A 1/2 mile oiled dirt oval built in 1932 on Eight Mile Road and Schoenherr Road by Don and Carson Zeiter. It was shortened to 1/4 miles in 1936, and was variously also known as VFW Speedway, New Detroit Speedway and Zeiters. The last race was held in 1958, and a shopping center was subsequently built on the site.
There was a time, when on a warm, Detroit afternoon, those who lived in the vicinity of Eight Mile & Schoenherr could relax on their front porch and listen to the exciting sounds of flathead racing; and perhaps even see the Johnny Phieffer Beer blimp overhead.
The excitement emanated from the Motor City Speedway. Opened on October 2, 1932, MCS hosted circular racing on a dirt track. One could enjoy everything from midget racers and modified stocks to motorcycles. The stand could hold 5,000 spectators and later, races were even televised.
Alas, due to a fire in the main grand stands, the Motor City Speedway was torn down in Sept.1959. It stands as one more yesterday faded into Detroit’s automotive history. However, there are still those who remember when it was the place to be if you were into racing. One such person is Vito Rosinski otherwise known by his racetrack moniker, ‘Skeeter Ross’
Skeeter grew up with gas in his veins and the kind of bravodo that was stereotypic of era WWII. Full of adventure and afraid of nothing, he enterred racing almost as soon as he could drive. When he wasn’t trying to hold down a job, Skeeter lived at the track and was never one to miss a race. He even met the woman who was to become his wife at a race event. And the day after their marriage their honeymoon was spent, where else …. racing!
I had the opportunity to meet Skeeter through his nephew Ralph Fera, the fellow responsible for setting up the Sunday Cruisins at Bakers. We arrived at his home on the East Side and were met by Skeeter and his wife, Margey. They led us to a basement racing shrine; a room full of photographs, posters and trophies. As we sat down, Margey, in typical Polish etiquette, kept plying us with coffee, cakes, cold cuts, crackers and it seemed anything else that was in their refrigerator.
The Interview
CN: “So Skeeter, tell me about your racing days. What was it really like?
Skeeter: “Well, it was a way of life. If you loved it, that’s all you did.”
CN: “How often would you race?
Skeeter: “Well, let’s see. Saturday I raced modified roadsters at Motorcity, Sunday it was Mount Clemons or Toledo Raceway Park, Monday it was modified roadster sprints, Thursday Modifieds and Friday was Flatrock. And if there had been 8 days in a week, I would have raced more”
CN: “So, you were an early hot rodder.”
Skeeter: “Oh no! At that time hot rodders were either dragster folks or street delinquents. We saw ourselves as serious racers and going fast in a straight line wasn’t much considered to be racing to us.”
CN: “When did you race?”
Skeeter: “Well, let’s see, I raced from 1949-1958. I started at Windsor Speedway because there was no association and therefore no rules. Over here (USA) you had to be 21 to race, but not in Canada. So I started when I was 19. They were great times”
CN: “Did you race for a living?”
Skeeter: “There was purse money of course, but you got 40% and the car’s owner got 60%, so you couldn’t really make a living. I did it for the love of racing but had to have a job to survive. But, none of us cared; we all just loved to race. There were a total of 12 tracks in the area including Canada and Ohio. There was always a race going on somewhere.
CN: “Yes, I remember watching racing at Motor City Speedway on T.V. What was it like back then?”
Skeeter: “Well, the camaraderie was unbelievable and the driving was exciting and full of risk. There were all kinds of races everywhere. And besides the car racing, once a year we were required to participate in the Funner Rama.
CN: “What was the Funner Rama?”
Skeeter: “Well, it involved all kinds of crazy things including animals. They hitched ostriches to sulki carts and we raced against the media sports announcers from radio and TV. Like Fred Wolf and Don Watric. We also raced on Zonkies ( a zebra/donkey crossbreed) and camels. Heck, sometimes we even rode on elephants.”
CN: “Where did you learn to drive?”
