This article is about full-size midget race cars. For the smaller version youth racer, see Quarter Midget racing. For the brand name automobile, see King Midget. For the British sports car with its own race series, see MG Midget.
Midget cars, also speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on most continents. There is a worldwide tour and national midget tours in the United States, Australia, Argentina and New Zealand.
Typically, these four-cylinder-engine cars have 300 horsepower (220 kW) to 400 horsepower (300 kW) and weigh 900 pounds (410 kg).[1][2] The high power and small size of the cars combine to make midget racing quite dangerous; for this reason, modern midget cars are fully equipped with roll cages and other safety features. Some early major midget car manufacturers include Kurtis Kraft (1930s to 1950s) and Solar (1944–46). Midgets are intended to be driven for races of relatively short distances, usually 2.5 to 25 miles (4 to 40 km). Some events are staged inside arenas, like the Chili Bowl held in early January at the Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. There are midget races in dirt track racing and in asphalt (paved tracks).
There are three-quarter (TQ) midgets which developed from "midget midget" cars of the late 1940s.[3]Quarter midgets are the one quarter the size of a full midget car.
The first organized Midget car race happened on June 4, 1933.[4] The sports' first regular weekly program began on August 10, 1933 at the Loyola High School Stadium in Los Angeles under the control of the first official governing body, the Midget Auto Racing Association (MARA).[5] After spreading across the country, the sport traveled around the world; first to Australia in 1934 at Melbourne's Olympic Park on December 15,[6] and to New Zealand in 1937. Early midget races were held on board tracks previously used for bicycle racing.[7] When the purpose built speedway at Gilmore Stadium was completed, racing ended at the school stadium, and hundreds of tracks began to spring up across the United States. Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin (near Madison) is another major track in the United States operating since the first half of the twentieth century.
The AAA Contest Board soon started sanctioning midget races across the country, facing opposition from independent drivers and racetracks. After the AAA withdrew from sanctioning races in 1955, the United States Auto Club took over as the major sanctioning body of midget car racing in the United States. NASCAR had a midget division from 1952 to 1968.
Soon after in Australia, speedcar racing became popular with the first Australian Speedcar Championship being contested in Melbourne in 1935, its popularity running through the country's "golden era" of the 1950s and 1960s. Australian promoters such as Adelaide's Kym Bonython who ran the Rowley Park Speedway, and Empire Speedways who ran the Brisbane Exhibition Ground and the famous Sydney Showground Speedway, often imported drivers from the US, such as the popular Jimmy Davies. Promoters in Australia during this period often staged races billed as either a "world speedcar championship" or "world speedcar derby". During this time speedcars were arguably the most popular category in Australian speedway with crowds of up to 30,000 attending meetings at the Sydney Showground and over 10,000 in Adelaide and Brisbane.
Speedcars continue to race in Australia, with the major events being the Australian Championship, and the Australian Speedcar Grand Prix (first run in 1938). Along with various state championships, there is also the Speedcar Super Series which travels throughout Australia. Speedcar crowds of 10,000 people are common in Australia for these major events.[1]
In December 2013, POWRi Midget Racing began a 16-event Lucas Oil POWRi Midget World Championship that ran until June 2014.[1] Drivers competed in New Zealand and Australia at the beginning of the 2013–14 season and ended in the United States.[1]
Midget car racing also grew in popularity in the Northeast of the United States, in part due to racers like Bill Schindler and events at tracks like that at Hinchcliffe Stadium.
