Vintage Auto Racing | Auto Racing Memories

Driver Profiles

Written by Rick Wasilko
If this article (see right) from the Lakeside Speedway program had been written several years later, it would have had to include Rick Losh's further accomplishments in the Colorado racing community. Including, but not limited to eventually winning the CARC Lakeside Speedway "Rookie of the Year" award in the Street Stock division in 1982 & "Most Main Event Wins" in the Limited Late Model division in 1984. Rick has lettered ( literally ) 100's of race cars of all different types over the years. Rick said, one year at Lakeside he was looking at all the cars in the pits that he had lettered at the time & he had made $500.00. He laughingly adds "hey, at $35.00 a piece, you couldn't go wrong!". He also painted & lettered every sign visible, right down to the start-finish line & "The Total Winner's Circle" at Colorado National Speedway in the early '90's. I'm not sure, I wasn't there, but I'd be willing to bet that Rick was born with a paint brush in one hand & a steering wheel in the other, as he went on to be the brake man for the "Train of Pain" train at CNS in 1992. Rick has also been known to drive the race car hauler for the "Marshall Chesrown owned, Total Petroleum sponsored" NASCAR team of Rick Carelli at various times as well. Having lettered many of Rick Carelli's cars over the years, Rick Losh was also responsible for the paint scheme & layout of the Total Petroleum-Chesrown Chevrolet NASCAR Winston Cup cars of the early '90's. Also during this time, Rick Losh had one of the most dangerous duties on pit road, he was the tire carrier, ( part of the "over the wall gang" ) for the Chesrown-Carelli team. These days Rick is still makin' "the best damn signs in town" & somehow found time to become a volunteer fire fighter, does this guy ever slow down?. GEEZ!, I guess not! Here's some of Rick Losh's endeavors & contributions to the racing scene over the years...
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Elmer Sauer

Written by Bill Peratt
When discussing CARC racers at Lakeside Speedway, not to be forgotten are the contributions made by one Elmer Sauer. The number 28 is often associated with Elmer Sauer, but he was more than just the driver of #28. (And eventually a few other cars as well) Not only did his racing career span a few decades, but he was also thought well enough to have been elected first as Club Vice President, but ultimately then served as Club President for a total of six terms. To cap it all off, Elmer was among the chosen few to have been voted a Life Time Membership in the CARC.
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John Guttormson

Written by Bill Peratt

John Guttormson, fan, racer and artist.

John Guttormson came from Fargo, ND to Denver in 1945 as a teenager. He saw his first race at the height of the midget boom and was hooked on auto racing. What a better time than the post war era to watch the likes of Lloyd Axel, Johnny Tolan, the Spicklers, Buddy Shay, all the early legends of Lakeside Speedway.

John came close to racing with the CARC in 1950 with a track roadster, but didn't have an engine yet. He was also a member of the DTA (Denver Timing Assoc.) with rods well known to the local police.

His racing intentions were interrupted in 1951 during the Korean conflict when Uncle Sam called him up. There he spent eleven months in combat as a forward observer for mortar fire with the U.S. Army. This is John in the Punch Bowl, a natural geologic bowl several miles across, ringed by steep mountains on three sides, off the east-central coast of Korea. No racing going on there.