HAROLD SJOSTROM 2013 INDUCTEE

Harold’s race driving career began in 1961 when he got behind the wheel of a 1936 Dodge coupe which he raced in the “Jalopy” class at Nanaimo’s “Grandview Bowl”. This car’s inline flathead 6 cylinder Chrysler engine would set the tone for Harold’s racecars over the next several seasons and he would become very proficient at getting the maximum amount of power out of this particular type of engine.

For the 1962 season, Harold moved up to the “Stockcar” class and, using his trade as a welder/fabricator to good advantage, built up a 1930 Chrysler coupe which carried the same type of engine that had been in his Jalopy the previous year. His employer, “Morrson Welding and Supply” sponsored this #19 car. Competing at both the Nanaimo and Victoria ovals, he finished 14^th in Island points for the year out of a total field of 33 cars.

Harold ran the same car for the 1963 season, getting a pre-Island season start at a race meet at Vancouver’s “Haney Speedway”and picking up an additional sponsor, “Northview Esso Service” who would continue to support him for the next several years. Finishing consistently well throughout the season, he ended up in 5^th spot in the standings. The long-running Stockcar class was cancelled at the end of that season and a new “B-Modified” class was started up for the following year.

Building a “roadster” style car for the new division, which was again powered by a Chrysler “6” engine and featured modified body panels from a 1958 Morris “Minor” car, Harold had his best season to date. He finished 2^nd in points at Western and was Points Champion at Nanaimo where he also won MIARA’s “Most Main Events”, “Most Popular Driver” and “Sportsman of the Year” trophies.

Harold had an inventive side which showed itself not only in his racecars which often featured unique and innovative features of his own design, but also in his own welding/fabricating business where, among other things, he creating a “third axle” system for logging trailers to allow them to carry more logs per trip.

Despite being kept very busy raising a family, building axles, modifying trailers and running his own shop, he found time to put his building talents to work on a new “A” Modified for 1965, another for 1966, and a new offset “B” Modified for the 1967 season. This offset and undersprung roadster worked very well for Harold with him winning the “InterCity Championship”, competing with drivers from Langley, Victoria, and Nanaimo and setting new track records at all three tracks as well as picking up wins at other speedways.

Moving up in 1970, Harold built a new car for the “CAMRA” (Canadian American Modified Racing Association) circuit which carried a 301 cubic inch Chevy V8 engine.

From 1970 to 1975, Harold ran in the “A” Modified division and competed at Portland, Boise, Salt Lake City, Edmonton, Prince George, Langley, Victoria, Nanaimo, and also at Williams Lake’s new speedway where he set a new track record before being knocked out of the running with a broken axle.

After this hectic schedule, he was picked by Ken Svendson to drive Ken’s new “09” car, racing in the CAMRA series at many of the same tracks from 1976 to 1978 and adding to his trophy collection along the way.

Harold passed away in Nanaimo on December 19, 2019.