A need for speed
PORTLAND, Ore. — Ever the gentleman, Hershel McGriff was good-natured about finishing 13th in a NASCAR-sanctioned race at age 81.
"My competition was faster," he deadpanned.
Although he certainly would have taken a victory, McGriff seemed nevertheless pleased with his showing on the road course at Portland International Raceway, part of the NASCAR Camping World West Series.
Jim Inglebright of Fairfield, Calif., won the race, which featured a late caution for a green-white-checkered finish. He edged fellow Californian Greg Pursley, who slipped partially off track on the final turn.
McGriff was the defending champion in Portland winning the only other time the series — then known as Winston West — visited the track in 1986.
The odds were against him before the race started. Although he automatically qualified as one of 26 drivers in a race that had 28 spots, he had to start at the back of the pack and one lap down because of changes he made to the car after the qualifying session. He replaced the carburetor.
"I really didn't have a lot to lose," he said. "I did not want to go out there and flop around."
He certainly didn't, said Ingelbright.
"There were a lot of other cars out there that were a lot slower," the winner said. "He did a great job."
Inglebright suggested that any concerns about an 81-year-old's reaction time in a dangerous sport do not necessarily apply to the youthful McGriff.
"I followed him for a little while and I couldn't get around him," Ingelbright said.
McGriff, who last raced in 2002, broke his own record as the oldest driver.
In a career that has spanned more than six decades, he has four NASCAR Cup series victories —all in the 1954 season — and 37 wins on the West series. He is a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame.
McGriff, who spent most of his adult life in Oregon but now lives in Arizona, drove in his first race in the family sedan on a dirt track at Portland Speedway in 1945.
