› Forums › Forums › GENERAL DISCUSSION › DOVER’S LAST DAY: May 23,1976….the story unfolds
dino.dinoGot more “local” input from Dan Emerson (Moroso). He was young then …used to sneak in. He lived in town and one of his freinds “hung” around -got in for free and did odd jobs. Remembers his friend saying in the afternoon , Chet Anderson told him (with about 4 spectators in the stands)…”Go lock the Gate’. Seems that week Chet had just gone through a legal battle with 1 of three local families that just about ran the town. Can’t say who-they still live in the same house. It was over the same old complaint -noise.
bobby-s
funny you mentioned the NOISE problem
it was talked about at the site saturday,
we mentioned that Dr. Joice Brothers 😡 was one of the
neighbors that did the BIG push against the track
when moved on the hill back than.
masracingtd1167Dino that was Skip North in the other lane driving Mother . I think that picture was taked around 74 or5
dinoNoise problem 👿 ….The Real Dr.Joyce Brothers lived in Wingdale ? Bobby mentioned “talked about Sat” meaning At the Field trip. NOISE seemed to the reason huh ? and from locals ? thought the Insurance was the problem ? Could it be that pressure was put on the Insurance Co. BY the locals ??? Town Made out ($$$ )every Sunday including the American Legion. More to investagate.
dinoThink Ole Leroy That worked in the Food Stand (American Legion Guy) would tell us a bunch…He should be invited To Dover Fest In Jan.at old Sam’s (Gene’s)
dinoSeems it was a little bit of everything going on…Smokey said, Chet told him the car count was way down, becuase of the “gas crisis” remember the odd-even days ? and lines ? Peat moss was selling ,so they went into that, til about 1980.
robert
To all the ODF Members,
I sent Dino a message the other day about what might have been the reason for the closing of the track. He said “Post It”.
Here it goes. Every once in awhile, over the past years, I would bump into someone who came to the track and start talking about the good old days. On quite a few occasions a certain story would be brought up by different people but had the same ending. I have been told more than a few times about this. It’s just to strange to be a coincedence. But as the story goes, there was an accident at the track one day, pretty bad, maybe fatal. The Police Chief of Mt. Pleasant was either a friend of the family of the person injuried or related to that person in some way. Anyway, he had a lot of pull and supposingly had a big part in closing down the track. He was a real hardass in his day. They called him “Duke”. I lived in Thornwood at the time of the tracks closing, in the Town of Mt. Pleasant, in “Duke’s Territory”. I knew who he was, his reputation, and stayed out of his way. He was always trying to give us a hard time…didn’t like fast cars…hotrods…motorcycles. We never got caught doing anything, but were always accused of everything, if you know what I mean. I’m trying to give you members an idea of what kind of person he was and why , in my mind, this story could be true. If anyone can add too or take from this, please do so. I’m only conveying to you members what I’ve heard over the years.
Bobby M.
dinoChecked a few sources through “Dover CSI”,called Smokey – who saw Chet a lot after it closed, around Danbury, and some legal records…No fatalitys ever at track AND NO lawsuits filed with State or county ???….We have some more replies pending …digging deeper and will keep you posted.
dinoWE FINALLY GOT SOME DEFINATIVE INPUT….HERE’S what just came in from MIKE MANNION -“Family member” (Married Joe Archieres Neice)…Track Worker and corrected (Geezerville) Me on a few things! Thanks for the reply Mike !
Hello Old Friend.
Have been in Fla for the past month. Sorry for the delay, and thanks for the trust.
The track was closed for 1 reason. The auto emissions standards and gas prices were making the sport unactractive for the “STOCKER” crowd where Joe and Chet obviously made most money ( racer volume). This, combined with a fantastic offer to buy the property for humus peat and gravel processing made the closing and sale a “no brainer”. It was a boring demise compared to the story about an accident…… which has absolutely no merit. Joe and Chet knew nothing about drag racing, and couldn’t have cared less. They only looked at making money.
