Autograph Hounds Persist To Get …’Hey, There Goes Tony Stewart’

BRISTOL, Tenn. – It’s only an autograph, for cryin’ out loud.

Tell that to one of the hundreds of Sharpie-clutching fans who lined the driver entrance to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend.

Ralph Cox, of Morehead, Ky., arrived at 6 a.m. on Aug. 16 and set his beloved 13-year-old chunk of Bill Elliott’s sheet metal on the black, wrought iron fence that restrains the frenetic fans.

“I bought it from a guy in Mooresville, N.C.,” Cox said on Friday. “I found it on the Internet. Elliott signed it this morning. I saw him coming down from way down the walkway. He took a second to talk with me, and he said it tickled him that I’d been a fan for so …”

“It’s Robby Gordon! He’s over there!” screamed one person.

The words set off a weird frenzy, which resembled something similar to turkeys lunging at fresh feed.

And off they went, swarming the driver, who tried in vain to sneak past the diligent autograph seekers by weaving behind their backs instead of using the main corridor.

The driver disappeared in a sea of flailing arms, helmets, model cars, photographs and chunks of paper shoved in his face. With the excitement temporarily on hold, Mark McReynolds, of Bluff City, leaned down to check his files. That’s right, boxes of alphabetized folders – one for each NASCAR series.

But why so meticulous, Mark?

“I keep 8-inch by 10-inch, sponsor-generated pictures of the cars and drivers, and the files are marked with the letters of their last names,” he said. “If you can’t get it out quick, you’ll miss them. So if I see …”

“Junior! It’s Earnhardt! It’s Dale Jr.!”

But this time the gaggle of fans were faked out by the superstar as the driver popped off his cart and jogged into the track with a half-hearted wave.

Meanwhile, Cox quickly replaced the “E” file into one of the boxes and readied himself for his next chance.

“I’ve been doing this since 1992, and in April 1993, I got Alan Kulwicki’s autograph – it was the day before he died,” he said proudly.

Kulwicki, the 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup champ, died in a plane crash near Blountville while returning to Bristol from a promotional appearance in Knoxville.

Cox said he’s been asked many times whether he has a hobby or an obsession.

“A little of both, I guess,” Cox confessed. “They’re [drivers] always in a hurry, and it seems like they always wait ’til the last …”

“Kahne! Kasey Kahne! Here he comes!”

And there they went.

Kahne appeared to tell his golf cart driver to floor it. He never looked at the rail birds, and instead gave them a wave while looking straight ahead.

“Oooweee, he’s pretty,” remarked Johnnie Sue Stillwell, of Oxford, Ala.

Stillwell, who also had a file-folder method going, said her husband, Robert, is ultimately responsible for her fanaticism.

“This all started because he likes racing,” she said. “I started going with him to Talladega. He likes the actual race. I do too, but I enjoy it more now because I’ve gotten to know some of the drivers. I get to learn a little bit about their personalities, and that makes watching them on the track a little more …”

“It’s Stewart! Tony Stewart!” 

Stewart was on foot; his pace was that of a speed-walker. He did not acknowledge the fans and kept his gaze straight ahead. Once he reached the gate, which officially relieved him from the requests, he turned his head and said something to security officers while shrugging his shoulders.

“Tony Stewart – he always blows us off,” Stillwell said with a tinge of distaste. “He’s a hard racer. But you can be a hard racer and still be nice.”

Meanwhile, her husband sat about 15 yards behind his wife in a folding chair. He appeared very content to let his wife be the one on the “front lines.”

He had a cold bottle of water in one hand and a pair of binoculars in the other.

“I’m her spotter,” he said nonchalantly, as if his duties were a just another normal spousal function.

“I’ll be looking around, and I’ll yell to her,” he said. “If she can’t hear me, we have some arm and hand signals that I use. And if she still can’t figure it out, I get up and run over to her and tell her where they ...”

“Rusty! Rusty! It’s Rusty Wallace.”

Forget about it. The former champ and ESPN announcer gave a half-smile and said, “I have something to do.”

NASCAR legend Bobby Allison waved as he went by in a fast-moving cart.

Nationwide Series driver Jason Leffler showed up from inside the track. He curled up inside a cart and was driven away.

Fellow Nationwide competitor Bobby Hamilton Jr. also came from the track, got in a cart with his wife and daughter and began to move away. But then he stopped the driver, got out and headed over for a brief signing session.

It’s not all giggles and tale-telling, though. Instead, with helmets, cards and T-shirts thrust in his face, Hamilton wore a frustrated frown and barked,  “Pen. You have a pen?”

After a half-dozen signings, he jumped back in the cart, turned his head away from his worshipers and hit the road back to his motor home.

Darl Cessna, from Kansas, Ohio, was hanging in there hoping for more drivers to come by. He used a modified photo album to store driver “playing cards” from which he can …

“Carpentier! It’s Patrick Carpentier!”

The Canadian up-and-comer jumped off his cart with a big smile and waded right in. He talked with the fans and signed autographs for a few minutes – the signature endurance champ for the day. 

“The younger guys that are making their way to the top seem to be much friendlier,” Cessna said.

Cessna, who also has taken the hoods of small model cars for autographs, said the items are flat, which makes it easy to get a quick scribble.

When asked how many races he goes to each year, he pointed to the ground and said “Bristol.”

Asked if he and his comrades are considered a little goofy for hanging out and hanging on as they do, his answer rang philosophic as the race cars growled during a practice session.

“I look at it as a good hunting or fishing trip,” he yelled. “It’s kind of like bagging that big buck or reeling in that giant bass. I’ll be here until they start the national anthem.”

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