Bob Barkhimer
Encyclopedia
Robert "Bob" Barkhimer nicknamed "Barky", was a promoter on the West Coast
of the United States. He was born in Berkeley, California
. His career started as a midget car
racer and ended as a Senior Vice President at NASCAR
.
. It was his first time attending midget car
races, and the third time he attended a racing event. He was puzzled what circus midget
s had to do with racing. He was hooked and he wanted to race a midget racecar. He was unable to obtain a car. He found a racecar owner named Delucci who was not paid for a car he had sold. Barkhimer could run the midget car if he would repossess
the car. Barkhimer located the car dismantled in boxes. Barkhimer loaded up the car and took it the car home. Barkhimer was not a mechanic
, but he found a local racer named Jimmy Aiten to help assemble the midget car if Aiten could drive it. That Tuesday night Aiten raced the car at Neptune Beach Speedway. The car ran well in the heat race for two laps before it slowed. The same thing happened in the semi-feature. They determined that they were using the wrong spark plug
s. At the races the following week, the engine threw a connecting rod
out of the side of the engine block, wrecking the engine. They gave the car back to Delucci.
Barkhimer and Aiten purchased a midget car. After Aiten raced the car one night, he accepted an offer to race a different car on the day of the second race. Barkhimer was forced to race his racecar even though he had never raced before. He borrowed a football helmet
and sat in the car on the inside front row
. He quickly fell from the first starting position to last place. His racing skills developed to the point that he the Bay City Racing Association (BCRA) champion in 1945. He won six events that season. He won ten events in 1946, and four in 1947 before he got injured.
division. They were a hit and the crowds returned. Also in 1949, Barkhimer and Jerry Piper started their own association called California Stock Car Racing Association (CSCRA). He eventually promoted 21 or 22 racetracks on the West Coast.
In 1954 Bill France, Jr.
, son of NASCAR found Bill France, Sr., was stationed on the West Coast while serving in the United States Navy
. He was stationed at the northern California Navy Air Base known as Moffett Field. The elder France had his son talk with Barkhimer. Barkhimer, his partner Margo Burke, and the younger France went to races together and hung out on weekends. The friendship led to Barkhimer going to Daytona Beach, Florida
to meet with the elder France and to watch a race at the Daytona Beach Road Course
. France and Barkhimer discussed uniform rules and guaranteed payout for drivers. That meeting resulted in ten of Barkhimer's tracks becoming NASCAR sanctioned. The first track was Stockton 99, and tracks in Oakland
, Fresno
, San Jose
and Hughes Stadium in Sacramento
soon followed.
Barkhimer became a Senior Vice President in NASCAR. During his career, he had also promoted boxing
, car shows, roller derbies
, and wrestling
. He retired after his first wife died in 1976. He had promoted 3000 races in his career. Barkhimer and Burke sold out to Ken Clapp. After retiring, he traveled and wrote stories about the early years of racing.
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
of the United States. He was born in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
. His career started as a midget car
Midget car racing
Midget cars, also Speedcars in Australia, are very small race cars with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four-cylinder engines.-Cars:Typically, these cars have 300 to 400 horsepower and weigh...
racer and ended as a Senior Vice President at NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
.
Racing career
Barkhimer was a 21 year old newlywed when he went with his wife to car races at Emeryville, CaliforniaEmeryville, California
Emeryville is a small city located in Alameda County, California, in the United States. It is located in a corridor between the cities of Berkeley and Oakland, extending to the shore of San Francisco Bay. Its proximity to San Francisco, the Bay Bridge, the University of California, Berkeley, and...
. It was his first time attending midget car
Midget car racing
Midget cars, also Speedcars in Australia, are very small race cars with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four-cylinder engines.-Cars:Typically, these cars have 300 to 400 horsepower and weigh...
races, and the third time he attended a racing event. He was puzzled what circus midget
Midget
A midget is a short person with relatively average bodily proportions in comparison with other human beings. The term is often improperly used to describe a person with the medical condition dwarfism. The two terms are often used synonymously because both terms originate as words defining small...
s had to do with racing. He was hooked and he wanted to race a midget racecar. He was unable to obtain a car. He found a racecar owner named Delucci who was not paid for a car he had sold. Barkhimer could run the midget car if he would repossess
Repossession
Repossession is generally used to refer to a financial institution taking back an object that was either used as collateral or rented or leased in a transaction. Repossession is a "self-help" type of action in which the party having right of ownership of the property in question takes the property...