Hey, if you ever re-do the web page, you need to make a correction on the audio. I never gave time slips at the quarter mile. That was done by Ron sombody…..who was usually stoned all day. I was in charge of the staging lanes and hot car pits during the morning time trials. A thankless job since everybody wanted more runs, and nobody thought they were being treated fairly! For the afternoon eliminations, I was in the tower with you and timer Frank Grice. I did the dial-in handicaps for the cars running for $$$ bucks.. Remember?? I loved working as much as you did. You were a great announcer and kept me amused all the time, and I credit you in a big way for Dover’s success.
Thanks for your efforts to keep the memory alive. Let me know how I can help. Sincerely hope to see you again some day.
Mike
So there ya have it …from the guy that Knows… “behind the scenes” ….Family member
well sometimes I got some details mixed up ..but will correct! Thats what the Forum is about… hearing all the info from everybody !
robert
Thanks Dino and Mike for straighting out the rumors over the years. Ten little indians I guess.
vbobHey,
“IN IT FOR THE MONEY” !!!
Boy how many times has that been the rule !!!
At least we all had a great place to play on a Sunday afternoon !!!
‘V’Bob
vindicator😆 😆 😆 HEY MIKE MANNION…YOU ‘OL “STUD MUFFIN”…THANX FOR PUTTIN’ TO REST AN ALMOST ‘NOTHER “SAGA”… THIS ONE HAD ALL THE “INGREEDIANTS” TO OUT-DO THE “TALES OF DA’ CRYPT”…’ER CORRECTION…”TALES OF THE BLACK ARROW”…I BE SAYIN’… “PRAISE THE LORD”… THE SMRTICS’.. ARE STILL ACTIVE (AND OUR LONG-TERM FRIENDS)… AND HAVE THAT BIG BOATLOAD OF INTEGRITY THEY DO…TO TELL LIKE IT WAS/IS…THEY EASILY COULD HAVE “CREATED” A BELIEVEABLE “STORY”..ABOUT WHAT TRANSPIRED…THEY ARE FULLY CAPABLE OF BUILDING A “PERFECT” CLONE…PA$$ING IT OFF AND MAKIN’…PROBABLY SOME SERIOUS $$$…ACTUALLY, PROBABLY WOULDN’T BE TOO FAR REMOVED FROM HALF THE “PERIOD” CARS THAT ARE OUT THERE …I SAY “BOY”…ABSOLUTELY…POSITIVELY…”ORIGINAL”….I DON’T EXACTLY THINK THEY’RE IN THE “CATAGORY” OF.. MY.. NOS IN THE BOX…”SLINKY”…(NOW “THAT BABY” IS WORTH SOME REAL $ERIOUS $$$) YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN..THAT’S ANOTHER “STORY” FOR ANOTHER TIME…BY THE WAY…I THINK YOU COST ME SOME MONEY…YEAH YOU..”BIG GUY”…NOTE… THAT I’M A REAL “WRASLER”..BEHIND THIS KEYBOARD…AND I DO REMEMBER..YOU BEING A PRETTY BIG DUDE… ALWAYS IN GOOD SHAPE…BUT THAT WAS “THEN”…’DIS IS NOW!!…ANYWAY..’ASSUMING” YOU HAVE A GOOD MEMORY…JULY 6TH…’69… (JUST A “SHORT” WHILE AGO… EH’)…WE WON COMP WITH THE CARMEL FORD MUSTANG…BUT ON JULY 13TH..WE LOST IN THE SEMI’S… WE WUZ’ ROBBED!!…I WANT A RE-RUN…AND I WANT IT NOW…U…MIS-CALCULATED THE DIALS!!!…SEEING YOUR PHOTO IN THE TOWER (WE “GOT” THE EVIDENCE…)…I CAN SEE…YOU WUZ’…”DISTRACTED”….SO “PONY UP”… I WANT ANOTHER “SHOT” @ THE “BIG BUCK$”… OR HOW ‘BOUT “LIFE’S A LEMON”…I WANT MY…MONEY…BACK…HEY…JUST KIDDIN’…WHAT WOULD A USED CAR SALESMAN BE…WITHOUT A SENSE OF HUMOR…HOPE ALL HAS BEEN/IS WELL FOR YOU & YOUR FAMILY…I…REMEMBER.. LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY..YOUR EVER PRESENT SMILE…JUST ONE GOOD “DUDE”…IF YOU WUZ’ A FISH…U’D BE A KEEPER!!!