Noted racer and car builder Dale Parson took his final lap around Abilene Speedway in Texas on April 9. His son, Kim, drove the last supermodified Parson built in 1974 and his grandson, Chase, steered a sprint car. Together, they spread Dale Parson’s ashes along the backstretch in a special ceremony before the ASCS Elite Non-Wing Sprints program.
“We each had a bag of Grandpa’s ashes in our hands,” said Chase, 35, of Abilene, Texas. “I was happy and honored I could do this for my grandpa.”
Dale Parson, 81, passed away from pneumonia on October 27, 2021, in Yuma, Arizona. His wife, Par, together since they were both 17 years old, died the next day.
Dale’s racing career began in 1966. He built his first supermodified in 1970. Dale’s company, Parson’s Speed Shop, turned out many supermodifieds and sprint cars.
“My grandpa won a lot of races, but he was most known for his craftsmanship,” Chase said. “My dad and I restored his supermodified to be a pace car. It is as close as possible to the original — everything is the same as it was except the engine. Back then, he raced it with a 350 that had steel heads and dual carbs. Today, it has my IMCA stock car engine in it.”
Dale had a big influence on his grandson, Chase. Chase started racing stock cars when was 15. Now he competes in the ASCS Elite Non-Wing Sprints.
“Since I was a little kid, racing my bicycle in the driveway, [my grandfather] taught to me to take pride in everything I owned.” Chase said. “‘Pride will bring you success,’ he said.”
Chase and his grandfather spoke daily.
“The most important thing he taught me is to never do anything half-assed,” said Chase. “If you are going to do something, always do it 100%.”
The Dale Parson Memorial drew 31 ASCS non-wing sprint cars. Chase Parson took third in the B-feature to start 19th in the feature and finished 14th. Dalton Stevens, of Scurry, Texas, won the feature.
“Every time I go out on the track, I say, ‘Here we go Grandpa, let’s give ’em hell,’” Chase said. “He’ll ride along with me forever.”
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.
