Neal Tooley
{{Short description|American racing driver (1935–2021)}}
{{Infobox racing driver
| name = Neal Tooley
| image =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1935|6|24|mf=y}}
| birth_place = LeRay, New York, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2021|2|27|1935|6|24|mf=y}}
| death_place = Evans Mills, New York, U.S.
| last series = Modified career
| first year = 1958
| car number = 17, x37, 120
| championships = 1
| wins =
| prev series = Supermodified racing
| prev series years = 1966-1971
| retired =
| titles =
| awards =
| updated =
}}
Neal Tooley (June 24, 1935 – February 27, 2021) was an American driver of modified and supermodified race cars. For many years he held the lap record at Trenton Speedway in New Jersey.{{cite news|title=Neal C. Tooley|url=https://www.nny360.com/news/obituaries/neal-c-tooley/article_14d2f84c-837b-59a3-8369-3d3fd327e38f.html|date=March 3, 2021|newspaper=Watertown Daily Times|location=NY|via= NNY360 Archives|accessdate=February 16, 2025}}
Racing career
Neal Tooley began racing a former Don June stock car in 1958, but did not win his first of 28 career features at the Watertown Speedway, New York, until late into the 1962 season.{{cite book |last=Stoodley |first=Dave |title=The Legends of Watertown Speedway |date=2003 |publisher=Speedway Press |isbn=9780967743844 |page=160}} Tooley won the track championship in 1964, and then in 1966 he transitioned to supermodified cars racing primarily at Oswego Speedway, New York.{{cite news|last=Hunter|first=Bob|title=Tooley trounces Watertown field|url=https://www.newspaperarchive.com/us/new-york/brooklyn/illustrated-speedway-news/1965/07-13/page-9|newspaper=Illustrated Speedway News|location=Brooklyn NY |page=9|date= July 13, 1965|via=NewspaperArchive|accessdate=February 16, 2025}}{{cite news|title=Ninth Eagle Class Feature scheduled tonight|url=https://www.newspaperarchive.com/us/new-york/oswego/oswego-palladium-times/1967/07-29/page-7|newspaper=Palladium-Times|location=Oswego NY |page=7|date= July 29, 1967|via=NewspaperArchive |accessdate=February 16, 2025}}{{sfnp|Stoodley|2003|p=87}}
By 1971 Tooley had returned primarily to modified racing, and went on to compete successfully at venues on both the Canadian and American sides of the St. Lawrence River, including the Capital City Speedway in Ottawa, Ontario, and in New York at Can-Am Speedway in LaFargeville, Fulton Speedway, Evans Mills Speedway, and Spencer Speedway in Williamson.{{cite news|last=Ferlito|first=Jim|title=Andrews and Evans capture Fulton Raceway features|url=https://www.newspaperarchive.com/us/new-york/oswego/oswego-palladium-times/1971/08-17/page-11|newspaper= Palladium-Times|location=Oswego NY |page=11|date= August 17, 1971|via=NewspaperArchive |accessdate=February 16, 2025}}{{cite news|title=Feature win to Tooley after pileup|url=https://ottawacitizen.newspapers.com/article/the-ottawa-citizen/141093448/|newspaper=Ottawa Citizen|location=Ontario,Canada|page=21|date= August 11, 1972|via=Ottawa Citizen Archive|accessdate=February 16, 2025}}{{cite news|title=Tooley takes home Can-Am trophies |url=https://www.newspaperarchive.com/us/new-york/syracuse/syracuse-post-standard/1975/09-15/page-25|newspaper= The Post-Standard|location=Syracuse NY |page=6(s-1)|date= September 15, 1975|via=NewspaperArchive |accessdate=February 16, 2025}}{{cite book |last=Kasper|first=Len|title=Spencer Speedway Legends 1957-1977|date=2016|publisher=Dorrance Publishing Company|isbn=9781480973664|pp=161,163}} In 1971, he was able to escape serious injury in a fiery crash during the New York State Fair championship at the Syracuse Mile when a pipe penetrated his seat.{{sfnp|Stoodley|2003|p=130}}{{cite news|title=Feature won by Diffendorf |url=https://www.newspaperarchive.com/us/new-york/syracuse/syracuse-post-standard/1971/09-07/page-11|newspaper= The Post-Standard|location=Syracuse NY |page=11|date=September 7, 1971|via=NewspaperArchive |accessdate=February 16, 2025}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.jakessite.com/07/notforgot/tooley/71fair.jpg Neal Tooley - 1971 New York State Fair]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tooley, Neal}}