Not much is written about car owners in motorsports. They normally stay behind the scenes. While the driver receives most of the coverage, it is the car owner who makes it all possible.
While most competitors in drag racing own their own cars, the opposite is the norm in oval track racing. Many drivers who retire from active competition become car owners to stay actively involved in the sport.
Burt Baker is a driver turned car owner. His interest in auto racing on the short tracks spans five decades. Baker started his racing career in the late '50s on the short tracks in Massachusetts when he returned from military service.
He raced at the now-defunct Norwood Arena into the early '60s. When he got married, Baker gave up driving because he couldn't afford it.
After moving to Union Mills, Baker began attending the races again.
"Lincoln and Trail-Way speedways are just six miles up the pike," said Baker. "It is like a magnet. You couldn't keep from going."
Watching from the grandstands helped to satisfy Baker's appetite for racing, but it wasn't enough. He wanted to be more involved.
"I wanted to get back in," said Baker. "But I knew my eyes weren't what they used to be and my reflexes weren't the same. So I felt that I could still be involved building cars to race."
Five years ago, Baker began to help occasionally on other cars. A year later, when his son said he was about to junk a 1978 Ford Mustang, Baker asked if he could make a race car out of it. A few days later, he went to Boston and towed it home. Baker was back in racing.
Baker built a garage large enough for more than five cars. The first Mustang lasted two years before a 1975 Mustang was built.
Baker just finished his second year with the car with Danny Wonder of Hanover, Pa., as his driver. They had a good season at Trail-Way Speedway, where they finished 11th in points in the four-cylinder division.
Although Baker's car did not make it to victory lane in the four-cylinder division, his driver's sister, Debbie, won the powder-puff derby in the car after starting in the rear of the 15-car field.
Baker has started building a new car for next year. He hopes to have the 1981 Ford Mustang ready by December. The new car, like the ones before it, is powered by a four-cylinder, 2300-cc Ford engine.
Baker enjoys being a car owner. "It is entirely different ballgame now. I was a kid at the time I was involved before," said Baker, 57. "It means more to me now. I didn't know what it really was back at that time.
"Even though I am watching from the sidelines, I feel that I am in the seat with my driver. It is good to watch my car that I have worked on all week."
Now that Baker and his driver have been together for two years, they feel comfortable as a team, and with a new car ready to go, they expect to be a factor in the battle for the track championship.
Weekend results
Gary Stuhler set the second-fastest time for the Hub-City National 150 at the Hagerstown Speedway last weekend. But the Westminster driver dropped out on the 23rd lap with steering problems. Charlie Schaffer of Westminster started in the middle of the 30-car field and took the lead from Dick Barton on lap 135. He led until lap 139 when his motor expired. Rick Eckert of York, Pa., won.
In drag racing, Robert McGraw of Sykesville was a semifinalist in the motorcycle division at Mason-Dixon Dragway.
At 75-80 Dragway, Joe Mayne of Mount Airy still held a slight lead over Robbie Hudlow of Monrovia in Class I. Reuben Standifer of Mount Airy went three rounds. In Class II, Irve Hare of Mount Airy was runner-up and Billy White of Carrolltowne went four rounds.