Weekly Notebook presented by FK Rod Ends
Notes: Swartz legacy making name for himself
By Todd Turner
DirtonDirt managing editor
Lucas Crooks (michaelboggsphotography.smugmug.com)
When you’ve put your heart and soul into auto racing, when your low-budget team has battled adversity for six years — and when your grandfather is a National Dirt Late Model Hall of Famer — your first Super Late Model victory is going to mean everything.
And so it was for Lucas Crooks, the 19-year-old from Grayson, Ky., who on May 10 found victory lane at Mudlick Valley Raceway in Wallingford, Ky. Celebrating with family members that included Hall of Fame racer Charlie Swartz along with Lucas's uncle Audie Swartz, his chassis builder, the curly-haired Crooks was determined to keep his emotions in check.
"I thought I was gonna be able to hold it in, but climbing out of the car on the frontstretch after that, it just really hit me how hard that me and my dad and my grandpa Charlie and uncle Audie have really worked for this one,” Crooks said. “It hit me real fast all of a sudden, and then, turning around and seeing my whole family standing there watching me on top of the car.
"It was really emotional for me to realize that I finally got one. As a kid, I always dreamed of standing on the frontstretch on top of the car after winning a race, and for that to finally come true, I couldn't hold it back.”
The tears began to flow when his mother, Shelley Lewis, approached for one of many hugs.
“It really hit me then,” Crooks said. “Her and my dad have made really big sacrifices for me and I can't be more grateful for them and everyone who's helped me.”
It’s been a long journey for Crooks, who as a 5-year-old began competing in the mini-wedge division and by 13 decided to make a jump into Super Late Models, one of the divisions Charlie Swartz mastered during a remarkable dirt racing career that included winning the World 100, Hillbilly 100 and many more major events.
"I would say that it was definitely up to me whether I wanted to race or not. When I was little, I was always at the racetrack and it was just what I wanted to do because I thought it was fun,” said Crooks, who find himself atop DirtonDirt's Weekly Notebook presented by FK Rod Ends. “And then the older I got, the more I realized how big of a name Charlie Swartz really was and Audie Swartz, just in general how big the Swartz last name really is.
“When I moved up into the Late Model, I wouldn't say that they put the pressure on me. I put the pressure onto myself trying to live up to that last name. It really took me two or three years to really realize that I'm not Charlie Swartz and I'm not Audie Swartz. I'm Lucas Crooks and if I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna make a name for myself.”
There were plenty of struggles along the way, including the usual flat tires and wrecks, along with seasons curtailed by engine problems.
“It took the first year to really get kind of comfortable in it and it really took about four years to really get a good motor and a good car to be able to run pretty decent. As a small, family-owned team it's hard to compete with the guys who are driving for somebody with the best of the best equipment,” Crooks said. “We’ve had a lot of really close calls, but could just never seem to really punch it through.”
It finally happened at Mudlick Valley in his second start of the 2025 season, triggering the family celebration that makes Crooks want to repeat his feat as soon as possible. He knows he needs to improve to become a consistent winner.
"I'm not a very good cushion runner, so if there's a cushion, I know I need to get better at running the wall and not tearing the decking out of it or making some stupid mistakes like I have in the past,” Crooks said. “I’m getting better and I feel like that show during the race last Saturday, not letting my emotions get to me on the track while I'm racing. Keeping a level mindset and racing like you're racing with somebody, even if you are four or five car lengths out in the lead, just always having that mindset of never stopping until it's over.”
In his second year studying in the motorsports program at the University of Northwestern Ohio, Crooks is determined to make a career of racing, hopefully as a driver, but he’d be willing to work on a touring crew if that’s a path that keeps him in racing. For now, his race team has modest expectations.
“We don't have the funds to really travel far and we don't have a big enough crew, really. I mean, at the track, we have people that come and help but through the week, it's just me and my dad, and now with me up in college it's just my dad until Fridays when I can get home,” he said. “So really traveling pretty far on the weekends is not just not feasible for us, I'd love to but that opportunity just has not arose yet. One day maybe it will, but for right now we just kind of got to stick around (home).”
For longtime fans of Dirt Late Model racing, the green-and-white No. 1 is nearly a dead ringer for the Jack Williams-owned car Charlie Swartz drove late in his career. Crooks loves that connection.
"I've always wanted the vintage look. I'm not really a big fan of the new style with all the designs in it and, to me, it's hard to read when it's out on the track. I've always wanted something that you can sit in the stands and look out on the track and very distinctively realize and pick out who that is. And so that's kind of what I've always wanted,” he said. "I really just like the bright color, old school vintage look, and I want to keep the green and white around. I feel like that's just the family colors and I like the looks of them when they're together and I just think that that's what I want.”
He’s proud of carrying on his grandfather’s legacy and glad “Pa” was there to see his first victory.
