Posted by Stan Kalwasinski on 11/9/2004, 12:42 pm
Board Administrator

Former United States Auto Club (USAC) stock car competitor, Dave Whitcomb, 73, passed away on November 1. For many years, Whitcomb, who called Valparaiso, Ind. home during his racing days, was a regular campaigner on the old USAC stock car circuit, matching his skills and equipment against top “Indy 500” drivers and their factory-backed machinery. During his USAC driving career, which started in the early 1960’s, Whitcomb captured two USAC stock car events. Whitcomb’s first victory came at Indianapolis Raceway Park (Clermont, Ind.) in 1971 with Whitcomb wheeling his ’70 Dodge to victory in a 150-lap chase. During the 1971 season, he drove the Howard Racing Enterprises’ winged Dodge Daytona in selected USAC events. His second victory was at the I-70 Speedway in Odessa, Mo. in 1976 with Whitcomb nailing down a 150-lap event in a Camaro. Whitcomb’s early stock car racing career included competing at the old Rensselaer (Ind.) Raceway where he was crowned the champion in 1963, wheeling his Hudson coupe No. 8 to numerous wins. Whitcomb returned to the almost-circular Rensselaer dirt oval in October of 1975 and won the Northern Indiana Clay Track Championship 100 lapper with his USAC Camaro. A long-time resident of Indiana’s Porter County, Whitcomb is survived by his wife of 53 years, Esther “Alsie” Whitcomb, along with five children and their spouses in addition to 12 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. A memorial service was held on November 4 at the First Presbyterian Church in Valparaiso.