Keith Barnwell’s stories come out in a rush.
First, he talks about going to Hickory Motor Speedway when it was still dirt.
“That's where we all went we were growing up,” he said. “I probably went to my first race at Hickory Speedway when I was five or six with my dad. I’m 51 now.
“I remember going to races at Hickory with my friend Steve Lawrence from Hudson. That’s when I met Dale Jarrett, the Houston boys and others. My first so-called job in racing was with Tommy Houston. That was in the Busch (now Nationwide) Series. Hickory hosted four Busch races then, and coming home to Hickory was like going to Daytona for me.”
Then there are Barnwell’s stories about spotting for Bill Elliott, Sterling Marlin, Jason Keller, Jeff Green and seemingly dozens of other drivers. Barnwell loves to talk about spotting for Jamie McMurray when he won the Daytona 500 in 2010. That was a year full of excitement, as McMurray also won at Indy and the fall race at Charlotte.
Barnwell’s favorite story? Easy. Years ago, he was spotting for Ken Schrader on the Sonoma road course, now called Infineon Raceway, when he noticed that Schrader had gone into the dirt and a plume of dust came up. Then he realized that Schrader was coming up the hill end over end, and eventually the car landed on its roof.
Over the radio, he asked Schrader how he was, and he reminded him not to unbuckle his belt before he got help; he’d land on his head. Later, he found Ken in the care center. Again, he asked Schrader if he was OK. While the driver was dressing, he looked at Barnwell and solemnly said, “As the spotter, you've got to tell me when stuff like that is about to happen.”
Right … like he could see it coming.
These days, Barnwell is the spotter for Martin Truex Jr. in the Cup series. He still lives in Granite Falls and also manages the small racing operation that Junior Johnson has for his son, Robert. He hopes to join Robert next month at HMS for the Dwight Huffman Memorial race.
He joined Robert Johnson at Hickory a couple of times for testing, as well as a Late Model race early in the year.
“It was great to be back at Hickory Speedway,” he said. “I wish I could go there more. That spring race was probably the first time I’d been there in five or six years. It was cool to go back.”
Maybe he can go back next month.
• TRACK CHAMPION: Chrissy Wallace, a 23-year-old former racer at HMS, clinched the ASA Late Model title at her home track, Lebanon (Mo.) I-44 Speedway, on Saturday night. That gave her back the lead for the West Region track championship.
Her dad, Mike Wallace, won the same track championship in 1990 and headed to NASCAR in ’91.
• LAST WEEK: Matt McCall, the 2004 HMS track champion, visited Saturday and won the 50-lap Late Model race, beating out points leader Jesse LeFevers and Grant Wimbish. Austin McDaniel, second in points, failed a post-race inspection and was listed as 16th, last.
Tyler Church beat out Matt Piercy and Travis Byrd in Limited Late Models. Points leader Pietro Fittipaldi was fifth. Dan Moore, Roger Pitts II and Dillon Crouch finished 1-2-3 in Street Stocks.
In 4-Cylinders, Todd Harrington, Devon Haun and Shane Canipe finished 1-2-3. Steve Teter won in Mini-Cup Karts, followed by Tyler Baird and Jason Styron.
• POINTS: Jesse LeFevers holds a 52-point lead over Austin McDaniel in Late Models, with Grant Wimbish 66 back. Pietro Fittipaldi is 22 points ahead of Tyler Church in Limited Late Models, with Matt Piercy 50 back.
Kevin Eby leads Dan Moore by 12 points and Roger Pitts III by 16 in Street Stocks. In 4-Cylinders, Chandler Levan holds a solid 42-point lead over Donnie Harmon, with Nathaniel Kanupp 50 back. In trucks, Clint Field is just six points ahead of Jason Crouse, with Jeremy Birch 66 back.
Chad McKinney leads Lewis Slagle by eight points and Tyler McKinney by 18 in Hobbys. And Dillon Crouch is 20 points ahead of Greg Austin in Renegades. Joseph Hodges is third, 64 back.
• NEXT WEEK: Championship Night presented by Gaston Rentals is scheduled Saturday, with the Late Models, Limited Late Models, Street Stocks, 4-Cylinders, Hobby Stocks and Renegades all running.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement