At 62 years old the greatest sprint car racer who ever lived has decided that he’s had enough. After winning more than 600 feature races, claiming the Knoxville Nationals title a dozen times, winning seven Kings Royals, competing in IROC, NASCAR, and the Indy 500, enough was apparently enough. Kinser took the microphone after the race at Lebanon Valley Speedway in West Lebanon, New York and announced to the crowd that they had likely seen his last sprint car effort.

His driving career is pretty incredible if not for longevity for durability. Kinser competed at the highest level of America’s most grueling racing type over a span of five decades. He was racing hundreds of times per year, likely with his bones still rattling from what cow path he had been racing the night before. The guy was feared, beloved, respected, and seen as one of the premier names and draws in the world of sprint car racing. With the retirement of Swindell, Wolfgang, and now Kinser there are some serious holes to fill.

The world of sprint car racing has changed a ton since Kinser started. What was largely viewed as a destination for racers has become the modern day stepping stone for many with the hopes of working their way into an open wheel or NASCAR style seat. While the series can draw star power it is often fleeting as the biggest and most successful names get pulled away with more lucrative and less intense offers of work.

While Kinser’s forays into other types of racing were often short lived they were not entirely unsuccessful. He won an IROC race in 1994 and he managed a 14th place finish at the Indy 500 which is pretty freaking amazing in our book. NASCAR was not as friendly to the man used to pitching his car sideways to turn but he competed with dignity and class there.

We’re not massive dirt racing guys here but Steve Kinser is one of those American racing names that everyone should damned well know. He’s earned every inch of his retirement and the sport of sprint car racing will never be the same without him.