did a great job getting them to attend and sit at our
30:50
table The next day, I was off to Daytona for the Sunbank twenty-four.
30:55
I got to sit in the press box located behind the grandstands
30:58
back then with Ron Mead, observed how he worked with the media.
31:02
Mario Andretti won the pole for the first Porsche nine sixty-two that
31:06
he shared with his son, Michael.
31:07
That car went out early.
31:09
Also having problems were both of Bob Tullius' Group forty-four Jaguars,
31:14
which drivers included Pocono winner Doc Bundy, David Hobbs, and Brian Redman.
31:19
At midnight, a group of unknown South Africans driving the Creepy Crawley
31:23
Porsche March prototype were battling for the lead when I left for a short nap.
31:27
Back at the track, it was still dark at five AM, Creepy Crawley had a multi-lap
31:32
lead over the AJ Foyt Bob Wollek Porsche.
31:35
At dawn, Creepy Crawley was still way ahead.
31:38
Noon, the same story.
31:39
Back then, the speedway folks thought if the race started at three thirty
31:43
in the afternoon, people waking up the next morning would hear the cars and
31:46
realize there's plenty of racing ahead.
31:48
Finally, at three thirty, Creepy Crawley beat Foyt by nine laps, and Tullius'
31:53
car was third, twenty-eight laps down.
31:55
That probably proved to be my least exciting Daytona twenty-four.
31:59
No idea that someday I'd be writing a book about that race.
32:02
So back in Corning, I wasn't thinking we had only five months and change
32:07
to put together a major race weekend.
32:09
In hindsight, I was just worried about getting through the next week.
32:13
There was really no way we could possibly pull it off.
32:16
Fortunately, we didn't know it at the time.
32:18
We were just working very hard, determined to make it work, not knowing any better.
32:22
Those five months were a real blur.
32:24
One meeting after another, late dinners, more meetings, more dinners.
32:29
I continued to eat like a marathon runner, even though my training was cut in half.
32:33
One of those meetings involved Bill France Jr. I think it was Hammerhead Two.
32:38
I looked forward to hearing his idea of promoting our Camel GT race.
32:42
Bill Jr. rushed through the early items of the agenda.
32:45
Then he announced, "Next item, tickets."
32:47
The next few hours were like a graduate course on ticketing, and then credentials.
32:52
I did make the suggestion to move registration from the Catholic church
32:56
in Watkins Glen to the racetrack.
32:57
Then came a meeting with the representatives of R.J. Reynolds,
33:01
including Ralph Siggraves, Duncan Lee, and Jeff Byrd.
33:04
Watching Bill Jr. and Ralph Siggraves was like attending a sparring session
33:09
with Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes.
33:11
Part of it was talking about paint.
33:13
I remember Ralph Siegreich telling Bill Jr., "You can paint every darn billboard
33:18
in New York State with that amount of paint." And there was a lot of paint.
33:21
The Glen's signature light blue guardrails would remain, but the
33:24
remainder of the circuit would feature Camel's tan pigments.
33:28
Included in the makeover was a new souvenir building, the Camel Pyramid.
33:33
Corning's Jim Smith, who ran the downtorn Corning store, helped out at first.
33:37
One of his staffers, Tim Coleman, helped out to the point where
33:41
he became a full-time employee.
33:43
Phyllis DeSarno was the director of marketing and a key to building
33:46
support with the community groups.
33:48
In some ways, she was ahead of her time.
33:51
One of her family-friendly ideas included a petting zoo.
33:54
The former Kendall Tech Center was rebranded as the Camel GT Center,
33:59
headquartered for our operations team led by Peter Wedinsky, Matt and
34:03
Andy Matusky, Steve Ely, and they were later joined by the world-famous
34:07
sign painter, Tony Vicchio.
34:09
The Glen Club was refurbished, led by John Brennan and Brad Beck,
34:14
and later Mary Ann Shoemaker.
34:16
The Kendall Tower became the Camel Tower between turns one and two.
34:20
If you ever wondered about the location of the giant Camel scoreboard in the
34:25
infield paddock near the skid pad, far from the fans, it was in the
34:29
direct line of sight for the R.J.
