A
stuck jack wrecked any hopes of Lenny Funk unseating Ernie Derr in the 200-lap
stock car contest in Des Moines. Not even Ramo Stott (second from left) and his
crew could help.
Des Moines, Iowa (August 19, 1967) -Keokuk veteran Ernie Derr weathered a game bid by Lenny funk Saturday afternoon to win the 200-lap new model stock car race at the Iowa State Fair.
Not even assistance from Ramo Stott’s pit crew could help the Otis, Kan., wheat farmer and it might have been too many hands that caused the defeat of Funk.
Stott, the other half of Keokuk’s domination of the International Motor contest Association circuit, was fastest qualifier and led the race for the first 35 laps.
However, a broken fan belt stopped his 1967 Plymouth there and it was 33 laps later he returned to the track. He would finally drop out on lap 76. When Funk came in for a tire change on lap 122, Stott and his crew gave him a helping hand.
All went well then, but when Funk pitted again on lap 157, disaster struck.
A jack stuck under the car, and it seemed that too many people were giving instructions. He was in the pits for more than two minutes and lost three laps.
Lending a pit crew isn’t a common occurrence but as Stott explained, “Lenny needed help, so I gave him my entire crew.” It included Stott.
The delay in the pits dropped Funk to third behind Derr and Ole Brua of Albert Lea, Minn., and he would never improve that position.
Rookie Bob Malechek of Marshalltown finished an impressive fourth and Dale Keeling of Dixon, Mo., was fifth.
Only Derr, who won $850, finished 200 laps. Brua was on lap 198 when the checkers flew, and Funk was on lap 197.
Funk had taken over the lead when Stott dropped out and held it until the mandatory pit stop on lap 75. All cars were required to make a 30-second stop – without adding fuel – in the first 100 laps.
That’s when Derr and his 1967 Dodge took over and he trailed only once after that – when he stopped for 30 seconds on the 99th lap. He regained the lead on the very next lap and led the rest of the way.
Derr needed just two stops – the mandatory 30-second stop and a gas stop on lap 107.
“The car worked jus fine,” Derr said. “It was missing a little bit at the end, but I think that was because I was going too slow.”
Results –
1. Ernie Derr, Keokuk
2. Ole Brua, Albert Lea, Minn.
3. Lenny Funk, Otis, Kan.
4. Bob Malechek, Marshalltown
5. Dale Keeling, Dixon, Mo.
6. Wally Christensen, Minneapolis
7. Charles Nutzman, New Richmond, Mo.
8. Chuck Janey, Cedar Rapids
9. Lewis Taylor, Shawnee, Kan.
10.Robert Todd, Archie, Mo.
11.Roland Wilson, Bedford
12.Vince Rizzo, Downers Grove, Ill.
13.Dick Johnson, St. Paul, Minn.
14.Don Harmon, Des Moines
15.Roger Brown, Waverly
16.George Barton, Ankeny
17.Bob Perry, Springfield, Mo.
18.Em Fretheim, Decorah
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