How did modified driver Matt Bonine pay tribute to his late father, Max? By recreating the colors Max used raced on the modified Matt competes with at tracks such as Park Jefferson International Speedway.
Max competed in a car with red paint adorned by a black Iron Cross. He loved planes, and pilot Manfred von Richthofen, aka the Red Baron, earned his reputation as one of the best flying aces ever, with 80 confirmed air combat victories during World War I. The Red Baron was also the unseen antagonist of Snoopy in the comic strip Snoopy.
Snoopy and the Red Baron further entered popular culture with the 1966 hit single “Snoopy vs. the Red Baron” by The Royal Guardsman. After that, Max knew his paint scheme would be an attention-getter.
Fast forward 60 years later to today, Matt Bonine is introducing the Red Baron to new generations of race fans.
“Young people want to know the history behind the Red Baron,” Bonine, of Onawa, Iowa, said. “Old fans say, ‘Hey, is that your father’s paint scheme?’”
Matt’s read up on Manfred von Richthofen, Snoopy and The Royal Guardsmen to help educate the public. He even has referred to Snoopy as a “dog” on the rear spoiler and has a sketch of von Richthofen on the side panel of his car. Matt tells everyone to check out the hit song.
“My dad had this theme on his car before I was born in 1973,” Bonine said. “I never saw that car in person. I just saw pictures of it and heard stories about it as dad and I raced together over the years.”
When Max died two years ago, memories of the car were resurrected at his memorial service. Max raced into his 70s, finishing a long driving career in sport compacts.
“When dad passed, his friends told more stories about his stock car racing at the old Onawa Fairgrounds,” Bonine said. “It was then that I knew I had to replicate his artwork — he was an artist at heart — and knew his car’s theme would be a fan favorite.”
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.
