The Augusta International Raceway Preservation Society held its 18th Hall of Fame banquet at the Doubletree for new inductees and to say goodbye to its beloved organization.
To open the banquet, members gathered around a restored racecar that was last driven in the early 1990s by local race legend Bobby “Fireball” Bates. New inductee Paul Purvis and a few of his pals restored Bates’ car and surprised him by displaying it in front of the hotel; Bates and other members were happily surprised to see the retired car.
“I was walking up and I said, ‘that looks like a racecar,’ and then when we got closer and I saw the [number] 86 I said, ‘hey that’s my car,’” said Bates.
Bates, who was one of the first members of the society, said he first got involved in racing at just 14-years-old with go-karts and it quickly became an obsession for him. Now an older adult, Bates said he misses the thrill of racing every day and, if he could go back, he would do it all over again.
Bates recalled how one of the younger members, who was 6 years old at the time, fell in love with Bates’ race car which was sitting in the driveway. Bates said he was planning on letting the kid sit and drive the car before the child’s dad told him not to; years later they both laugh and retell the story of how the young man first got hooked on racing because of that beautiful, blue racecar, as Bates ended the story with, “he stayed mad at me for about 10 years.”
As a result of most members aging further into their older years, the society will no longer hold an annual recognition banquet, possibly disbanding the entire society for the near future if no one else steps in to continue it.
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While longtime friends, racers and repairmen swapped stories around banquet tables, Harvey Tollison, who now runs the Augusta International Society, said he and all his members were going to miss the society because a lot of them grew up together and it feels like a big family.
Tollison said he thinks it is a shame the society has to end because young racers are no longer interested in learning about racing history – even history within their own era of racing.
For him and many members, racing and cars will always play a major role in their life; to them, it was about more than just cars, it was about bonding and making connections over the years because of a common passion.
“This banquet is about respect and honoring those who deserve it,” said Tollison. “These guys deserve recognition and respect for what they have done, and they often don’t get it.”
Fellow member, David Brinkman, said he started racing when he was about 19 or 20 but later decided he liked working on and restoring cars better. Unlike other 88-year-olds, Brinkman refuses to sit still as he still rebuilds cars from the ground up. With only one working eye, he still loves restoring and collecting classic cars – he especially loves seeing the end product.
Despite most members being in their 60s to 80s, many are still kicking and accomplishing impressive feats. Obvious by one of this year’s inductees, Andy Stewart, who is not only a track owner but is also still racing at the age of 60.
Member, Denton “Dent” Johnson, has been the longtime announcer at the Carolina Dragway in Aiken for the last 55 years and said he will sorely miss the society and the banquet.
Johnson, who grew up in crutches, fondly remembers that racing was one of the few ways he was able to attract girls when he was younger. Since he started announcing at the Carolina Dragway, he has been happy with his job because racers love when he knows their name.
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“No girl wanted to attach themself to a guy in crutches,” he said. “But after racing, I had a girlfriend on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.”
Member Roy Wireman, who first met Brinkman when was 17, said Brinkman encouraged and helped fuel his love for fixing cars which eventually introduced him to racing for a brief time in his life.
Although racing is often thrilling, dangerous and terrifying for racers, members said they pursued due to a lack of “common sense” and because the aftermath of the racing bonded them with others.
Bittersweet, the members inducted and honored new members and shared dinner together for, what is most likely, the last time.
Liz Wright is a staff writer covering education and general assignments for The Augusta Press. Reach her at liz@theaugustapress.com
