Racing in the 906

RACING IN THE 906

By Joe Verdegan

Racing In The 906 covers the colorful history of stock car racing in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Area Code 906), and the Soo region of southern Canada.

The book covers all the action dating from the 1950s to the modern day and profiles many popular drivers who battled at tracks in Escanaba, Norway, Marquette and Kinross in the Soo region near the Canadian border.

The book is dedicated to the late Bob Iverson, who passed away in 2018. Iverson, along with Menominee’s Gene Coleman are two “yoopers” inducted into the Michigan Motorsports Hall of Fame. Iverson dominated racing during both the winged Modified and Late Model eras, while Coleman’s mark in racing has been made nationwide through his innovative racing parts business Coleman Machine.

Both the Iverson and Coleman racing families are covered extensively along with Mike and Kris Kelly, Mike Mattson, Allen Yelle and Bark River native Greg Ives, who packed his bags and left the comfortable family business to move to Charlotte to work as a crew chief for Hendrick Motorsports at NASCAR’s highest level.

For many years there were spirited rivalries with the Canadian and American drivers. Canadian standouts Hubie Brazeau and Mike Uhlman are just two of many drivers who are featured in Racing in the 906. More than 200 drivers (past and present) were interviewed for the book, along with track promoters who discussed in-depth their highs and lows in the sometimes crazy, and always challenging business of weekly short track racing.

Soft cover, 211 pages, 32 color & 27 B&W photos.

Racing in the 906

by Joe Verdegan

Price: $20

Shipping: $6 (each additional book $2)