"If he could, he'd still be working on it and wrenching on it every week that he could. But unfortunately, his health hasn't been the best recently. He still goes to the track and everything on the weekends,” Crooks said. “When we come in from off the track, he's the first person I go to and talk about about what I'm feeling or what the car is doing and he'll give me advice drivingwise on what he's seeing and what he thinks I need to change.
"I call him the brains behind the operation. The new style of racing, everything's so advanced now, it's very different from when he raced. I call him the brains and I think he's the brains of it drivingwise, and I still think he's smart enough to be able to set this up, but we've really relied on the help of my uncle Audie this winter coming out.
“The second night out to go out and have a car that good and have a Swartz Car that fast, I mean, it was really, really a good feeling. And to be able to pick up a win that quick in the season, I think we've got a good season ahead of us.”
Crooks hopes to have a season good enough to make a name for himself.
“You always hear ‘Charlie Swartz’s grandson’ or ‘nephew of Audie Swartz’ and I mean that's cool,” he said. “I’m very grateful to be part of the family that I am, but then again, when I go out there and I hear that, I just wanna be known as Lucas Crooks. I don't wanna always be relevant because I'm Charlie Swartz's grandson. I wanna be relevant because of who I am, and the driver that I am.”
Weekly highlights
• Winning his third division feature of the season, James Lichliter of Maurertown, Pa., captured May 24’s Limited Late Model event at Winchester (Va.) Speedway.
• Tyler Carpenter of Parkersburg, W.Va., had a two-victory Memorial Day weekend with a May 23 Super Late Model triumph at Ohio Valley Speedway in Washington, W.Va., and a $3,000 Clay City Classic victory May 24 at Midway Speedway in Crooksville, Ohio.
• Extending a personal Late Model winning streak to five in a row, division rookie Logan Veloz of Colona, Ill., captured May 25’s IMCA feature at East Moline (Ill.) Speedway.
• Winning May 23 at Red Cedar Speedway in Menomonie, Wis., 69-year-old Lance Matthees of Winona, Minn., notched his first victory in three seasons.
• Earning two $1,500 holiday weekend victories, Pearson Lee Williams of Dublin, Ga., won Penton (Ala.) Raceway’s Larry Edge Memorial for Crate Late Models on May 23 and May 25’s Limited Late Model feature at the reopening Cochran (Ga.) Motor Speedway.
• Denny Woodworth of Mendon, Ill., tallied two weekend Crate Late Model victories May 23-24 at Spoon River Speedway in Banner, Ill., and Quincy (Ill.) Raceway.
• Staying unbeaten at Shadyhill Speedway, Jace Owens of Monticello, Ind., on May 24 won his fourth straight at the Medaryville, Ind., oval.
First things first
Recent first-time occurrences at the dirt track:
• Winning May 24’s Crate Late Model feature at Brownstown (Ind.) Speedway, hometown driver Skyller Lewis notched his first career victory at the quarter-mile oval.
• Driving a Ronnie McBee-owned car, Spike Moore of Defiance, Pa., captured his first Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway Limited Late Model feature on May 24.
Weekly news briefs
• Red Cloud (Neb.) Speed Bowl, which hasn’t operated regularly since 2007, is set to reopen May 31 with a four-division program that includes Late Models. The opening event is sponsored by Maudlin Motor Co. The Late Model division will follow rules similar to the United Rebel Late Model Series. More than 25 years ago, the track was a regular host of Friesen Challenge Series events from 1999-2004 with 23 tour events with Jason Friesen, Al Humphrey and Tommy Rowe among winners.
• Waymon Gibson, who operated the No. G-1 Gibson Racing Super Late Model team with standout drivers including Steve Russell, died May 20 in Tupelo, Miss. The Arkansas native was 89. He sold race car parts and accessories through Gibson Racing for many years. Among survivors are Gibson’s wife of 70 years, Dolline, and his brother Don Gibson, who formerly owned and operated West Plains (Mo.) Motor Speedway with his wife Billie. A celebration of life is 5 p.m. Friday, May 30, at the Holland Funeral Home in Tupelo.
• 201 Speedway in Sitka, Ky., reopening after being closed for seven seasons, has pushed back its first race to July 5. The Hatfield & McCoy Feuding 50, a race run in memory of Leo Hopson, tops the card, but no purse information has been released. Crate Late Models are on the undercard along with five other divisions. The track blamed the delayed opening on wet weather, the application of a new clay surface and other infrastructure issues.
• The Dirt Track at Genesee is mourning May 20’s passing of Audrey Eberstein, a member of the track’s Hall of Fame who was a longtime scorer and results reporter at the Batavia, N.Y., track as well as Freedom Motorsports Park in Delevan, N.Y., and Perry (N.Y.) Speedway. The 79-year-old Perry resident died after a battle with pancreatic cancer. The longtime elementary school teacher for many race teams "was like a second mom — always supportive, always helpful, and always ready to step in at a moment’s notice,” the Genesee track posted in a statement about her death. “Her kindness and positivity left a lasting impression on everyone who passed through the pit gate. … The legacy she built and the care she gave to the racing community will never be forgotten.”
