He explained, “I started in racing when I was fifteen, pitting for Jerry Winger. We won the championship here at Merrittville two times. They started a jalopy division here and we built one. I raced that and in other divisions until about eight years ago, ending up in Modifieds and Vintage cars. I won the jalopy championship here in 1961 and the Sportsman Championship at Humberstone in 1964. Then I went to the asphalt and raced there most of the time.”
In those years, he raced Late Models as well as Modifieds and experienced success at all levels, racing against other legends like Richie Evans, Merv Treichler, Dutch Hoag, Chuckie Boos, Billy Rafter, and Bill Wimble, whom he raced against at Syracuse. He also raced the Modified at Charlotte and Dover Downs, with drivers like NASCAR Hall of Famer Richie Evans and Jerry Cook. At Charlotte, he raced against future NASCAR stars Harry Gant, Darrell Waltrip, and Lenny Pond. Hary Gant won the race. “We finished eleventh. We were happy,” Ted recalled.
Of his competition, he declared, “Dutch Hoag was the best
driver I ever raced against, smooth as silk, but Richie Evans could get a car
into more problems and get it out than any driver I’ve ever seen in my life. He
was absolutely unbelievable.”
Though he had a successful and satisfying career, capped
off by being named to the Merrittville Wall of Fame, Ted, who resides in
Ridgeway, didn’t walk away from the sport. He noted, “When I retired, Dipper and
I got talking about starting up a team. Matty was only fourteen years old, and
he had just come out of go karts. Dipper wanted to build a Sportsman for him. He
asked me if I’d be interested, and this is the eighth year I’ve been with
Matty.” Having someone with Ted’s background, who is ready and willing to share
his expertise, has been invaluable.
He continued, “I still have a Vintage car and I’m
building another ’37 Ford coupe to race on occasion. I’ve raced the Vintage car
at Lancaster and Holland, but I don’t do it much any more. I have more fun with
Matty. The best part is seeing him win. That’s why they brought me in. I was
kind of his teacher. Now they don’t need me for that. I just enjoy doing what
I’m doing.”
While the team members do whatever task is at hand,
including Mat, who works as hard on the car as anybody, Ted’s main duties are to
take care of the rear end gears and the fuel, among other things.” He added,
laughing, “Now that I’m ten years older than
anybody else, they ease up on me a little.”
Ted admits that racing is an addiction, one that he
thoroughly enjoys. “We’ve got a great bunch of guys. Everybody gets along. In
seven years we’ve never had a major issue on this team. It’s just a good bunch
of guys.”
Of Mat’s progress he declared, “I think the world of
Matty. He’s a good kid, and he’s got talent too. With Matty this year, I’ve
noticed more than anything that he takes a good hand in saying what gear he
wants and what tires he wants. He’s really blossomed out this year. There’s more
feedback for the guys. He’s really come a long way. He’s making decisions
himself, rather than asking, which is super.”
At the tender age of 72, Ted Renshaw is still as
enthusiastic about the sport as when he drove and treasures the opportunity to
be a member of the Williamson Racing Team.
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