Racing, Region, and the Environment: a History of American Motorsports
RACING, REGION, AND THE ENVIRONMENT: A HISTORY OF AMERICAN MOTORSPORTS By DANIEL J. SIMONE A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2009 1 © 2009 Daniel J. Simone 2 To Michael and Tessa 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS A driver fails without the support of a solid team, and I thank my friends, who supported me lap-after-lap. I learned a great deal from my advisor Jack Davis, who when he was not providing helpful feedback on my work, was always willing to toss the baseball around in the park. I must also thank committee members Sean Adams, Betty Smocovitis, Stephen Perz, Paul Ortiz, and Richard Crepeau as well as University of Florida faculty members Michael Bowen, Juliana Barr, Stephen Noll, Joseph Spillane, and Bill Link. I respect them very much and enjoyed working with them during my time in Gainesville. I also owe many thanks to Dr. Julian Pleasants, Director Emeritus of the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program, and I could not have finished my project without the encouragement provided by Roberta Peacock. I also thank the staff of the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program. Finally, I will always be grateful for the support of David Danbom, Claire Strom, Jim Norris, Mark Harvey, and Larry Peterson, my former mentors at North Dakota State University. A call must go out to Tom Schmeh at the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame, Suzanne Wise at the Appalachian State University Stock Car Collection, Mark Steigerwald and Bill Green at the International Motor Racing Resource Center in Watkins Glen, New York, and Joanna Schroeder at the (former) Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC).
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