34:30
Reynolds VIPs in the tower.
34:32
Most important.
34:33
The major renovation for the press tower was the addition of restrooms, while
34:37
the first-floor risers were eliminated in favor of an interview podium.
34:42
Then came Hammerhead Three, this time an overnighter at the Bellhurst Castle.
34:46
I remember an argument about Formula One versus Camel GT.
34:50
I knew we faced an uphill battle with the former Glen crowd.
34:53
But we didn't talk much about actual racing at those mini meetings.
34:57
Major topics were tickets, following up the directive from Bill France Jr. We
35:02
talked about everything from printing them, more importantly, selling them.
35:06
Security, no more B-O-G.
35:10
Conrad Stemski would turn pale if he even heard that word pronounced.
35:15
Instead, we worked on building a family atmosphere.
35:18
There was a focus on a strong and visible law enforcement, including a holding
35:22
facility, jail, plus tear gas, other goodies, thankfully, were never used.
35:27
And plenty of out-of-service police cars to patrol the track during the races.
35:32
Also, no rock concerts.
35:34
There were still lawsuits on the books from Summer Jam.
35:37
We did have a lot of help.
35:39
Ron Mead stayed for a week or two to help before he took a position at Lime Rock.
35:43
Clarence Cagle worked with our operations team.
35:46
Cagle was a racing legend.
35:48
He was superintendent at a dilapidated Indianapolis Motor Speedway after track
35:52
was purchased following World War II.
35:55
He was active behind the scenes at Daytona and other tracks as an advisor for ISC.
36:01
One name I kept hearing was that of a driver whom I first interviewed
36:05
for National Speed Sport News when he was still in high school in Arkansas.
36:09
How did Mark Martin become involved with WGI?
36:12
I quickly learned it was another Mark Martin.
36:15
He was Clarence Cagle's counterpart at the Glen.
36:18
The other Martin would make his name at the Glen, but not for a few more years.
36:22
Bill Jr. toured every inch of that property.
36:26
I know Carol Adler told me he put many, many miles on his rental van, found
36:31
roads we didn't even know existed.
36:33
He even planned his own escape route from the property, and he also
36:37
scoped out potential viewing areas.
36:39
There's one area on Bronson Hill Road, which if you had parked your car off
36:43
property, you could see the racetrack.
36:46
He wanted to make sure that you couldn't see any racing without buying a ticket.
36:50
Following the Sunbank 24, it was back to Daytona for another 500
36:54
and another headline story in speed sport for Cale Yarborough.
36:59
Prior to the race, a gentleman saw me in my black WGI jacket, and he introduced
37:03
himself and volunteered to help if needed.
37:06
I kept his card thinking maybe I'd call this Tom Holleran guy someday
37:10
When we were preparing for our next major announcement in New York City
37:13
to announce our Ford sponsorship, I gave Tom Holloran a call and invited
37:18
him to join us on the Corning Shuttle.
37:20
We talked a lot about racing, mostly NASCAR, and Tom wound up being a key
37:24
volunteer, helping organize Victory Circle, along with his family and
37:28
racing friends, and they became very instrumental in track tours
37:32
years later, and still to this day.
37:34
If you see a picture of Jeff Bodine's first race car, the Plymouth has a Tom's
37:39
Speed Shop logo on its rear fender.
37:42
I was busy working with the media, sending out press releases, working
37:45
on credentials with Mary Lou Thompson, doing ads, radio commercials.
37:49
I got Brian Buckhauer from Horseheads to be our first announcer.
37:53
He brought along Al Robinson to help.
37:55
Also did the souvenir program, media giveaways, included a Camel GT cap,
38:00
a Corelle plate with the WGI logo.
38:03
I was asked several times, "Where do I get my Steuben plate?" So we
38:08
had many media tours, including American Challenge drivers Tommy
38:11
Riggins and Patty Moise, taking them to local TV and radio stations.
38:16
Before we knew it, the June Finger Lakes Nationals became a dry run for
38:21
the grand opener, and it went off well.
