George Roeder

GEORGE ROEDER

National Number 94

WHILE MOST RIDERS preface their professional flattrack debut with considerable sporting experience, hard - riding George Roeder’s first race was a half-mile dirt track event at Lancaster, Ohio in 1954, and he took a 3rd in his heat and a 4th in the final. With all that experience under his belt, he went out the next Sunday and scored two firsts — then went on to win the Novice Ohio Championship, registering his name in the Columbus Star’s Hall of Fame as Ohio’s top scoring novice.

As an amateur in 1955 Roeder tallied up a staggering 337 points and won three Amateur Nationals, finishing the year as high scoring amateur by a wide margin. In 1956, he bounced onto the expert scene and wound up as Midwest Champion, finishing 5th in national half-mile standings. In both ’57 and ’58 he was a strong 3rd, dropping to 8th in ’59. The high point in Roeder’s career to date took place in 1960 when, Harley-Davidson mounted, he finished 2nd in the grueling 200-mile Daytona Beach National. Then, rather anti-climactically, came the army, and he served his time with little racing diversion, save a trip to Daytona the following year where he snatched a well-deserved 3rd.

Back in the civilian swing for ’62, George again soared to 3rd spot in overall half-mile competition and finished well in a variety of events that emphasized his versatility — 2nd to Resweber at the Short Track National, 4th at the 120-mile Indianapolis Road Race, and 4th in the 20mile Sacramento one-mile dirt track national. Resweber, incidentally, is his favorite rider because “he can ride any kind of event and, win or lose, he’ll be back next week giving all he’s got.”

Roeder, who is 26, a farmer by occupation, and single, feels that a youngster contemplating a career in racing should get someone who has been involved in the sport to help him, because “it’s a big job by yourself.” He should know, for his brother Charles raced until 1956 and was instrumental in furthering George’s career by submitting helpful tips on riding, gearing, and preparing the engine. And when questioned about his plans for the future, this dedicated rider’s answer was, predictably enough, “RACING!” •