No, I am Canadian, but that race track is my home track in Upstate N.Y.

I'm hoping for the digital noise theory instead. My father's driver who passed away at that track in 1971, in the official account all those years ago.

The official account of his fatal crash as written in the 50th Anniversary of the same race.

"Gary Witter had struck the outer wall between turns three & four. Apparentley, Gary was knocked out upon impact, but the car kept running with the throttle either hung up or being pushed down by the unconcious Witter. The car continued down the front straightway with Witter slumped over the wheel, glanced off the inside hub rial in turn one, then shot directly across the track. The car then smashed into the back end of Marvin Carmen's car, who was already stopped because of the red flag, then proceded to crash right through the first turn steel wall. The car burst into flames as soon as it landed on the ground but was quickly brought under control and extinguished. Witter, recipient of the first ever Rookie of the Year Award in '67, had been killed upon impact with the wall."

Watching him die, was like watching something happen in slow motion. It was traumatic, and is hard to erase from your memory. The Hoosier Tire distributorship that the article talks about was lost by his wife after a failed commonlaw relationship to a man named Tony Novotny. He parlayed that business into a racing series known as CASCAR, and, as of this year CASCAR is the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.

Following his death, his widow informed us that his doctor had advised him to retire because he had had so many head injuries, that the slightest impact, could kill him.

Over the years, I have been back many times. When I went in '03, I finally got the chance to go without my husband & son to attend to. I spoke with alot of people, including the track owners & other competitors, but most of all, on Friday night, after qualifying, I went out to the first turn, and sat down all by myself for at least 1/2 hour.

The Glory Days weren't always so glorious...the grandstand you see in the background of that picture, is named in his memory, and opened in 1972.

This, is the kind of reason, why you always want to live in the future....his three sons are grown men with beautiful wives and children of their own.