I’m starting to feel a little better after a week of congestion, cough, chills, and lack of energy.  So much for flu shots – it didn’t seem to work this year.  However, it was “free” thanks to my wife’s company.  I had a little more energy this morning so I did some vacuuming and dusting, but another dark, rainy day makes me want to go back to bed.  I helped a friend out yesterday by setting up a sales call on the Portland International Speedway.  It’s exciting that they are bringing back the Indy Cars next Labor Day weekend.  Indy Car racing, or CART at the time, is what brought me to Portland back in 1988 through 1990.  I had first been to the city in 1980, just after Mount St. Helens erupted.

The Grand Prix of Portland was called the Budweiser/G.I. Joe’s 200 that first year that I attended.  Stroh’s was the inaugural sponsor in 1984 and 1985, while Texaco, Freightliner, and Mazda provided race support in subsequent years.  A Stroh’s brand, Schaefer Beer, was one of the sponsors on our race cars.  I remember the “Alex the Dog” commercials from that era where Alex would fetch a Stroh’s from the refrigerator for its owner.  There was a lapping sound effect at the end of the spot, with the owner shouting, “Alex, you’d better be drinking your water!”  I was one of our loosely formed marketing team for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers racing team that included drivers Josele Garza, Scott Atchison, Scott Pruett, Rich Vogler, and Kevin Cogan.  Pancho Carter, with a co-sponsorship from Hardee’s, also joined the team, but missed the 1988 season.  Other sponsors included Otter Pops, Explorer Van, and Playboy magazine.  I’ve often said that when potential clients and guests came to our garage area they were well entertained with beer, burgers, frozen popsicles, and centerfolds.  My role was to keep our clients happy, find additional sponsorship, and fill-in for pit duty when necessary.  I was what they called a “weekend warrior,” moving from track to track throughout the season.

Danny Sullivan, driving for Penske Racing, was the race winner in that June 19, 1988 race, averaging just over 102 miles an hour.  Emerson Fittipaldi won in 1989, and then Michael Andretti was in the winner’s circle the next three years straight.  Other notable names like Al Unser Jr., Bobby Rahal, Alex Zanardi, Mark Blundell, Gil de Ferran, Max Papis, Cristiano da Matta, Adrian Fernandez, Sebastian Bourdais, and A.J. Allmendinger won top honors during the 24 years of the event that ended in 2007.

The race was always a part of Portland’s annual Rose Festival, but will return in 2018 as an independent event, replacing Watkins Glen on the Verizon Indy Car Series schedule.  I’ll look forward to attending, and hopefully reuniting with many friends from the past.  The Machinist’s Union team became Panther Racing in 1997 and continued to operate into 2014.  Let’s Go Racing….