Dave Savage has been involved in Colorado Motorsports for over 50 years as a driver, race car owner, crew chief and sponsor. Dave says he wanted to race “as far back as he can remember”, influenced by seeing drivers like Earl Kouba and Buddy Shay compete in their midgets at Lakeside speedway when he was a youngster. Dave’s first taste of competition occurred when he began drag racing at age 16.
Oval track racing and Englewood Speedway were next in Dave’s story, as he began attending the races there every week while helping his cousin build and race a Figure-8 car. The experience led to Dave “getting the bug” to drive one of the modifieds that were such a memorable part of Englewood’s racing program. He purchased a car from Jerry Hocker in 1971 that was equipped with a Ford 302 engine, painted the number 74 on the side, and “went racing”. He competed primarily at Englewood, with occasional forays to Pikes Peak Speedway and Pueblo’s Beacon Hill track over the years. Fast forward to 1993, and the number 74 appeared on a Late Model Dave built to take on the drivers in this ultra-competitive division at Colorado National Speedway. His son Dan was a Buck Baker Racing school graduate, and it wasn’t long before realizing Dan was, in Dave’s words: “doing better in the car than I was”, so a transition from race driver to crew chief and team owner took place, followed by much success at the track.
Through Dave’s mentorship, hard work, and leadership, the Savage Race team grew steadily, expanding to a two-car operation while improving their place in yearly standings until a breakthrough 2011 season, when they were crowned Track Champion in the Super Late Model Division at CNS and NASCAR Colorado State Champion as well.
Dave’s family has always been central to everything during his five decades of racing. He took his high school sweetheart to the races in their courting days, and they have now been married 52 years. As their family grew, everyone was involved in some sort of competition, including his daughter Jessica Savage-Gallegos in the Legends division and son in law Mike Gallegos racing in several classes of oval track racing. Dave has been instrumental in the development of many other race drivers and teams, always willing to lend a hand, offer needed parts, or provide professional advice to pretty much anyone who asked.
We salute Dave Savage’s sportsmanship, racing skill, and leadership in the sport tonight by welcoming him into the Colorado Motorsports Hall of Fame, Class of 2023!
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