01-17-2018, 07:17 AM
Many of you know Dick Hoff for his fine collection of "ratty karts" and I say that with a smile. The first time I saw Dick race was up at Sugar River when he unloaded a couple of karts that had not seen daylight in 15 years. Covered with dust and straw but you could still make out they were McCulloch and it was anyone's guess what the chassis was. Well he poured some gas down the carb to help prime it and then he put the belt to the pulley and it belched out some smoke as well as a mouse nest along with a slightly cooked mouse. He got in the kart and it made it around the track and he was no slouch behind the wheel, that boy could drive and he liked to be in front.
Dick is a farmer and the crop always comes first. He likes to wait to the last minute to get ready and heading to Daytona was no different. He gave me a call to see what I had 2 days before he was going to get on the road for BIG sprockets in the #35 chain and he said he would like a 22, 23 & a 24. He said he wanted three of each because his two sons were going with him and they weren't sure of the gearing yet. When I told him the price of these beauties, he said I just want to rent them I don't want you to retire on this sale. Now the rumor is Dick as more money than Trump and now I know why. Dick said, Jim think of all the good advertisement you will get with your decal on the side of the winning karts. Who can pass up salesmanship like that so he was off to the races. Now we are not running vintage karts but this is the Briggs 206 class but that is so he keeps limber and ready for the vintage season to start.
To make this just a short story instead of a best seller I will keep it short. His son won on Friday and Dick won on Saturday with a 12 shoe Max-Torque special design that he thought kept him in the lead. I told him it wasn't the clutch but many years of driving experience and his lucky mouse. Nothing pops your ego like having a 70 year old beat you at Daytona.
Dick is a farmer and the crop always comes first. He likes to wait to the last minute to get ready and heading to Daytona was no different. He gave me a call to see what I had 2 days before he was going to get on the road for BIG sprockets in the #35 chain and he said he would like a 22, 23 & a 24. He said he wanted three of each because his two sons were going with him and they weren't sure of the gearing yet. When I told him the price of these beauties, he said I just want to rent them I don't want you to retire on this sale. Now the rumor is Dick as more money than Trump and now I know why. Dick said, Jim think of all the good advertisement you will get with your decal on the side of the winning karts. Who can pass up salesmanship like that so he was off to the races. Now we are not running vintage karts but this is the Briggs 206 class but that is so he keeps limber and ready for the vintage season to start.
To make this just a short story instead of a best seller I will keep it short. His son won on Friday and Dick won on Saturday with a 12 shoe Max-Torque special design that he thought kept him in the lead. I told him it wasn't the clutch but many years of driving experience and his lucky mouse. Nothing pops your ego like having a 70 year old beat you at Daytona.