“I never dreamed I would be in the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame,” stated one of the most recent inductees Joe Marotta. “I’m honored. We’re all in it together, as I’m only part of the whole team.” The Voice of DIRT Motorsports since 1972, Marotta will be part of the class of 2008 along with friend and fellow announcer the late Jack Burgess, drivers Wayne Reutimann, Carl “Fuzzy” Van Horn, Dick Nephew, Carl Myers and Charlie Langenstien. Marilyn Toal and Zelda Reakes will receive “Outstanding Women in Racing” awards as well.
The 2008 Induction Ceremony will take place on Sunday, May 25 at 2pm in Weedsport, New York, as part of Hall of Fame weekend in Weedsport, culminating with a 76 lap feature for the Advance Auto Parts Super Dirt Series cars.
Marotta will receive the Leonard J Sammons Jr. Award for Outstanding Contributions to Auto Racing. He first started announcing in 1966, but that wasn’t the path he started down. “I was involved in racing, and blew an engine at a race,” Marotta explained. “We went to Weedsport, and it was raining. Well, I grabbed a Gater Racing News to cover my head from the rain, then began reading a column by Dave Wright. In the column, it said they were looking for an announcer at Fulton Speedway. I called Bub Benway, and went there and tried out for the job. He turned on the PA system and read a script. He must have liked what he heard, as we began to talk about me taking the job. We reached an agreement, and I have been behind the microphone ever since.”
Marotta’s voice has been heard by Central New York’s race fans for over 40 years. Back in 1948, the legendary Chris Economaki left a long time impression on 6 year old Joe Marotta. “It was my first race, the first race after World War II. My dad brought me to the New York State Fairgrounds to see the Champ Cars. The sights, sounds, smell, dust and excitement, I was hooked then and there. Chris Economaki was on the mic that race, and I remember the slang he used like “throttle jockeys” and “speed merchants”. I use those still today. I met him at Charlotte a few years ago, and we had a conversation about that race and I told him I still use his terms. That was a fun conversation.”
The list of tracks Joe has announced at is as legendary as his race calls. He has called races at Fulton, Spencer, Lancaster, Shangri-La, Weedsport, Rolling Wheels(where he was the first ever announcer), the New York State Fairgrounds(since 1972, the first Super Dirt Week), Utica-Rome, 5 Mile Point, Can-Am, Lebanon Valley, Stafford, Thompson, Cornwall, Brockville, San Air, Nazareth, Pa (asphalt), Orange County, Eldora, Erie County Fairgrounds, Charlotte Dirt Track, Hagerstown, and Oswego Speedway.
His weekly Saturday night stomping grounds have been at the legendary Oswego Speedway since 1992. Joe shares the microphone with another legend in the announcing booth, Roy Sova. “When I first started there, people told me there was no way we would last together,” Joe laughed. “We have a great time there, and Roy may just be best announcer I have ever worked with. We have never had a cross word, and have become great friends. It’s been a great ride, and I enjoy each and every Saturday night at Oswego.”
While local race fans are familiar with the tones of Joe’s voice, they may not be as familiar with all the work he does away from the tracks. He is always on the lookout for new divisions, new sponsors, or different avenues he thinks may help the local speedways. 45 years experience on all sides of the track give Joe the unique perspective on what just the race fan or teams may find appealing.
Sunday morning’s, you may think Joe may be resting his voice between the Oswego race on Saturday and Weedsport on Sunday. No rest for Joe, as 52 weeks a year, he hosts Central New York’s most popular motorsports radio show on WTLA-WSGO 1200-1440AM. He brings in special guests, catches up on results, and has promotes the Central New York racing scene each week.
“It’s an honor to go in the Hall of Fame with Jack Burgess,” he continued. Jack was the best. We were friends and had a lot of fun together. I have been lucky, I’ve worked with a lot of great people. Roy, Jack, and Warren Ruffner at Reading are the three most awesome announcers I have ever worked with. Guys like Shane Andrews and Gary Montgomery have been really super too. I’ve been a really lucky guy.”
With so many races he has called, some have to stand out more than others. Joe picks up the story from there, “Jack Johnson’s first Syracuse win sits in my mind. Another one is Danny Johnson’s first Super Dirt Week win does too. I saw Danny’s car smoke with a couple of laps to go. Nobody else in the booth could see it, and they thought I was building drama. I told them, ‘No, I see it.’. The checkered flag was coming out, and Danny’s car was smoking terribly and blew the motor as he crossed the line. I just said ‘there. I did see it’” he laughed. “Oswego is just a thrill too. Announcing there since 1992, we’ve had a lot of fun and there is just an excitement about the place.”
While he will be inducted in the HoF, there is a strong supporting cast that goes in along with Joe. Wife Barbara, daughters Tammy and Michelle and son Joe have been alongside Joe every step of the way. “I wouldn’t have been able to do it without Barb,” graciously said Joe. “It’s been 40 years Memorial Days, 4th of July, Labor Days, and weekends at the race track. Barb and the kids were at the tracks working together at the T-shirt shacks, novelty stands, or wherever they were needed. Their support has been incredible. I have been a blessed guy.”
“It’s a pretty cool thing,” Joe says as he begins to tell a story. “When my 2 grandchildren from my son Joe, go to the Hall of Fame, both their grandfathers will be in the Hall of Fame, myself and Jimmy Shampine. How cool is that?”
Ironically, this isn’t the only Hall of Fame Joe Marotta will be part of. He was inducted in the Candy Hall of Fame in Hershey, Pa in 1994. He was nominated by a state club, and accepted by a national committee and voted in for all his tireless efforts in the candy industry for over 35 years.
“It’s always exciting,” Joe says of still going to the track some 42 years after picking up the microphone for the first time. “That’s the reason I do it. I look forward to the spring, look forward to the big races, it’s just fun. There isn’t a better sport anywhere.”
Congratulations to all the DIRT Motorsports Hall of Fame 2008 honorees!