Henry Rogers

Henry Rogers racing career started in 1981, when he and his dad went 50/50 on a $300.00 car to run in the new bomber division at Colorado National Speedway. They shared the car that year, and at the end of the season Henry knew he was hooked and needed his own car to run every race.  During that first season, he rolled his Bomber end over end three times in a crash that netted him an extra $100.00 from CNS track owner George Butland, who told him to be back the next week.  Henry ran two cars in his third season—his oval track car at Colorado National Speedway, and a Fiat Topolino –bodied Altered at the Bandimere Speedway drag races.  After the steering wheel came off in his hands at 138 miles per hour on the drag strip, he decided to concentrate on competing in the Superstock division at Colorado National and on the dirt at I-76 Speedway.  It was a wise move:  Henry was raced his way to three Superstock track championships at CNS in 1989, 1991, and 1992.  His duels over the years with fellow competitor Mike Starnes were legendary, and became the subject of an article in Stock Car Magazine entitled “One of America’s Great Rivalries” in their April 1995 issue.  Henry eventually moved to the Grand America Modified division, where he continued to his winning ways with many quick times, trophy dashes, and main events to his credit.  In fact, one of his favorite memories was created in the modified division, when he entered a national open competition show in Las Vegas, set the track record, then won the main event. His status as a fan favorite continued as he added racing in Sportsman and late model divisions to his competition resume before retiring.  When Henry now looks back on a career of more than twenty years, built on winning oval track events on pavement and dirt, he is quick to credit a long list of many lifelong friends and competitors who helped him along the way, as well as to his family who supported him through the highs and lows.  He has said “no matter how bad we crashed the week before, we were always back for the next race”.  He was known as one of the first guys to help out another racer with spare parts or advice on setting up their cars.  When asked how he would like to be remembered, he states: “Hopefully, my fellow racers thought of me as a clean, fair driver. Also, that they could depend on me for help with whatever they may have needed”.  For his career of racing accomplishments, they will now also be able to remember him as a member of the Colorado Motorsports Hall of Fame!