• Central Missouri Speedway, which this season hosts five Late Model touring events, will be up for sale for $1 million at season’s end with Earl and Susan Walls stepping back from operating the track after 31 years, the Warrensburg, Mo., track announced. Sale of the the 30-acre property will include a lake and diesel water pump, Pub 13 Bar and Restaurant, two concession stand buildings, pit office building along with a technical inspection and equipment storage outbuilding. Racing equipment: message board, timing system with 130 transponders, lighting and scale system. Track preparation equipment included: grader, two water trucks, two tractors, box blade, tiller, sheep’s foot and two wreckers. Call (816) 229-1338 for serious inquiries about purchasing the track.
• With rain disrupting the spring schedule, I-75 Raceway in Sweetwater, Tenn., announced that May 31’s program will carry double points, including for the Limited Late Model and 602 Crate Late Model divisions. The 604 Crate Late Models were a late addition to the program.
• Joe Wilson, a longtime gate attendant at Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway, died May 7. The Hagerstown resident was 80. His late wife Martha was also a fixture at the track.
• Health issues have forced Butch Knuckles to keep the gates closed at Poplar Bluff (Mo.) Motorsports Park in 2025. Knuckles, who experienced the sudden loss of vision in one eye, is negotiating to have someone else take over the lease of the track that has run occasional 602 Crate Late Model events.
Weekly points
IMCA (Limiteds): Curtis Glover of Knoxville, Iowa, has 504 points to lead Zach Zeitner (329) and Jake Morris (312).
USRA (Limiteds): Cade Nelson of Hermantown, N.D., has 833 points to lead Lucas Peterson (786) and Ryan Howe (739).
WISSOTA (Limiteds): Tyler Peterson of Hickson, N.D., has 443 points to lead Chad Becker (407) and Shane Sabraski (359).
American All-Stars (Crates): Oscar McCown of Martin, Ky., has 242 points to lead Brandon Fouts (236) and Braeson Fulton (218).
Crate Racin’ USA (602 Crates): Brett White of Kosciusko, Miss., has 445 points to lead Covy Parsons (425) and Landon Mathews (408).
Crate Racin’ USA (604 Crates): Shannon Lee of Lumberton, Miss., has 462 points to lead Ben Davis (456) and Sid Scarbrough (416).
RUSH (Crates): Jeremy Wonderling of Wellsville, N.Y., has 196 points to lead Demetrios Drellos (188) and Austin Allen (186).
Ultimate (Crates): Chandi Currence of Clarksburg, W.Va., has 129 points to lead Noah Whited (122) and Garret Paugh (102).
(Weekly points for DIRTcar, POWRi and RUSH haven’t been released)
Upcoming weekly specials
Among non-touring and independent special events coming up for Late Models at dirt tracks around the country:
Freedom Motorsports Park, Delevan, N.Y. (May 30): The eighth annual Pete Loretto Memorial presented by Briggs Transport pays $4,000-to-win for Super Late Models with four undercard divisions.
Tri-City Raceway Park, Franklin, Pa. (May 30): Super Late Models chase a $3,500 winner’s prize with big-block modifieds also on the four-division card.
Dog Hollow Speedway in Strongstown, Pa. (May 30): In a program beefed up because of rainouts, a $2,400-to-win Super Late Model feature tops the card that includes Limited Late Models and Crate Late Models with two more undercard divisions.
Baton Rouge Raceway, Baker, La. (May 30): The Spring Fling pays $2,000-to-win for the Crate Late Model division with $250 apiece for fast time (Main in the Swamp sponsor) and hard charger (Sheridan Lawn Car sponsor).
Jackson County Speedway, Jackson, Ohio (May 30): The on-again, off-again track hosts its first Super Late Model event since 2021 with three undercard divisions.
Ponderosa Speedway, Junction City, Ky. (May 30): A $2,200-to-win Crate Late Model event is on the same card as a $5,000-to-win Crown Vic race with other divisions in action.
Selinsgrove (Pa.) Speedway (May 31): The half-mile’s regular season continues with a $5,000-to-win Super Late Model event with Limited Late Models and street stocks also on the card.
Stateline Speedway, Busti, N.Y. (May 31): The Spring Championship pays $3,000-to-win for Super Late Models with Crate Late Models among several undercard divisions.
Wartburg (Tenn.) Speedway (May 31): A makeup of the Memorial Day weekend rainout has five divisions on the card including a $2,000-to-win event for Limited Late Models.
Tennessee National Raceway, Hohenwald, Tenn. (May 31): The Clay Smith Memorial pays $1,500-to-win for the 602 Crate Late Model division with six other classes in action.
