7/29/2025
Bloomington Speedway
10th Annual Sheldon Kinser Memorial: A Surprise Winner, Or was it? .
Just Days away USAC Racing Indiana Sprint Week comes to the Historic Bloomington Speedway. Who will take the Sheldon Kinser Memorial on the Red Clay
A look back.
10th Annual Sheldon Kinser Memorial: A Surprise Winner, Or was it?
August 28, 1998.
By now it was clear that the Sheldon Kinser Memorial was one of the biggest races on the Bloomington Speedway calendar. On this night the opening stages of the race featured a three-car battle between Kevin Miller, Brad Fox, and Derek Davidson. Yet, some in the crowd had their eyes on the man who started in the 7th position.
Kevin Doty had found a home with Edinburgh, Indiana owner Steve Chrisman and the often aggressive driver was biding his time. Later he told writer Mike O’Leary that things were beginning to change around the halfway point in the feature. “About the middle of the race we got a little heat in the tires,” he said, “and I could tell we were going forward. Right before that yellow I was getting those guys two at a time. From there it was just keep her straight and go to the front.”
That he did. He passed Davidson and Fox and then set his sights on Miller. After a battle for three laps Doty took the lead for good and put another big win on his resume. Miller held on for second, while Jack Hewitt, who started in the seventh row finished third. Kevin would take home an additional $700 in lap money courtesy of the Rich Vogler Scholarship Fund. Kerry Norris was the modified winner, while Perry Bruce was the best among the street stocks.
To some, Doty was a midget driver. His father Bud was a long time car owner and Kevin proved to be successful in the smaller cars. He was the 1985 MARA champion and 1983 % 1984 MARA Skol Dash king and he took the prestigious Pepsi Nationals five times. Yet, his best year was 1994 when he was the Badger championship and scored wins in the Hut Hundred and Belleville (KS) Midget Nationals. His body of work, which included 35 wins at Angel Park Speedway led to his induction into the National Midget Racing Hall of Fame.
But there was more. In that same 1994 season Doty took the sprint car portion of the 4-Crown Nationals for Glen Niebel.
Yet, in so many ways many will remember Kevin in the Chrisman #25. Kevin didn’t just race the car, he wore it. With Steve he topped the field during Indiana Sprint Week at North Vernon in 1997 & 1998. All told he won four times at Eldora and posted seven USAC National wins. He finished second to Tony Stewart in the 2002 Chili Bowl is what may be the greatest Saturday night feature in the history of the event.
To some his Sheldon Kinser win was an upset, but was it? Not really.
Someone, be they a favorite or a dark horse, will add their name to the honor roll of winners this Friday night at the Historic Bloomington Speedway this Friday night,
Hall of Famer John Mahoney photos.
Article Credit: Patrick Sullivan
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