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This article is about full size midget race cars For the smaller version youth racer see Quarter Midget racing For the brand name automobile see King Midget For the British sports car with its own race series see MG Midget Not related to midgets Midget cars also speedcars in Australia is a class of racing cars The cars are very small with a very high power to weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on most continents There is a worldwide tour and national midget tours in the United States Australia Argentina and New Zealand Midget cars racing at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie Wisconsin Contents 1 Cars 2 History 3 Stepping stone to high profile divisions 4 Notable midget car races 4 1 Notable annual midget car racing events 5 Sanctioning bodies 5 1 Australia 5 2 New Zealand 5 3 United Kingdom 5 4 United States 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksCars edit nbsp A midget carTypically these four cylinder engine cars have 300 horsepower 220 kW to 400 horsepower 300 kW and weigh 900 pounds 410 kg 1 2 The high power and small size of the cars combine to make midget racing quite dangerous for this reason modern midget cars are fully equipped with roll cages and other safety features Some early major midget car manufacturers include Kurtis Kraft 1930s to 1950s and Solar 1944 46 Midgets are intended to be driven for races of relatively short distances usually 2 5 to 25 miles 4 to 40 km Some events are staged inside arenas like the Chili Bowl held in early January at the Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa Oklahoma There are midget races in dirt track racing and in asphalt paved tracks There are three quarter TQ midgets which developed from midget midget cars of the late 1940s 3 Quarter midgets are the one quarter the size of a full midget car History edit nbsp Bob Swanson at the Legion Ascot Speedway in Los Angeles in 1935 nbsp William Clay Ford Sr s 1939 Ford Midget Racer on display at Stahls Automotive Collection in Chesterfield Township Michigan nbsp A 1969 Harry Turner midget race carThe first organized Midget car race happened on June 4 1933 4 The sports first regular weekly program began on August 10 1933 at the Loyola High School Stadium in Los Angeles under the control of the first official governing body the Midget Auto Racing Association MARA 5 After spreading across the country the sport traveled around the world first to Australia in 1934 at Melbourne s Olympic Park on December 15 6 and to New Zealand in 1937 Early midget races were held on board tracks previously used for bicycle racing 7 When the purpose built speedway at Gilmore Stadium was completed racing ended at the school stadium and hundreds of tracks began to spring up across the United States Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie Wisconsin near Madison is another major track in the United States operating since the first half of the twentieth century The AAA Contest Board soon started sanctioning midget races across the country facing opposition from independent drivers and racetracks After the AAA withdrew from sanctioning races in 1955 the United States Auto Club took over as the major sanctioning body of midget car racing in the United States NASCAR had a midget division from 1952 to 1968 Soon after in Australia speedcar racing became popular with the first Australian Speedcar Championship being contested in Melbourne in 1935 its popularity running through the country s golden era of the 1950s and 1960s Australian promoters such as Adelaide s Kym Bonython who ran the Rowley Park Speedway and Empire Speedways who ran the Brisbane Exhibition Ground and the famous Sydney Showground Speedway often imported drivers from the US such as the popular Jimmy Davies Promoters in Australia during this period often staged races billed as either a world speedcar championship or world speedcar derby During this time speedcars were arguably the most popular category in Australian speedway with crowds of up to 30 000 attending meetings at the Sydney Showground and over 10 000 in Adelaide and Brisbane Speedcars continue to race in Australia with the major events being the Australian Championship and the Australian Speedcar Grand Prix first run in 1938 Along with various state championships there is also the Speedcar Super Series which travels throughout Australia Speedcar crowds of 10 000 people are common in Australia for these major events 1 In December 2013 POWRi Midget Racing began a 16 event Lucas Oil POWRi Midget World Championship that ran until June 2014 1 Drivers competed in New Zealand and Australia at the beginning of the 2013 14 season and ended in the United States 1 Midget car racing also grew in popularity in the Northeast of the United States in part due to racers like Bill