Ten racing legends will be inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame in ceremonies to be held July 1 in the Southern California community of Azusa. The 2011 class is the eighth in the history of the Hall which inducted its first members in 2002. The Hall, founded in 2001, memorializes significant contributors to the sport’s development and history. The latest group brings the Hall’s membership to 105. Joe Ruttman is named from the Inductees from the Modern Era category. Ruttman, Upland, Calif., won the 1980 U.S. Auto Club stock car championship and competed extensively in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 20 seasons. He scored 19 top-five finishes including a third in the Daytona 500. He also won a NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover International Speedway in 1982. His greatest success came in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series where he finished second in the standings in its inaugural season of 1995. Ruttman won 13 truck races — all past the age of 50. He remains the series’ oldest pole and race winner.(West Coast Stock Car HoF PR)(4-8-2011)