…WISHING YOU ALL THE BEST HEALTH,HAPPINESS,PROSPERITY…’OL RONNIE IN THE TIME TICKET “SHACK” WORKED FOR NY TELEPHONE(BREWSTER)…HE USED TO COME BY THE SHOP PRETTY REGULARLY…”TINK” SHAEFER KNEW HIM WELL..THINK HE WORKED WITH “TINK’S” DAD…DO BELIEVE HE SMOKED A “BIG FATTIE” OR TWO (THREE??) ON SUNDAYS’…MAYBE A LIL’ LIQUID…OR CHEMICALS TO EASE THE DAY AS WELL…I DON’T THINK HIS JOB DESCRIPTION…HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH HAVING HIS FINGER ON THE “RED” BUTTON…HE ACTUALLY WAS A GOOD GUY TOO…HARMLESS…JUST THE WAY IT WUZ’/IS..EVEN TODAY..DRAKE VISCOME 😀 😀 :D…JOE & CHET WERE ALWAYS ABSOLUTELY A-OK TO ME & MY FAMILY…THEY WERE ABOUT BU$INE$$ “SEGMENT” OF DRAG RACING…PLAIN & SIMPLE…AND THAT DIDN’T HAVE TO BE “AGREED” WITH…BUT IT ..WAS UNDERSTOOD…IT WUZ’ THEIR “BAT & BALL”…AFTER-ALL!!..HAD A LOT OF “PRIVATE” CONVERSATION (THEY BOTH WERE LONG-TIME CUSTOMERS OF CARMEL FORD)…AFTER THEY “PULLED THE PLUG” @ DOVER…AND THAT’S WHERE IT’S GONNA’ STAY…PRIVATE!!!
dinoDrake……….. try the decaffinated 🙄 can you imagine him writing a book ?…….no chapters
mike-mannion
Drake…is it really you???? Ok, like Dino says, put the coffee down and relax. Great to hear from you!….WOW.
Your memory is incredible, especially of that fateful day of July 13, 69 and of what was to become known as the ‘Great Competition Eliminator Incident”. I had hoped that you would have forgotten by now. DRAT!
The independent review board determined that a number of things occurred in quick succession during the period just prior to the race resulting in the error.
1. The afternoon sun was beating mercilessly through the window of the Dover Nerve Center rasing the ambient temp to an estimated 115’ F.
2. Dino was making us laugh with goofy stuff.
3. Mike had lunch with Quater Mile Ron.
Also, subtraction wasnt my biggest strength, especially when involving numbers containing the digits 7 and 9. Besides….what the big deal with .8 or .9 second mistake anyway?
I have an old Dover trophy in the attic, will that suffice?
Hey, I didnt mean any disrespect to Chet Anderson or Joe Archiere. I have been married to Joe’s neice for 40 yrs, and loved Joe tremendiously. We were a close family. How do you think I got the job? They were both good businessman and did what they needed to do. Unfortunately niether of them were racers or understood much about the sport. Joe always spoke very highly of you and your family and I knew that he was a friend..
I am still living in New Fairfield CT, about 20 minutes from RT 6 in Carmel. Understand that you live somewhere near Dino and might be coming to Sam’s for the reunion lunch. I hope to see you both there if all works out right.
So where is the Vindicator now? Are you or anybody in the family still racing? Is Carmel Ford still alive?
Thanks for initiating the conversation. Thanks for the kind words. Great blog.
Happy Thanks Giving to you and your family!
Mike
dinoOut with Timeslip-RON for “lunch”….Just what was on the menu ???? (“WHEN THE MOON IS IN THE SEVENTH HOUSE…AND JUPITER ALIGNS WITH MARS…..LA-LA LA-ALA “) …But How do you guys remember these dates …Oh …About the Last Day ….IF THAT WAS the LAST Day early in the season WHAT happened to all the Stock of Tophies & Decals ???….Thnk we have to find some family members …sons -daughters of CHET for this huh ?. AND what was timeslip Ron’s last name and lets FIND him !!…what shut down area stories would HE HAVE 1!!!!
