Cliff Kotary
BornClifford L. Kotary
November 8, 1919
Floyd, New York
DiedDecember 27, 2010(2010-12-27) (aged 91)[1]
Debut season1948
Car number60X
Wins300+
Finished last season1968
Championship titles
1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965 New York State Fair Champion

Cliff Kotary (November 8, 1919 – December 27, 2010) was an American dirt modified racing driver who accounted for over 300 feature victories. He won an unprecedented six straight New York State Fair Labor Day Championships.[2]

Racing career

Cliff Kotary began his racing career at Bennett's Field in North Utica, NY in 1948. He competed successfully at the renowned tracks throughout New York, Vermont, and Canada, including Fonda Speedway NY, Kingston Speedway ON, Maple Grove Speedway NY, Monroe County Fairgrounds NY, State Line Speedway VT, and the Watertown Speedway NY.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8]

In 1960 Kotary won the first of six straight New York State Fair championship events at the Syracuse Mile. His attempt for a seventh Labor Day victory in 1966 ended while he was leading with four laps remaining and the engine broke.[2][9]

Cliff Kotary was inducted into the Eastern Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame, the New York State Stock Car Association Hall of Fame and the Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Clifford Kotary Obituary". The Post-Standard. December 29, 2010. p. 9. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Mosher, Ron (December 30, 2010). "Cliff Kotary, former driver, dies at 91". Observer-Dispatch. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  3. ↑ Wade, Bob (July 25, 1957). "Sports Beat". Daily Messenger. p. 6. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.
  4. ↑ "50 lap race on schedule". The Daily Star. August 24, 1957. p. 8. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.
  5. ↑ "Simek photo". The Daily Gazette. October 22, 1957. p. 19. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via Google Books.
  6. ↑ "Kotary back at track, wins feature 2nd time". The Kingston Whig-Standard. September 5, 1959. p. 10. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Kotary wins fourth feature, sets record for 10 miles". Watertown Daily Times. September 8, 1959. p. 14. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via NNY 360Archives.
  8. ↑ Shaw, David L. (July 10, 2021). "Memories of Maple Grove — The speedway, not the cemetery". Finger Lakes Times. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Kotary defends title: Stock cars vie in title race". The Post-Standard. September 6, 1965. p. 20. Retrieved November 9, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.
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