HONEST ABE ROOFING SPONSORS USAC’S 2023 HALL OF FAME CEREMONY
By: Richie Murray – USAC Media
Speedway, Indiana (September 21, 2023)………Honest Abe Roofing will serve as the presenting sponsor of USAC’s 2023 Hall of Fame induction ceremony at USAC headquarters in Speedway, Indiana on Friday afternoon, September 29.
USAC’s 11th hall of fame class includes champion driver Bobby East; safety innovator Ted Halibrand; champion driver Tracy Hines; television producer Terry Lingner; vice president/general manager/editor/media man Bill Marvel; and team owners and contributors, The Wilke Family.
Honest Abe Roofing founder and CEO Kevin Newton is a current racer, car owner and sponsor in the USAC National ranks. In the early part of his driving career, Newton competed head-to-head versus drivers Tracy Hines and Bobby East and against the Wilke family-owned team.
Newton acknowledged the pleasure of being able to support this year’s ceremony and honor these six individuals and families, who will now have their legacy preserved in USAC’s Hall of Fame for perpetuity and for future generations to learn their stories.
“These things get lost generationally,” Newton said. “If you didn’t race with Bobby or Tracy, you wouldn’t understand the scope of the things they accomplished. For the people who are still here, and the family members and other people who were a part of that, they get a chance to relive those memories again too.”
The USAC Hall of Fame is designed to do just that, to never forget the impact that those individuals had, not only on their own generation, but the inspiration they provided to others who came along after them.
“I will say that the next generations will have a chance to understand the impact of what those people and families have done in motorsports,” Newton stated. “Many families and drivers and other people involved in motorsports in the past may never get recognition, so any time you can get a chance to support something like this where you can solidify someone’s touch on an industry, or even in someone else’s life, it’s an honor to be a part of that.”
This year’s group of inductees represents a wide swath of the racing industry, from those front and center to those who served in a role behind the scenes. There’s always more to being a success than what the public sees, and the long hours on the road and long hours of working into the night deserve to be respected and appreciated. Newton, being a racer himself, fully understands the effort of those working in the garage at 3am to rebuild a racecar, those burning the midnight oil to build parts and even those who strain their eyes in the middle of the night writing press releases.
“So much effort and time is committed from everybody on this list,” Newton acknowledged. “They put so much time into racing and traveling and all the things that we don’t see. This is a great opportunity to give honor and reflect on those times and difficulties these people went through. It’s just one more way to say thanks for contributing to the sport.”
USAC HALL OF FAME CEREMONY DETAILS
The USAC Hall of Fame luncheon will start at Noon Eastern on Friday, September 29, with the official induction ceremony slated to begin at 1:30pm at USAC’s main offices located at 4910 W. 16th Street in Speedway, Indiana.
The event is sold out. However, at 1:30pm, interested parties can attend the actual induction, albeit standing room only. The event will also be streamed LIVE on FloRacing.
The event will be held just down the street from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway prior to the start of Friday night’s Driven2SaveLives BC39 USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship event, an event which runs for four straight nights on September 27-28-29-30.
ABOUT HONEST ABE ROOFING
Honest Abe Roofing has been installing, repairing, and maintaining residential roofs since 2005. It is their goal to bring a customer service focus to the roofing industry. They are aware that they are providing a very important and necessary service to many homes, so they work incredibly hard to provide the best possible roofing at the most competitive pricing. All of their customers are very important to them, and they want to give them a perfect roof to protect their home and keep them comfortable.
USAC HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES:
2012: J.C. Agajanian, Mario Andretti, Gary Bettenhausen, Tom Binford, Jimmy Bryan, Duane Carter, A.J. Foyt, Tony Hulman, Parnelli Jones, Mel Kenyon, Roger McCluskey & Rich Vogler
2013: Earl Baltes, Henry Banks, Tony Bettenhausen, Tom Bigelow, Pancho Carter, Jack Hewitt, Johnny Rutherford, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, A.J. Watson, Don White & Bob Wilke
2014: Rollie Beale, George Bignotti, Don Branson, Larry Dickson, Gus Hoffman, Jud Larson, Norm Nelson, Eddie Sachs, Don Smith, Bob Stroud, Rodger Ward & Bob Wente
2015: Clint Brawner, Jimmy Caruthers, Butch Hartman, Lindsey Hopkins, Jim Hurtubise, Don Kenyon, Sheldon Kinser, Fred Lorenzen, Roger Penske, Larry Rice, Shorty Templeman & Sleepy Tripp
2016: Steve Butler, Russ Clendenen, Jimmy Davies, Willie Davis, Bob Higman, Tommy Hinnershitz, Dick King, Rick Mears, Pat O’Connor, Kevin Olson, Tony Stewart & Bob Tattersall
2017: Donald Davidson, Frankie DelRoy, Bob East, Chuck Gurney, Gene Hartley, Steve Lewis, Howard Linne, Lloyd Ruby, Ken Schrader, Robbie Stanley, Steve Stapp & Johnny Thomson
2018: Mike Devin, Tony Elliott, Paul Goldsmith, Jason Leffler, Bill Lipkey, Troy Ruttman, Bob/Gene Shannon & Jimmy Sills
2019: Bryan Clauson, Johnny Capels, Dick Jordan & Dave Steele
2020: None
2021: None
2022: Doug Caruthers, Jay Drake, Galen Fox, Jeff Gordon, Dan Gurney, Ray Nichels, Johnny Vance & Joe Shaheen
2023: Bobby East, Ted Halibrand, Tracy Hines, Terry Lingner, Bill Marvel & The Wilke Family