Happy 88th birthday goes out to former Harley-Davidson factory racer and current road race starter, Al Wilcox. Al was born on January 4, 1919, in Trenton, New Jersey. He has lived in the same home for 78 years! Mr. Wilcox competed in motorcycle rodeos and started dirt track racing in the early 40s. His national racing number was 49. After competing and winning for many years in thousands of races on Harley-Davidson motorcycles, sometimes 3 or 4 in a week, Al turned his passion for racing into being an official with the AMA. Al was the starter and worked at dirt tracks up and down the East coast. He worked with his good friend Duke Pennell at Daytona for 15 years. Wilcox was also a race promoter along with raising a family. In his spare time, Al’s favorite hobby was roller skating. He took dance lessons on skates and became an expert at that too. He could skate backwards better than most people going forward, and dance circles around them at the same time. In the early 70s, Al took the starter’s job with a new road race group, WERA, at Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia and other tracks on the circuit. Wilcox flagged the WERA GNF at Road Atlanta for 15 years. His color coordinated starter suits and flag sets were made by his loving wife, Julia. All the ladies loved his pink suit! Al Wilcox is in the Speedway Hall of Fame, has had a straightaway named after him at Talladega Grand Prix Raceway. In 2000, “The Al Wilcox Start/Finish Line at Summit Point Raceway” was dedicated. A beautiful sign made of iron and stainless steel proclaiming this was installed on the starter’s bridge at Summit Point. Al Wilcox is an AMA Life member, a MARRC (Mid-Atlantic Roadracing Club) life member, and a recipient of the prestigious MARRC Cup. Al is gearing up for another year of racing. You can see this living legend in action at the WERA Summit Point races and he is the starter for Roger Lyle’s Motorcycle Xcitement Track Days. And now, a comment from a racer: FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: Listening to Al Wilcox was a great experience for a young racer. You knew who was in charge of the flag stand. His rider’s meeting explanation of the flags was a verbatim speech every time. Watching all the racers lip-synching/echoing Al’s explanation of flag usage was one of the funniest experiences I ever had. I think he must have coined the term “meatball flag” for his black flag. His spirited leap into the air with a checkered flag was a winning racer’s first congratulations. Happy Birthday Flying Al! Eric Wilson Fast Visions of Tennessee, LLC www.ThousandSunsMotorsports.com Cookeville, Tennessee