D. James "Jim" Shampine (March 25, 1941 – September 4, 1982) was one of the most successful drivers in Supermodified competition and an equally skilled racer in asphalt and dirt-track Modified stock cars. He won 92 feature races at

Oswego Speedway The Oswego Speedway is a 5/8 mile race track in Oswego, New York. It was built in 1951 and was paved with asphalt since the 1952. The track has held dates on several national tours - the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, ASA National Tour, and USAC ...

NY, and with his innovative car designs captured 38% of the Supermodified events held from 1970 to 1979.

Racing career

Jim Shampine began drag racing in 1959 at the quarter-mile ESTA Safety Park Dragstrip in Cicero, New York. Then in 1962 he bought his friend Nolan Swift's championship-winning “Ten Pins” numbered modified, converted it to a supermodified, and renumbered it the enduring “8-Ball”. He went on to win seven (1967, 1970, 1972–1974, 1976 & 1979) Oswego Speedway track championships, as well as an International Supermodified Association championship competing at venues throughout the northeast. Shampine concurrently campaigned his modified at New York's asphalt

Fulton Speedway Fulton Speedway is a 3/8th mile high bank Dirt track racing, dirt Oval racing, oval Stock car racing, raceway in Fulton, Oswego County, New York, Volney, New York (state), New York. The track was built into a hilly area on the banks of the Osweg ...

, Lancaster Speedway,

Shangri-La Speedway Shangri-La Speedway was a speedway in Owego, New York. It was a half-mile (0.8 km) oval race track facility. Over a span of fifty years, Shangri-La hosted automobile races of various kinds, AAA Championship Cars, stock cars, Modifieds, Supe ...

Spencer Speedway Spencer Speedway is a flat asphalt oval located in Williamson, New York. The complex also includes a quarter-mile dragway. Overview Spencer Speedway was built by brothers Del, Walt and Merle Spencer, and opened in August 1955. The brothers op ...

, and Utica-Rome Speedway. He also competed successfully in a dirt-track modified at

Langhorne Speedway Langhorne Speedway was an automobile racetrack in Middletown Township, Bucks County, near the borough of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, a northern suburb of Philadelphia. According to the book ''Langhorne! No Man's Land'' by L. Spencer Riggs: "With ...

PA and

Weedsport Speedway Weedsport Speedway, formerly known as Cayuga County Fair Speedway, is a 3/8 mile oval dirt racetrack located on the Cayuga County Fairgrounds in Weedsport, New York. Auto racing In the early 1950s Stanley Dudzinski carved a one-third mile oval i ...

NY, and captured the 1970 track championship at the Rolling Wheels Raceway in Elbridge, New York. Jim Shampine died in a Modified racing accident at Oswego Speedway on September 4, 1982. He was inducted into the Eastern Motorsports Press Association, the Northeast Dirt Modified and the New York State Stock Car Association Halls of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shampine, Jim 1941 births 1982 deaths Racing drivers from New York (state) Racing drivers who died while racing Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame