Carpinteria Thunderbowl Part 12 – 1958 – the end

Carpinteria Thunderbowl

Part 12 – 1958 – the end 

 

Author’s note – This is the final installment of our series of articles that highlights the 12-year history of one of Southern California’s least-documented auto racing venues – the Carpinteria Thunderbowl.

For the 1958 season, the Carpinteria Thunderbowl boasted of a new racing surface with greater banking in the turns, and in unofficial practice sessions in late April, the track record was reportedly “shattered.” Despite the changes, the fastest jalopies averaged around 17.65 seconds per lap in time trials while the Carpinteria track record set by Chuck Gibson July 2, 1956 still stood at 17 seconds flat.

Track owner and manager Jim Slaybaugh instituted new scoring procedures which he promised would reduce the length of the racing program “by as much as 45 minutes,” according to the Ventura County Star-Free Press newspaper article. In addition to the jalopy races, the 24-week schedule promised added attractions of demolition derbies, powder puff derbies for female racers, and quarter-midget races.  

Chuck Gibson the 1957 Carpinteria track champion, grabbed the 1958 opening night win on May 5 1958. Gibson started the 40-lap feature in last place and raced his way to victory over a pair of Franks – Kephart, then living in Venice finished second and “Captain” Kidd from Lakewood finished in third place.  Gibson won again on May 12 as he beat Kidd and Jack Rowland to the finish line.

On May 19^th, Jim Slaybaugh celebrated his 69^th birthday by racing his number 13 jalopy and after the races he shared a giant birthday cake with the fans. Heat race wins went to Kephart, Bill Cherry and Don Donnmeyer, as Jack Rowland won both the trophy dash and the 10-lap helmet dash. Kephart claimed the 40-lap feature trophy over Leroy Dalton and Ed Vanes.

Pete Gallagher, Bill Cherry, Chuck Gibson and Ray Bunch won the preliminary heat races in the annual “Poor Man’s Indianapolis” program” on May 26, then Gibson won a special 8-lap runoff between the heat race winners. Gibson started the 50-lap feature from the tail and worked his way forward to challenge leader Frank Kidd until his battery failed. Donnmeyer took up the chase after Kidd but fell short at the checkered flag.

After his “Clean Sweep” of the June 2^nd program, Gibson was out to capture his fourth feature win in six races for the special Father’s Day program on June 9^th. In addition to the regular 40-lap feature won by Frank Kephart, the program included a ladies egg-throwing contest and “jalopy jumps.” On June 16^th, Kephart’s wife Irene easily won the 6-lap Powder Puff race while Frank Kidd won the 40-lap jalopy feature.

Through June and July weekly attendance averaged between 500 and 700 fans  Kidd won the June 30th feature over Chuck Gibson, then the track held a holiday special 50-lap feature on Saturday July 5^th with the added feature of a go-kart race. On July 7^th Gibson scored his fourth feature win of the season in a program marred by Bill Potter’s scary end-over-end flip in time trials after a collision with Frank Kidd. Potter suffered cuts and bruises and after he spent some time in the track ambulance he decided not to race any further that evening.

On July 28^th it was Kidd’s turn to take a wild ride, as he lost control and his car barrel-rolled four times, cleared the crash wall and landed on all four wheels but Frank escaped uninjured. Jack Rowland of Ventura won that night’s 40-lap feature over heat race winners Chuck Gibson and Donnmeyer. 

On August 4^th, Gibson, a police officer in Ventura, notched his fifth feature win of the season, then two weeks later, he won his sixth feature race of the season “far ahead of second-place finisher Bud Kelch,” who earlier won the trophy dash.

As the month of August continued, the car count dwindled, with an average of 20 cars each race night. Gibson scored his seventh feature win of the season at Carpinteria on August 18 as he nearly swept the program – in addition to the feature win, he posted fast time, won his heat race, and won the special 8-lap race for the six point leaders. 

 

The Carpinteria Thunderbowl 1958 season ended on Monday night September 8. Mid-way through the main event, Rebel McGinnis, a racer from Santa Barbara, lost control of his jalopy and ran head-on into crash wall. McGinnis staggered away from his destroyed machine and collapsed.

The track ambulance rushed Rebel to a Santa Barbara hospital where he was admitted in fair condition. 

Despite dropping out of the feature won by Frank Kidd, Chuck Gibson was crowned the 1958 Carpinteria track champion with eight feature wins in 23 attempts for his second consecutive track championship with car owner Joe Savatier.

The close of the 1958 season marked the end of racing at the Carpinteria Thunderbowl the track became the victim of progress. The California Department of Transportation widened the Rincon Parkway (Highway 101 through Carpinteria) and needed an area to stockpile materials and apparently made owner Jim Slaybaugh a good offer. The track was reported as being torn down in March 1959 with the track’s water tank, lighting and lumber sold for scrap.  Around that same time, the adjacent Southern Pacific Railroad line was abandoned. 

The Tri-Counties Racing Association sanctioned “hot rod jalopies” at Saugus Speedway later in 1959 then the group disbanded. 

Today there is no visual evidence that the Carpinteria Thunderbowl ever existed, as the site is now known as the Carpinteria Bluffs, a wildlands area southeast of an office complex known as ‘The Enclave at Carpinteria’ which houses the offices of the Procore Software Company and Continental Tire USA. No doubt thousands of drivers pass the Highway 150 exit on Highway 101 daily without knowing that they are passing the site of forgotten Southern California racing history.