Schindler and events at tracks like that at Hinchcliffe Stadium Stepping stone to high profile divisions editMany IndyCar and NASCAR drivers use midget car racing as an intermediate stepping stone on their way to more high profile divisions including Tony Stewart Sarah Fisher Rodger Ward A J Foyt Mario Andretti Johnnie Parsons Ryan Newman Kyle Larson Jeff Gordon Christopher Bell Bill Vukovich and others Events are sometimes held on weeknights so that popular and famous drivers from other higher profiled types of motor racing who race in those higher profiled types of racing on the weekends will be available to compete and so that it does not conflict with drivers home tracks Notable midget car races edit nbsp Ward 24 battles George Constantine at Lime Rock ParkIn 1959 Lime Rock Park held a famous Formula Libre race where Rodger Ward shocked the expensive and exotic sports cars by beating them on the road course in an Offenhauser powered midget car usually used on oval tracks Ward used an advantageous power to weight ratio and dirt track cornering abilities to steal the win Notable annual midget car racing events edit Chili Bowl Tulsa Expo Center Tulsa Oklahoma Fireman Nationals Angell Park Speedway Sun Prairie Wisconsin Four Crown Nationals Eldora Speedway Allen Township Darke County Ohio Hut Hundred Terre Haute Action Track Terre Haute Indiana Bryan Clauson Classic Indianapolis Motor Speedway Speedway Indiana Night before the 500 O Reilly Raceway Park Indianapolis Indiana The Rumble in Fort Wayne Allen County War Memorial Coliseum Expo Center Fort Wayne Indiana Turkey Night Grand Prix Ventura Raceway Irwindale Speedway World 50 lap Classic Western Springs Stadium Auckland New Zealand New Zealand Midget Championship Rotates on various tracks throughout New Zealand Australian Speedcar Championship Rotates on various tracks throughout Australia Australian Speedcar Grand Prix Rotates between tracks throughout eastern Australia Magic Man 34 Perth Motorplex Speedway Kwinana Beach Western Australia 8 Tim Crouch Memorial Murray Bridge Speedway Murray Bridge South Australia 9 Boston Louie Memorial Seekonk Speedway Seekonk Massachusetts Ryan Stone Memorial Ruapuna Speedway Christchurch New ZealandSanctioning bodies edit nbsp Australian speedcar racer Matt Smith racing his midget car in Beaver Dam WisconsinAustralia edit SpeedcarsAustralia com Official website of Australia s Speedcar governing body Speedcars Australia Inc QSRA Queensland Speedcar Racing Assos official website SAspeedcars com South Australian Speedcar Association covers South Australia amp the Northern Territory V S D A Victorian Speedcar Drivers Association Inc wasda com au Western Australian Speedcar Drivers Association Perth Club Speedcar Association of NSW Sydney Club 50 Lap Speedcar Classic Valvoline Raceway Sydney Speedway New South Wales AustraliaNew Zealand edit Speedway New Zealand New Zealand Speedway Directory Links to New Zealand Speedway Websites Macgors NZ SpeedwayUnited Kingdom edit Grand Prix Midget ClubUnited States edit NationalUSAC USAC National Midget Series POWRi POWRi Midget SeriesRegionalBMARA Badger Midget Auto Racing Association the oldest sanctioning body POWRi West Lucas Oil Midget Series AMRA Arizona Midget Racing Association ARDC American Racing Drivers Club BCRA Bay Cities Racing Association co sanction with POWRi since 2019 NEMA Northeastern Midget Association American Three Quarter Midget Racing Association STARS Short Track Auto Racing Series RMMRA Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association SMRS Southern Midget Racing Series IRS Illini Racing Series USSA United States Speed Association WMRA Washington Midget Racing Association SMMS Southern States Midget Series Northwest Focus Midget SeriesSee also editAustralian Speedcar Championship Australian Speedcar Grand Prix Chili Bowl National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame ShortcarReferences edit a b c d Eighinger Steve June 6 2014 U S drivers sweep at Bullring Quincy Herald Whig Archived from the original on August 9 2014 Retrieved July 19 2014 Miller Tim 2008 01 10 Chili Bowl flavour catches hold even Down Under Hamilton Spectator Archived from the original on July 23 2012 Retrieved 2008 10 16 TQ Midget Speedway Motors Museum of American Speed Retrieved June 8 2021 USAC Midgets at Bloomington USAC National Midgets June 4 2021 Event occurs at 20 48 FloRacing Racing Midget Autos Popular Science May 1934 Speedway Australia A brief chronological history of Speedway Racing in Australia Speedway Australia Retrieved 9 August 2011 Circle Track Magazine 9 84 p 77 WASDA Magic Man 34 Tim Crouch MemorialExternal links edit midget car racing at Encyclopaedia Britannica Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Midget car racing amp oldid 1215218133, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
