OCTOBER 15, 2001
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Tribal Members Are in the Family Business of Racing Cars
Brothers go head to head on the track this summer.
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Race Ready Mark Shandy recently won "Rookie of the Year" honors after
completing his first season as a driver.
By Willie Mercier
As the cars roll into
position the crowd tenses. The
green flag drops and they're off.
Engines howl as the cars at Wil
lamette Speedway in Lebanon, just
east of Corvallis, race around the
track, each one vying for the cov
eted first place.
Two Tribal members, brothers
Todd and Mark Shandy, are among
those being watched. Family and
friends fill the stands as the two
take to the track. Many are here
every week on Saturday night.
"I get excited, nervous and enthu
siastic," said Todd's wife Tammy
Shandy.
Todd has been racing off and on
at the speedway for 15 years.
"It's an adrenaline rush," said
Todd about the way he feels at the
starting line.
Todd credits his father, Rollie
Shandy, for getting him started.
Rollie used to race when Todd was
younger.
"I do it for the whole family, they
like it, it's what we do in the sum
mer," said Todd about why he con
tinues to race.
"I just get excited watching them,"
said Todd and Mark's mother and
Tribal Elder Louise Coulson of her
going to the raceway. She is at the
races every weekend.
Mark was always there to set up
the car for his younger brother
Todd, but this year Mark decided
to get behind the wheel.
"He (Mark) has always wanted to
race," said Coulson, the mother of
the two siblings. In his first year
as a driver Mark pulled away from
the rest of the pack of first year driv
ers by bringing home the "Rookie
of the Year" award. He came in
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Bad Attitude Todd Shandy just completed another season racing at Wil
lamette Speedway in Lebanon. He has been behind the wheel of a racecar for the
last 15 years.
ninth overall for the season.
"It makes him happy" said Mariah
Shandy, Mark's wife, when asked
what she thinks of Mark racing.
So how did the veteran racer
Todd fare this year? He came in
fifth for the season.
They do it for fun and for the fam
ily that come to watch," said Tammy
Shandy. "I couldn't imagine life with
out racing, our daughters love it, they
are the reason that Todd still does it,
they help him at home with the car
and they just really enjoy it."
Both brothers have been involved
with more than just their own cars
too. Todd helped build three of the
racecars that are on the track ev
ery week and will help build an
other this year. The brothers also
help maintain roughly 15 cars that
they race against.
"It's like a big family," said
Tammy. "If you need a car part and
someone has an extra they will loan
it to you, they would rather have
the competition."
"We are all buddies, it's a good
group of people to hang with," said
Todd of his peers.
So what did mom think when
Todd came to her the first time to
tell her that he was going to race?
"No, you can't do that, you know
how parents worry," she said.
Now she has to worry not only
about the two sons that are already
into the racing, but her youngest
son Gregg is also thinking about
getting into a car of his own. Gregg,
who lives in San Diego at the mo
ment, participated in a few races in
Lebanon and is thinking of mov
ing back to Oregon where he will
consider joining his older siblings
on the racetrack.
Rolston Finishes Another Racing Season in Banks, Oregon
Tribal member is still the youngest driver in his class.
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By Justin Phillips
"It's not what you drive; it's how
you drive it," said Tribal member
Nathan Rolston after putting the
finishing touches on another rac
ing season at the Sunset Speedway
in Banks, Oregon. Rolston had just
finished the 2001 season, which
annually runs from April through
the end of August.
Rolston and his teammate Andy
Hoyt together form R & H Racing. They compete in the Street Stock
Class along with 22 other drivers. Rolston mostly does the driving while
Hoyt does the "wrenching." Wrenching is racing lingo for mechanical
work done on the racecar.
Rolston and Hoyt race a 1979 Chevrolet Monte Carlo.
In the specific event they race, the rules are that the frame of the car
has to be all original steel and sheet metal. There is to be no fiberglass
used on the car in any place.
"All parts of the engine have to be steel," said Rolston. "The track
inspector comes around and uses a magnet on the engine. If the magnet
doesn't stick on something, you can't race."
As the same with last year's racing season, Rolston, 21, is still the young
est driver to climb into a car in his class.
When Rolston can't be present at the race, Hoyt takes the wheel.
The start of the evening consists of "hot laps" used for the "shake down"
of the car. Hot laps involve the process of packing the dirt on the track
and warm up of the cars. Shake down is the checking of the car inter
nally and externally to make sure everything is working.
Behind the Wheel
Tribal member Nathan Rolston
of Tillamook recently completed
another season of racing his
Monte Carlo in the Street Stock
Class and has been sporting a new,
patriotic helmet this year.
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The racers are divided
J up and will be ready to
n Lw involve between seven
perform heat races, which
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and eight cars. The heat
races will determine who
will race in what position for
the main events.
The main events are A-main and
B-main. A-main is the top four cars
from the heat races. B-main con
sists of all other cars that were outside of top four in the heat race.
"This basically determines how well you perform in the heat races,"
said Rolston.
Rolston and Hoyt had an unfortunate accident the second to the last race
this season an accident that almost put them out for the rest of the year.
"It happened so fast I don't remember it," said Rolston. "The crash
broke our radiator support bars, bent the frame of the car on the left
side, smashed the hood straight up and broke the rear end housing."
Rolston and Hoyt would like to thank their sponsors for the support
they have given them over the season. A special thanks goes out to
Marvin Grout Trucking, (grandpa of Rolston), Hoyt Farms (Hoyt's family
owned business), Allen Farms, Radio Shack of Tillamook, Tillamook Tire,
Strong Metals, Pingel's Muffler Shop in Tillamook and Extreme Air in
McMinnville.
"It was a really good learning season," said Rolston.
R & H Racing will be waiting for the green flag when next season starts.
"Each year we learn from our mistakes," said Rolston. "With experi
ence, determination and dedication, we will rise to the top."
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