A hero to many and an icon in Midget racing passed away this past Wednesday. I was fortunate enough to meet and race with this man at his track in Willow Springs, CA. Anyone who knew him, knew that he was a great man and race car driver and he will be missed. Here is his funeral info: Riverside National Cemetery 22495 Van Buren Blvd Riverside, Ca. 92518 Friday September 25, 2009 10:15 A.M.
This is a very sad thing for me and all the vintage circle track comunity to hear.. Mr. James kept very busy despite his age. He prepared the track for his vintage races and was in charge of the whole show... He also kept the roaster and early sprint racing from comming to a early end in 1953 or so. Truly a great man. We are losing the WW 2 folks at a high rate.. Thank You for posting..... Bobby..
I new Walt James from church, and he was a spirtied gentleman, he asked if I wanted to go down to Willow Springs last Thanksgiving, he was going to race his open wheel race car. I believe he said it was a ford flathead running on alcohol.I had already made plans for the weekend, but this was from a man in his late 80's. It was hard to get him to boast about his acomplishment but it was fun to see his wife tell his accomplishment and see the proud face she had for him. Nice fellow, going to be missed ED
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