38:24
It was capped by a brilliant moonrise.
38:27
Our first major race was the Camel Continental on July seventh and eighth.
38:31
That revised the six-hour format with a unique twist.
38:35
The race was divided into a pair of three-hour segments.
38:39
After three hours of racing on Saturday, teams would retire to the
38:42
garage, where fans could observe them working through the night, getting
38:46
ready for Sunday's final three hours.
38:49
We had one of the support races, the American Challenge, and that's
38:53
where we have Tommy Riggins and Patty Moise, who did the media tour,
38:57
joined by Clay Young and Irv Hare.
38:59
Checkered flag for, joined by Al Robinson, sang the national anthem,
39:03
and that set up the first race.
39:05
And the new format quickly took a hit.
39:07
Two top contenders were out of the race in the opening ten minutes.
39:12
Al Holbert was in Cleveland, where he was practicing his IndyCar, and
39:16
Derek Bell was running in IROC.
39:18
So Jim Adams was all by himself.
39:21
I had a helicopter waiting for Holbert, and he got delayed, and he barely made
39:25
it to the track in time for the race.
39:28
So race went on, and the first three hours, out front was Blue
39:31
Thunder, then came looking for their trophy, thinking they deserved one
39:35
for their winning the three hours.
39:37
Well, the next day, racing resumed, and the first hour was a brilliant battle
39:42
between Derek Bell and Bill Whittington.
39:44
Then Whittington went out, Derek Bell won the trophy.
39:48
So we pulled it off.
39:49
The Glen was back, but only through a great team effort.
39:53
We worked hard.
39:54
We played hard.
39:55
After work several times a week, we'd get together and share
39:58
stories, working together as a team.
40:00
And over the years, I feel that was a real key to our success.
40:05
John Saunders put together a great team effort and kept us working together.
40:09
We followed up the Continental with the Glen Trans-Am, and it was a great
40:14
race won by Jack Roush driver Willy T. Ribbs without a great turnout.
40:18
Then the New York 500 for the Stebbins Cup was won by Blue
40:22
Thunder, and this time it counted.
40:24
Of course, we had hoped for more spectators, but on the other hand, we
40:28
had cleared some very huge obstacles.
40:30
No problems at all with crowd control, law enforcement, rowdy behavior, and
40:35
we were on our way to establishing camping that was safe for the family.
40:39
I remember the key point, though, of my first performance development
40:42
and review with Mr. Saunders.
40:45
I was told to concentrate on activities pertinent to Watkins Glen, not NASCAR.
40:51
Well, glad I listened.
40:52
WGI survived its first year.
40:54
The dark days were over.
40:56
The next year, we opened up with the Sunbank 24 won by Al Holbert.
41:00
Bill Elliott was awesome, winning the 500.
41:03
Derek Bell and Al Holbert won the New York 500 and the Camel Continental.
41:07
And in between, Paul Newman won two poles.
41:10
He won the main event in the Glen Nationals, finished second in the
41:12
Glen Trans-Am behind Wally Dallenbach.
41:14
But not even Blue Ice could draw a big crowd for that weekend.
41:18
The year ended with the very unique event, the Seagram's Cooler,
41:21
twenty-four hours, which was fairly successful, that if you bought a pack
41:25
of wine coolers, you'd get a ticket.
41:27
The next year, you bought a Whopper, you got a ticket.
41:30
And getting away from my directive, throughout the year, we were hearing
41:33
more and more rumblings about NASCAR.
41:35
And when the NASCAR Fairgrounds dropped off the schedule,
41:38
rumors really started flying.
41:40
Next thing I remember, Tom Haller and I were going to
41:42
Rockingham for the penultimate race of the Winston Cup season.
41:46
We spent time there with Geoff Bodine and other drivers.
41:49
That set the scene for another big announcement at the Glen Club.
41:52
Over the years, when they announced the Daytona Continental, the sale
41:56
of Watkins Glen, they held press conferences in New York City.
41:59
This time, we had the big announcement at the Glen Club.
42:02
We had enough regional support that we didn't need to go to
42:05
New York City to make news.
