Back in 1966, Curt Hansen started his long racing career at Independence Motor Speedway. Now 80, he decided to finish his time behind the wheel with one more race at the Iowa speed plant in 2025.
Curt Hansen first retired from racing in 1981, although he periodically warmed up his son Bobby’s late model. Then, he returned for a while.
“Bobby wanted to be racing with me, so I raced a late model alongside him from 1995 to 2001,” Hansen, of Dike, Iowa, said. “It wasn’t nearly as intense as the racing I did in my early career.”
Hansen looked for a vintage car he could restore. He found an old 1978 Chevrolet Camaro built by Ed Sanger in Minneapolis and brought it home. Last summer, though, a surprise interrupted his progress on that project.
“My right angle was swollen — even though I didn’t sprain my ankle and I was in no pain,” said Hansen. “I went in for an ultrasound and then a CT scan, a PET scan and a bone marrow check. I was diagnosed with lymphoma last October. It was a godsend that my ankle had swollen — the cancer was in my groin and affected the circulation in my right leg.”
Hansen underwent four months of chemotherapy. Six weeks ago, a PET scan showed the cancer was gone. While battling the disease, Hansen focused on the Camaro.
“I never intended to race it,” Hansen said. “I was building a show car — a car I can drive in our local August parade. It needed a motor. Then I found a big block that Keith Simmons built for [NASCAR car owner] Felix Sabates. Now, I had a race car.”
After installing the engine and finishing the Camaro, Hansen brought it to Independence Motor Speedway.
“It was super loose,” said Hansen. “Then, it pushed like a dump truck.”
Old-time leaf-spring modified drivers helped him with setup.
“I just wanted to go out for one race to see what I got here,” Hansen said. “The car is going into the Iowa Hall of Fame [& Racing Museum], which opened up this spring. I didn’t want to bang it up.”
However, Hansen was determined to race the car through the night.
“The eight-lap heat race physically drained me down to nothing,” said Hansen. “I took three or four minutes to relax in the pits before I could even get my belts off.”
After that, a 15-lap feature.
“The old-time fiberglass racing seat meant you had to physically hold yourself up above the ribcage,” Hansen said.” I was pretty well spent halfway through the feature. I didn’t think I could make it to the end. Then, oh my gosh, a yellow flag — I was able to rest.”
Curt Hansen finished second in what he said will be his last race. He headed to victory lane where they honored a career that led to his induction into the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame. Hansen had one wish, though.
“I told my son I would love to see my car go around the racetrack, with him driving it,” said Hansen. “I came from an era when there was no video of racing. You didn’t know how your car looked in motion going around the racetrack.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
