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See the following link for the latest participant listing: Checkpoint Cup participant list
Keep your calendars open for January 9,10,11, 2009. A special three days of racing at Buena Park Raceway.
Come join us at BPR as we celebrate the beginning of our 4th season of D3/Retro Racing.
We invite all those who have raced D3 in the past/present as well as those who haven't had the opportunity,
to meet and race with many of the legends of slotcar racing. SoCal is where it all started over 42 years ago and we are
having a lot of fun recreating the "Spirit" of those great racing days!
Here's the race schedule:
Friday evening Jan. 9th: D3 Retro Pro on the Flat track, start approx. 7 pm, track opens 10 am.
Saturday Jan 10th: D3 F1 and Can Am races on the Gerding king track, track opens 7 am, track power goes off at 8:30 am, tech inspection and then F1 qualifying. Plan on a long racing day (Sat.). The total entries will require a lot of mains, but everyone will have their race! Also, more time for pit talking and chatting with the Legends and other D3 racers. A great BBQ lunch will be available for $5 (actual cost is $10) so plan on eating the BBQ lunch at the track (p.s.- it's the same BBQ as the recent Boola Bash, so the food is delicious).
Sunday Jan 11th: D3 Coupes, TSR 1/32 IROC (charity race) and NASCARs on the Flat track, track opens 9 am. Sundays race schedule will be more relaxed as the total entries will be much less than Saturdays races.
A big celebration to kick off the new year, The Checkpoint Cup races.
A perpetual trophy will be awarded. The winner of each race will have his name inscribed on this trophy.
The name of the trophy is the "Checkpoint Cup". It's in honor of Bill Steube Sr.
Buena Park Raceway's Lenore and Chris Gallegos. The Checkpoint Cup has arrived.
Whose names will be the first on this perpetual trophy?
Here's a recent post on Slotblog (by Bertil Berggren) about an interview with Bill Steube Sr. in 1973 (Miniature Auto Racing): Bill Steube interview 1973
I did a video interview last Sunday with Mike Steube. I asked Mike to tell us how and when his dad got into slotcar racing, building motors and running a raceway. The video is about 18 min. Take a look at the video as Mike gives us some background information on his dad and how Bill Steube got involved with slotcar racing: Interview with Mike Steube : Bill Steube Sr. bio
Here's a partial summary of the video (I'll add more later):
Mike remembers his dad always interested in modeling. Bill liked to build models, especially anything to do with model railroading!
In the 50's & 60's, Bill Sr. raced sports cars (MG TD, Sprite), and helped start a sports car club in SoCal. He had been working as a Steam Engineer for the City and one day decided he wanted to do something else. He opened a sports car garage which he called Checkpoint (after his sports car rally days). Sons Billy and Mike spent most of their after school time helping out dad at the garage.
In 1962, Billy (Mike's older brother) came home very excited. He told his dad that he had just seen some model cars powered by electric motors racing on a "big" track at Hopper's hobby shop. This caught Bill's attention and Bill closed down his garage for the day and they both headed to Hopper's. Once there, Bill was immediately interested in these new racing model cars. He then stepped up to the counter and bought $100 dollars (a lot of money in those days!) of car parts, motors, etc. to build himself, Billy and Mike some cars. A few years later, they started racing slotcars at Paramount Speedway with other racers named Cukras, Zimmerman, Terry and John Schmid and some team called Russkit. Bill started working on motors then by "dewinding" Pittman motors. Mike also raced ocassionally, but was more into surfing at the time.
One day when traveling home on his Triumph 650 motorcycle, he was severely injured in a traffic accident losing one leg.
A few months after his motorcycle accident, Bill realized he could no longer run the garage business, so he decided to try something else. He bought the Paramount Speedway track since the owner (Russ Bacarella) had decided to do something else. Bill then moved the track to another nearby building and opened "Checkpoint" raceway.
Around this time, Bill had started rewinding/modifying the new mabuchi can motors which had just arrived on the scene. These Russkit 22 motors (and later the 23 motor) made the Pittman motors obsolete. The rest is history as Bill quickly became the premiere motor builder in slotcar racing. The "Steube Can" motor became known as the standard for the highest level of performance and reliability. A Team Checkpoint racer won every major SoCal racing championship from 1966 thru 1973. Terry Schmid in '66, '67 (Rod & Custom, Car Model), Mike Steube in '68, '69, '70, '71 (Model Car Science, Western States, NCC, USRA), and Philippe de Lespinay in '72, '73 (Western States).
Bill Steube's contributions to competitive slotcar racing are being honored with this annual "Checkpoint Cup" event at Buena Park Raceway.
Here's a few old photos of Bill Steube, Billy, Mike, Terry and a few more "legends" (before they became legends!):
This is the famous sign. The home of Team Checkpoint and the "Steube Can" motors. I believe that's Terry Schmid behind the sign.
Bill Steube Sr. in his workshop ('66?), working on an armature.
'67 Car Model race with future legends, L-R, Bryan Warmack, John Cukras, Mike Steube, Terry Schmid
1st Car Model Magazine race (Feb. 1967) at J & J's. That's Mike turn marshalling with Dave Grant on the left. At the drivers panel of the "Semi-Main", R-L, Billy Steube (in uniform), Bryan Warmack, Mike Morrissey, Lee Hines, Doug Henline, John Cukras, Rick Durkee and Ron Quintana.
Mike is pointing at the word "Champion" in this Champion ad. He's pointing at himself as if to say "That's me"! Mike would become the Model Car Science champion of 1968 and go on to win many more big SoCal and National races.
Bill Steube Sr. observes the racing action during the '74 USRA Nats (photo by Al Chuck).
Many top racers will be there along with the rest of us "midpack and back of the pack" racers
A lot of great sponsor prizes will be presented.
Don't miss it!
Race day is almost here. Howie Ursaner arrived last friday. Gorski, Sano Dave and Roger Schmitt are expected to arrive tomorrow (Tues.).
This race is building up to be the "Big One". The Inaugural Checkpoint Cup is destined to become the "Rebirth" of the Golden Years of Slotcar racing here in SoCal. So many legends and great racers together to compete and have a great time.
The fun begins this friday. BE THERE!
Keith
Posted 06 November 2008 - 05:07 PM
Keith a big thanks for doing your
