“The White Knight” Dick Trickle

The late legendary Dick Trickle, remembered on the ovals as the “White Knight”, was billed as America's most successful and winning independent short track racer ever in the sport's history. The colorful Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin speedster began his motorsports career in Stratford, Wisconsin in 1958, carrying on for over forty-five years in the cockpit until retiring from the competition following the 2004 season. Driving homebuilt equipment, Dick spent his early years in stock car racing competing on the tough Central Wisconsin circuit going up against the top names of that era from across the Dairyland State. Eventually turning pro he became a force to reckon with and the victories began to fall his way. By 1966 with his well publicized triumph in the prestigious inaugural National Short Track Championship 200 at the Rockford, Illinois Speedway Trickle's career began to blossom, helping launch his name into the national headlines. Each year following he gained more and more prestige as the season win totals began to mount piloting his forever famous numbered ninety-nine Fords to victory lanes across middle America. At this time he was also a member of the United States Auto Club Stock Car division, picking up two wins and earning the group's Rookie of the Year honors in 1968. In 1972 on Midwestern short track ovals he set a national feature win record by collecting an unheard of sixty-seven feature checkereds in events distanced at 30 to 500 laps during a campaign that began in April and concluded in October. During this period, while racking up scores of victories, Trickle gained huge popularity and became quite possibly the most successful Ford racer in the history of short track racing. When the Ford Motor Company withdrew from their short track racing program in the late 1970's Dick would switch to GM products and continue to pile up victories at an avaricious rate. As the legend continued to grow Trickle began tour racing and became recipient to a number of ARTGO Late Model Racing and ASA Late Model Series titles. In 1989, after thirty years of conquering the short track ovals, Trickle, at age 48, moved into big time NASCAR Cup racing and would become the oldest Rookie of the Year ever selected in NASCAR racing history. He would make 303 appearances at the Cup level in over 14 years, driving for a variety of different teams. Dick took his final victory, number 741, in September of 1998 in a NASCAR Busch Grand National event at Darlington, South Carolina. Sadly he would pass away in May of 2013. Dick Trickle's popularity was endless amongst fans of the sport as a winning legend that will never, ever be forgotten.