USAC Midget/Silver Crown

The two cars are among the three core racing machines found in USAC, joining the sprint cars as the divisions featured by USAC with a national touring schedule. All three have been mainstays in USAC racing since the organization began competition in 1956.

The Silver Crown car is the largest of the three, and the midget the smallest. That means drivers must master two machines that are similar in design, yet very different in application.

The specifications go like this:
Wheelbase: 96 inches for Silver Crown, 72 for midgets.
Horsepower: Ranges from about 800 in Silver Crown to the 380-390 range in midgets.
Weight: A Silver Crown car weighs 1,500 pounds, while the midget tips the scales at 900.

“The biggest difference is the handling, the quickness of the steering,” says Coons, who drives Toyota-powered machines in both divisions. “You’re typically on a smaller track with the midgets, and for the small tracks you need to be able to get turned into the corner quickly, which requires fast steering.

“The size difference makes the Silver Crown car (pictured) react much more slowly, particularly in getting turned into the corner. You have to get used to the fact that while the midget is very responsive and quick, and the Silver Crown car takes a little longer simply because it’s that much heavier and longer.

“When you go to a track like Eldora Speedway (in Ohio) where we run both cars, you can really see the difference.”

Coons, a native of Tucson, Ariz. who now lives in Indianapolis, grew up racing midgets.

“Going to the Silver Crown car was a learning experience, which I’m sure is true for everybody,” he says. “One of the biggest things you face is much longer races with the Silver Crown cars, and that changes the nature of things quite a bit.

“You run 30 laps on a smaller track at a typical midget race, but a Silver Crown race is typically 100 miles. With the short race you don’t have to conserve anything, and there really isn’t any strategy in that regard. But with the Silver Crown car, you’ve got to be very conscious of tires, because you have to be there at the end. That’s probably the biggest learning curve.”

Coons’ RW Motorsports Silver Crown machine utilizes a 355-ci naturally aspirated pushrod Toyota V8 engine, with methanol fuel delivered by mechanical fuel injection. His Wilke-Pak midget utilizes a 166-ci naturally aspirated in-line four-cylinder pushrod Toyota engine, also powered by methanol fuel and featuring mechanical fuel injection.

“The cars are actually very similar in terms of acceleration,” says Coons. “The Silver Crown car is heavier, of course, but with the larger engine it’s also got much more power. Both cars take a little bit to get going, kind of a momentum thing. Both are very different than a sprint car, where you press on the gas and it goes right now.”

There is also a cultural difference between the two, says Coons. Midgets have long been one of the earlier steppingstones on the development path, while Silver Crown is much more of a destination series.

“With the midgets you’ll see younger kids in the cockpit, because that’s more of a development car,” he says. “The Silver Crown series is typically a destination type series, where it takes some time and experience to work your way into a ride, and it often takes a while before you get there. That is always changing, though, because we’re seeing younger guys getting into Silver Crown cars because they want to get that experience as soon as possible.”

But in many ways, Coons says, the cars are probably more alike than they are different. Both utilize a tubular steel frame, a similar disc brake system, a consistent driveline design, and a suspension with only subtle differences.

“Most of the Silver Crown cars today use a coil spring suspension on all four corners, while the midgets still use a torsion bar rear suspension on the dirt. Basically, though, there is little difference. The basics are definitely the same.”

While Coons has become proficient in all three types of USAC cars – he is a USAC Triple Crown champion, earning titles in all three National divisions ¬– he admits that midgets still hold a special place in his heart.

“Midgets are still very fun to drive,” he says. “They always have been. Growing up racing them, that’s what I’ve been doing the longest, and I’ve probably always felt more comfortable in the midget than anything else.

“But it’s hard to say they’re my favorite, because I’ve become more comfortable in the other cars as well.”