Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame: Randy Brisel

Randy Brisel of Newton is being inducted into the Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame this coming Saturday night. Brisel is a life-long resident of Newton, husband to Judy, father to sons Dustin and Trent, and after 31 years he retired from Maytag. Back in July of 1973 Randy was asked by his supervisor Wendell Winters if he wanted to help with the safety crew for a night at Knoxville. After that first night Randy was hooked. Randy served on the Knoxville Raceway safety crew for the next 40 years, finally hanging up his fire suit at the end of the 2013 season. Only one other member of the safety crew has been inducted before him, Francis “Shorty” Hulgan in 1989. “Shorty” was a close friend to Randy. “That was so cool that Shorty was inducted back then, he was a good friend and taught me a lot, but no one else from the crew had been honored until now, so I didn’t think this was really ever going to happen. I am so honored that I was chosen,” said Brisel. “I’ve seen a lot change at Knoxville over the years, from a wooden grandstand to the facility it is today. I’m proud to have been a part of that, but I’m prouder that racing is way safer today than when I started. So many improvements in the cars, the track, the personal equipment the drivers have now with arm restraints, better helmets and seats, fire protection, head and neck restraints, it has come a long way.”


Being a member of the safety crew is not an easy task. There are hours of training involved that take a serious commitment, and Randy was dedicated being there nearly every race night for 40 years. Helping drivers climb out of crashed race cars and walk away isn’t always easy, and it is especially hard when they don’t walk away. 12 drivers have died at the track in his 40 years of service. The emotional stress that comes with that is difficult to process. “You take those events hard,” explained Randy. “It affects you for days, even weeks. When something tragic happens our crew meets after the races to discuss what we could have done different, the problems that we saw, how we can avoid it from happening again, and we help each other process through that grief like any family would. But 99% of the time there wasn’t much our crew could have done. It’s part of the sport unfortunately, but it makes for some rough times to deal with personally. It’s not for everyone.”

Randy has seen a lot of good times at the track as well. “I am so lucky to have seen so many great and talented drivers over the years. I have always been a big Steve Kinser fan, but to be able to see Jan Opperman, Kenny Weld, Doug Wolfgang, Sammy Swindell, and then guys like Al Unser Jr., Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, and now Kyle Larson move up and compete in NASCAR and Indy Cars, that is pretty cool to have seen all of them. But the best part is the friendships I have made over the years with so many great people around the racetrack. I wouldn’t be getting this award without the support of all of the people on the crew, and the Marion County Fair Board being so dedicated to safety.”

Randy’s son Dustin is carrying on the family tradition of working on the safety crew, now in his second year working there. His other son Trent is also involved in the sport and helps on the pit crew of Brooke Tatnell’s sprint car. His wife Judy of 24 years has been there to support him all the way. “Judy is as big a fan of racing as I am. Before I married her I told her she had to be a sprint car fan, and a Hawkeye fan, and she was and always has been! Judy is our rock in our family. She has sacrificed a lot over the years to allow me to go to the races. Her support has meant so much to me and I couldn’t have done this without her being there with me. She is a great mother to our boys, and now Trent has a little boy, Hunter, who is five years-old, so to have a grandson now makes us so proud.”

Randy is also a passionate baseball fan, and was inducted in the Newton High School Baseball Hall of Fame in 2010. Randy still holds the school record for wins by a pitcher, and his son Dustin holds the school record for strikeouts. Randy has also served as a coach for the Newton Cardinals as the head JV coach and as the assistant coach for Varsity. Randy bleeds red and black, but his son Dustin is now a baseball coach at Woodward-Granger and he and his wife Judy travel to a lot of their games now.

Randy Brisel is certainly deserving of the honor of being inducted into the Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame. The reputation of the Knoxville Raceway Safety Crew across the motor sports industry is known as the absolute best. So many drivers over the years have been injured, but yet were thankful they were under the care of the best safety people in the business. Because of their skills and preparation, they have literally saved lives in several instances, and Randy Brisel was the senior leader of the team. Congratulations Randy!