A tribute to the late, great Playland Speedway, Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the racers that made it so

This is a picture of the $50 283 engine that went into the 57 when it was first built. I think I bought it from Larry White.

This is a picture of Jim and I the first time we took the 57 Chevy to Playland in 1970. The car was new and we were new. It was for practice before the season started. We didn’t change a thing. We wouldn’t have known what to do anyway.

Please note: Although Dave has articles for every week of racing, to save space, they aren’t all included. Dave also provided weekly notes as well!! The website has all the articles and personal notes from Dave.

Here are some of the weekly notes from Dave’s scrapbook. I love the insight you get by reading them.

First race was May 16,1970. Won heat, trophy dash and "A" feature. Prize-$155. Car handled very well. Major damage to the right rear

May 23,1970--- Second week came in third in the heat. Was protested for rough driving: Fined $10, lost winnings and couldn't race for the remaining races.

Memorial Day Race--- Third week didn't do too well. Came in sixth in the heat and sixth in the "B" Feature. Won $5.

June 6,1970-- Fourth week- Won heat, Came in fourth in trophy dash after spinning out in next to last lap. Came in fourth in "A" Feature. Spun out on first 1/2 lap and had to catch up with the other cars. Moved up to fourth position and was spun out again by #18, Butch Hastie. #18 and #44 were put back two positions because of rough driving. Came in sixth place officially. Won $30.

On Sunday, June 7th, was called up by a track official and was told that both #18 and I were suspended; myself for two weeks plus a $20 fine.

June 13,1970--- Fifth week- tried to race #44 as #4 with Jim Mikesell driving, but were told we couldn't do this or I would be unable to drive for the rest of the year.

June 20, 1970-- Sixth week- Still unable to race because of two week suspension.

June 22, 1970-- Tuesday- K000 Radio Fan Appreciation Night. Two week suspension over. Came in second in heat, second in trophy dash and third in the "A" Feature. Car handled really well. Won RCA Clock radio and $5.00. WOW!!

June 27,1970-- Came in second in heat, second in trophy dash and fifth in "A" Feature. Won $50.00. Had blowout in warm-ups and car didn't handle quite right. Car ran a little warm in "A" Feature.

July 4,1970-- Came in fifth in my heat and won the "B" Feature. There were 12 restarts throughout the evening of racing. Won $75 total. Bought a 327 engine on July 5th for $135.

July 11,1970-- Came in third in heat and fourth in "A" Feature. Won $60. In third place now. Put new 327 engine in car during the day on saturday. Car handled well except for sliding on corners and small over-heating problem.

July 18,1970-- Came in second in heat and second in "A" Feature. Took movies of heat. Won $110. Could have won "A" Feature but lost car for a few seconds and #67 Prideaux took lead.

July 25,1970-- Won heat and placed second in Trophy Dash. Track was dirty on north turn. Spun out in "A" feature and was unsatisfied with my driving. Took third place winnings in "A" feature instead of fourth because Brad Chase was suspended for two weeks, Won $100. Total winnings for the year- $656.

August 1,1970-- Came in third in heat. Movies were taken but might not turn out because of darkness. Came in second in "A" Feature--- Winnings $100. Race was completed just before it started to sprinkle. Had two small accidents. Hit #18 in heat when he spun out in front of me. Also hit #68 when he spun out in feature. Nothing happened to our

August 8,1970-- Came in third in heat. Got pinned in by #65 and #1 because I didn't pass #58 who was going slow and was in the lead. Came in second in the "A" Feature behind #1. Won $100.

August 14, 1970-- Came in third in heat and third in "A" Feature. Won $80.

Dave with George Murphy, track announcer and local tv celebrity.