1980 – ‘Clay Track Championship’ to Pohlman

Ken Pohlman (center) won the annual National Clay Track Championship 200. Arnie Gardner (left) finished second and White Harris (right) took third. – Vince Mayer Photo

Willow Springs, Ill. (September 28, 1980) – Ken Pohlman captured Santa Fe Speedway’s National Clay Track 200 on the track’s longer oval on Sunday afternoon.

It marked Pohlman’s first win in the annual contest and prevented defending titlist Jim O’Conner, and track champion Tony Izzo from winning the event a fourth time.

Only Pohlman completed the 200 laps, while runner-up Arnie Gardner finished 199 and third place Whitey Harris completed 198.

Pohlman started the 200-lap grind on the pole position by virtue of his victory in one of the two 25-lap qualifiers on Saturday night. Paul Schafer, who won the other main event Saturday, took the green flag from the outside front row. Larry Jackson and Gardner, the second-place finishers in the 25-lappers, comprised the second row. The rest of the 34-car field was determined through Sunday’s preliminaries.

Schafer put his starting berth to good use, grabbing the top spot over Pohlman at the outset. Schafer would keep his lead until Pohlman got around him on the fifth circuit. However, the pace quickly slowed when Kevin Hastings spun around and lost a wheel, bringing out the yellow flag.

Back under green, Pohlman paced the field and gained considerable distance over John Provenzano, Jackson and Schafer until lap 16when Dennis Erb and Butch Slager knocked each other around for the reappearance of the caution flag. One lap later, the yellow prevailed again for a spin, involving fifth-running Mike Melius and sixth place Whitey Harris. Both were sent to the rear of the field. Al Johnson, who elevated into fifth when Melius and Harris spun, pulled into the infield a few laps after the restart, with mechanical problems.

Meanwhile, as Pohlman encountered heavy traffic, Jackson pulled around Provenzano and quickly closed the gap on Pohlman.

The caution was necessitated again on lap 42 by Mike LeGros who spun into the wall. At this time, Pohlman and Jackson sailed into a race of their own, creating a large gap between themselves and the rest of the field. O’Conner overtook Provenzano on lap 60 to take over third place. Unfortunately for the defending champion, his rear-end gave way just six laps before the mandatory 100-lap pit stop. He would return 25 laps later but was only able to gain a 20th place finish in the race.

Tension grew after the start of the second 100-laps, when Pohlman took to the high side of the track, and Jackson kept to the lower portion.

The two encountered traffic on completion of 142 laps. Pohlman caught trouble on the high side, allowing Jackson the advantage of a clear track. Once Jackson took over the lead, the situation reversed itself, and slower traffic caught Jackson on the low groove, allowing Pohlman to regain the top spot on the very next lap. The next two laps brought the duel side-by-side in an all-out effort which ended with Jackson in front on lap 145.

When lap 161 came around, only Jackson and Pohlman were on the same lap, as they passed third-place runner Arnie Gardner. The caution prevailed three laps later just as Pohlman was gaining the lead advantage.

Disappointment struck Jackson on lap 176 when his engine blew and took away his chances of winning his first Clay Track 200 event. Pohlman found free track to the finish, with his only competition, Arnie Gardner, a lap down. Jackson would finish 18th overall.

Defending track champion Tony Izzo had a disappointing weekend when the veteran winner of the 200 was only able to qualify one lap in preliminaries, when his transmission gave way. Offered the ride in John Kennedy’s car, Izzo started at the rear of the field, and worked his way to a sixth-place finish in the end.


Results –


1. Ken Pohlman, Worth
2. Arnie Gardner, Batavia
3. Whitey Harris, Lake Villa
4. LeRoy Schneiderman, Woodstock
5. John Connolly, Delhi, Iowa
6. Tony Izzo, Bridgeview
7. Art Ziesmer, Joliet
8. Jack Aschenbrenner, Hales Corner, Wis.
9. Frank Smith
10.Art Fehrman, Clarendon
11.Denny Falkos, Aurora
12.Fred Lofgren, Bensenville
13.Al Schill, Franklin, Wis.
14.Butch Slager, Mokena
15.Ron Dwyer, Burbank
16.Larry Robb, La Grange
17.Dennis Erb, Carpentersville
18.Larry Jackson, Lyons
19.Kevin Hastings
20.Jim O’Conner, Kankakee
21.Mike Papp, Berwyn
22.Mike Melius, Random Lake, Wis.
23.John Provenzano, Bloomingdale
24.Mike LeGros, La Grange
25.Rusty Wallace, Valley Park, Mo.
26.Paul Schafer, Highland, Ind.
27.Chuck Ostergaard
28.Mike Gardner, Batavia
29.Jim Partipilo, Berkeley
30.Al Johnson, Justice
31.Bill Knippenberg, Hinsdale
32.Ted Ludas, Lemont
33.Bill Vloek, Downers Grove
34.Bill Davis, Chesterton, Ind.