Skeeter: “Well, I actually had a pilots license before my drivers license. But, as for driving, I picked it up as I did it. There was a storage lot across the street from a factory where I worked and I used to park new cars as they left. Our job was to drive them to this staging area where they stayed until they were shipped. I used to practice sliding; it’s called ‘drifting’ today. I learned to cut the wheel hard as you layed on the gas and slid into place. I got to get real good at it and a car would go right where I wanted to put it. Later, it became an important skill for track racing.”
CN: “Did you ever wreck a new car?”
Skeeter: “Oh no, I could really control a slide. There’s a funny story about Fred Wolf. He was considered a bit arrogant and not very well liked. One day when there was a derby race, the track owner told me he’d pay me $10 if I could end the race with a dramatic slide. I ran the race to come in last, then came roaring right for the announcer’s booth. They were announcing that there was a car out of control and people were screaming and scattering. I went into a double spin and slide sideways coming to rest in a spray of dirt and dust all over Wolf right at the foot of the booth. It was fantastic. The owner beamed and he slipped $50 into my pocket.”
CN: “Did you ever crash while racing?”
Skeeter: “Oh, there were plenty of crashes when racing, there were some broken bones, but I never got seriously hurt. We even had something called the ‘Upside Down Club.”
CN: “I can only imagine how you joined.”
Skeeter: “You became a member, of course, if you flipped a car on its roof. There were categories of achievement with either ‘Two timer’, ‘Triple Header’, 4 Times Loser’,‘5 Flips’ or ‘It’s A Habit’. And the driver who had the most flips received the trophy”
CN: “Did you ever win the trophy?
Skeeter: “Oh yeh! (chuckle) I put quite a few cars on their lids.”
CN: “What eventually happened to the cars you raced?”
Skeeter: “Well, they were sponsored by someone or another and when they got crashed, we generally repaired them. But when they became too far gone we just junked them.”
CN: “Today you’d be considered a heretic if you trashed such collectable cars.”
Skeeter: “Probably, but back then they were cheap and plentiful. That’s why we used them”
CN: “Did you guys have fans that followed you like today’s rock bands?”
Skeeter: “Not like today’s rock bands but, we had fans who followed our racing. One time a little old lady came up to me after a race and asked for my autograph. As I was signing it she asked in a shaky voice, “Aren’t you afraid of getting killed?” I said, “No, I’ve never been killed before – you just have to be crazy to do what we do.”
CN: “It must have been pretty dangerous. Did you ever have any close calls?”
Skeeter: “Oh, lots. When you have 21 cars on a track, running three abreast there isn’t much room for error. We ran bumper to bumper. We called it ‘driving Woodward’. I actually lost 6 or 7 friends over the years.
CN: “Didn’t you wear safety gear?”
Skeeter: “Some, but not like they do today. Things were pretty loose. We wore half helmets that wouldn’t pass any safety test today. I lost a friend who flew off the track and slammed the back of his head just below his helmet on a pole. You took your chances but no one thought much about it.”
CN: “Do you have any regrets?”
Skeeter: “Not really, it was a great life. If there were any it would be never getting to go to Indianapolis.”
CN: “Well, Skeeter, it was really great talking with you.”
Skeeter: “Thanks for coming. I enjoyed reliving those days.”
I enjoyed a pleasant morning chatting with Skeeter and Margey and hearing personal stories about Detroit’s racing history from someone who helped write it. For a short time I was transported back to the day when racing was more personal than corporate.
Skeeter and Motor City Speedway are still in the memories of many Detroiters. While researching for this piece I even received an email from fan, Rick Liblong in Washington D.C., who remembered Skeeter as his boyhood hero. Hat’s off to Skeeter and Margey; living links to better times.
NOW FOR THE PUZZLE
Looking at the program (picture of program in the gallery), answer the following questions:
What is the price of the program? This answer is "A".
What is the number on the 3rd car in the race? This answer is "B".
What is the 2 digit Saturday date - 6?( The race date with the animals). This answer is "C".
What is the number on the 2nd car in the race? This answer is "D".
Now the math:
n42 27.138 + A + C and w082 59.(B - D) + 1