Louis D’Amore

Car Owner
CLASS OF 2011
Veterans Committee Selection

Born just as World War I was winding down, Louis D’Amore parlayed a life of technical training (Boston Trade School), desire and hard work into a very successful stint as a winning car owner in the rough and tumble early days of sprint car racing throughout New England and the Northeast.

In the 1930’s, the majority of sprint cars were basically “home built” utilizing various passenger car and truck parts modified for the main purpose of turning left. Those were the days when a properly massaged Model A Ford, either the A or the B block, could hold it’s own on the local dirt half miles located at the many fairground tracks found in virtually every town and hamlet.

By the late 30’s, Louie completed his first race car at the ripe age of 18 years old. The Dedham, MA neighborhood would never be the same. The early years saw David “Dizzy” Vance as Louie’s primary driver.

The duo honed their operations at tracks such as Weymouth, Marshfield, Brockton, Topsfield, Athol and Northampton in MA, the old horse track at Pascoag, RI and the venerable Keene, NH site as well as others. When the Thompson, CT five eighths miler opened in 1940, everyone was on a equal footing, as this was the first asphalt track in the east. When the checker flew on May 26, it fell on Louie D’Amore’s no. 10 with Vance steering.

Louis J. D’Amore passed away on February 20, 2014.