GREG WHEELING TO RETIRE AS TRI-CITY FLAGMAN
by Brian Spaid

August 18, 2006 

   The end of an era will occur at the Applefest 100 on Sept. 17 when Greg Wheeling ends his tenure as a full-time flagman in western Pennsylvania.

   Some nights, drivers like the decisions Wheeling makes. On other nights, drivers are adamant he made a wrong call. Love him or hate him, however, the Franklin man has earned the respect of drivers and fans alike after 26 years on the flagstand at area tracks.

   “I started working at race tracks in 1979 and flagging in 1980,” recalls Wheeling, who is the sales manager at AlturnaMATS in Titusville. “I worked for a guy named Hap Jones.”

   Back in those days, track officials were often handpicked by a leader of a group of officials. That leader would then contract his officiating crew at the tracks. When Wheeling started, Jones was considered to have the elite team of officials

   “Hap contracted with the big three tracks at the time, Lernerville Speedway, Mercer Raceway and Tri-City Speedway. In 1980, Hap retired after many years of service. His flagman was Kent Michaels, and he retired with Hap. That’s how I ended up in the flagstand at Mercer.”

   Wheeling brought years of racing experience to the job. Starting in 1972, he raced stock division cars at local speedways. He then competed in the old Mini Stock class. Although he earned several feature wins, Wheeling realized that the sport was simply too expensive for him to continue.

   “It became apparent that I couldn’t afford to do it, and I always thought that I had some ideas to contribute on the way races run. So, officiating was the way to go.”

   That first flagman job at Mercer led to a veritable list of tracks where Wheeling has waved the checkered flag over the years. Eriez, Hickory, Lernerville, Mercer, Motordrome, PPMS, Raceway 7, Sharon, Sportsman’s, Stateline, and Tri-City Speedways have been Wheeling’s weekend home away from home.

   “My longest stint was at Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Motor Speedway (PPMS). I did it there for 14 years. I’ve been at Tri-City for 11 years now since Mike Graham and Roger Crick reopened the track in 1996.”

   Over the years, many memorable moments have occurred for Wheeling. He flagged the first race that current NASCAR Nextel Cup driver Dave Blaney ever competed at Sharon. He was also on the tower at Sharon when Jeff Gordon raced there in 1985 at age 14.

   “When I started, I was flagging for drivers I watched as a kid like Lou Blaney and Jan Opperman. As time passed, my favorite part of the job was watching young drivers learn how to race and become winners. Some went on to national prominence like Chub Frank and Dave Blaney. Others are local heroes.”

   And Wheeling, 50, has watched many of today’s veterans rise through the ranks.

   “Guys like Bob Felmlee, Rex King and Kevin Bolland weren’t even racing when I started flagging.”

   Then, there was the time all the flags fell on the track.

   “At Pittsburgh one night, I had my extra set of flags on the stand. A gust of wind blew all of them onto the race track, and I had to stop the race. People ask me if I’ve ever dropped a flag. Try dropping an entire set of them on the track. That’s embarrassing enough.”

   Over the last several years, Wheeling started to cut back from his duties. Until five years ago, he worked every night of every weekend as a flagman. He gradually weaned it back to just Tri-City about two years ago. Now, it is time to call it quits.

   “I’ve done this a long time,” said Wheeling. “My work now requires a lot more of my time. It is a very demanding job. I also think it’s best for the sport for a young person to come in with new ideas and fresh shoulders.”

   As a result, former Sportsman Modified racer D.J. Schrader of Endeavor is starting to learn the ropes from Wheeling at Tri-City.

   As Wheeling departs, other family members will end their time as track officials too. His wife, Thea, will stop scoring the races. Their daughter, Leslie, will move on to bigger and better things as she graduates from college. Even Wheeling’s brother, Steve, will end his tenure as assistant flagman.

   “My entire family has been supportive over the years with my love of this sport. Thea’s always been there. My kids, Nathan and Leslie, grew up with auto racing. Steve has been my right hand man for years and very supportive of my efforts to run the show.”

   Wheeling will still be around to fill-in once in a while, but not on a permanent basis.

   “For years, I was the first official at the track and the last one to go home. I can’t do that anymore, but I know it will be hard to stay away. Racing’s been in my blood for too long.”

   And that’s why there will always be a permanent invitation to unfurl that checkered flag one more time.