42:06
NASCAR was coming for the inaugural Budweiser at the Glen in August 1986.
42:13
Geoff Bodine was there to help with the announcement.
42:15
Years later, he would win the Bud at the Glen.
42:19
And Geoff then really helped with the build-up by winning the Daytona 500.
42:23
And from there on, it was nonstop preparation.
42:26
But one of the big challenges, where we were gonna park the early arrivals.
42:31
Bob Kelley, who was formerly the press director here at
42:34
Watkins Glen, was now with R.J.
42:36
Reynolds.
42:37
He really helped out by getting air conditioning for the press
42:40
tower to accommodate the major media we expected for the race.
42:43
Tom Holleran and local radio personality Don Murphy got together every week talking
42:48
about getting the community behind.
42:51
I recalled in Talladega, they had a race fever night.
42:54
I remember being in the Stroudsburg for the Pocono races
42:57
when I was at the Pocono Record.
42:58
You'd never even know there was a race in town.
43:01
Fortunately, we were able to put it together with events in
43:04
Elmira, Corning, and Watkins Glen, including a golf tournament.
43:08
And this schedule got even busier over the following years as many municipalities
43:12
wanted to be part of the action.
43:14
We worked a lot harder for NASCAR than we did for the Continental, and it paid off.
43:19
Of course, having the big show really helped, but the work we
43:22
did for IMSA and the Trans Am weekends really paid dividends.
43:26
Bodine even came up for the Continental, and he won his class
43:30
in a Levi Garrett-sponsored Chevy.
43:32
The crowd came early, and so did the media, and we were ready.
43:36
The facility looked fantastic.
43:38
The racing was great.
43:39
Bill Elliott nearly won the pole, but he crashed in turn five.
43:43
Geoff Bodine had a strong early run.
43:45
Tim Richmond and Darrell Waltrip also up front.
43:48
It all came down to the end of the race to Tim Richmond, and he was a very
43:52
popular victory, getting the trophy from Congressman Amo Houghton, who knew that
43:57
his personal tragedy was about to unfold.
44:00
So NASCAR got even bigger and better in following years, including Rusty
44:04
and Ricky Rudd battling the final turn of the final lap in 1988.
44:10
There was one more major step.
44:12
We treated vintage weekends above a club rental back then.
44:16
The pro weekends were so demanding.
44:18
In 1989, Aston Martin's Peter Livanos put a huge push behind the GT40
44:23
reunion, and that celebrated the cars that beat Ferrari at Le Mans.
44:27
We hosted the largest gathering of GT40s up until that time.
44:32
"How are we gonna follow this up?" Oscar Kavaleski asked me
44:35
repeatedly that weekend, and he suggested a Can-Am reunion.
44:39
That became a big hit in 1990.
44:41
We had world champion Denny Hulme, Auto Week's Leon Mandel, a lot of great
44:45
cars, drivers from the past, and more importantly, the Downtown Festival.
44:50
Remember back then, getting cars downtown was pulling teeth.
44:54
Now, they all wanted to come and put on a very pleasing
44:57
show for the many spectators.
44:59
Cameron Argettsinger's dream of having America's best sports cars on the street
45:03
of Watkins Glen came back to life.
45:06
Mal Curry of the Grand Prix Corporation was on hand to witness the occasion,
45:10
fittingly joined by John Saunders.
45:12
The Glen truly was back.
45:15
Thank you very much.
45:20
That was fantastic, JJ.
45:22
Thanks so much.
45:23
Questions.
45:24
Where do you think we go from here?
45:26
That's the talk two years from now.
45:28
Everything I see, we talk about the renaissance.
45:31
It's- So much has changed when they start really pumping money in and
45:35
they've got a new press tower, all the amenities getting better and better.
45:39
And the reviews, the fan surveys, Watkins Glen is near the top, if not
45:43
at the top in many of those surveys.
45:46
Just, uh, keep working on what we're doing.
45:48
All right.
45:48
That was great.
45:49
Thank you so much, JJ.
45:50
All right.
45:50
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45:58
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