[ihc] A Little More About Sante Fe and Dukes

["T.R.E.Jr." <T_R_E_Jr@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

---This sort of left me reminiscing and I ended up stumbling into memories
of being a Schwinn-peddling, French fry-eatin', Asteroids-playin',  race you
for titles (bicycle...lol) juvenile, so I would like to include you all on
this small flashback. When I last visited my home-town, I brought my oldest
boy into Duke's for a sandwich and a break from the run-around associated
with so little time and so many people to visit while I am in town. Sante Fe
on the other hand, was a place, that just a few years ago, I had found out I
would never see again. I would have loved to take him up there that
afternoon to watch some good oval track racing on clay, but those days have
gone for good. Those days are etched deeply into my mind and will remain
with me hopefully longer than my fondness for old iron. The track was sold
by his daughter, who inherited it after he passed away, and I have been
told, has been subdivided and now gives the town a wonderful view of
perfectly identical in shape, color and well... ugly town houses.

---The red clay which made up the track, was shipped into Illinois from GA
via payloaders after the big tornado that cut through the area in the
30s(?). Something to the sum of 300,000 yards of red clay. It was the* most
popular hang-out for surrounding counties and the people who hung out there
left for the well-known Duke's Drive-In http://www.dukesitalianbeef.com/
(Bridgeview, IL), for sandwiches and convo while meeting up with other
muscle car owners/fanatics.

---Sante Fe was such a popular place that the local Boy Scout packs would
meet there monthly for meetings/outings (that put me there at least twice a
month before I was 13-14) and pretty much more popular that the local
drive-in movie theatre, but regardless of the races, on the other side of
the county, our* people were having a time of our own just outside the
boundaries of the city of Chicago. To a kid, this was very much like a
carnival... until the "Smoke-Outs" at closing time, then it became more like
the races. A Smoke-Out was when the vehicles would leave the parking lot,
two at a time, and each would perform a whole-shot and try to out-do the
other. Not only would they smoke `em on the way out, but within minutes, it
wasn't abnormal for a half mile of the highway to be completely smoked out.

---Just about every weekend, regardless of the races, local owners would be
at Duke's sporting their hot rods and classics. The food was good and
well-priced, so at least a sandwich and/or fries was a must to go with a
show of fine cars. The people still hold (secretly) "Smoke-Outs" almost
every Friday night, but that can change without notice and is never a sure
thing. When my town (Burbank) became incorporated, they wanted to purchase
the property, but Bridgeview saw it as too profitable to let go. Burbank
usually sits hiding, down the road, waiting for tires to break ground so, it
is understood that unless you want to have your vehicle impounded for a
citation such as having headers on your motor, or if you wish to keep local
(Bridgeview) law enforcement defending you against the "big mean guys in
blue that live next door" (AKA Burbank P.D.), drag races are not permitted
until after the vehicles have left the property for some amount of time...
usually a little longer than necessary to drive down the road, turn around
and come back within spectators' view from the property.

---I had earlier found a link to a memorial page.
http://santafespeedwaymemories.homestead.com/ There's some cool pics of late
model cars and the guestbook is wild to read. I didn't see much on Orange
Crush or the Kellies so it must not have been one of the "important"
competitions. Maybe just local races.

---I know there are at least two persons on the Digest who are from the
Chicagoland area. I hope they too can relive some memories of these places
by reading this. I also hope it brings back some memories of "the old days"
for some of the others here on the list, even if it was back when you used
to slick your hair back with Dapper Dan or Real Cream. I would enjoy hearing
tales from others. I guess it is mainly because I now have two vehicles down
that I want to do some driving again. Maybe I will run that `73 IH Pickup in
the 4x4 Evo game I got for the kids. I still have to do some work on the
gears.

---As for the Scout, it was raining 1/4 of the day, cold the other 1/4 of
the day and the other half it was wet and cold, so we stayed in and
decorated.

---Thank you,
-T.R.E.Jr.
-`73 Scout II (StoneThrower)
-`51 Farmall H (Heinz)
-`49 IH fridge (presently unnamed and in need of a compressor)
-`49 Plymouth Special Deluxe 4-door Sedan (Papapalooza)