If not for one very special GT American winged outlaw micro sprint car, the Key and Clauson families may never have crossed paths.
Instead, the two are inextricably linked, thanks to one race car and one driver who taught the racing world the meaning of the term “a racer’s racer.”
On New Year’s weekend in 2003, Bryan Clauson took a red-and-white GT American house car, built by the Golobic family, to the Tulsa Expo Center to compete in the Tulsa Shootout. Bryan’s father, Tim, was the East Coast representative for GT American and the upstart driver was one of the company’s house drivers.
Competing in both the Stock and Winged Outlaw classes, the younger Clauson started on the front row of both main events and won the Winged Outlaw feature. It was the beginning of a long legacy for that particular chassis.
After a change in ownership for several years, the car was eventually sold to Texas’ Scott Key, who bought it for his son, Noah, to drive as the youngster made the move upward from the mini-outlaw karts to the bigger micros.
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As Key learned the ropes in a car that Clauson once drove, the two racers eventually met at Miami County Speedway in Peru, Ind., where Clauson, who wasn’t racing that night, took time from his duties with another team to give Key some pointers on his race craft in the micro. It was the beginning of a bond between two racers.
With Tim Clauson continuing to aid Scott Key with setups and Bryan Clauson furthering Noah’s driving style behind the wheel, both families remained in touch over the next couple of years.
Fast-forward to Aug. 6, 2016.
The Keys were competing at I-44 (Riverside) Speedway in Oklahoma, while Bryan Clauson was driving a USAC midget at the Belleville Midget Nationals in Kansas.
On their way home, the Keys received a phone call that altered their world every bit as much as it did the rest of the racing community.
“We actually raced this car at I-44 Speedway the night that Bryan’s accident happened in Belleville,” said Scott Key. “We were on our way home when I started getting texts and phone calls from people who were there (at Belleville) that were getting information. You didn’t want to think the worst, but it put a lot on our minds during that drive.”
That night the Keys made a commitment to honor their friend, colleague and racing mentor.
