History of the Pepsi/Mt. Dew King Doodlebug Classic
Thursday, June 21, 2007
by Tom Schmeh - The Pepsi/Mt. Dew Knoxville Midget Nationals presented by Iowa Telecom is two separate nights of non-winged midget car racing, with the preliminary night’s $1,650-to-win, 20-lap feature being called the Pepsi/Mt. Dew King Doodlebug Classic. The track’s weekly winged 360-cubic-inch sprint car division will also be in competition on Friday night, June 22.
The Saturday night, June 23, $3,350-to-win, 25-lap midget car feature is the national championship event, and will be run in conjunction with the track’s weekly winged 410-cubic-inch sprint car class. Both nights of midget car racing will be sanctioned by the United States Auto Club (USAC), American Racing Drivers Club (ARDC), Badger Midget Auto Racing Association (BMARA), POWRi, Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association (RMMRA), and Southern Midget Racing Series (SMRS).
Craig Carey of Illinois won the inaugural King Doodlebug Classic title at Knoxville in 2003, while Jerry Coons, Jr., of Arizona won it in 2004 and again in ‘06. Danny Stratton of California won the King Doodlebug Classic title in 2005. According to National Speed Sport News editor emeritus Chris Economaki, the term “doodlebug” was created by the “big car” gentry in the late 1930’s for the increasingly-popular “midget” car. Walter E. Bull, who founded the Illustrated Speedway News, then started a contest to crown “King Doodlebug”. According to National Sprint Car Museum board members Larry Ball, Jr., and Bill Hill, the following six drivers were all crowned King Doodlebug: Cletus “Cowboy” O’Rourke (1938), Bill Holmes (1939), Al Bonnell (1946), Ed “Dutch” Schaefer (1947), Bill Schindler (1948), and Ralph Pratt (1949). The title was revived in 2003 at Knoxville Raceway as part of the Pepsi/Mt. Dew Knoxville Midget Nationals.
Past “King Doodlebug” Winners
Year – Winner, Number, Hometown
2006 - Jerry Coons, Jr., 11, Tucson, AZ
2005 - Danny Stratton, 2, Fontana, CA
2004 – Jerry Coons, Jr., 23, Tucson, AZ
2003 – Craig Carey, 30, Riverton, IL
Past Knoxville Midget Nationals Champions
Year – Winner, Number, Hometown
2006 – Brandon “Bud” Kaeding, 38, Campbell, CA
2005 - Rain
2004 – Jerry Coons, Jr., 23, Tucson, AZ
2003 – Chad DeSelle, 2, Sun Prairie, WI
2002 – Mike Hess, 51, Petersburg, IL
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