Jason Posted January 25, 2004 Report Share Posted January 25, 2004 The speedometer on John Young hasn't slowed down By Bruce Mabrito Talk about seniors still participating in sports! There are some stock car racers, drag racers and karting enthusiasts who are over 60 years of age, but one of the more senior active race drivers in the San Antonio area is Dr. John Young. He was 71 years of age October 29, 2003. John Young regularly competes in Sports Car Club of America events with his No. 83 white VW Rabbit and his No. 89 white Mazda RX3. He races in the SCCA Grand Touring 3 class and primarily utilizes the road racing circuits at Texas World Speedway near College Station, and converted air fields in Abilene and Corpus Christi for wheel-to-wheel racing. Trained as a dentist, and after serving a 30-year career in the Air Force, Young is realistic in his approach to motorsports. "I am a 'division' racer who has never aspired to 'national' status due commitments of my profession and family," Young confessed. "I have raced for over 50 years, starting with outboard class B runabouts, going to various classes of sailboats, where I met my wife, Kasha, who beat me then in sailboats and still does. Then I raced national SCCA road rally championships about 1959 and ran the 'Border Rallye' series for Mercedes-Benz in the early 1970s and won my class a couple of years." John Young has held an SCCA national corner and communication worker's license and has worked many professional races throughout the country, including the Alamo Grand Prix held around HemisFair Plaza on Labor Day weekend from 1987 through 1990. His wife and two daughters, Whitney and Lari Young, also worked those corners, as the low-slung prototype racecars zipped around our unique downtown circuit. But being on the sidelines was not enough for John Young. He recently retired from the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio and is able to devote more time to preparing his racecars. "Having been a serious Porsche enthusiast for many years, I still have my original 1960 Porsche 1600 Super Roadster," the elder Young said. "I like to build and maintain my race cars in my own shop doing most all the work myself." But why does a person 71 years of age race cars? "Racing is the complete package for me, from the mental concept through planning, construction and finally taking to the track," Young said. "I like the total concentration of wheel-to-wheel competition, but I also enjoy the planning and the work to get there. I only do amateur racing. When you race for money, I see too many cars put into the walls, ridiculous moves, all the way to the back of the pack. Racing, to me, is a sport, not a business, and I expect to pay my way for my participation." Young has distinct likes and dislikes in his racing. "I prefer the more open concept road courses. I am not big on 'canyon racing' where you cannot see ahead and the walls define everything (street course racing). I like to drive ahead, where I can see the competition and set up my lines for getting to the front. I don't race ovals, because they are too confining and usually too much cut-throat competition. Also, I don't like to put my cars and my own body at risk unnecessarily. I mainly have to fix the cars myself and the 'body thing' goes without saying for my daughter and myself." Whitney Young often drives in Sunday SCCA national races, after her father uses his Mazda or VW on to compete in the Saturday regional events. "I consider motorsports to be a family bonding experience," John Young said. "We race as a family and always have, regardless of whether it is boats, motorcycles, cars or whatever. I enjoy crewing for other family members and giving support, as we all do for each other." As one ages, the body loses agility and reaction times slow. How does an older driver compensate for that? "I generally try to drive to the max potential of the car, if necessary. I subscribe to the Graham Hill (past Formula 1 driver) theory of winning races at the slowest possible speed. I am very tuned in to the equipment mechanically and will try to save the car for another day if there is no hope of improving my position," Young confessed. What do others think of Young? Rick Dawdy, a local automotive shop teacher in the Judson School district and race engine builder, said, "John Young is one of the most organized and meticulous people I know. He has the cleanest racing operation I know of. His medical practices carry over well into racing. No matter how busy he is, he's always friendly. I only hope I can be racing at age 71!" George Briscoe, a local musician and former sports car racer, said, "My recollections of the Young family were that we called them the 'crash magnets' because every race seemed to have a big incident at their corner. In reality, they were put at the most dangerous corners because they were an experienced, tight, alert corner crew. Many of the younger racers and workers, such as myself, looked to Dr. and Mrs. Young as the 'parent figures' of the local SCCA." Alex Tradd, an Austin attorney and avid racer, said, "Dr. Young is a man of honor, a man of family and a true stalwart of racing." Total age, for John Young, is not a problem. He handles that with his own optimism. "Hell, I race against drivers one-third of my age. That is no problem since exuberance usually leads off course or to the pits with mechanical failure. They always say something like 'age and cunning overcomes youth and inexperience,' or some such thing as that and it mainly is true. The 'hot shoe' usually does not win in our racing." But that does not mean you don't have to be in peak condition. For example, John and Whitney Young raced at Texas World Speedway on the 2002 Memorial Day weekend. "It was of course, hot," the senior Young said, "but it did not feel too bad, in the high 80-degree range. I drove and won the regional race on Saturday and knew I was about used up physically when we finished, but winning gives you a real boost. Sunday, Witty drove to a very tough second place on the national SCCA race and when she came in we shot the interior of the car with the pyrometer (a heat meter) as she was getting out. The temperature inside the cockpit was 171 degrees! We knew it was hot in the car both days since you thought twice about putting your un-gloved hand on anything metal in the car. That takes some real conditioning!" John Young recently tested his VW Rabbit at Texas World Speedway in preparation for the upcoming SCCA national races February 14-15 that typically draw over 200 competitors from around the nation. Young will be present at TWS, celebrating his name, no matter what his age. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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