Five Inducted into Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame
Monday, June 19, 2006
by Bob Wilson and Kathy Bell
Five men were inducted into the Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame, last Saturday night, during a break in racing action at the track. Honored were, Daryl Arend, a car owner from Algona, David Hesmer, a former driver from Marshalltown, Archie Ergenbright, a former driver and car owner from Newton, Tom Hutchison, a mechanic from Indianola and James Bond, a former driver from Edwardsville, KS.
Arend has been involved in racing for more than 50 years. Drivers who have driven for Arend include, Jon Backlund, Mackie Heimbaugh, Bobby Bruto, Randy Smith, Jerry Potter and Terry McCarl. Arend made his debut at the 1967 Knoxville Nationals with driver Jim Edgington. He currently fields his No.1A 410-sprinter for Gordy Vogelaar. McCarl made his rookie debut at the 1985 Knoxville Nationals qualifying for the B-Main in Arend's car. Arend's best Nationals finish came in 1980 when Randy Smith piloted his sprinter to a 14th place finish in the A-Main.
Hesmer holds the all-time track record in the 360 sprint division at Knoxville with 65 feature wins. He captured his first win in the first 360 feature he competed in at Knoxville in 1988. Hesmer is a four-time track champion at Knoxville winning titles in 1988 and 1997-99. He won the inaugural 360 Knoxville Nationals in 1991, then again in 1997. He was named Knoxville's Sportsman of the Year in 1992 and he is one of only four drivers to ever win back to back features on twin features night at Knoxville. Retiring last season, Hesmer's career spanned 19 years.
Archie Ergenbright had a racing career spanning over 40 years. He began racing go-carts in 1960, graduating to stock cars in 1966. He was crowned stock car champion at Newton Speedway while also competing at tracks in Oskaloosa and Stuart. In 1982, he began racing what was then called Compact Modifieds, a new division at Knoxville Raceway which evolved into the 360 c.i. sprint class. He was named Knoxville's Sportsman of the Year in 1988. His final race as a driver was in the fall of 1995. He returned to Knoxville for the next five years in a partnership with driver, David Hesmer winning three track titles and two second place finishes in the point standings. Hesmer's 1997 360 Knoxville Nationals win was in Ergenbright's car.
Bond built his first race car in 1962 and drove it at age 17. He ran with the "supers" with the Welds at Lakeside and Riverside speedways in the metro Kansas City area. He is a seven-time, Knoxville Nationals competitor with his best finish being in the 1967 B-Main, driving the No. 007 Weld-roadster
copy. He competed at tracks from Topeka to Lincoln but preferred the fast half mile at Knoxville. He finished in Knoxville's top ten standings in 1967 and 68.
Hutchison began his career as a mechanic for Logan Light, later for Bob Tuttle and finally for Johnny Anderson in more recent years. He debuted in the Knoxville 360 class in 1985 with rookie driver, Ron Sallman. He came back the following year with a new rookie, Steve Sallman. Harrold Annett helped Hutchison financially during those years. Hutchison won the Knoxville Raceway 360 championship with driver, Dwight Snodgrass in the late 1980's. He and wife Marilyn were named Car Owners of the Year in 1988-89. His last year to field a car was 1993.
Picture Info: Inducted into the 2006 Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame are front row, left to right, Archie Ergenbright and David Hesmer. In the back are, James Bond, Tom Hutchison and Daryl Arend.
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