Ouse, a dry lakes record holder in a Marmon, was tired of racing against the clock and, with the help of Bill Dehler and Emmett Malloy, built a race track blocks away from the dirt lot that would become Ascot Park.

Sprint cars were introduced in 1953 and the name was changed in 1957 to the California Racing Association, or CRA.

In 1978, Gary Sokola became president and instituted several new safety measures, including the national 410 limit, the tire rule and padded roll cages.

Lewis tried expanding the sport across the state and various parts of the country, increasing the purse and spending thousands on advertising out of his pocket to keep the show going.

Stars include Bob Hogle, Billy Wilkerson, Jimmy Oskie, Bobby Olivero, Rick Goudy, Buster Venard, Dean Thompson, Bubby Jones, Brad Noffsinger, Eddie Wirth, Rip Williams, John Redican, Ron Shuman, Lealand McSpadden, Richard Griffin, Billy Boat, Mike Kirby, Mike Sweeney, Stan McElrath and many more.