24 replies to this topic

[Cheater]

Herman P. Finklemeyer Memorial Race Park*

 

Butch "Pappy" Dunaway's spectacular self-built raceway and track in Oxford, OH.

 

 

The track has a footprint of 8' x 24' with 86' of running surface. All four lanes are exactly the same length and the best lap times are within a few hundreds of a second of each other. It has 4" lane spacing, an SRT lap counter, and a 30 amp power pack. There are five monitors in the overhead scoreboard, two for the drivers, one for the race director, and two on the other side for everyone else.

 

Anyone interested in joining the craziness fun racing at Finklemeyer Memorial Race Park should contact Butch at dunaway4551@gmail.com or by phone at (513) 313-4680.

 

* If you knew your slot racing history, you'd know that the famous Herman P. Finklemeyer invented the slot car guide pin back in... when was it exactly? Well, never mind. This track is an exact duplicate of Herman's home track back when he was inventing the guide pin, thus the name.

[The Number of]

Butch "Pappy" Dunaway's spectacular self-built raceway and rack in Oxford, OH.

 
Greg, could you post a picture of the rack?

[Pappy]

 He can't do that, Bill, he doesn't have any pictures of my wife.

[Cheater]

You guys are both bad... LOL.

 

Typo fixed.

[spudboy]

Very nice track, Pappy! If I lived nearby I would be there in a heartbeat.

[Pappy]

Nate, if you ever pass through the area make sure to give me a call, love to have you stop by.

[gascarnut]

* If you knew your slot racing history, you'd know that the famous Herman P. Finklemeyer invented the slot car guide pin back in... when was it exactly? Well, never mind. This track is an exact duplicate of Herman's home track back when he was inventing the guide pin, thus the name.

 
I thought it was the guide tongue that he invented?
 
(Not the tounge - that's a Tore Anderson and Slick 7 copyright.  )

[Cheater]

You'll have to take that up with Butch, Dennis. LOL!

I PM'd him to ask what he called his little palace in the woods and he said:

"I call it 'The Herman P. Finklemeyer Memorial Race Park'.

The track is an exact replica of the track Herman was using when he invented the guide pin."

So please don't shoot the messenger... LOL!

[gascarnut]

Not shooting anyone, just trying to remember what Butch used to have in his signature back then.

 

So Butch, is your memory as bad as ours? You are after all just another OPPLC (Old Phart playing with Little Cars) like the rest of us!

[Pappy]

It's the guide pin he invented, Dennis. The complete story is on Slotblog somewhere. His great grandson Alfred C. Snicklefritz is the one who invented the drop arm that we use to use back in the early '60s. That complete story is on here, too. These are definitely two legends of slot racing.

[gascarnut]

I stand corrected!

[Mike Patterson]

Butch, you misspelled Schnikelfritz.

[Half Fast]

Before Finklemeyer invented the guide pin, slot cars had a very bad understeer problem.
 
Cheers.

[Pappy]

Butch, you misspelled Schnikelfritz.

 

You're right, Mike. Schnikelfritz is the correct spelling. But when Alfred's grandfather first entered this country at Ellis Island one of the clerks misspelled his name on the form. Back then once it was filed it almost took an act of Congress to get it changed so they just used it the way it was spelled on the form.

 

I'm impressed that you caught that.

[Pablo]

When is the first Classic Retro race?

[SlotStox#53]

Beautiful looking track, Butch.    Looks like it makes for a very fast yet smooth lap, awesome for most classes of cars. 

[Mike Patterson]

You're right, Mike. Schnikelfritz is the correct spelling... I'm impressed that you caught that.

I've got several Schnikelfritzes on my family tree.

[Hot Deuce]

 He can't do that, Bill, he doesn't have any pictures of my wife.

No, but I do.             
 

[BackAgain]

Too funny, John.

Awesome track, Butch... one of these days, my friend...

[Horsepower]

That track is beautiful!     It  would be a shame to put a tire mark on it! I want to swim in the pool.

[Cheater]

Butch let me know today that he has sold this track and is planning on building a six-lane track to replace it. The track went to the Buffalo area, I believe.

[Bill from NH]

Is he putting an addition on the barn to house the track?

[Cheater]

Not as far as I know.

 

His barn is pretty good-sized, as I well know. I've slept in it twice, I think, along with several others, alongside the track.

[Pappy]

Bill,

 

I want to build a six-lane Hillclimb.  It will have a footprint about 12' x 30' and a lap length of 125'. I'm going build it on the same type of moveable pedestal base. Still making drawing to make sure I have it the way I want it so I don't have to build another one.    It will be a flat track with more turns than the basic Hillclimb. Just have to make sure it can be turn-marshaled properly and that the drivers can see their cars without too much interference from the turn marshals. Thinking about splitting the drivers stands so they are not all standing side by side, maybe move three drivers to the other side of the opening to the inside of the track where the turn marshals sit.

 

My track did go to Buffalo, NY.. A young man named Chuck bought it and him and his dad (Ken) came down last Saturday and picked it up. Two nicer people I've never met. I'm glad Chuck got it because I know he'll enjoy it and take care of it.

 

[Bill from NH]

Butch, that sounds like a good plan!  I still have your construction photos of when you built that first track.

 

I've driven on several tracks with split driver panels and they work fine. The first commercial track I ever ran on had four two-driver stations, The others have used two four-driver stations. Over the years, I've noticed many non-commercial tracks with split driver panels.

 

Be sure to post the construction of your new track on here as it progresses. The Buffalo area once had a good amount of organized 1/24 racing. I'm not on top of it, but I think today the Buffalo-Niagara Falls area today has a good bit of 1/32 slot car racing. The 1/24 relocated east to Rochester several years ago.

 

Have fun and don't suck in too much dust.