Frank “Scoop” Vessels, a prominent Southern California breeder of racehorses and the grandson of the founder of Los Alamitos Race Course, died Wednesday in a twin-engine plane crash in southeastern Oregon. He was 58. Before taking over the family’s horse breeding enterprise, Vessels excelled in a different form of racing – off-road trucks. He competed in the Baja 500 and Baja 1000 desert races among others, was voted the sport’s rookie of the year in 1974 and in the late ’70s won a string of off-road class championships. Vessels, also, was among a small group of Southern California truck driver-owners who persuaded NASCAR to add a truck division to its stock-car racing series. He is survived by his wife of 18 years, Bonnie; and three sons, Bryan, Colt and Kash. [Mike Chase and PJ Jones drove for him in 1995. Jones had best finish – 2nd at Tucson/NASCAR PR] (L.A. Times)(8-14-2010)
