Bill Sauls Memorial 48 Race
2024 Northwest Pro4 Truck Series

Next Memorial Race: South Sound Speedway 08/10/2024

Written by Dick Bones, Jr.

“There is no higher honor than to win the Annual “Bill Sauls Memorial” event for the NW Pro 4 Trucker….”

    The Late Mr. Bill Sauls.  The eldest of six siblings, Bill was raised in Wimauma, Florida.  There, he was good enough to earn a college scholarship in Baseball, where he later spent time with the Boston Red Sox Organization.

    He later married after joining the U.S.A.F. serving in various States, England and Viet Nam before landing at McCord AFB and living in Tacoma, Washington before purchasing a home in the Puyallup South Hill area.
    Bill retired from the U.S.A.F. with many a stripe.  Before that however, he started racing oval track Jalopies and then a ’57 Chevy with the former Spanaway Claimer Auto Racing club which became the Stock Car Auto Racers in the early 1970’s.

    It was said that his red, white and blue ’57 Chevy complete with stars would stand up and salute during the National Anthem!  It wasn’t long before Bill’s orange number #48 was battling with both the A.R.I. and S.C.A.R. Super Stocks along with the Open-Comp NW Drivers Challenge of the day.  Always placing strong, Bill Sauls became the 1977 and 1979 S.C.A.R. Super Stock Champion.

    Mr. Bill Sauls was a clearly spoken man of purpose that also became president of all S.C.A.R. racing groups and worked for years as Track Manager for Spanaway Speedway.  He always enjoyed a good debate!
As once common, Bill’s kids also worked at the Race Track with good duties, such as Sweep Crew.  Once old enough to race, son Mike took over behind the wheel of another claiming group, the Compact Auto Racers also of Spanaway Speedway.  Eventually, Mike stepped up to the S.C.A.R. Sportsman class and became the first second generation racer ever to become Champion.

    Late Model Championships followed for Mike, but Mr. Bill Sauls was not idle.  With local compact racing coming unraveled, Bill hit the road with the start of today’s Outlaw Compacts.  It’s told he was a “Lifetime Member” of that group.  Several of today’s NW Pro 4 Trucks were past members and officers of the Outlaw Compacts.

    Unhappy with the rising costs that had removed many a former Super Stock or Late Model racer that just left the sport and the lack of new blood into the sport, seemingly uninterested in other local track offerings with dwindling or ceased mass production vehicles (cars) suitable for short track to build from; Bill Sauls turned to what he knew was currently mass produced, sturdy for the rigors, could be made fully adjustable by the racer and opting for the narrow tire and less weight of the 4-banger engine.
The TRUCK!  Bill started day one with his new truck class to travel.  He even built one for himself after years gone from the driver’s seat.  His purpose was to expose truck racing not only to race fans, but to local tracks and their local racer as well as a time proven logical step to the future of Short Track racing.

    Mr. Bill Sauls was eventually inducted into the Spanaway Speedway Racer’s Hall of Fame along with the Late Rebel Jackson; the first of such.  Rebel came to us via Fort Lewis as a G.I...

    Before Bill left us in the Spring of 2003, while the Money Officer of the NW Pro 4 Trucks, he’d watched grandson Jay come up through the Kart Racing and upon 16 years of age make his oval track debut in a NW Pro 4 Truck.  Jay of course took over for Mike as Mike had taken over for Bill behind the wheel.

There is no higher honor than to win the Annual Bill Sauls Memorial event for a NW Pro 4 Trucker.  None!  His number #48 is retired.