the car. Barkhimer located the car dismantled in boxes. Barkhimer loaded up the car and took it the car home. Barkhimer was not a mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
, but he found a local racer named Jimmy Aiten to help assemble the midget car if Aiten could drive it. That Tuesday night Aiten raced the car at Neptune Beach Speedway. The car ran well in the heat race for two laps before it slowed. The same thing happened in the semi-feature. They determined that they were using the wrong spark plug
Spark plug
A spark plug is an electrical device that fits into the cylinder head of some internal combustion engines and ignites compressed fuels such as aerosol, gasoline, ethanol, and liquefied petroleum gas by means of an electric spark.Spark plugs have an insulated central electrode which is connected by...
s. At the races the following week, the engine threw a connecting rod
Connecting rod
In a reciprocating piston engine, the connecting rod or conrod connects the piston to the crank or crankshaft. Together with the crank, they form a simple mechanism that converts linear motion into rotating motion....
out of the side of the engine block, wrecking the engine. They gave the car back to Delucci.
Barkhimer and Aiten purchased a midget car. After Aiten raced the car one night, he accepted an offer to race a different car on the day of the second race. Barkhimer was forced to race his racecar even though he had never raced before. He borrowed a football helmet
Football helmet
A football helmet is a protective device used primarily in American football and Canadian football. It consists of a hard plastic top with thick padding on the inside, a face mask made of one or more plastic bars, and a chinstrap. Some players add polycarbonate visors to their helmets, which are...
and sat in the car on the inside front row
Pole position
The term "pole position", as used in motorsports, comes from the horse racing term where the number one starter starts on the inside next to the inside pole. The term made its way, along with several other customs, to auto racing. In circuit motorsports, a driver has pole position when he or she...
. He quickly fell from the first starting position to last place. His racing skills developed to the point that he the Bay City Racing Association (BCRA) champion in 1945. He won six events that season. He won ten events in 1946, and four in 1947 before he got injured.
Promoter
In 1948 Barkhimer quit racing to become the Business Manager for BCRA. In 1949 Barkhimer took over San Jose Speedway. San Jose was losing fans. Barkhimer saw that midgets were losing their appeal, so he ended the midget class in favor of a hardtop late model stock carStock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing found mainly in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Great Britain, Brazil and Argentina. Traditionally, races are run on oval tracks measuring approximately in length...
division. They were a hit and the crowds returned. Also in 1949, Barkhimer and Jerry Piper started their own association called California Stock Car Racing Association (CSCRA). He eventually promoted 21 or 22 racetracks on the West Coast.
In 1954 Bill France, Jr.
Bill France, Jr.
William Clifton France , nicknamed "Bill Jr." and "Little Bill," was an American motorsports executive who served from 1972 to 2000 as the head of NASCAR, the sanctioning body of United States-based stock car racing. He succeeded the founder of NASCAR, his father Bill France, Sr., as its head...
, son of NASCAR found Bill France, Sr., was stationed on the West Coast while serving in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. He was stationed at the northern California Navy Air Base known as Moffett Field. The elder France had his son talk with Barkhimer. Barkhimer, his partner Margo Burke, and the younger France went to races together and hung out on weekends. The friendship led to Barkhimer going to Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, USA. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city has a population of 64,211. Daytona Beach is a principal city of the Deltona – Daytona Beach – Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which the census bureau estimated had...
to meet with the elder France and to watch a race at the Daytona Beach Road Course
Daytona Beach Road Course
Daytona Beach Road Course was a race track that was instrumental in the formation of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, or NASCAR. It originally became famous as the location where fifteen world land speed records were set...
. France and Barkhimer discussed uniform rules and guaranteed payout for drivers. That meeting resulted in ten of Barkhimer's tracks becoming NASCAR sanctioned. The first track was Stockton 99, and tracks in Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, Fresno
Fresno, California
Fresno is a city in central California, United States, the county seat of Fresno County. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 510,365, making it the fifth largest city in California, the largest inland city in California, and the 34th largest in the nation...
, San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
and Hughes Stadium in Sacramento
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
soon followed.
Barkhimer became a Senior Vice President in NASCAR. During his career, he had also promoted boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, car shows, roller derbies
Roller derby
Roller derby is a contact sport played by two teams of five members roller skating in the same direction around a track. Game play consists of a series of short matchups in which both teams designate a scoring player who scores points by lapping members of the opposing team...
, and wrestling
Wrestling
Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
. He retired after his first wife died in 1976. He had promoted 3000 races in his career. Barkhimer and Burke sold out to Ken Clapp. After retiring, he traveled and wrote stories about the early years of racing.