Porter able to succeed in both sports and politics

If Margaret Mitchell was correct in saying "politics make strange bedfellows," then adding sports to the mix must be doubly odd. But Mike Porter not only transcended both but embraced them equally.

A member of the West Virginia House of Delegates since 2004, Porter died last week from complications following heart surgery. Referred to as a tireless advocate for the coal industry, Porter owned a trucking business in Princeton, W.Va., and was a U.S. Army veteran.

But for racing fans, he may be best remembered as the driver who won the first pole in what is now known as the Nationwide Series. Driving a No. 3 Pontiac Ventura sponsored by his own company, Associated Construction, Porter lapped Daytona International Speedway at 184.569 mph to lead the field to the green flag in the 1982 Goody's 300, the first race of the new Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series.

Dale Earnhardt won the race by a car length in front of Georgia short-track ace Jody Ridley, with Porter finishing seventh. Eventual series champion Jack Ingram wound up 31st in a field of 34 starters, which included Sam Ard, Geoff Bodine, Harry Gant, Phil Parsons, Tommy Houston and a young Dale Jarrett.

Speaking of young, 16-year-old Tennessean Darryl Sage made his NASCAR debut at that race, and remains the youngest driver ever to start a Nationwide Series event. Roy McGraw made his first and only series start, while Bob Park -- perhaps better known as Steve Park's father -- finished 34th.

NASCAR added the Sportsman class to its Grand National and Modified divisions in 1950 as a late model division with modifications allowed. Tracks throughout the country had differing rules, all running under the Sportsman banner, which meant drivers could conceivably run in more than 100 races a season at multiple tracks.

The idea of an actual touring series with standardized rules came about when Anheuser-Busch officials came to NASCAR with the idea of sponsorship of the sportsman division. It started out as a division for compact cars, including Dodge Challengers, Ford Fairmonts, Chevrolet Novas, Oldsmobile Omegas and Pontiac Venturas. And the Pontiacs were the overwhelming choice for most of the top teams.

That included Porter, who was 40 at the time. Born in Lashmeet, W.Va., in 1941, Thomas Michael Porter raced late models and sportsman cars locally. According to his obituary, he had won more than 100 late model features. In addition, he had made the trip to Daytona for the season-opening race for the sportsman division on several occasions.

After Daytona, Porter ran 12 more races in 1982, finishing fifth at Richmond and Darlington, and fourth at Martinsville. He would go on to make a total of 88 starts, winning another pole at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Va., in 1985. When he retired in 1992, he had amassed five top-fives and 20 top-10s.

Porter then decided to run his hand at politics, and was elected by the voters of Mercer County in 2004 to the state house of delegates. He was well-respected by his colleagues, like state senator John Shott.

"He ran a coal mine years ago, so he was very sympathetic to the recent problems the coal industry has encountered," Shott said. "He was very passionate about the toll issue. He thought it was completely unfair to the residents of the southern end of the state, and certainly made that known consistently, and would raise that issue many times.

"He was a genuine person that when you met him you felt like you had known him for many years. He was always direct so you always knew where you stood with Mike. He wouldn't play games. He never met a stranger, and he was courteous and friendly to everyone."

As late as this spring, Porter was still apparently being bitten by the racing bug. According to an article in the Bristol Herald Courier written by Allen Gregory, Porter was considering racing at Lonesome Pine Raceway, where his grandson was competing.

Porter told Gregory why grassroots racing still appealed to him.

"What you see out here are your neighbors," Porter was quoted. "You can identify with these guys when they start rubbing fenders. Any more when you go to a Cup race, the drivers are from California or somewhere. This is what I call barnyard or bullring racing. It's fun to watch."

And for NASCAR fans, it's worth remembering drivers like Mike Porter.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.