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Fiftieth Nationals Entry for Gil Sonner!

Fiftieth Nationals Entry for Gil Sonner!
Gil Sonner and Billy Robison
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
(Eric Arnold) Legendary car owner and mechanic Gil Sonner of Des Moines was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame this year, and will make his record 50th entry in the 2015 FVP Knoxville Nationals. “Gilly” as he is known, has been the car owner of the #47 sprint car since he began racing in the late 40’s and early 50’s in the Des Moines area, and first appeared at Knoxville Raceway in 1955 with driver Lee Pinckney. Sonner is primarily known for his run of success at his home track of Knoxville Raceway, but he has also won sprint car features in 18 different states with 15 different drivers. In addition, he was at the first World of Outlaws event at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in 1978. Sonner was inducted into the Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame in 1986.

After Gilly’s first race at Knoxville in 1955, he didn’t come back to the famed half-mile until 1966, but he hasn’t missed a season at Knoxville Raceway since. The allure of Knoxville is the history and exciting racing that has taken place there, and Gil Sonner is a large part of contributing to that history. In fact, Sonner is as much of a fixture of the Knoxville Raceway as the black zook clay surface.

His first feature win came with driver Jerry Potter in 1979 and continued in the 1980’s with drivers Billy Robison, Rocky Hodges, and Scott Ritchhart. Sonner went on to win races in five decades, with his last win in 2010 with Don Droud Jr. His cars have won races with the World of Outlaws, All-Stars, IRA, and NSCA.

With Rocky Hodges, Sonner won the 1983 Jackson Nationals, which at the time was a premier sprint car event in the Midwest. Sonner stretched his legs a bit from 1995-1999 when he took the #47 full-time with the World of Outlaws, with drivers Johnny Herrera and a young Daryn Pittman. In 1996, Sonner won Eldora Speedway’s King’s Royal with Herrera. At Knoxville he has collected 24 feature wins, qualified for the Knoxville Nationals championship A-Main ten times with eight different drivers, and has won one track championship with driver Danny Lasoski in 1994, winning an incredible ten features that season. It’s an impressive resume on its own, but in addition, Sonner also helped develop two future World of Outlaws champions during that time.

Gil is known for never being in a hurry. He is always calm and collected, quiet, humble, and respected by his competitors. When he has success, he seems embarrassed to be in the spotlight. His race cars are a reflection of his demeanor: simple and laid back. No flashy paint scheme, no chrome headers, just a simple car with a 47 pasted on the side of the wing and tail tank. He has always been a journeyman mechanic, putting together the equipment that he has and making the best of it. He hasn’t always had the funds to be a top contender, but he has always been a contender.

His son Donnie has been by his side all these years working on the cars and is also a member of the Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame. There have been highs and lows for Gilly, with the lowest being the night in 1974 that his brother Burt lost his life racing for him at Knoxville. The brothers had raced together for five seasons prior to the death of Burt, which was a big blow. Because of losing his brother, Gilly never presses his drivers to race too hard or do more than they are comfortable with in the car. He gives them an opportunity to race in his car, yet allows them to drive their way.

At last count over 50 different drivers have bolted their seat in the Sonner 47 over the years. Some of these drivers are famous, some driver names are not as well known. Lasoski, Pittman, Herrera, Jac Haudenschild, Jimmy Sills, Keith Kauffman, Kenny Jacobs, Hodges, Sammy Swindell, Shane Carson, and Terry McCarl are some of the notables. Sonner entered his first Knoxville Nationals in 1966 with driver Everett Henderson. In 2015, the team will compete in a record 50th entry in the event with driver Jeff Swindell.

Longevity, humility and a desire to race are the traits Gil Sonner embodies. They have served him well over the years and his induction into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame is well deserved. Congrats on 50 Knoxville Nationals appearances Gilly, and thank you for being a great ambassador for Knoxville Raceway and sprint car racing!

List of Nationals Drivers of the Gil Sonner #47
Year – Driver – A Main Finish

1966 Everett Henderson
1967 Phil Reece
1968-1973 Burt Sonner
1974 Hank Elmendorf
1975 Bob Fisher
1976 Mike Pinckney
1977 Steve Hainline
1978 Mike Pinckney
1979 Lloyd Beckman (13th)
1980 Jerry Potter
1981 Billy Robison (18th)
1982 Billy Robison (21st)
1983-1984 Rocky Hodges
1984-1985 Scott Ritchhart (1984 18th)
1986 Jim Grafton
1987 TJ Giddings
1988 Mackie Heimbaugh
1989 (2 cars) Rocky Hodges & Mackie Heimbaugh
1990-1991 Jerry Jansen
1992-1993 Ricky Logan
1994 Danny Lasoski (3rd)
1995 Keith Kauffman (15th)
1996-1998 Johnny Herrera (1997 5th, 1998 9th)
1999 Daryn Pittman
2000-2001 Randy Anderson (2000 21st)
2002 Tony Norem
2003-2006 Matt Moro
2007 Jeff Mitrisin
2008-2014 Don Droud Jr. (2011 17th)
2015 Jeff Swindell