Shoemaker Book Signing at Fonda August 19th
18 July 2000
Fonda, NY, July 17, 2000 - On August 19th an added attraction will supplement the excitement of the BBL sponsored Night of Features. Legendary stock car driver, KennyShoemaker, two-time Fonda Champion and fourth on the all-time feature win list, will appear at the Montgomery County oval to autograph copies of They Called Me the Shoe, his newly published book.
Shoemaker thrilled thousands during his thirty-year racing career with his "take no prisoners" approach and aggressive, broad-sliding style. He made his initial appearance at Fonda the night it opened in 1953 and captured the first of his 140 heat race wins that opening night. He developed a love affair with the tricky Fonda layout and has always considered it his home track. The last of his 54 feature wins came in the mid-seventies aboard the famous Bob Rossell-built No. 50 Gremlin owned by Joe Leto.
Shoemaker, who has been battling illness since 1983, has spent an enormous amount of time in the past year and a half recording his memories of the wild and colorful early days of racing. Helping with the book has been modified driver Lew Boyd and publisher, Jim Rigney, who has added introductions, historical perspective, and nearly 200 photographs of Shoemaker and many other drivers of the fifties, sixties and seventies.
Shoemaker will be available to greet fans and competitors on August 19th and to sign copies of the book, which will be available for purchase, at $19.95. The book has been receiving stellar reviews from early readers, and it is thought to be the most complete book of its kind every published.