Whether they’re coaching athletes at North Newton Junior-Senior High School or working in Indianapolis, Tim Loughmiller and Lloyd Vencel always seem to be at some type of track.
Loughmiller has worked every Brickyard since the annual race was brought to Indianapolis in 1994, and Vencel has missed it only once. The duo has also worked security at Indianapolis 500 since 1987.
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They also have been able to acquire some priceless behind-the-scenes NASCAR stories.
Loughmiller and Vencel said they witnessed an incident in 2003 that they still laugh about. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth went to visit the suites of their respective sponsors, Budweiser and Smirnoff, at nearly the same time. When Kenseth was ready to leave, he tried to take an elevator to the ground level but he was rejected by NASCAR officials who were holding the elevator for Earnhardt Jr. After Kenseth was denied access to the elevator, he walked right past Loughmiller and Vencel to take the stairs.
“At the time, Kenseth didn’t have as big a name,” Vencel said with a laugh.
And then there was the memorable rain-delayed race that Dale Earnhardt Sr. won in 1995.
“When they restarted the race, people started coming back. Many of them had left,” Vencel said. “People told me they were crossing the medians on the highway and turning around to get back to the race.”
Loughmiller and Vencel said they’ll keep working the races as long as they’re able to.
“It’s probably close to minimum wage, but we don’t really do it for the money,” Loughmiller said. “You get to see a lot of interesting things. We also enjoy the races, so that’s probably why we’ve stuck with it all these years.”
